Festival season is upon us once again and alongside packing your best outfits there’s the important decision of choosing the right festival tent. We asked some festival veterans to try and test some of the best on the market…
It’s that time of the year, the sun is out, everyone’s in a good mood and we all want to listen to some live music…yep, it’s festival season!
There are more and more festivals popping up in the UK and abroad every year, which means it’s worth investing in a decent festival tent.
Gone are the days of buying the cheapest supermarket festival tent with the plan of leaving it behind at Glastonbury or expecting it to break while you’re still at Reading or Leeds Festival, we now need festival tents that can do the distance and last numerous outings.
That said, finding the right festival tent can be…erm intense (sorry!), the market is flooded with festival tents of all sizes, shapes and technical prowess…so how do you know which one is right for your festival experience?
We’ve got you covered, Devinder Bains is our festival expert and here to help, having visited Glastonbury 19 times, Latitude 10 times, Reading and Leeds Festivals 10 times and multiple other multi-day festivals over the last 25 years.
The festival veteran and her mates tried and tested the best festival tents around this year…
Best festival tents at a glance:
- Best individual tent:Snugpack
- Best two-person tent: Quechua
- Best pop-up tent: Geediar
- Best overall:Coleman
Snugpak
- Snugpak Ionosphere one-person tent, £157.41 from Amazon – buy here
Pros: Super light, really easy and quick to put up, can fit in, or tie above, travelling rucksack
Cons: The pegs can be a little tough to put in – ask a neighbouring tent for a mallet
Rating: 5/5
This super light, fuss-free festival tent is for anyone who doesn’t want a big bulky tent to weigh them down on the way to and from the festival, someone who is happy with a very cosy space for two with space for a few belongings or a comfy space for one.
The Snugpak weighs just 1.2kg and can easily fit in a large rucksack and is ideal for people who are cycling to a festival. It also only takes ten minutes to put up, starting with a No-See-Um Mesh Mosquito Net inner and then a water-resistant fly sheet outer with waterproof seams.
For a one-man tent, you can definitely have two adults sleeping in there but that does get a bit tight if you have a lot of belongings – but could work well for a couple who are at a single-night festival and only intend to sleep in it for a few hours.
The tent is very quick to put up – it took just ten minutes on the first attempt and just under ten to take down and squeeze back into the bag. This is a really good shout for festivals that have a long walk from your car or public transport to where you’re supposed to pitch, and for those travelling to festivals abroad such as Primavera.
The tent opens from a large side door which works well for ventilation and there’s plenty of small pockets for storage inside the tent too.
Who is it best for?
- Single occupancy for someone who still wants a fair bit of space for their belongings.
- Those with a long walk to a camping area at places like Glastonbury.
- Two mates who don’t mind squeezing in because they don’t plan on sleeping much.
Quechua
- Quechua 2 Man Pop-Up Tent in 2 seconds, £99.99 from Decathlon – buy here
Pros: Super quick to erect, great ventilation mechanisms, black-out tech, very roomy, good price
Cons: Can get a bit hot but that can be rectified
Rating: 5/5
The best thing about this festival tent? It actually does pop up into shape in a matter of seconds once you’ve unclipped the straps that are keeping it under wraps.
Allow another five minutes to go around the tent and peg in the guy ropes. This festival tent scores full marks for ease in putting it up and full marks again for taking it down and packing it away, which can be one of the most annoying things about festival tents.
Folding it back into the circular bag only took five to ten minutes the first time and just five minutes the second time we put it down. Unlike a lot of cheap pop-up tents that seem impossible to fold back into the bag, this one had clear instructions and the folding was made a lot easier with the addition of straps and clips that held parts of the tent in place.
For a two-man tent, this festival tent is incredibly roomy and could squeeze in three people for sleeping, and there’s plenty of room in the porch for all your stuff. There are lots of inside pockets for bits and bobs like ear plugs and torches, the tent itself is made up of an inside and outside fly sheet and has total black-out, ideal for those who want a lay-in without the sun shining in.
The only downside is that on a particularly hot day, the tent did get quite warm due to the blackout material but luckily the tent has ventilation sections all around the tent that can be unzipped to let in air.
Who is it best for?
- A couple who want a bit of room
- Three mates who don’t mind snuggling up a bit.
- Those attending shorter festivals who don’t want to spend an hour at the festival putting up a tent when they only need it for one or two nights.
- Festival-goers who like a late night and a lay-in the next day.
READ MORE:
Geediar
- Geediar Automatic Pop Up Tent, £50.00 from Amazon – buy here
Pros: Very quick to erect and dismantle, cheap, UV sun protection, light
Cons: A bit small for four people, single layer only – tent walls aren’t protected from heavy sideways rain
Rating: 4/5
This is the cheap and cheerful option and although it’s not as quick to pop up as the versions we’re used to that practically spring out of their cases.
The Geedier festival tent comes ready-made with all the poles already fitted in, folded up and their ends bunched together, you lay out the edges of the tent and then lift the centre of the bunch of poles and they all ping into place.
And just like that you have a single-layer dome tent with a small waterproof roof layer that you can clip on. It’s advertised as big enough for three or four people but I think four would be very snug, especially with belongings, and a night or two without a shower might make things a little awkward even amongst friends!
Saying that, the tent does come with doors on two walls as well as mesh windows so ventilation is good. This is one of the lighter festival tents and comes in a very easy carry bag that you can sling over one shoulder – perfect for the long walk to the pitch site.
This is a really good budget option for someone who is not sure how many festivals they will attend over time and doesn’t want to spend too much money but still wants a good quality tent that is easy to put up and take home.
Who is it for?
- Someone who’d rather spend their money at the festival than on a tent
- A couple who want a spacious tent
- Festival-goers who are certain there’s going to be no heavy rain
Kelty
- Kelty 4-Person Freestanding Rumpus Tent, £219.95 from Amazon – buy here
Pros: Light and airy, very roomy for a four-person, lots of pockets inside, waterproof
Cons: Tricky to stretch over the fly sheet once the inner mesh of the tent is up, needs careful navigating the first time you put up, can be quite bright during the early morning sun
Rating: 4/5
This is a good technical festival tent that comes in a fairly large bag but has an easy carry strap so it doesn’t feel super heavy as you’re walking over to where you want to pitch up (which can be quite a distance at a lot of festivals).
It does take a bit of brain power to put up as there are lots of mechanisms: there are two types of clips, velcro straps and two layers of tent that need to be erected: a mesh inner using the poles and then a waterproof fly sheet is stretched over afterwards with the help of the aforementioned clips, another pole for the entrance, and held in place with the pegs and guy ropes.
It took about 15-20 minutes to put up with two people the first time around but we did get this down to 15 minutes the second time. It’s a mere ten minutes to get down and it’s easily stuffed back into the spacious bag.
This tent is definitely worth the effort to put up as you’re left with a really roomy tent that’s almost tall enough to stand in, with a huge porch area that totally opens up to allow in air.
Who is it best for?
- Festival-goers who have a lot of stuff.
- Those who want a little more comfort and space.
- Small family off to somewhere like Latitude or Camp Bestival.
Coleman
- Coleman Cortes Octagon 8 tent, £219.99 from Outdoor World Direct – buy here
Pros: Very fairly priced, easy to put up and take down, incredible ventilation on hot days, nice modern shape and design, waterproof, the storage case is on wheels.
Cons: Heavy to manoeuvre in areas that aren’t “wheel friendly”, nothing to tie the brilliant doors open with
Rating: 5/5
This was probably our favourite festival tent of the ones we reviewed.
Despite its size it was fairly straightforward to put up because of a simple colour-code system, taking one person just 20 minutes on their own, and about 10-15 minutes to take down and pack away in the long wheelie case that it comes in.
And it really does need the wheels as it comes in at a whopping 28kg, so it’s super heavy and probably better suited to festivals where there’s not a huge walk over rough terrain, or for those who don’t mind putting in a bit of effort to get utter luxury at the end.
The tent is well thought out and very roomy even for an eight-man tent and could double up as a gathering place for you and your mates out of hours, as the height means it’s easy to stand in and the space means there’s room for plenty of camping chairs.
The festival tent has actual pull-open style doors on either side that are made using poles so you don’t need to keep zipping and unzipping, the tent can be used with just the inner mesh body or once the waterproof fly sheet is added, it can be tied back the whole way around for ventilation.
This tent really does provide a huge inside space, but if you’re sharing and need privacy – there’s a detachable inner partition that can be added, as well as extra ground sheets for dirty wellies inside or can be used to sit outside when it’s dry.
This is a cool tent for a bit of luxury – especially if it’s raining outside.
Who is it for?
- Festival-goers who want total comfort and space at a multi-day festival like Glastonbury and don’t mind putting in a little bit of effort for it.
- Family of festival-goers who need more room.
- Show-offs who want the coolest tent at the festival.
Luna
- Luna Bell Tent (Oxford Ultralite 100gsm), £409 from Boutique Camping – buy here
Pros: Super spacious, luxury glamping feel, fabric has been treated with water, UV, mould and rot-repelling agent, the canvas on the Oxford Light version we had does let in a lot of light but you can swap for other fabrics when purchasing
Cons: The pole in the middle of the tent could be a hazard late at night if you walk into it, very heavy, can be complicated to put up the first couple of times
Rating: 4/5
This festival tent comes with a total wow factor, throwing it back to the hippie days of Woodstock and the very first Glastonbury festival with its yurt/teepee feel.
It can sleep eight people or be used for a family, or a very spacious glamping option for two or three. Once it’s up, it ticks all the boxes, roomy, bright, hippie cool, easy to stand up in, easy-open doors and ventilation…but be prepared to put in the time and effort to get it up.
There’s no cheating with this festival tent, it’s heavy…16kg, piled into a bulky bag with long straps and every peg and guy rope needs to be properly placed and tightened to give the bulbous look of the tent – and indeed to hold it up. Putting the tent up involves laying out the tent on the floor, pegging in all the edges and then centres around an extra large metal pole that sits inside the middle of the festival tent and holds up the tent’s ceiling, then smaller poles are added inside, followed by lots of tugging and pulling of guy ropes around the outside – it took two of us 45 mins the first time around, we did eventually get this time down to 30 minutes once we knew what we were doing.
The tent comes with a cute little bag marked ‘Spares’ and also a mallet – which really is needed for the bigger pegs. So, it takes a bit of thinking and effort, but once it is up, it’s bright, airy, and huge in size.
The door sits open with a little porch over the top and two round mesh windows let air in on either side of the door. This is very much for glampers who want next-level luxury and don’t mind getting their hands dirty.
Who is it for?
- Those who have VIP camping or a parking space very near their pitch so they don’t have to carry the tent that far.
- For longer festivals like Glastonbury where a couple of hours effort at the start means up to five nights of total comfort
- Festival-goers who want that hippie/glamping vibe
Quechua
- Quechua 4-Man Inflatable Blackout Tent, £449.99 from Decathlon – buy here
Pros: Quick to put up, pretty minimal effort until putting in pegs etc, can be put up by one person
Cons: Pump is not included, expensive, heavy
Rating: 4/5
A lot of festival tent makers have cottoned onto the fact that festival-goers need, and want, tents that go up as quickly and easily as possible and are equally easy to get down.
This Quechua inflatable tent was made with that in mind. You start by folding out the tent into its large rectangular shape, pop in some pegs around the edges and then pump air into valves around the tent until it stands tall!
One pole is fitted onto the inside roof of the tent, a few more pegs outside and Bob’s your festival uncle! The tent has three sections – a middle area which is high enough to easily stand in and two bedroom areas on each side. The tent sleeps two people in each bedroom compartment with ample space in the middle area for bags and belongings.
Annoyingly, the pump to make all this magic happen isn’t included with the tent and needs to be purchased separately, there’s one available on Decathlon for £24.99. The festival tent has black-out tech to ensure a dark night’s sleep by not letting in any lights from passing torches or bright sunshine in the early hours, the tent is also wind and waterproof.
On the downside it is a very heavy tent at 18.5kg and comes in a big rectangular bag, so probably not ideal for a festival that needs a long trek before you pitch.
For those where camping is not far, or is actually next to the car, then this is the perfect festival tent.
Who is this best for?
- Festival-goers who don’t want to waste time putting up a tent
- Revellers who have a bit more money to spend on their tent
- Good for festival families
- Group of friends as the separate compartments allow some privacy
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