My Favorite Family Camping Tents: Best Large Family Camping Tent Reviews

by Mary
(California)

I own two tents.

One tent is supposed to fit 2-3 people, but only fits one adult comfortably. It is a dome tent, and is a hexagon footprint shape (which is why it only fits one comfortably). I take this one on camping trips when I want some privacy.

My other tent is supposed to fit 3 people, but it fits two comfortably.

It has a rectangular footprint so it is easier to fit multiple people in it. I bring this tent on the camping trips where I expect to share a tent.

Both tents have mesh ceilings and rain flies to go over the mesh. I always put the rain flies on for privacy, and also to keep the inside of the tent from getting damp. Sometimes the walls of the tent get damp anyway, if I am somewhere humid.

All my camping trips have been inside of California.

My favorite places to camp are: Russian Gulch State Park, Lassen Volcanic National Park, and Yosemite National Park.

Both tents often have somewhat stubborn zippers; the zippers get stuck on the tent material when you try to zip/unzip them. Neither is good for rain; only the rain fly part is waterproof; the walls are not.

I've never had any problems with water seeping through the floor part, but I've also been careful to never go camping when it rains.

I bought both tents at Big 5 Sporting Goods.

The hexagon-shaped tent is somewhat hard to fit back into its canvas carrier. The rectangular tent is much easier to roll up and fit into it's nylon stuff sack. However, I like the dome tent better because I get a lot of space, and there is something more pleasant about having the hexagon shape.