Portable Tents For Camping

Dome tents are the most portable tents for camping. They provide the best usable space to capacity ratio with the most manageable weight. The Coleman SunDome tent has a 7 x 7-foot floor space and a center height of 52 inches, providing spacious comfort for two people at less than 10 pounds. This is a tent you can carry into the backwoods for a private getaway camping trip. Since it's freestanding, you can set it up anywhere, even if the ground is hard and rocky.

Sometimes the best way to get away from it all is to go when no one else wants to go...like when it's raining. Camping in the rain gives you a whole new view of the natural world, as you watch the wilderness being washed clean and listen to the rhythm of the rain on the tent roof. You can do that with the SunDome, because Coleman's WeatherTec system of weatherproofing keeps rain out. It's a portable tent that will keep you dry and happy.

So if every tent can be packed up and moved, what makes one tent more portable than the next? The most obvious answer to that is size and weight. Taken that way, the most portable tents would be those itty-bitty tents that backpackers use. But you really need to balance size and weight with serviceability. The most portable tent in the world won't do you any good if you can't fit everyone into it.

The first consideration, of course, is size. Once you know how much room you need to fit everyone and their gear, the other factors of portability become important. If you want a portable tent so you can get away from the crowds, it will need to be light enough to carry at least a short distance; otherwise, you'll find yourself driving right up to a prepared tent pad like everyone else in the campground.

The Kelty Trail Dome tent sleeps four people at a weight less than nine pounds. Internal storage pockets organize your small gear; loops at the ceiling provide a place to attach a gear loft for even more storage. Kelty makes those itty-bitty backpacking tents that hold up to many nights on the trail, and they put the same quality into their larger tents. Their attention to construction detail makes the Trail Dome a portable tent that is a pleasure to use.

Just because you can pack up and carry a tent doesn't make it totally portable. Sure, you can take it anywhere, but a truly portable tent is one you can set up anywhere. A lot of tents have to be staked down and guyed out in order to stand upright. A dome style tent is freestanding. Attach the poles, clip the tent to the poles, and the tent stands there waiting to serve you -- even if the ground is too hard to pound in a tent stake. Not only that, but if you don't like where you put a dome tent, you can just pick the whole thing up and move it to a better spot without even taking it down. Now that's portability!

Another important feature of a good portable tent is easy set-up. You want to enjoy your time away from it all, not struggle just to get the tent up. You don't want to have to drag along all kinds of poles and stakes and mallets. The fewer pieces, the better. Dome tents go up fast and easy with just a few poles, so you can get on with your fun camping activities.

The ALPS Mountaineering Taurus dome tent sets up with just two poles. The tent attaches to the poles with clips, so set-up is fast and smooth. Find a lumpy spot under the tent? Just pick the whole thing up and set it down on a better spot. The Taurus has two doors, so there's no climbing over your partner in the middle of the night. Each door has a full vestibule to store gear, giving you that much more room inside the tent. And that rainy weather that kept everyone else away? It won't bother you, with the Taurus' full rain fly.

Even all these portability features won't help you get away from it all if you can't afford the tent. Camping has always been one of the most inexpensive get-away activities, but these days it seems that even camping can be pricey. It can be hard to justify the cost of a high-end camping tent when you struggle to make ends meet day-to-day.

You may not need the toughest tent on the market. If you only camp once or twice a year, and you only go when the weather is guaranteed to be nice, a cheap camping tent can serve you just as well. Think twice, though, before buying an off-brand tent from the discount store shelf. It may work fine...or it may fall apart while you're setting it up. How can you be sure when there's no quality history or a company to back it up? A better way is to look online. Find some cheaper tents and read reviews by other campers who have used the same gear. Then you can buy with the confidence that the tent will do what you expect it to.

The Mountain Trails tent fulfills the requirements for a portable tent, and it does so at a very affordable price. It's a freestanding dome tent that sets up fast with shock-corded fiberglass poles. This tent offers something a little different: with the Stow-n-go system, the tent itself is the duffel for the poles and stakes. Make sure to check the size measurements carefully to be sure you'll fit inside comfortably. Here's a good tent for the occasional camper. It really is possible to enjoy the great outdoors and some time away from the hustle and bustle without breaking the bank.