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fruitofthewomb
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Oh! Yes!! We bought one last year, and absolutely LOVE it!!

 

We are only a family of 4, but my DH is 6'4 and wanted something he could stand up in. He can stand up in this one, with a foot to spare!!

 

It was easy to set up, and the first time we used it, it rained the whole time. No leaks :)

 

Let me go find it, and I'll link it....

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http://www.amazon.com/Browning-Camping-Horn-Family-Hunting/dp/B00BPZCIL8

 

Ok, that's the one.

 

I agonized and researched for months before picking this one, and I'm so glad I did. It's bigger than it looks in the pictures. We were able to fit 2 queen size air mattresses in it, plus room for the toddlers pea pod, with room to spare.

 

ETA- you could definitely fit a family of 7 in it. It has a separator that you can zip down the middle for two seperate areas- you could fit all 5 kids in one side.

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When looking for a tent, a couple of principles to keep in mind:

 

Any fly that doesn't completely cover the  tent isn't going to protect you in the rain, so skip those fly that just look like little hats on a tent.  Also, if you have a full fly it means a large amount of the tent body is screen, which means your tent will breathe well at night.  When everyone sleeps inside the tent, they will expire a great deal of moisture.  Inside a non-breathable tent, it can seem like you woke up inside of a rainstorm, because it all condenses on the tent walls.

 

Another thing to keep in mind....those numbers that tell you how many can sleep in a tent are a LIE.  It will fit that many people, in mummy bags laying up against each other.  If you don't mind camping that way, fine.  But if you want a place to sprawl out and read or something during a rainstorm (or if your kids tend to argue just because they touch each other), you want to account for space this way: for every two people, add a space.  So for two people, you want a 3 person tent.  For 5 people you want a 7-8 person tent.

 

Some tents have an exterior "porch" area.  These are awesome and worth the money.  Throw a tarp on the ground and keep your bags in the porch area.  It frees up a lot of area inside, while keeping things handy (instead of going to the car to get something).  It's also nice to take shoes off on the tarp and keep the inside of the tent cleaner.

 

A tip: each morning (if it isn't raining) take the fly off of the tent and drape it somewhere to dry. Open the sleeping bags and let "body humidity" evaporate from them.  This will allow the sun into your tent to dry things out.  If you have boys, like I do, you will be thankful for the odor killing power of the sun.

 

Here's a couple of examples of good ones:

 

http://www.kelty.com/p-799-airlift-6.aspx?category=tents-shelters

 

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Camping/Tents-Shelters/View-All-Tents|/pc/104795280/c/104779080/sc/105517980/Cabelas-Outfitter-Series8482-XWT-Xtreme-Weather-Tent-150-10-x-10/713881.uts?destination=%2Fcategory%2FView-All-Tents%2F105517980.uts&WTz_l=undefined%3Bcat105517980

 

We have that Kelty and it's a trooper.  The Cabela's one is a bit fussier to set up, but it is a seriously heavy duty tent and I sometimes wish we had gotten it.

 

My 6'2" can stand up in both of them.

 

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We have an 8-person tent that we used last summer in a 4 week long camping road trip to multiple national parks in different climates. We LOVED it. It is R.E.I brand, which was a change for us but it is very good quality. It also has the two separate compartments that can be divided up, and has a little storage area out the back. You will need a footprint and a fly as well.

It is plenty big enough for 7, and your hubby will be able to stand up. I agree the specs on how many 'men' fit into most tents is very exaggerated typically, but this one really would. We also discovered you can turn most bodies under 6 feet 90 degrees and it is more space in this particular tent.

We used it primarily for a family of 3 with a lot of climbing gear and a wheelchair, but did pack in the cousins for 4 days in it. We had 6 children under age 14 able to sleep comfortably in one of the vestibules, with 2 adults and a blender-child in the other:)

http://m.rei.com/product/810168/rei-kingdom-8-tent/?cm_mmc=cse_PLA-_-pla-_-8101680018&mr:trackingCode=D63CD925-D358-E111-BC1B-001B21631C34&mr:referralID=NA&mr:device=m&mr:adType=plaonline&mr:ad=52774014400&mr:keyword=&mr:match=&mr:filter=70389944200&msid=cU589dOA_dm%7Cpcrid%7C52774014400%7C

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REI Kingdom 8 is AMAZING.  We have never looked back.  Its a breeze to set up, fits our family of 6 with plenty of room, and it's just dreamy.  We got ours during their memorial day sale, which made it a little less pricey, and we got the garage attachement as well - it makes camping so convenient.  We put a little toddler potty in the vestibule so no one has to go tromping around at night. 

 

Seriously, this tent is the bees knees.  We've had it a few years now and it still looks brand new, even with lots of southwestern/sandy/cactus camping and crazy wet rain camping (we stayed totally dry, btw :D ). 

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http://www.amazon.com/Browning-Camping-Horn-Family-Hunting/dp/B00BPZCIL8

 

Ok, that's the one.

 

I agonized and researched for months before picking this one, and I'm so glad I did. It's bigger than it looks in the pictures. We were able to fit 2 queen size air mattresses in it, plus room for the toddlers pea pod, with room to spare.

 

ETA- you could definitely fit a family of 7 in it. It has a separator that you can zip down the middle for two seperate areas- you could fit all 5 kids in one side.

I have already looked at that one & really liked it. Have you been through rain with it? Is it easy to set up?

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REI Kingdom 8 is AMAZING. We have never looked back. Its a breeze to set up, fits our family of 6 with plenty of room, and it's just dreamy. We got ours during their memorial day sale, which made it a little less pricey, and we got the garage attachement as well - it makes camping so convenient. We put a little toddler potty in the vestibule so no one has to go tromping around at night.

 

Seriously, this tent is the bees knees. We've had it a few years now and it still looks brand new, even with lots of southwestern/sandy/cactus camping and crazy wet rain camping (we stayed totally dry, btw :D ).

That does look awesome! What exactly is the garage and vestibule attachments? And someone said you had to buy the fly but I can't find that info...

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I have already looked at that one & really liked it. Have you been through rain with it? Is it easy to set up?

lol, yes! The only time we have used it was in October, and it rained the whole time. We actually set it up in the rain. It didn't take long at all. We did set it up at our house once before the trip, so we knew what set up was like. My husband did most of it himself, I just helped a little.

 

I wish I had used that kiwi water repellent stuff, but even though we didn't, there weren't any leaks. It rained almost nonstop for two days and we were nice and dry. The kiwi stuff would have repelled more water and made the material more dry, and we could have shaken it off when it was time to leave.

 

But since we didn't use it, the material was damp when we put it away, so when we can home we had to set it up again in the sun to dry- which didn't take long.

 

I feel the tent was money well spent.

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lol, yes! The only time we have used it was in October, and it rained the whole time. We actually set it up in the rain. It didn't take long at all. We did set it up at our house once before the trip, so we knew what set up was like. My husband did most of it himself, I just helped a little.

 

I wish I had used that kiwi water repellent stuff, but even though we didn't, there weren't any leaks. It rained almost nonstop for two days and we were nice and dry. The kiwi stuff would have repelled more water and made the material more dry, and we could have shaken it off when it was time to leave.

 

But since we didn't use it, the material was damp when we put it away, so when we can home we had to set it up again in the sun to dry- which didn't take long.

 

I feel the tent was money well spent.

Thank you! I like the price of this one & good to know it held up well.

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That does look awesome! What exactly is the garage and vestibule attachments? And someone said you had to buy the fly but I can't find that info...

 

The vestibule comes with it, and it's just an attachment to the back of the tent that has no windows or floor, just a covering.  It's a great place to put bags when it's dry and where we put our little travel potty. 

 

The garage attachment is something you buy separately, and it operates like the vestibule, except on the front end of the tent and it has a flap that you can open to the entrance to the tent.  That is where we put a couple camp chairs to take our shoes off and where we put a little lifetime table to set our lantern and other things on that we want accessible, but not out in the open or in the tent with us.  It's a good little place to hangout when you want to be out of the tent, but under cover.

 

You also need to buy a footprint, its a tarp that goes underneath the tent and helps keeps the bottom of the tent dry.  You can technically do without it, but you will stay MUCH drier if you have one.   :) 

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The vestibule comes with it, and it's just an attachment to the back of the tent that has no windows or floor, just a covering. It's a great place to put bags when it's dry and where we put our little travel potty.

 

The garage attachment is something you buy separately, and it operates like the vestibule, except on the front end of the tent and it has a flap that you can open to the entrance to the tent. That is where we put a couple camp chairs to take our shoes off and where we put a little lifetime table to set our lantern and other things on that we want accessible, but not out in the open or in the tent with us. It's a good little place to hangout when you want to be out of the tent, but under cover.

 

You also need to buy a footprint, its a tarp that goes underneath the tent and helps keeps the bottom of the tent dry. You can technically do without it, but you will stay MUCH drier if you have one. :)

Thank you! That makes sense now. Do you know if it will fit in regular state/national park campsites? Do any of these monster tents fit in those sites?

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When looking for a tent, a couple of principles to keep in mind:

 

Any fly that doesn't completely cover the tent isn't going to protect you in the rain, so skip those fly that just look like little hats on a tent. Also, if you have a full fly it means a large amount of the tent body is screen, which means your tent will breathe well at night. When everyone sleeps inside the tent, they will expire a great deal of moisture. Inside a non-breathable tent, it can seem like you woke up inside of a rainstorm, because it all condenses on the tent walls.

 

Another thing to keep in mind....those numbers that tell you how many can sleep in a tent are a LIE. It will fit that many people, in mummy bags laying up against each other. If you don't mind camping that way, fine. But if you want a place to sprawl out and read or something during a rainstorm (or if your kids tend to argue just because they touch each other), you want to account for space this way: for every two people, add a space. So for two people, you want a 3 person tent. For 5 people you want a 7-8 person tent.

 

Some tents have an exterior "porch" area. These are awesome and worth the money. Throw a tarp on the ground and keep your bags in the porch area. It frees up a lot of area inside, while keeping things handy (instead of going to the car to get something). It's also nice to take shoes off on the tarp and keep the inside of the tent cleaner.

 

A tip: each morning (if it isn't raining) take the fly off of the tent and drape it somewhere to dry. Open the sleeping bags and let "body humidity" evaporate from them. This will allow the sun into your tent to dry things out. If you have boys, like I do, you will be thankful for the odor killing power of the sun.

 

Here's a couple of examples of good ones:

 

http://www.kelty.com/p-799-airlift-6.aspx?category=tents-shelters

 

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Camping/Tents-Shelters/View-All-Tents|/pc/104795280/c/104779080/sc/105517980/Cabelas-Outfitter-Series8482-XWT-Xtreme-Weather-Tent-150-10-x-10/713881.uts?destination=%2Fcategory%2FView-All-Tents%2F105517980.uts&WTz_l=undefined%3Bcat105517980

 

We have that Kelty and it's a trooper. The Cabela's one is a bit fussier to set up, but it is a seriously heavy duty tent and I sometimes wish we had gotten it.

 

My 6'2" can stand up in both of them.

Thanks for links & advice! I like the Kelty but not sure if it's big enough. I think the cabelas is a little beyond our price range. We have a few other supplies to buy.

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Thanks for links & advice! I like the Kelty but not sure if it's big enough. I think the cabelas is a little beyond our price range. We have a few other supplies to buy.

 

That's ok.  My point wasn't necessarily to steer you to a particular tent, but to give some examples of good ones.  Keep shopping, you'll find the right combination of features and prices.

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We have the king creek 6. There are 4 of us, but it is workable since the vestibule can store gear. We bought it at rei and it was the previous years model, so it was marked down. We also bought the footprint for it. I love having the footprint, no more trying to fold tarps just so. Otherwise we probably would have gone with the rei kingdom.

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No. Wal Mart is only local option. I would have to drive more than 2 hours for a store like Costco

 

Walmart has the Ozark Trail weatherbuster tents, that I like okay. Definitely want hte "Weatherbuster" ones though, to prevent leaks, if you go with that brand. 

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Thank you! That makes sense now. Do you know if it will fit in regular state/national park campsites? Do any of these monster tents fit in those sites?

Ours has fit in every state park we've been to. We did go to one in NM last year where we couldn't out up the vestibule or garage, but the tent itself fit fine.

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Following.  We've had a Columbia tent for years that is no longer being manufactured and we need to replace it.  DH is a firebug when we camp, and we've just had a few too many years where the fire pit was too close to the tent.  That, and last year the one working door zipper stopped working.  So it's time for a new one.

 

DH is 6"6", so it needs to be tall.  I want a palace when we camp, but I don't want to pay an arm and a leg for it.  I'm appreciating the suggestions so far!

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http://www.amazon.com/Browning-Camping-Horn-Family-Hunting/dp/B00BPZCIL8

 

Ok, that's the one.

 

I agonized and researched for months before picking this one, and I'm so glad I did. It's bigger than it looks in the pictures. We were able to fit 2 queen size air mattresses in it, plus room for the toddlers pea pod, with room to spare.

 

ETA- you could definitely fit a family of 7 in it. It has a separator that you can zip down the middle for two seperate areas- you could fit all 5 kids in one side.

 

This is identical to our Columbia tent.  Columbia stopped making tents and sold the design.  It really is a wonderful tent, I just wish ours had lasted longer.  

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