For those of us who love to travel, hike, and explore, a camping tent is the most basic need we all should have in our backpack. It provides us with shelter and a safe place to sleep and rest, in places where there would be none at all, especially during situations wherein we’re stuck in the middle of nowhere.
The camping tent has been around for centuries, going as far back as Medieval Times when knights and soldiers depended on them for shelter as they fought wars and battles.
Thankfully today, it has evolved to be compact and serve a number of uses and shelter anywhere from one to a whole family safely. As more and more people begin to appreciate the joys of being in the outdoors, a camping tent becomes even more popular.
Varieties of the camping tent
If you are shopping for a camping tent, they fall under two general classifications based on their size and utility.
- The first one is the small and light recreational tents, which are frequently used by travelers and backpackers. They are small and compact enough to be portable and carried on one’s backpacks, even when traveling long distances.
- The second type of camping tent is the larger and heavy-duty tents, which are designed to be brought around by vehicle or a car.
Three things to consider in buying a shopping tent
- A good tent should be able to keep you dry. This means you are protected from moisture and rain from both the top of your head, the sides, and even the moisture on the ground. Most tents today should be equipped with a waterproof rain fly and floors sewn into the bottom.
- You should be able to have proper ventilation within your tent. Ventilation can be provided through mesh sides and openings throughout that will keep air flow regular but not too big that it will allow the entrance of bugs if you are camping in a location that is especially notorious for the presence of little critters.
- Lastly, a good camping tent should be easy to set up. This will come in handy during times of sudden downpour, or when you will need to leave a location in a hurry. Look out for tents that are typically made out of basic frame and dome.
Other considerations when selecting a camping tent:
- The size of your tent should be determined by the number of people, use of living space, number of sleeping areas, internal height, and size of living space.
- The intended use of your camping tent – these can range from backpacking, wherein the weight and the compactness of a tent would be crucial; touring, wherein the ease of use and setup would be important factors, or a static camping trip where you will be staying in one place for one or two weeks in a time, and are seeking a comfortable experience;
- Lastly, camping season. A camping tent that you will be using in the winter would be very different from one that you will be using in the summer.
