Hiking Backpack Zone

Camping doesn’t have to be very expensive, there are many different designs of cheap tents varying in terms of size, shape, materials, build quality and intended use. Your choice of design will mainly depend on how many people will be sleeping in it, and whether you will be camping on a purpose-built camp site or camping in the wild, and some commonly found inexpensive types are discussed here.

Possibly the most widely chosen type is the Dome Tent. You can get a lot of space and headroom for your outlay, they are not particularly heavy for the amount of room they give you and resist the wind well. Normally they are easily and quickly pitched but the small types are not very spacious plus you can’t stand up in them.

Pop Up Tents are a recent design, and are some of the cheapest tents, single-skin models can be very fast to erect, you remove the tent from its carrying bag and it will spring open to full size then you peg it out and that’s it. Double-skinned models are a bit different, and require the outer to be fixed over the popped-up inner before pegging.

Tunnel-shaped tents, known for obvious reasons as Tunnel Tents, are supported by a semi-circular arrangement of hoops which give good strength. They range from small models for 2 people up to large models for 10 or more people.

Frame Tents use a steel frame to support the outer tent, with the inner tent being attached to form the sleeping areas. Frame tents are very strong and give plenty of headroom and living space but tend to be more expensive, heavy and can sometimes be slower to erect.

Lightweight Tents are popular with backpackers, where the tent must be carried in the backpack along with other camping equipment. These tents usually sleep just one to two persons, and don’t have enough height to enable you to stand up, stronger models are used for wild camping especially in the mountains.

There is a huge variety of tent designs, many not falling into the categories here, some being a combination of two or more of the common designs. When it comes to choosing the right tent, it has to be big enough to sleep everyone in your party, and light enough for you to transport by your chosen means, either in car or on foot. If in doubt, get advice from a good tent retailer, some cheap tents are extremely good value and can make for a low cost trip away.

To find out more about camping in cheap tents, have a look at Peter Martin’s site and find out tips on choosing a tent.