Best Backpacking Tents

Tent Features

Now time for the fun part, looking at all the features tents have to offer. Different manufactures and brands all offer different things. Which is why it’s worth checking out what they are, and what it means for you.

Take a look:

Ultralight

Ultralight tents tend to pack down a lot smaller than your average double-walled tent. This usually results in the tent being lightweight (I know it’s in the name again), which is highly important when you’re traveling long distances.

Heavy backpacks can take its toll on your knees and back; it’s the constant bouncing pressure as you walk. So, if you can shave off any weight off the tent, then it’s a good idea.

Let me explain:

That being said, ultralight tents do tend to be far more expensive than their cousins. And to make it worse, at times, there not even that much lighter. As technology progress, manufactures can adapt their gear to shave weight off.

So, what weights can we expect from ultralight tents?

• One Person Tent: Two Pounds
• Two Person Tent: Three Pounds
• Three Person Tent: Four Pounds

Size & Space

However close you and your friend are, there’s a good chance you don’t want to get woken up by them spooning you. And for this reason, size really does matter.

Here’s the deal:

Backpacking tents aren’t known for being roomy, in fact, quite the opposite. And it makes sense why. Backpackers need something that will fit in their backpack without taking up too much space. The thing is, this results in tiny and cramped living spaces.

Our best option is to test pitch the tent first, and you can do this in a couple of ways. Your first option is to go to a camping store to see if they’ll pitch the tent for you. This way, you can jump inside and get a real feel to it.

Although this might not be an option for everyone. Which brings me to your second option. Find the dimensions online and then map it out with rope in the garden. Now, this isn’t as effective as the first test, but it will give you some idea if the backpacking tent is suitable.

Weight

It’s one of the most crucial factors when buying a tent for your backpacking journey. Remember, you’re going to be carrying the tent around with you for a long time.

If you’ve already been looking into tents before, you might have noticed manufacturers are talking about two weight categories, but what do they mean?

Let me explain:

Packed Weight

This is the overall weight of every part of the tent, including:

• Tent
• Poles
• Lines
• Fly
• Stakes
• Stuff sacks
• Footprint
• And much more

As I said, it literally means the weight of everything in the bag. This is the primary reading you can trust, for reasons that I’ll get into soon.

Minimum Trail Weight

Now, this is reading that can hard to trust for one main reason. The industry does not have a standard to calculate this measurement. This means manufacturers are free to include or exclude an item they deem unnecessary.

For me, and many other people, the minimum trail weight should include all items the tent needs to function correctly.