We love this tent’s removable floor, two large doors, eight massive windows, and seven humongous storage pouches. It packs tons of space and features into a functional, good-looking design. Most instant tents are so easy to set up that you don’t need an instruction manual. They have pre-attached ozark trail instant cabin poles, an integrated pole system, or at least poles that are easy to install. Most rainflys, if they aren’t already attached, should also be fairly simple to install. If you can’t put your instant tent up in a few minutes, its design is flawed—or you didn’t buy an instant tent.
The T4 Hub is our favorite instant shelter because it’s stable, weatherproof, and full of conveniences. The best thing about this shelter is that it’s completely self-contained so that you can say goodbye to bundles of bungee-connected aluminum poles — no more assembling, crisscrossing, bending, or clipping. Instead, to set up the T4, plop it on the ground, pull on each of the four sidewall handles until the wall pops into place, and then lock in the rooftop with a push.
Starting bright and early, we have you covered with the best camping stoves and a top-rated camping coffee maker to get breakfast cranking to reading by a top-rated lantern in your tent at night. While this review focuses on car camping, we have also tested some of the best backpacking gear for those interested in ditching the car and the crowds. To find more tents, see our review covering the best tents of all kinds. Pop-up tents are meant to be easy, quick and a one-person operation. With a larger tent, like the Core 9-Person, you may need a hand or two, but even the four-person tents, like the Magellan Outdoors Pro SwiftRise 4-Person Hub Tent, only took one person to put up.
The Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 is the perfect choice for campsites or occasional short backpacking trips. It’s also great as a solid backup, sitting in the garage ready to toss into the car with a moment’s notice. We pitched it in an impressive 4 min 30 seconds and have improved on that time as we’ve learned the design. This tent has an all-mesh build for fantastic views, and the fly can be configured in multiple ways, allowing for both scenery and quick protection from the weather at any time. Our in-depth reviews also encompass all the camping gear you need to set up the ultimate base camp.
But, when graded solely on its ease of setup and many convenient accessories, the T4 scores very well and is very easy to use. Setting up and tearing down camp can make or break your trip. We have all been there, rolling into camp at 11 pm, tired and ready to relax — the last thing you want is a fight with your tent or your partner about the tent. We took one for the team here and got the frustration out so you can be prepared. We also noted whether each tent easily fit back into its bag, the total packed size, and the packed weight. On the flip side, if you are looking for a small but extremely versatile tent, the Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 packs tons of value into a little package.
This process is a lot different from the standard tent where you unfold the tent, snap the poles together, and either attach the poles to the tent or slide them through the fabric channels. I also tested the Bushnell Preserve Series 4 Person Instant Cabin Tent, but the interior poles were too long due to manufacturer errors. My wife and I struggled immensely to get the two side poles ozark trail shower tent in, so much so that one of the poles (which had no flex) snapped during the process. The manufacturer is correcting this issue, so if you do decide to try out this tent, set it up at home first to verify you’ve received the correct poles. Pitch a truck bed tent right in the back of your truck to keep your sleeping bag off the ground and be ready to get up and go whenever you need to.
I did not continue to set up the screen porch (which has no floor) or put the rainfly on. I did go inside the tent to stand up and not hunched over and noticed the mesh ceiling with lots of ventilation. I’m sure this tent is good during a wind storm and rain/condensation issues.
Canopy tents and screen houses are great ways to create food preparation areas as well, so consider taking one with you on your next camping trip. Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right (the first time). It is also important to consider the way in which the tent poles attach to the tent. Many of our picks use grommet attachments, which are more secure and simple to repair than key attachments if anything should break.