How do I choose my tent? Practical 6-step guide

How to find the perfect tent for your outdoor adventures? We’ll guide you in 6 steps to choose the model that suits your needs.

Are you looking for a tent for your forthcoming outdoor adventures? You may be a little lost with all the possibilities and products currently on the market. Let us reassure you: whether you’re a fan of occasional camping or passionate about trekking and mountain adventures, there’s bound to be a tent made for you. Follow our 6-step guide to make the best choice of tent according to your requirements, the number of campers to accommodate, the type of tent structure, and your comfort and consumption choices. And as a bonus, we’ll answer all your questions!

Which tent is ideal for camping, hiking, trekking or a road trip?

You don’t intend to go walking with your tent: how do you choose a camping tent?

You don't need to carry your tent on your back and you're pitching a "static" camp. The weight of your equipment will be much less important. So you can prioritise space and comfort by taking a camping tent. They generally have a living space or a rest area. You can therefore cook there, eat there, take shelter in the event of rain and of course sleep there. It's the best choice if you intend staying for several days in the same place, or if you don't have to walk very far with it. There are different options available, and your choice can be made depending on the number of beds required and type of pitching you prefer.

You plan to walk with your tent: how to choose a hiking or trekking tent?

Is the purpose of your trip to hike for several days and take your tent in your backpack? The two most important criteria for finding your tent are its weight and compactness. In this case, we recommend you opt for a bivouac tent, light and compact. You can easily slip them into your backpack or hang them on the straps. Perfect for a few days’ bivouacking, practical to pitch and dismantle, they are generally around two kilos lighter for a two-person tent). There are also models that can accommodate one to four people. Several models are available: lightweight, ultra-light, for use in warm or temperate weather, etc. These tents offer, for the most part, a space for sleeping and a small space for storing your belongings.

You’re travelling by vehicle: should you take a "classic tent" or roof tent?

What you’ve read above applies to "classic" tents, which are pitched on the ground. But this is also valid for roof tents, with a few additional criteria! How do you know if your vehicle is compatible with a roof tent? Will your roof bars hold up? Can you install a roof tent on a van without roof bars? Our article on finding the perfect roof tent should give you some answers. And if you already have all the information you need, we particularly recommend four models from our Quechua "roof tent" range:

- the MH900 model, which has a compact, inflatable, quick and easy structure and Fresh & Black technology;

- the MH500 Fresh & Black roof tent, if you prefer a more classic installation;

- the MH500 Fresh & Black version adapted to vans

- or the latest addition to the roof tent range: the Quechua x NaïtUp Fresh & Black hard-shell roof tent, compact, quick to set up and open!

How do I choose my tent? Camping or trekking tent?

How to choose the right tent according to the number of campers?

Choose a small tent for 1, 2 or 3 people

There are ranges of tents that are more or less spacious, depending on the number of people they can accommodate. This criteria is important as it allows you to choose your tent depending on the number of bedrooms available inside. Are you planning to camp with 1, 2 or 3 people? Go for a small tent with a single bedroom, without a living room or common area and easy to set up. Practical for creating a base camp that can be set up and taken down easily, these are the least bulky and lightest models. These tents usually have a small separate area, called an porch, where you can store your belongings and shelter them from the dew or heavy rain.

Choose a large family tent for 4 to 8 people

If there’s a whole "bunch of you", we recommend a large camping tent to avoid being cramped! Models that can accommodate 4 to 8 people generally have a living area and one or more separate bedrooms. They offer plenty of space in which you can sometimes even stand up. Another criteria to take into account concerning the rooms, is their size: assess their width carefully in relation to your camping mattresses. If they touch the walls of your tent when you’re asleep and these in turn touch the flysheet, moisture may seep inside the tent. So it's best to allow a little margin!

What structure to choose for a camping or bivouac tent?

At Decathlon, there are three ranges of tents, distinguished by their pitching technologies:

- 2 Seconds tents, with instant assembly;

- pole tents ;

- inflatable tents.

Each technology has its advantages, corresponding to different needs. We’ll explain everything!

Quechua Fresh & Black 2 Seconds easy camping tent

Your priority is speed: three cheers for the Quechua 2 Seconds tent range

The 2 Seconds pitches in the blink of an eye. Its folding up system is now just as fast to save time when you dismantle your camp. The advantage of this instant tent is based on its self-deploying structure, which saves you having to set up the poles. However, compactness isn’t its strong point: once the tent is folded away in its cover, its cylindrical format can be difficult to transport and store. So, to solve this problem, the 2 Second Easy variant was developed to retain the ease of pitching and folding, while being more compact.

You’re more likely to go for a classic tent and have a low budget: so take a look at our pole tents

Is the pole tent system more what you envisage for trips outdoors? The classic tent, set up by inserting poles into the flysheet, is made for you! Colour codes now facilitate this operation, so making mistakes is no longer possible. This solution isn’t the fastest, but it’s an opportunity to share a first friendly (or wet, depending on the weather) moment together at your campsite, making the most of prices that are more affordable compared to other tents. These tents are ideal for a trek : they offer the best compactness/lightness ratio.

You prefer space and practicality: choose a large inflatable tent

With inflatable beams instead of poles, a few pumps, and voila! The inflation and deflation of these tents is extremely fast. They also have the advantage of being quite spacious, providing a large everyday living space. But this benefit also means it takes up more space compared to other tents. And watch you don’t forget to bring your pump !

What level of comfort are you looking for in a tent?

Do you prefer bivouacking, camping or glamping?

Indeed, even when you sleep in a tent, you have several comfort options ! To put it simply:

- bivouacking is the minimalist version of camping, which is generally done out in the wilderness during a trek or hike over several days;

- camping is an intermediate mode, which can be done in a campsite, or out in the wilderness;

- glamping is the "luxury" version of spending nights in a tent, which is closest to nights spent in your own bedroom in terms of comfort.

The more comfort you want, the more you can turn to spacious, heavy tents, to be comfortable in them, both day and night.

If what bothers you, in a tent, is waking up at dawn and the stifling heat under full sun, we have a solution to remove this thorn from your side (or your tent)! You can opt for a tent with a fabric featuring our Fresh & Black technology. This innovation, developed by our teams, ensures you have a good night's sleep and wake up as late and fresh as possible. The Fresh&Black technology consists of several fabrics to make up the tent fabric, each with their own quality

- the Fresh fabric reflects the sun's rays to maintain the correct temperature in your tent (-17 ° C felt compared to a conventional tent ;

- the Black fabric ensures much better darkness at any time of the day.

Late mornings and afternoon naps are waiting for you!

Waterproofness and wind resistance, two priorities for sleeping in a tent

To have a good night's sleep in your tent, its waterproofness and wind resistance are essential qualities! At Quechua and Forclaz, all our tents are designed to withstand bad weather. Because good tent design is about more than just good looks and practical pitching, our tents undergo a set of wind tunnel tests to ensure that they can withstand winds of 60km/hr to 90km/hr. They also go "under a shower"; to make sure that no drops of water are left in the tent after 3 hours under 200 litres/hour/sqm of water to ensure that they are waterproof. But be aware that you too have a role to play: the primary source of moisture inside your tent is condensation. In order to avoid getting wet when you wake up, we recommend that you always choose a tent with a double flysheet and that you ventilate it well.

Buy your tent new or used from Decathlon?

Once you’ve found the perfect tent for your next adventure, you still have a choice to make! Buy it new or used - what‘s the best option? It all depends on your consumption preferences and requirements. If you regularly go camping or bivouacking, it’s worth investing in a new tent that will last for many years. And that you could potentially lend to your loved ones! It’s also always useful to have a small 2-person tent like a 2 Seconds or MH100 at home, for an impromptu camping trip or last-minute festival. However, if you rarely camp or want to try out a new tent model, buying second-hand is a useful solution. At Decathlon, you can find lots of second-hand products, checked to guarantee their useability, then put back on sale at a reduced price.

FAQs : everything you need to know about tents

What’s the easiest tent to pitch?

The tents in the 2 Seconds Quechua range have been created to make pitching easier and save you time! In "classic" or "Easy" version? It's up to you to decide according to your requirements and options in terms of price. In any case, at Decathlon, these are our easiest products to set up for sleeping in a tent.

Check out the 2 Seconds tents

How to choose the best tent for camping or trekking?

What are the best Quechua and Forclaz tents for camping and bivouacking?

As usual, the best camping tent is the one that best meets your needs and is long-lasting. Of course, the best tents are also those designed with quality materials, laboratory-tested against bad weather. At Decathlon, our teams regularly go camping, hiking, trekking, etc. So they’re also users, which helps them create products that truly meet your needs. Different camping tent options are available, depending on the number of sleeping spaces, pitching method, configuration of the rooms and level of comfort you require.

What’s the best brand of camping tent?

We’d be hard pressed to tell you our camping products aren’t the best. Not because we love our brand so much that we lose all sense of objectivity. But because we’re convinced our tents meet many quality criteria and have lots of advantages for your outdoor adventures (practicality, speed of installation, price, weight, comfort, resistance to wind and bad weather, etc.). Moreover, when you choose our tents, you choose essential guarantees for your outdoor adventures!

Everything you need to know about our guarantees

Where are you allowed to pitch a tent overnight?

The idea of going to pitch your tent as you explore and hike is quite tempting, right? But in real life, you risk settling down in a place where camping is prohibited or not very suitable. So, to help you know where to pitch it, we tell you everything in our special article!

How to choose the right camping spot for your tent

And do beach tents exist?

If you’re reading this article and the only tent you’re looking for will spend most of its days on the beach, sheltering you from sun and wind, we’ve still got what you need! We suggest you go for a beach tent to use when relaxing by the sea.

Find a beach tent

Here you are at the end of this 6-step guide to finding the tent that will meet your needs. Whether you go for a lightweight bivouac tent for your hikes, a spacious camping tent to provide enough room for your whole family, or a roof tent suitable for a road trip, the best option remains the one to match your adventures. All you have to do now is discover your next spot!

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How do I choose my tent? Practical 6-step guide

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