Giga Tent Barren Mt. 12' x 18' Family Cabin Tent, Sleeps 8-10 4.6 5 3 5
Huge tent, well designed, well made, great value This is our third large whole family tent and also the best so far. When our second one was destroyed in a huge rain storm with 75 mph winds, we did a boatload of research on large tents that could accommodate our whole family comfortably (2 parents, 3 adult children, two younger boys, grandson, and huge dog). One plus in design and construction over the destroyed tent is that none of the poles are connected to each other by plastic "T" or "H" pieces. The connector pieces are metal. seams are very sturdily made as well.The ability to have 4 separate rooms and to stand up inside were high on the list too. This tent has a sewn-in divider splitting it into two rooms (one slightly bigger than the other), and two removable dividers to split each of the two rooms into two rooms (a double air mattress can easily fit in each room). Each half has its own door (on opposite sides of the tent), a large window opposite the door, and a huge window on the side. Ventilation is terrific - great no-seeum roof panels - a big requirement in our southeastern PA area with hot & humid summer nights. The rainfly covers nicely and even has a couple of small clear plastic spots for light to shine through (not alot of light, but some). There are attached pockets for keeping gear off the floor.As we always do, we set it up in our backyard prior to taking it on an actual trip. This is a must as it is a bit confusing the first time around! Once you see how it goes together, it is quite easy and would take my 10 year old and I about 20 minutes or less to set up. DO follow the directions as to the order of putting up the poles/sections. It is easy for two people once you’ve tried it if you follow the order of the directions. However, I would not advise being under the pressure of being at the campgrounds to set it up the first time. (For us, this is true for every tent, even “pup” tents).My son figured out the trick is to have one person hold up the section of frame you're trying to "plug in" to the bottom pins at the sides - otherwise the insertion would be nearly impossible. Also, when putting on the rain fly, attach the side-middle to the fiberglass pole provided for the fly sides prior to securing the rest of the fly, for the same reason. The poles are very sturdy – some are metal and some fiberglass. The fiberglass ones are heavier duty than any on our previous tents and I expect they will hold up well. I would recommend keeping the poles out of the bag with the rest of the equipment and the tent as the poles are quite heavy and this makes picking up the tent and then the poles a one person job. Otherwise, carrying it requires 2 people or one very strong one.I would have preferred to have already backyard tested it in a good rainstorm, but the rainfly is tight enough that it should stay dry. The bathtub bottom is quite deep and should withstand any surface runoff. I haven’t sealed the seams and won’t unless it leaks without doing so. It did withstand 25-30 mph winds with the extra guy wires staked in for the rainfly. I would recommend taking some precaution with the guy wires as they are black and invisible at night. My son and I slept in it on a 25 degree (F) night on an air mattress and another night on pads under our sleeping bags and, dressed appropriately, we were warm. I don’t think the tent keeps much cold at bay, but it does keep some.The only thing negative I can say is that the tent connects to the frame in several places by means of plastic buckles like the ones on high chair safety straps or canvass computer case shoulder straps. One of them broke while we were putting the tent together, but was easily fixed with duct tape (something we always bring along camping). While this was disappointing, we determined not to return or exchange it as this will not affect the function or strength of the tent whatsoever and is about 6 1/2 feet above the ground so unless you're looking for it you probably wouldn't ever notice it. The defect was that one of the buckles was just too tight in its slot and broke while being inserted rather forcefully. I did not view this as enough of a problem to even deduct a star.I will try to update this when we have the chance to have it up in a rain storm (hopefully in our backyard first), to report on water tightness. However it is advertised as “weatherproof” (as opposed to a tent we returned that was “water resistant” and leaked). 12/30/2011
Great Tent... "GO BIG OR GO HOME!!" I just LOVE this tent ! I has a permanent accessible wall between the two rooms and a totally mesh top. It was really easy to set up the SECOND time. Like anything new, I guess the first time is usually frustrating. After I marked the poles with colored tape an letters, we put it together really quick. It is a HUGE tent; we have only 3 in our family, and we like to use one side to put a fold-up picnic table and all our other camping gear. At night, we bring in all of our chairs. Lots of room to walk around, I am 5'7", and I could barely reach the ceiling to hang our lamp! The only concern I have is making reservations for a site without knowing if there will be a large enough, flat area to put it up. We're camping for 7 days in 2 weeks, I guess we'll see how it goes... Can't wait, actually! 07/30/2011
Nice big tent not to hard to put, up quick take down, nice big duffel bag for tent to go back into. The color is not blue on blue with bright red it's a grey cream cooler with dark blue panels and dark red trim. Its great for a big family, its like two tents sewn together in the middle with a great room divider that zippers shut all the way for privacy. Its got lots of vent that also zip shut. the only thing I wish was that the fly was larger however every thing seems to zip closed. 03/18/2012