The Ultimate Festival Tent Buying Guide

If you’re planning to go and rock out at a festival this year, then you’ll need a decent tent so that you can get a good night’s sleep before the next day’s dancing and partying.

At Winfields Outdoors, we have a wide range of festival tents on offer – so whether you’re going to rock, pop, or bop this summer, read on to find out everything you need to know about buying a new festival tent…

What is a festival tent?

Festivals are an amazing opportunity to spend time outside and fully immerse yourself in the experience. Whether you’re listening to your favourite bands, exploring new artists and performers, or taking part in the various activities on offer, a festival is always worth visiting.

And, considering many of them last for at least a weekend, you’re going to need a place to stay – which is where a festival tent can come in handy. Easy to pitch, and built to last, festival tents are a fun (and often cost-effective) way to enjoy a festival, and get fully stuck in the action.

Top tip: festival tents are also commonly used for short camping trips, as they tend to be more compact, lightweight, and portable than some others on the market.

Buying a festival tent

Reading this, you may be wondering what makes a festival tent different from any other tent. Well, the answer is usually your requirements. There are certain aspects that you’ll need to think about to make sure you buy the best festival tent for you, including:

Weight: you’ll probably have a way to trek from arrival to your campsite, so make sure your chosen festival tent is light enough to carry for a while.
Size: some campgrounds will have restrictions on how large your tent can be, as space is definitely at a premium to fit everyone on the grounds. We recommend making sure you check your tent against the festival guidelines before you buy.
People: how many of you are going? If it’s just you and a partner, consider picking up a three man tent to give you a little extra room to move – and store all of your supplies for the weekend.
Material: festivals – and British weather – are unpredictable. So, you need a festival tent that’s built to survive the elements. Look out for waterproof fabrics and sturdy construction to find the best festival tent for you.
Extra features: Festival tents tend to be quite snug, so if you want extra space you could choose a model with a porch to extend the footprint – and store your muddy gear safely. Quick assembly or pop-up festival tents are also great features to level up your festival camping accommodations.
Price: festival tents come in a series of price ranges, often dictated by the additional features you choose. To find the best festival tent for you, list out what you need and match these to a model in your price range.

Festival tent top tips

Unlike regular camping trips, festivals come with some extra demands that make finding good tents for festivals a little more complicated. So, to help you out, we’ve picked out some of our top tips for choosing a good festival tent.

Stand out from the crowd

Festivals are chock-full of people – and their tents. So, you need to make sure you choose a festival tent that’s memorable. This will make it easier to recognise as yours when you need it, so you can avoid making an accidental appearance in someone else’s tent that looks like a spitting image to yours.

Practice pitching

Avoid adding any stress, or missing out on getting a good spot to see your favourite artist, by practising pitching your festival tent before you go. Most festival tents are easy to set up, but it’s definitely worth doing a few trial runs to make sure you know what you’re doing.

Block the light

Your festival tent is your mini home-from-home, so you want to make sure you can get a good night’s sleep – which means blocking as much light from other party-goers where possible. Look out for tents with darkened fabrics to help you sleep better so you can be rested for the next day of the action.

Top festival tents from Winfields Outdoors

So, now you have the information you need to pick the best festival tents for you, let’s put it into practice. Here are Winfields, we offer an extensive range of festival tents – and we’ve chosen a few to include here that we think will cover everything you need…

Regatta Kivu 3 V3 3 Man Dome Tent

If you’re an inexperienced camper, or you’re attending your first festival, you should consider the Regatta Kivu 3 V3 3 Man Dome Tent. Perfect for beginners, this festival tent is easy to pitch, with colour-coded poles to make sure you get it right first time. Plus, the porch and practical groundsheet means you have somewhere to relax outside and store extra kit.

Inside, there are plenty of useful features to make your camping experience more comfortable. Internal pockets provide easy-access storage for your essentials, whilst the vents and mesh door allow air to flow freely without letting in bugs and insects.

As a three sleeper, this is a fantastic festival tent for small groups or couples looking for a little extra room.

Regatta Kivu 3 V3 3 Man Dome Tent
If you’re an inexperienced camper, or you’re attending your first festival, you should consider the Regatta Kivu 3 V3 3 Man Dome Tent. Perfect for beginners, this festival tent is easy to pitch, with colour-coded poles to make sure you get it right first time. Plus, the porch and practical groundsheet means you have somewhere to relax outside and store extra kit.
Inside, there are plenty of useful features to make your camping experience more comfortable. Internal pockets provide easy-access storage for your essentials, whilst the vents and mesh door allow air to flow freely without letting in bugs and insects.
As a three sleeper, this is a fantastic festival tent for small groups or couples looking for a little extra room.

Coleman Darwin 4+ 4 Man Tent

Ideal for a close friend group, the Coleman Darwin 4+ 4 Man Tent is a great festival tent that provides a lot of internal space in a compact package. The dome shape maximises your headroom inside, and is complemented externally with a peaked-porch – so you can relax comfortably in between sets.

Designed with WeatherTec™ Polyester to keep you (and your camping gear) dry during bad weather, and using highly flexible poles to survive the wind, this festival tent is built for the British summer time.

Top tip: make your festival experience even more comfortable with a new airbed from Winfields.

Coleman Darwin 4+ 4 Man Tent
Ideal for a close friend group, the Coleman Darwin 4+ 4 Man Tent is a great festival tent that provides a lot of internal space in a compact package. The dome shape maximises your headroom inside, and is complemented externally with a peaked-porch – so you can relax comfortably in between sets.
Designed with WeatherTec™ Polyester to keep you (and your camping gear) dry during bad weather, and using highly flexible poles to survive the wind, this festival tent is built for the British summer time.
Top tip: make your festival experience even more comfortable with a new airbed from Winfields.

Vango Alpha 250 CLR 2 Man Tent

A classic when it comes to quality tent design, you can’t go wrong with a Vango tent – and the Vango Alpha 250 CLR 2 Man Tent is no exception.

With high-visibility guy lines that are easy to see in low light, and PowerFlex® Fibreglass Poles for strong and stable construction, there are plenty of features that make it a brilliant option for your next festival tent.

Plus, for any eco-conscious campers out there, this festival tent is made from Vango’s highly weatherproof Sentinel Eco fabric (made from recycled waste plastic). Combined with the arched structure to help water run-off, this is definitely a good tent for festivals where you can’t always guarantee sunshine.

Vango Alpha 250 CLR 2 Man Tent
A classic when it comes to quality tent design, you can’t go wrong with a Vango tent – and the Vango Alpha 250 CLR 2 Man Tent is no exception.
With high-visibility guy lines that are easy to see in low light, and PowerFlex® Fibreglass Poles for strong and stable construction, there are plenty of features that make it a brilliant option for your next festival tent.
Plus, for any eco-conscious campers out there, this festival tent is made from Vango’s highly weatherproof Sentinel Eco fabric (made from recycled waste plastic). Combined with the arched structure to help water run-off, this is definitely a good tent for festivals where you can’t always guarantee sunshine.

Kampa Brighton 4 Man Tent

Designed with simple fibreglass poles and a durable Weathershield™ material, the Kampa Brighton 4 Man Tent is an excellent budget-friendly festival tent for small groups or couples. And, weighing in at around 5kg with a compact pack size, it’s fairly easy to carry to your campsite too.

Once set up, the versatile porch area can be used for additional storage or casual outdoor relaxation, whilst inside the ventilation helps to maintain a comfortable temperature without letting in unwanted creepy-crawlies.

Top tip: create the ultimate festival sleeping situation with a selection of camping mats and sleeping bags.

Kampa Brighton 4 Man Tent
Designed with simple fibreglass poles and a durable Weathershield™ material, the Kampa Brighton 4 Man Tent is an excellent budget-friendly festival tent for small groups or couples. And, weighing in at around 5kg with a compact pack size, it’s fairly easy to carry to your campsite too.
Once set up, the versatile porch area can be used for additional storage or casual outdoor relaxation, whilst inside the ventilation helps to maintain a comfortable temperature without letting in unwanted creepy-crawlies.
Top tip: create the ultimate festival sleeping situation with a selection of camping mats and sleeping bags.

Zempire Zeus 2 Man Tent

Lastly, if only alphabetically, we couldn’t not mention the Zempire Zeus 2 Man Tent. Found exclusively at Winfields Outdoors, this definitely ranks as one of best tents for festivals on the market right now. The frame is designed with stability in mind, and provides you with plenty of headroom to move about inside.

The twin doors and vestibules offer you flexible entry and storage options, while the free-standing design means this tent is easy to set up on harder ground (or to move it along without having to take it down if you need to change pitch quickly).

Top tip: coming in a fantastically bright orange, this festival tent is definitely easier to spot when you need to.

Zempire Zeus 2 Man Tent
Lastly, if only alphabetically, we couldn’t not mention the Zempire Zeus 2 Man Tent. Found exclusively at Winfields Outdoors, this definitely ranks as one of best tents for festivals on the market right now. The frame is designed with stability in mind, and provides you with plenty of headroom to move about inside.
The twin doors and vestibules offer you flexible entry and storage options, while the free-standing design means this tent is easy to set up on harder ground (or to move it along without having to take it down if you need to change pitch quickly).
Top tip: coming in a fantastically bright orange, this festival tent is definitely easier to spot when you need to.

Festival camping made easy with Winfields Outdoors

Obviously, a festival tent should be top of the list when it comes to packing for your trip. But, there are loads of accessories that can make your festival experience more comfortable. Find everything from water bottles for hydration, to torches and lights for those nighttime bathroom trips, to tent spares and repairs in case of emergency all right here at Winfields Outdoors.

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