How to Choose Tents for Camping

Big enough for rainy day card games inside or road trippin' mountain bikers who prefer to stand up in their shelter to change, the Big Agnes Big House 6 tent houses the whole family under one roof.
Imported.
View all Big Agnes Camping TentsBest Use | Camping |
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Seasons | 3-season |
Sleeping Capacity | 6-person |
Minimum Trail Weight | 15 lbs. 11 oz. |
Packaged Weight | 16 lbs. 14 oz. |
Packed Size | 26 x 16.5 x 8 inches |
Floor Dimensions | 119 x 100 inches |
Floor Area | 89 square feet |
Peak Height | 80 inches |
Number of Doors | 2 doors |
Number of Poles | 5 |
Pole Material | Lightweight aluminum pressfit |
Pole Diameter | 14.5 millimeters |
Canopy Fabric | Polyester/nylon mesh |
Floor Fabric | Polyester taffeta with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating |
Rainfly Fabric | Polyester taffeta with 1500 mm waterproof polyurethane coating |
Footprint Included | No |
Design Type | Freestanding |
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We got this tent and the vestibule for it during a great sale in December 2024 (less than $400 total) and so far we love it. We upgraded from a small 4 person Coleman tent to this one because my husband and I are both tall (he’s 6’5” and I’m 5’10”) both of us have plenty of room to stand up and move around and room for a queen size air mattress. We took it out for the first time in northern Quebec and it held up to heavy and light rain with no leaking and we never had issues with condensation. I wouldn’t recommend getting this tent without the vestibule because it adds so much more space and a nice place to hang out during bad weather. Putting it up is definitely a two person job but putting it away was incredibly easy, probably the easiest tent I’ve ever had to put away. Two of the biggest flaws with this tent are that the zipper for the door gets stuck on the rain flap constantly and that you can’t have the windows open during rain (unless you have the vestibule) Overall I would recommend this tent if you’re tall and can get it for a good price.
Would rate 3.5 if I could. Points added for longevity and shape. Points removed for door design. Relatively easy to set up even with only 1 person, but much easier with 2. The front door design is pretty frustrating and was constantly getting caught. There's a side zipper and and a floor zipper. If you undo both, the door still only opens 2/3 of the way, and opening and closing the floor zipper gets annoying. If you leave the floor zipper shut, you can duck in and out, but it's a tripping hazard. Not an awful choice, but not ideal. The zipper catches really badly on the little flap designed to keep it dry, though. It's sewn a bit too close and just really prone to getting stuck, especially while you're inside and trying to get out. I put my tents to harder use than most people do and I understand that they will break down after months of use, but this is not a good replacement for the Kingdom 6 (which is unfortunately also discontinued). Fine for camping if you ignore the door issue. Lasted ~8 months of constant use before it reached a point of unusable, which is better than many. It's tall even at the edges, and well shaped; you can mostly use the entire space. I'm 5'11", and can stand 2' from the sides before I hit my head.
Like a previous reviewer stated, the zippers catch like crazy. Every time I tried to get out, I would have to find a way to get one hand outside to hold the fabric away to keep it from catching. Setup wasn't difficult, but being someone who is 5'2" means I needed a 2nd person to help set up, especially for the rainfly. Also despite using a footprint, the wet ground (not even raining at time of setup or during the camping trip) leaked water into the tent and my futon mattress got wet.
This is a very nice tent but it's very limited and hard to put together. It takes 2 people, you have to put it up in order if you have the porch, and it's not great on shoulder season when it's cooler. If that doesn't deter you, then go for it. Hubby bought it without my consent and I don't love it.
Spacious tent that's easy enough to set up. Also, plenty of space in the tent storage bag so that it's not a struggle to put away. Definitely more for car camping.