The Cabin Tent Solution

When we first were married, we’d often go camping in a little 2-person dome tent that was barely big enough for the two of us. After three children, however, a little dome tent doesn’t cut it anymore. Several years ago, after our third child was born, we upgraded to a cabin tent, and we’ve never looked back.

Cabin tent features

Cabin tents can hold anywhere from 8 to 24 people. According to the instructions, you can sleep 16 people in our cabin tent. Now, we haven’t tried that, but I can tell you that this tent is just right for a family of 5, their two dogs, and all of their camping supplies. We even have a separate room with a camping toilet. That room doubles as a dressing room, too.

One of the best things about our cabin tent is the fact that we can actually stand up inside of it. The walls are rather steep, giving us a huge amount of standing room. While there are bigger dome tents that can sleep many people, I definitely prefer the cabin style for this reason.

Our particular cabin tent has 3 rooms. The adults sleep in one room, the children sleep in another, and the third room is a changing room and bathroom. Even though the walls are very thin vinyl fabric, it gives us a feeling of privacy and security.

One downside to the cabin tent is the weight and space it takes up in our camping gear. The tent bag weighs nearly 50 pounds, and it uses a good portion of space in our truck. We’d have a hard time using this particular tent if we wanted to camp at a site to which we needed to walk.

Cabin tent care

A few basic precautions will ensure that your tent gives you good service year after year. Here are some ways to make sure your cabin tent lasts for years to come:

• Avoid having an exposed fire or flame near the tent.
• Secure any loose flaps so that they are not torn off in a strong breeze.
• Do not hang any heavy items on the sides or inside the tent, since they could snag or tear the fabric.
• Wipe any spills with the recommended stain-removing solution.
• While dismantling the tent, disengage each item without using force.
• Dry the tent thoroughly, clean it of any twigs or leaves, fold it as per instructions, and store it in a cool dry place.