Touring Tents - No

If you are getting out and about to travel the countryside, whether you plan to travel by car, on foot or by bike, touring tents are a must to make your trips as easy and pleasant as possible. At the end of a tiring day, you don't want to spend all your time putting up your tent. Many tents are lightweight and compact and are easy to erect and dismantle, ideal when moving from place to place. A lot of the touring style tents that are available come in a simple tunnel design with minimal poles, which aims to make things as easy to move around as possible.

When choosing your new tent, think about how you will be traveling, how much space you want and what extras you need, such as a sewn in groundsheet and what level of living space you require. It is also important to consider the weight and pack size, especially in light of how you plan to transport your tent when traveling.

Backpacking tents are ideally lightweight and most will sleep up to three people. Other tents are also available to sleep bigger groups and these will generally be larger and heavier. The materials of the fabric and poles of the tent try to find the right balance between the need to be light and compact but also strong enough to fend off bad weather. Many cycle touring tents are also able to be divided up when taken down, meaning that you can share the load with your companions.