The Best Canopy Tent for Camping and Picnics Reviews by Wirecutter

The materials used for the tent include 75D polyester taffeta for the fly and roof, which features Darkroom technology, UVPRO, PU waterproof, and seam-sealed. The floor is made of 210D polyester oxford, which is PU waterproof and seam-sealed. The poles for the living room and bedroom are made of aluminum alloy, while the canopy poles are made of steel. Size is a major factor when choosing the best screen tent for you. This CLAM screen tent boasts 110 square feet, on the upper end in size. The SansBug pop up screen tents have sewn in floors so they provide complete protection.

The mesh doesn’t seem particularly durable, and given the cap-like roof, the shade provided is much more limited than with our top-pick tents. Fellow campers and sun-baked spectators consistently gravitated toward the REI shelter over the L.L.Bean. Though the two tents have the same footprint, the REI’s roof is 6 inches taller; we found that the higher ceiling made the REI shelter feel significantly roomier inside. If you love camping but hate eating your morning pancakes in the rain, a canopy tent can protect you from the trifecta of bugs, sun, and sudden showers.

Hanging out in here, you’ll find shelter from the sun, wind, and bugs. It sets up in about a minute and is made of durable coleman instant tent Polyguard double-thick fabric. Look for screen tents that take less than a few minutes to set up and tear down.

It will shelter a standard-size picnic table, but with little room to spare. In early March, we took our second trip to the oceanside Sycamore Canyon Campground (PDF) near Oxnard, California. A later check of the weather at nearby Point Mugu Naval Air Station confirmed top recorded wind gusts of 40 miles per hour. We later used the shelters on group trips at Wheeler Gorge Campground near Ojai, California, and at the La Jolla group campsite at Point Mugu, as well as on a trip to the El Mirage Dry Lake in the Mojave Desert. Our favorite of the eight canopy tents we tested, the REI Co-op Screen House Shelter ticks all those boxes.

This Coleman Back Home Instant Screen House 12 x 10 is a fully freestanding structure with a 3-minute setup, a waterproof roof, 2 doors, and with a great price tag. If you are looking to “up” your tailgating game, you may want a pop-up that can withstand any wind or rain. Since you may not know the terrain on which you’ll be setting the tent on, it would be a good idea to find coleman instant tent a canopy that offers a stronger steel frame or some sort of free-standing stabilizer. I think my takeaway is that this is a sturdy, easy, and convenient shelter. Even if you never set it up, it’s nice to have this option in your car in case the park you are visiting is particularly buggy or in case of rain. This tent was up and ready after a few minutes of minimal effort.

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credit for the amount of the item at the time of purchase. After using the canopy on my last camping trip, I still have these same mixed feelings. I wouldn’t consider this an essential item, but it is nice to have it at the ready in the car. Weather is uncertain and you never know how annoying bugs will be.

Once set up, the screen walls offer bug-free lounging, while two large doors provide easy entry in the front and at the back. And when it’s time to pack up, the Coleman Back Home Instant Screenhouse can be stored and transported in the included easy-pull wheeled carry bag, which fits inside most cars. Enjoy the fresh air without the bugs when you’re camping in a Coleman® Evanston™ Screened 8 Tent. It’s designed for simple setup and easy carrying—perfect for car campers and long camping trips. The tent even has a screened porch where you can sleep on warm, dry nights. If it rains, the tent is designed to hold up to the weather.