Best Ground Tents for Overlanding

Coleman is a well-known camping brand that has been around for a long time. Their products are generally trustworthy and easy to use by anyone. Their 6-Person Instant Cabin ranks as the company’s best-selling overland ground tent for a family for a good reason. The Instant Cabin is one of the smaller “6-person” dome-style tents out there. It relies on its versatility, intuitive setup, and “cozy comfort” to win the hearts and minds of car campers and festival-goers for years.

It goes up quicker (in less than two minutes) and less than five minutes to get it stuffed into the carrying bag, “pleasing harried parents for whom convenience is king.” It relies on telescoping, pre-attached poles, and a sturdy roof to make the setup simpler and faster than any other similarly sized tent. It’s not for backpacking but perfect for both off-roading and camping. It’s spacious enough for four full-size twin-air mattresses and a toddler air mattress in between with room for luggage, as well as plenty of entrance space to use as a play area.

To protect against rain, the tent uses a solid, coated polyester roof. However, some Amazon reviewers have complained that it doesn’t always protect well, and waterproof coating deteriorates with time—but you can always buy a rain fly accessory. But it does an excellent job cutting downwind on a breezy and chilly night.

Coleman is the “everyone brand” for tents, and its Sundome Tent is small but mighty and very affordable. Handy? Fun? Yes, yes. It doesn’t seem that the Sundome is any different. It’s a comfortable tent with a fair price tag. Sure, there are better tents of this size available, but they still come at a higher price. Despite its overall lack of features, it’s a highly durable tent that should have no problem standing up to years of use.

It comes in a two to six-person version for smaller groups/families. We think the Sundome 4 is best suitable with groups of three and a dog, While the 6-person version is perfect for four campers with enough space for gear or supplies and to move around comfortably for summertime adventures. The tent was among the easiest to set up and take down. It’s also easy to haul from the car to the campsite and store when not in use. 

The Sundome Tent checks many of the boxes that campers are looking for in an Overland ground tent. Though it’s not the most well-built or wet weather protected, it would be a solid companion for warm-weather camping. Additionally, unlike premium models, the Sundome is very limited in terms of storage. It features fewer mesh pockets to store things like your phone, wallet, or keys in to keep them off the ground.

The Desert & Fox Camping Tent is ideal for the committed car camper that takes the occasional weekend in the backcountry or the desert. The interior is spacious and cozy and has two doors that make it easy to use with couples. Although it’s designed to accommodate three people—we found that it’s most comfortable for 1-2 adults with gear and a dog. The entire tent looks like it’s made of good material and construction. It’s probably the best tent for desert camping as it can resist extreme climate conditions. 

We were pleasantly impressed by how well this tent handled “moderate rain with not a single leak” and “35 mph winds at 29 degrees”. The poles didn’t bend, or sag and the rain fly was tight and firm through it all. With all the windows closed, it was still unexpectedly warm inside. It has two good vents near the top, allowing sufficient ventilation to get through. 

We love the color and craftsmanship! It is very lightweight and sturdy, small, and easy to carry. Though it’s not as easy to set up as the Coleman Tents, we just don’t care if we had to spend a few more minutes setting it up. It’s still a great tent that’s well put together as very much expensive ones.

If you want a pop-up tent to create a cozy lounge area in your backyard or for shelter on a car camping trip, this instant overland ground tent from Moon Lence will accommodate up to four people in the warmer part of the year. Because of its ease of setup (pull it out of the bag, flip the poles down, pop the top mechanism down until it clicked, and it’s done), the tent is ideal for first-time campers and people who are unfamiliar with tents. The tent is fully freestanding, so you can set it up and move it around literally anywhere.

There are two-entry doors with screen windows and mesh and panels for privacy and protection. Ventilation should not be a problem; its mesh windows make it suitable for warm weather. However, it would not last long in a strong wind. We also didn’t that it’s not particularly tall; the peak height is 133 cm.

The tent has plenty of room to store things. It features a couple of small wall pockets for cellphone, keys, and a hook on the ceiling and still has room for two adults or parents with two kids assuming that you have a car nearby to keep the rest of your stuff.