Hi, we have just started camping this year, we have a Hi-Gear Hampton 4. Next year we're hoping to travel down to Spain. How do we find out which tents are suitable for Europe and hopefully their hot weather? We are hoping to replace the Hampton with something slightly larger.
Thanks
Virsec
If you can afford the cost, weight and bulk then cotton canvas or (at a bit less cost, weight and bulk) polycotton is better in hot conditions. Also less prone to UV damage.
Ventilation is absolutely key.
We don't actually spend much time in our tent so have ended up with a smaller tent plus shelter or tarp which is more flexible and suits us.
Zempire whilst expensive make top quality gear with excellent customer service and guarantees , they also do a “roof cover “ for their tents which deflects heat and stops damage from UV rays.
Just wondering if a Zempire roof cover could possibly fit your tent ?
Sean is bang on. Best tent, apart from folding camper, we had for the Mediterranean climate was the Cabanon Guadeloupe . We’ve done it cheaper, but it was tricky.
Other issues we found:
1 a fridge is important, but many local sites will hire them, or have refrigerated lockers.
2 cool airbeds condense out sweat, to the extent you may wake up in a puddle! A wooden army blanket or similar is good at absorbing this.
3 try to find shaded pitches, particularly from afternoon/evening sun. Using a tarp is a good idea, have been known to put one over the tent with a breeze gap.
4 no need to sunbathe, you’ll get a tan anyway.
Hope you have a great holiday.
Go to any campsite in Spain or southern France you will see much the same mix of tents as are used in UK. Any tent within your budget will do equally well UK or Spain. As pointed out most important is a shady pitch. Most sites down there do have trees though.
Worth pointing out though that even the locals find southern Spain too hot in July/Aug to if your holiday is then just stick with France or north Spain just over the border.
When we first started going to France in a tent many years ago, we had a big tent but quickly realised that what we really needed was more outdoor shade rather than a big tent so we switched to a smaller cotton canvas tent with a great big event shelter with flyscreen sides. All we really used the tent for was sleeping and getting changed in but the outdoor shade was used constantly.
Quote: Originally posted by urbster on 27/6/2022
Zempire whilst expensive make top quality gear with excellent customer service and guarantees , they also do a “roof cover “ for their tents which deflects heat and stops damage from UV rays.
Just wondering if a Zempire roof cover could possibly fit your tent ?
Looked into the roof cover, looks really interesting. Not sure what tent we will be getting yet, we've got a few more UK sites booked for this year with current tent. Thanks for the idea.
Quote: Originally posted by morepints on 27/6/2022
Sean is bang on. Best tent, apart from folding camper, we had for the Mediterranean climate was the Cabanon Guadeloupe . We’ve done it cheaper, but it was tricky.
Other issues we found:
1 a fridge is important, but many local sites will hire them, or have refrigerated lockers.
2 cool airbeds condense out sweat, to the extent you may wake up in a puddle! A wooden army blanket or similar is good at absorbing this.
3 try to find shaded pitches, particularly from afternoon/evening sun. Using a tarp is a good idea, have been known to put one over the tent with a breeze gap.
4 no need to sunbathe, you’ll get a tan anyway.
Hope you have a great holiday.
Many thanks for all the ideas, looking forward to going camping rather than flying to Greek Islands! Not sure if funds will go to the Cabanon Guadeloupe though, sadly.
Quote: Originally posted by billy on 27/6/2022
Go to any campsite in Spain or southern France you will see much the same mix of tents as are used in UK. Any tent within your budget will do equally well UK or Spain. As pointed out most important is a shady pitch. Most sites down there do have trees though.
Worth pointing out though that even the locals find southern Spain too hot in July/Aug to if your holiday is then just stick with France or north Spain just over the border.
That's interesting, thanks for the pointers. Too many mini people in the summer anyway ...
Quote: Originally posted by Pixie_Hez on 27/6/2022
When we first started going to France in a tent many years ago, we had a big tent but quickly realised that what we really needed was more outdoor shade rather than a big tent so we switched to a smaller cotton canvas tent with a great big event shelter with flyscreen sides. All we really used the tent for was sleeping and getting changed in but the outdoor shade was used constantly.
I must admit we have been thinking the same thing, the amount of time you spent inside should be minimal. May have to start looking for different size tent than we previously thought. Definitely want to get one that is more wind-resistant though as just come back from the Gower and it freaked us out with the gusts! Thanks Pixie.
I second the advice regarding ventilation. If the budget won't run to canvas, look at Decathlon / Quechua tents as they are made for this climate, with double roof panels and excellent ventilation. There's an inflatable Fresh&Black model on offer at the moment(here).
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Topic: Camping abroad
via mobile 27/6/2022 at 11:12am
but great for abroad. Can see us getting another tent and keeping the one we have for the UK!!
