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Hi there, I am new to the board and fairly new to camping (this will be our 4th year..is that still considered new?)

We are considering buying a new tent this year.  Our tent took a bit of a pounding last year and needs repaired in a few places and some new poles.  Not sure whether to invest the money toward something new or not.

Anyway, had a look at the Outwell site and thought the Indiana looked quite nice.  We have three children and I want something with enough space to be indoors if needed but not on top of each other.

Any advice or input would be very welcome.  Also if anyone knows of somewhere in the Suffolk area that has tents pitched that you can see before you buy then that would also be appreciated.

Thanks for your help.

Lynne

Hi Lynne,

We are not as experienced as you, only starting camping as a family last year.  But wished we had started much earlier.  We are a family of 4 and have the Sun Valley 8.  Very flexible, loads of room for the "rare" times of bad weather.  3 bedrooms if you need them, but very easy to take out.  We have looked around to see if we would change our minds, and we really wouldnt.  The extra space taken up by the front awning is not much good in the rain, but with the Sun Valley we can open up the front door completely if the weather is good enough.  The other one to consider is the Norfolk.  Heavier due to the alloy frame but just as flexible.

Good luck

Bridget

Hi Lynne,

Another SV8 owner here...like Bridget, now that we've experienced life in an SV8 I don't think there are any other tents which we would currently change to. Other than its canvas like sister the Norfolk Lake, except its twice as heavy and bulky !

We are a family of 5 too, and find the SV8 plus an Oklahoma Day Tent the right size. Our kids are 3, 7 and 9 though.

I believe the Indiana 8 is basically a Non-SIG version of the SV8.

Shops - We're in North Essex, and can recommend Camperite at Marks Tey (they're on the web). There also used to be a place called Basecampuk near Ipswich, but I think they've closed down now...not sure.

Anyway, good luck with your search for a new tent.

Cheers,

Pete.

Hi Lynne

If you don't mind a day trip out, you could try Norwich Camping and Leisure, based in Blofied, just east of Norwich on the A47.  You'll find it easily on Google.  It has about 100 tents on display.  We too, liked the look of the Indiana but after going inside the tents decided on the Montana because of the SIG  but that is a personal choice.

Happy hunting,

Sanda

How old are the children and do you want them all together or pref them seporated?

The 8, is just a longer 6 with a small extra bedroom?

If it was the 6 you would ahve to get three kids in a width of approx 185cm, which means not using air beds (air beds arre 80cm wide generally), so if they are OK on cots, ready beds or self-inflate-mats then fine.

we have the 8 and have three children, the 8 gives you extra space and an extra bedroom, we sleep in the small bedroom and the kids spread out in the large one plus use some of the large one for storage. if you dont use the samll bedroom pod you can remove it and have extra living space. If you leave it in and dont sleep in it you can use for storage or for the porta loo/bucket.

Great tent

Hi Lynne,

We bought an Indiana 8 last year for 2 Adults and one 3 year old with another on the way(now 3 months). This is a fantastic tent for a family and you can also stand up in any part of tent.

We bought ours last year in July and have only used it once for a 5 night stay and have now got it sale as we were offered a folding camper at a good price, so ours is up for sale in the ads section on this website, at £250 but would consider offers.

Matt