Best 8 Person Tent for Family Camping

Tents are an indispensable part of any camping trip. And when you’re gearing up for some family camping, you want to make sure you have enough room to keep everyone comfortable and happy.

Most tents fall in the 1-6 person capacity range, making 8 person tents a lot harder to come by. So, to help you find something good quality, we’ve laid out several of the best 8 person tents currently on the market.

In this article, we’ll be reviewing the following best 8 person tents:

• Gazelle T4 Plus Extra Large Tent – Best Overall ↟
• Hitwby 8 Person Tent – Best Bang for Your Buck
• Teton Sports Mesa Tent– Best Canvas Tent
• Coleman Elite Montana 8 Person Tent – Best for Family Camping
• CAMPROS 8 Person Tent – Lightest 8 Person Tent
• Eureka Copper Canyon 8 Person Tent – Editor’s Choice
• Coleman 8 Person Instant Tent – Best Instant Tent
• Wenzel 8 Person Klondike Tent – Best Tent with Screenroom

Size

All tents will let you know how many people can fit inside of them. For example, we’re looking at the best 8 person tents in this review, so naturally you’d be able to fit 8 people inside of each shelter, right?

Unfortunately it’s not that simple. You see, the tent manufacturers recognize how important it is to have a portable, lightweight shelter. As such, they try to keep their products as small as possible without being deceptive. So can you fit 8 people inside of an 8 person tent? Absolutely. Will it be a comfortable squeeze? Probably not.

If you don’t want to feel like a sardine trapped in a can, I’d suggest sleeping 7 people or less inside of an 8 person tent. It’ll still be a little tight, but at least you’ll have some more personal space, and room to stash your gear.

Weight and Material

Once you start looking at tents this large, you’re resigning yourself to car camping just based on the weight alone. Most 8 person tents exceed 20 pounds, if not 30 pounds, so you won’t want to lug them very far.

Size certainly plays a significant role in this weight increase, but so do the materials that the tents are made from. Since these shelters are taller than your average 2-4 person tents, they really take a beating from strong wind gusts. If the poles aren’t strong, they’ll snap during the first storm you encounter, which is exactly what we don’t want to happen!

As such, steel is a common building material. While it’s exceptionally durable, it’s also the heaviest type of pole that you can get, so a compromise will need to be made.

On the other hand, you may also find tents that make use of aluminum or fiberglass. Both are going to be weaker than steel, but they’re also lighter weight. Fiberglass, in particular, is also quite a bit cheaper, though it lacks some of that durability that I like to see.

Waterproofing

The primary purpose for a tent is to keep your protected from the elements and insects. If it can’t even do those things, then you just wasted a lot of money on a faulty product.

There are waterproof sprays that you can use to help your tent resist the rain, but for them to work, the tent has to have at least some level of water resistance out of the box. It’s a problem that’s more commonly found in cheaper products (you do get what you pay for), but it can sometimes show up in the more expensive options as well. Always do your due diligence by reading through the product description and customer reviews before you decide to purchase a tent.

Ventilation

A tent that’s well ventilated is a good tent to have. A sufficient amount of airflow is what will help you stay cool on those hot summer days. Without it, you’ll most certainly roast inside those synthetic walls, and I guarantee you won’t sleep a wink.

But aside from that, good ventilation prevents the buildup of condensation created by your exhalation. All the water vapor in your breath has nowhere to go when there isn’t any airflow, so it accumulates on the top of your tent. These little droplets will keep getting bigger until they inevitably fall to the ground, occasionally landing on your face in the process. It might not be dangerous, but it certainly isn’t pleasant either, and it can quickly turn your camping trip into an exercise of misery.

Ease of Setup

Having a tent that’s easy to set up is important, especially when you start entering the realm of 8 person tents and larger. You may not be able to put it together by yourself, but it shouldn’t take an army to get the job done either. Some of the tents that we’ve reviewed are actually instant tents, so despite the large size, they can still be pitched in under two minutes. Others require a bit more effort, but can still be put together in under 20 minutes, especially if you have help.

Rooms/Dividers

Once you start looking at tents this large, you’ll find that many of them can actually be split into multiple rooms. There will usually be at least one, if not two, dividers that you can hang from the top of the tent to create this effect.

Separate rooms are nice to have if you want to sleep in one with your significant other, while keeping the kids in the other room. Or you could make one a “living room” and the other one a “bedroom.” Either way, the extra privacy is nice to have, especially if you’re planning on packing the tent full of people.

Durability

With so many feet walking back and forth across the tent floor, the best 8 person tents need to be tougher than other shelters. Most often, you can determine how durable a tent is by looking at the denier number associated with the fabric. The higher the number, the more durable the material (for example, an 80D nylon rainfly will be tougher than a 70D nylon rainfly).

You’ll want to pay close attention to the poles, zippers, and hubs as well. With more people in the tent, the windows and doors will be getting used more frequently, and general wear and tear will greatly increase. I always recommend getting a shelter that makes use of metal poles, whether that’s in the form of steel or lightweight aluminum. These are going to be a lot sturdier than fiberglass, which is a material often found in budget tents.

Best 8 Person Tent Comparison Table

8 Person Tents	Weight (lbs)	Material	Sq. Feet	Peak Height (in)
Gazelle T4 Plus Extra Large Tent	56	Polyester	110	78
Hitwby 8 Person Tent	27	Polyester	90	66
Teton Sports Mesa Tent	76	Canvas	140	78
Coleman Elite Montana 8 Person Tent	27	Polyester	112	74
CAMPROS 8 Person Tent	17.4	Polyester	126	72
Eureka Copper Canyon 8 Person Tent	33.5	Polyester	130	84
Coleman 8 Person Instant Tent	43	Polyester	140	77
Wenzel 8 Person Klondike Tent	27	Polyester	208	78

Best 8 Person Tent Reviews

Gazelle T4 Plus Extra Large Tent ↟

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Aluminum
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 27 Pounds
• Peak Height: 80 Inches
• Number of Doors: 2
• Comes with Footprint: No

Chances are you’ve never seen a tent quite like the Gazelle T4. It’s got a unique design that was really intentional about providing a lot of space and headroom. The picture can be a little deceiving, but don’t be fooled – this tent has a peak height of 78 inches, which is massive any way you slice it.

The vertical walls certainly help make this peak height a reality, allowing pretty much anyone to walk around comfortably, without the need to hunch or crouch. And because the walls are vertical, you’ll be able to shove your sleeping bags and cots right up next to them. This really opens up the rest of the floor space for more people to sleep, or as a storage area for your gear.

Another pro is the instant setup. I never enjoy pitching big tents, especially by myself, because there’s so much mass to work with. However, the T4 has an instant design, which allows it to be put together in 2 minutes – once you’ve got the system down. At first, don’t be surprised if it takes you closer to 20 minutes to get everything up and running. But with a little practice, you’ll cut that time down before you know it.

Pros:

– Tall peak height
– Vertical walls construction
– Instant setup
– Easy to set up by yourself
– Excellent ventilation

Cons:

– A bit heavy

Hitwby 8 Person Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Fiberglass
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 27 Pounds
• Peak Height: 66 Inches
• Number of Doors: 1
• Comes with Footprint: No

The cheapest 8 person tent in this review, this shelter by Hitwby is perfect for those of you on a budget. I actually think it’s pretty surprising how affordable it is, considering it’s an instant tent that can easily be set up by one person. Since it is large, bulky, and weighs 27 pounds, I would still recommend you enlist the help of a friend to set everything up. However, if you felt like doing it on your own, you certainly could.

The interior is quite spacious, with plenty of options for gear storage. On top of that, the peak is 66 inches, allowing many people to stand tall and walk around with ease. It’s a really handy feature to have, especially when you want to change clothes without contorting into unnatural positions!

You’ll also find an e-port built in, so you can bring power into your tent. Some campsites have Wi-Fi nowadays, so the e-port is great if you need to charge your laptop while getting some work done. Otherwise, you can use it to charge your phone, camera gear, or any other electronics that you might have brought along. It’s a handy feature to have in a family tent, but make sure you have a generator to power any tech that you bring along.

Pros:

– Instant setup
– Does well in the rain
– Built in e-port
– Tall peak height
– Very spacious

Cons:

– Poles are a tad flimsy
– Directions can be difficult to understand

Teton Sports Mesa 8 Person Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Steel
• Tent Material: Canvas
• Weight: 76 Pounds
• Peak Height: 78 Inches
• Number of Doors: 2
• Comes with Footprint: No

Perfect for rowdy crews, the Teton Sports Mesa was built to take a beating. The thick canvas walls and floor might be heavy, but they sure are durable, able to withstand a lot of foot traffic and heavy equipment. Hunters often make use of this shelter because of that feature, and the neutral coloring helps them blend into their surroundings more as well.

If you ever had a canvas tent in the past, you might be a little wary of how the Sports Mesa will perform in the rain. After all, with old canvas tents, you used to be able to touch the inside of the wall during a rainstorm, and water would start to seep through. Thankfully that’s not the case with Teton’s canvas tent, or with many modern day canvas tents. In fact, I would say that canvas now has synthetic materials beat when it comes to being weatherproof.

At the end of the day, the biggest downside with this tent is its weight. At 80 pounds, there’s no denying that it’s unbearably heavy, and definitely not something that you can put together on your own. However, it can be separated into the tent portion (45 pounds), and the poles and stakes, making your job a little bit easier.

Pros:

– Material is very durable
– Large awning coming from the front of the tent
– Easy setup
– Extra wide doors

Cons:

– Doesn’t come with the greatest tent pegs

Coleman Elite Montana 8 Person Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Fiberglass
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 27 Pounds
• Peak Height: 74 Inches
• Number of Doors: 1
• Comes with Footprint: No

Earlier in this review, we talked about how rare it is for an 8 person tent to comfortably house 8 people. Key word being “comfortable,” as you certainly could shove that many people inside if you really felt like it.

Well, the Coleman Montana is one of those rare tents that actually lives up to its title. Even if you decide to toss in 3 queen mattresses, a few cots and sleeping bags, or a mixture of all these things, you won’t feel cramped one bit.

Now with that said, my biggest gripe when it comes to large tents is the lack of outdoor space. When you have so many people sleeping under the same roof, it would be nice to have a protected vestibule where everyone could store their dirty boots and gear. I mean, who would want to keep all those things inside?

What I appreciate about the Coleman Montana is that it does have an extended door awning. It’s not super big and special, but it’s better than nothing, and can easily act as a sheltered place to store your boots. And since the inside of the tent is so spacious, you won’t struggle to make room for the rest of your gear either.

As a whole, the tent weighs in at a reasonable 25 pounds. Considering its size, you’d think it would be hard to set up and take down again, but that just isn’t the case. You might have a little difficulty putting it together by yourself, but with a helping hand, it will go up in no time.

Pros:

– Extended door awning
– Lots of interior space
– Easy to set up
– Sturdy design
– Great ventilation

Cons:

– Subpar carry case
– May leak a little

CAMPROS 8 Person Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Fiberglass
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 17.4 Pounds
• Peak Height: 72 Inches
• Number of Doors: 1
• Comes with Footprint: No

Another budget friendly option, the CAMPROS 8 person tent is a little deceiving in my opinion. From the pictures (and even if you’re looking at it in person), it looks a lot smaller than it actually is. But once you step inside, it feels massive, especially when you consider the 6 foot peak height.

The mesh roof also adds to the effect, making the tent feel something like a convertible. On nice days, I’d highly recommend keeping the rainfly off so you can enjoy the sunshine and air movement. And during a clear night, there’s nothing better than staring up at the stars as you fall asleep.

I was surprised by how spacious the interior of the tent feels. The manufacturer says you can fit 8-9 people inside, and I’m amazed that I can actually agree with that. You won’t feel very cramped at night, even if you aren’t exactly a short person.

Nothing wrong with the waterproofing on this tent either. I’d feel comfortable hunkering down inside it through pretty much any summer storm that rolls through. It is a bit disappointing that there’s only one door (with one zipper), so getting in and out can be somewhat inconvenient. However, considering how affordable it is and the overall quality, it feels like a small price to pay.

Pros:

– Easy setup
– Lots of ventilation
– Spacious interior
– Plenty of storage options
– Waterproof

Cons:

– One door with one zipper

Eureka Copper Canyon 8 Person Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Fiberglass/Steel
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 33.5 Pounds
• Peak Height: 84 Inches
• Number of Doors: 2
• Comes with Footprint: No

A cozy option for campers who want to get out almost any time of the year, the Copper Canyon will help you stay warm even into the beginning of winter. Well insulated, some cold air will seep through the gap between the rainfly and the roof. However, if you actually manage to squeeze 8 people inside this shelter, your body heat alone would probably keep you warm enough!

Unfortunately, it’s pretty small for an 8 person tent, so I don’t think you’ll be able to pull that off. However, if you want to pack in 4-6 people instead, I think you’ll find that it’s a pretty comfortable option. Especially if you make use of the room dividers, everyone will be happy in their own private space.

With a frame made from steel and fiberglass, there are few tents in this review that can beat it when it comes to durability. Rain or shine, you’ll be protected against the elements thanks to the waterproof rainfly and tub floor. And for those really hot days, there’s plenty of ventilation to keep the air moving, so you can get some relief from the beating sun and unbearable temperatures.

Pros:

– Power cutouts
– Waterproof
– Strong and durable
– Room dividers
– Well ventilated

Cons:

– On the smaller side

Coleman 8 Person Instant Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Aluminum
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 43 Pounds
• Peak Height: 77 Inches
• Number of Doors: 2
• Comes with Footprint: No

There are few things better than instant tents when it comes to convenient camping. And that’s especially true when you have something as large as an 8 person tent to contend with!

The Coleman 8 person instant tent is great because you can put it together in about a minute (once you know what you’re doing). Considering it has a 79 inch peak height and 140 square feet of interior space, I guarantee you’ll be glad to have such an easy setup.

Keep in mind that the wind will beat this guy up, since it’s so tall and has such steep walls. Use the guylines that come with the tent, otherwise you may end up with a shelter that breaks…or just sadly droops on one side. However, the fabric itself is pretty thick and durable, and should last you for a long time.

I will say right off the bat that the included stakes are pretty worthless – definitely get better ones before you go camping in this tent for the first time. The room divider on the inside works well, but it’s also complicated to roll back up into place. It’s a little annoying, but not too big of an issue in the long run.

Pros:

– Instant setup
– Durable material
– Spacious
– Tall peak height
– Easy to put back in the carry case

Cons:

– Awful stakes
– Complicated room divider

Wenzel 8 Person Klondike Tent

• Best For: Car Camping
• Pole Material: Fiberglass/Steel
• Tent Material: Polyester
• Weight: 27 Pounds
• Peak Height: 78 Inches
• Number of Doors: 1
• Comes with Footprint: No

This 8 person tent by Wenzel is one of my favorites just because of the awesome screen room that comes with it. Completely enclosed by mesh, I’d say that whoever is lucky enough to sleep out there will have the best portion of real estate.

There are plenty of instructions on how to put everything together, which is a major bonus when it comes to a tent this size. And even if you don’t plan on sleeping people out in the screen room, it still provides a nice separation between “livable space” and “storage space.” I’d feel very comfortable leaving my boots and gear out in the screen room, treating it like an enclosed vestibule.

Everything is sufficiently waterproofed, though you may have some trouble if the wind blows any rain inside the screen room. That’s why I’m glad Wenzel added in some fabric that can be unrolled to act as walls on all sides of the room, turning the entire shelter into a fortress against the weather.

However, it does get rather hot inside the tent, even with all the vents and windows opened up. Circulation is good, but the darker colored rainfly really likes to absorb the heat, so a breeze might not be enough to cool the inside off.

Pros:

– Screen room
– Good circulation
– Offers nice spatial separation
– Helpful directions
– Waterproof

Cons:

– Can get hot inside

At Untamed Space, we’re passionate about helping you have the best camping experience possible. Our team of experts have experience camping and backpacking all over the world, allowing them to provide insightful and relevant content to guide you in your outdoor pursuits.

All of our reviews are based on a combination of firsthand experience, extensive research, and an analysis of customer feedback. We are an independent website and do not receive payments or incentives from manufacturers to promote their products, and we continuously update our content to provide new information based on product availability. Wherever you are in your journey, whatever gear you’re searching for, you can be sure to find unbiased and up-to-date reviews for all of your needs.

FAQ

Conclusion

It’s important to stay comfortable when you’re car camping, especially if you’re trying to house the whole family. No one likes to feel cramped and claustrophobic while they’re trying to sleep, and when you’ve got about 8 people sleeping under the same roof? All that body heat is going to raise the temperature pretty quickly.

The best 8 person tent should be spacious and well ventilated, giving everyone more than enough room for themselves and their gear. In addition to that, it should also work wonders at keeping the rain out, providing a safe place for you to retreat to in a storm. With all these things in mind, no tent did it better than the Nemo Wagontop. Both ventilation and peak height are second to none, and since it’s a single wall tent, it’s a pretty reasonable weight as well. You’ll also have plenty of storage options for your gear, and the gear of all your companions as well.

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