Overall, these poles—all of them aluminum—contribute to a particularly sturdy structure, with or without the rain fly. During our testing, our Base Camp shrugged off both a rainstorm and a desert windstorm as if they were nothing. Despite losing some headroom in comparison ozark trail instant cabin with the Kelty Wireless 6 and The North Face Wawona 6, both of which measure six-foot-four in height, the Base Camp 6 offers a substantial six-foot-two. The Wawona 6 is more complex to set up than a classic dome-style tent like the Wireless 6, but not by much.
After researching 30 six-person tents and testing 15 side by side on a total of five trips, we chose the Kelty Wireless 6 as the best entry-level camping tent for most families. It’s spacious, easy to set up, has weather protection, and is durable, all at an affordable price. The Wireless 6 lacks some of the premium materials found in pricier tents, but it features solid workmanship and should provide dependable, comfortable shelter in most three-season camping situations. The geodesic structure of the Base Camp tents is built to withstand wind and rain. It has two main that thread through sleeves, stretching between the four corners of the tent.
Nevertheless, it still comfortably accommodates four people, and it’s a roomy choice for two. This no-nonsense tent is intuitive to set up, has mesh on the top halves of two walls, includes a partial rain fly that’s easy to put on and stake out, and feels cheery inside and out. (We don’t recommend the smaller version of this tent for couples who might actually take it on the road; it was just too flimsy in our tests.) Also note that this tent does not come with its own groundsheet. Coleman says that the tent doesn’t need one, probably because its floor is a crinkly (though tough) tarp-like polyethylene, not a taped-seam polyester as in our other picks. A classic polyester dome tent, the Mineral King 3 uses two high-quality pre-bent aluminum poles, which maximize head and shoulder space, making this tent feel less cramped than other dome tents we tested.
However, this model has two peaks, so there are two center poles and cranks. It wasn’t difficult, but setup took 15 to 20 minutes from start to finish once we’d added the sidewalls. Adjusting the height with the push-button mechanisms was simple, protecting us from pinched fingers. Hook-and-loop straps secure the canopy between the poles for added stability. Once set up and with a person at each corner, we could carry this canopy around to move it. While it is large, it’s relatively lightweight for the size of the canopy.
However, for someone who frequents events and trade shows, the price is worth it. The canopy and the entire frame fold down to 47 inches long by 8 inches wide by 8 inches deep—small enough to fit inside a car trunk. The takedown process wasn’t exactly intuitive, and the instructions lacked any details to help. However, overall this canopy is a lightweight solution when a little privacy in a public space is needed. Every canopy was set up and broken down several times to test the release and slider mechanisms as well as how well the canopies fit into their provided storage bags.