TENTS | Adventure Ready With The Coleman Batur 3 Blackout Tent – Review

August 15, 2020 Shell Robshaw-Bryan

Homepage Feature, Reviews, Sponsored Product/Stay, Tent Reviews

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Looking for small yet capable, adventure ready tent? Read on to find out how the Coleman Batur 3 blackout tent stacks up in terms of performance…

What is it?

Coleman Batur 3 Blackout Tent

Expect to pay around: RRP: £199

Overall Rating: (4.5 / 5)

Stockists

Technical Features

2 x Aluminium Poles 8.5 mm
Polyester PU coated, ripstop, fire retardant, 6000 HH
Polyester, 5000 mm PU coated, taped seams, fire retardant
Coleman® UVGuard™ SPF50 protection fabric
Weight 3.3kg

What we thought

You don’t run a blog called Camping with Style because you’re renowned for camping light, so it’s rare that I camp in a small tent, but I’d been looking for something small and practical for short last-minute and solo camping trips.

When I saw the new 2020 range of Coleman active tents at the Camping & Carvanning show earlier this year, the Batur tent looked to be the ideal choice, so when I was offered a sample, I jumped at the chance.

The tent arrived during lockdown, so it took several months before I could test it anywhere other than my garden. That said, the size of the tent and speed it takes to pitch, meant throughout lockdown we camped in the Batur in the back garden several times.

Coleman Batur 3 tent inside my car next to my single SIM — **The Coleman Batur 3 in my car with the rest of my camping gear to show the pack size**

Post-lockdown, I’ve camped at every opportunity I’ve had, including most recently, a last-minute solo camping trip to Cannock Chase in Staffordshire.

During the trip I was lucky to have perfect weather that was warm, dry and sunny, but I kept the Batur pitched in the garden for several days during a week of stormy weather and torrential rain and the 6000mm HH coped amazingly well, with no leaks.

Pitching The Tent

Pitching is quick, easy and intuitive and the tent is pitched in one. The two small lightweight poles are both colour coded, I attached the poles at either end, then pulled the tent into shape before guying it down. The whole pitching process takes no more than 10 minutes.

Guy rope sliders Coleman Batur 3 tent review

The pegs are good quality and didn’t bend, even when hammering them into rocky ground and the guy rope sliders are a really cool design, that lock securely into place.

Looks & Styling

The tent is best described as being a wedge shape which is wide at the top end and narrows and decreases in height as it tapers towards the bottom of the tent where your feet go.

The shape is really clever and there are identical doors on either side of the tent, so for two sharing it’s ideal. There are also wings on either side in between the inner tent and the flysheet which create handy storage areas, useful for stowing things like walking boots and backpacks.

Interior Space & Features

I’ve been a fan of Coleman Blackout tents for many years and recommend them every chance I get. I genuinely sleep longer when I’m in a blackout tent and the Coleman Batur 3 is no exception – on my most recent solo camping trip, after being disturbed at 2am by noisy campers, I actually didn’t wake up until 9am!

Space for 1 is ample. There’s plenty of room to keep bags, boots, books and anything else you might want to bring along with you, and of course there’s the extra space outside of the sleeping compartment in the wings.

When two are inside the tent using single SIMs there’s still a little space and unlike the Vango Banshee, both sides of the tent are the same, so there are 2 large internal storage pockets on each side, and each side has the same zipped door and external storage space too.

As well as the storage pockets inside, there’s also a lantern hanging point and both side doors have mesh windows that can be rolled down to keep the air flowing whilst keeping the bugs out.

Pros

Good quality tent with excellent levels of waterproofing
Very stable in high winds
Very quick and intuitive to pitch
The blackout technology works really well
Compact pack size and relatively low weight at just over 3kg
Good quality pegs
Good quality guy rope sliders that lock securely in place
The generous bag makes it easy to pack everything away after use
Ideal backpacking tent when splitting the load between two

Cons

I found the outside zip occasionally got stuck on the flysheet but was easily rectified
Too small for 3 adults to sleep in comfortably

The verdict

Our Rating

Quality 4/5

Practicality 4/5

Features 4.5/5

Value 4.5/5

Overall Rating (4.5 / 5)

Although big enough to sleep 3 and at over 3kg this is clearly not a solo backpacking tent (split the load between 2 though and you’re golden!), but it is light enough for 1 person to carry over moderate distances, especially for wild camping purposes. I’ve also found it amazing for quick 1-night camping trips and although It’s slightly heavier than say the Vango Banshee 3, it provides similar levels of performance but importantly, it provides more space.

It’s super fast to pitch, taking perhaps 10 minutes tops, it performs amazingly well in heavy rain, and the Blackout technology is also extremely effective.

The clever shape of the tent makes it ideal for up to 2 people. Yes, you could squeeze in 3 people, but would you really want to? We’ve used the tent with 2 standard single SIMs inside and the tent is just wide enough to accommodate them.

I like space, so for me, I’ll happily sacrifice weight and pack size every time for greater comfort and I’ve got to say, I’m surprised, but I absolutely love this tent. It has opened up a whole new kind of camping to me and I now have a tent that’s super compact and a delight to use for quick overnight camping trips.

If you’re looking for a tent with a good amount of space, that’s fast to pitch and that delivers in terms of performance, then the Coleman Batur 3 Blackout tent is well worth considering.

DISCLOSURE | Thank you to Coleman who supplied the featured product for us to test. We were not paid to write this review.

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Shell Robshaw-Bryan

Editor & Owner at Camping with Style

Shell loves all things travel and outdoors and is a nature-loving, comfy-camping kinda girl. Shell started the Camping with Style blog after a serious snowboarding accident which left her with a broken back. Despite this she used the outdoors and healing power of nature to aid her recovery and she continues to spend time outdoors whenever she can.

From open water swimming, snowboarding and kayaking to hill walks and meditation, Shell shares her travels and microadventures here on the blog and in various publications she's written for, Shell has a particular interest in promoting wellbeing and the many benefits of nature therapy.

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