TENTS | Our Verdict On The Funky New Weekender Bell Tent From Boutique Camping – Review

June 6, 2018 Shell Robshaw-Bryan

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

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From festivals to family camping, we think the new Weekender Bell Tent from Boutique Camping has got a lot going for it. As well as being easier to care for than traditional Cotton Canvas or Polycotton, the lower price point, high quality and funky looks make this tent a great buy for both families and festival goers. Read on for our full review.

Boutique Camping Weekender Aztec Print Bell Tent

What is it?

5m Weekender Bell Tent from Boutique Camping RRP £329

Stockists

Features

4m and 5m versions available in 3 different colours/patterns – Quirky Aztec print, rainbow and classic light brown/beige
Lightweight polyester bell tent with zipped in ground sheet
Secondary mosquito door, with thicker guy ropes and extra strong pegs
Spring loaded 32mm diameter centre pole
Branded metal guy rope sliders, zips and customised bag with length-way zipper
Hydrostatic head rating of 2000
Comes with 12 months manufacturers warranty
5m – 21kg
Packed down dimensions – 95cm x 28cm x 28cm
Comes complete with heavy-duty pegs and even a mallet

The generously sized patterned branded carry bag

The new Weekender Bell Tent in aztec print arrived and I rushed to get it out of its packaging. With a patterned carry bag, this tent immediately stands out and inside the bag you’ll find instructions on how to erect and care for your tent, along with excellent quality heavy-duty pegs and even a branded Boutique Camping mallet.

At £279 for the 4m and £329 for the 5m version, Weekender Bell Tents are substantially cheaper than a regular bell tent. The reason being that the Weekender is not made from 100% cotton canvas or Polycotton like traditional bell tents are, and isntead use cheaper Polyester.

The Aztec print close up

Putting The Tent Up

Putting up the Weekender Bell Tent is a doddle and even the 5m can easily be put up by one person alone. Putting up the tent took me around 15 minutes, starting with laying the tent down and pegging out the ground sheet. Next in goes the big centre pole to provide the tent with it’s distinctive shape, then the A-frame pole for the door pops inside, then finally the guy ropes are pegged into place. Putting up the tent was made faster as the guy ropes come pre-attached where previous tents I’ve owned from Boutique Camping have arrived with the guy ropes separately.

Beautiful quality branded guy rope adjusters

Space Inside

Inside the Weekender Bell Tent, the space is exactly the same as in any other bell tent of the same size. The 5m is my preferred size, simply because we usually take loads of camp furniture with us and like space when we camp. The 5m bell tent is the ideal size for a family though, and you’ll easily sleep 5 people inside this tent, more if you are on simple, space-saving SIMs.

Due to the height of the bell tent and the light colour of the fabric, it feels really light and airy inside, and you get an immense feeling of space inside, a feeling you just don’t get inside even the most generous standing-height family tunnel tent.

Inside the 5m Weekender Bell Tent

Looks

Once up the tent looks great, the pattern is really lovely and actually looks better close-up and in the flesh than it does in photos. Because the polyester fabric isn’t as heavy, I found getting the centre pole in much easier than I do when putting up my standard canvas bell tent. Once up, for some reason I expected the tent to be loser and flappier than a canvas bell, but it held it’s shape really well and felt strong and stable, just like a regular bell tent.

Whilst the Aztec print won’t be for everyone, I love the design. Close up, it’s really funky and vibrant, but far away the print is much more subtle and doesn’t leave the tent looking too conspicuous. If you want your tent to scream for attention then the rainbow version is definitely worth taking a look at.

Branding on the outside of the tent

Practicality

The tent is lighter than a Cotton or Polycotton bell tent but it is still quite heavy. Obviously a tent like this isn’t one for inconspicuous wild camping or one that you’d want to carry any real distance. Whilst this new range of tents has been developed with the festival goer in mind, if you are considering this tent for a festival, then I’d recommend that you invest in a wheeled trolley so you won’t have to lug it miles from the car park.

We camped in boiling hot weather, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the tent still felt airy inside. The interior certainly felt no hotter than the Polycotton tent we pitched next to it. Just like Polycotton bell tents from Boutique Camping, the Weekender has plenty of mesh covered half-moon vents, allowing air to flow through the tent, and the mesh on the front door also allowed us to keep the interior relatively cool by keeping the doors open whilst the mesh kept the bugs outside.

The centre pole up inside the Weekender Bell Tent

The 5m Weekender provides ample space for a family and it benefits from the same great quality features found on more expensive tents in the Boutique Camping range. The lower weight, slightly smaller pack-size and the modern polyester fabric that is quicker to dry and far easier to take care of makes the Weekender that bit more practical than a Cotton Canvas or Polycotton bell tent.

Final Thoughts

Although this tent is at a much lower price point than the polycotton bell tent range available from Boutique Camping, it’s still good quality.

We’re pleased to learn that the updated and expanded Weekender bell tent range has been extensively rain tested, so you’ll get sound performance whatever the weather, making this a great value alternative to a traditional canvas bell tent.

Air vents in side the tent and handy little storage pockets

To reduce the weight and cost, the fabric is much thinner than a standard bell tent, as it’s made from lightweight polyester so my guess is you probably won’t get as many years use from it as you would with a 100% cotton or a polycotton bell tent, but, there are still some compelling reasons why you might want to choose this tent, namely the much lower price, reduced weight (21kg), ease of care and the funky pattern!

From festivals to family camping, we think the Weekender Bell Tent is an good buy for summer camping trips.

The Weekender bell tent is ideal for everything from festivals to family camping and we think it’s a good buy for summer camping trips. For festival use, we’d recommend investing in a wheeled trolley as carrying 21kg of tent for any real distance won’t be much fun! Although this is a good quality tent we feel the HH needs to be improved to ensure it can stand up to really heavy rain.

DISCLOSURE | Thank you to Boutique Camping who supplied the featured product for us to test. We were not paid for 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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