Tent

Camping can be fun but to be honest, tents are a pain. The romance of carrying your accommodations with you and the excitement of arriving at a new destination can both be swiftly tempered by reality. Erecting your tent using bent aluminum poles, bits of string, damp plastic sheeting and too few pegs becomes old very quickly. Add in pitch darkness and/or rain and the temptation to head for the nearest dodgy hotel can become irresistible. It doesn't have to be that way. Eight years ago two Stefan's from Germany had an idea for a better tent - and now it's here. Time to erect - 1 minute. Read More

Eco-tourism is a fast developing industry, as travelers become more conscious about what type of holiday they choose. "Glamping" (glamor + camping) has thus become a popular option for many the eco-tourist, incorporating eco-friendly domes or igloos, that take the camping experience to the next level of comfort. Here's a look at two eco-dome sites in Europe. Read More

Youngsters who trek off into the back of beyond tend not to concern themselves too much with comfort. As you get older though, and perhaps have kids in tow, you may find that your camping needs undergo some modification. While some just opt for a bigger tent, the solution for Richard Waters and his wife Alicia originated in ancient Central Asia and has many names – such as Ger in Mongolia, Kherga in Afghanistan, or Yurta in Russia. Known as a Yurt to the English-speaking world, this round, lattice-framed portable dwelling has now been given a new lease of life in the world of recreational camping. Read More

We've all seen the photos – the absolute devastation at the end of a festival after the revelers have gone home. A number of organizations are turning this waste into green industry including Vanessa Harden and friends at Do The Green Thing who have designed a biodegradable tent that will decompose post-party and replenish the soil in the process. Read More

Camping, especially when it’s not car-supported camping, is all about reducing what you have to carry with you. If someone comes along with a tent that doesn’t require poles, then that’s definitely welcome news. As its name implies, however, what Topeak’s Bikamper does require instead is a bicycle – probably a little bulkier to carry with you than tent poles, but presumably the folks at Topeak are assuming that you would have the bike with you already, anyway. Read More

As summer kicks in for our readers in the northern hemisphere, their thoughts may turn to camping. Where to go... what to do... and what gadgets to take! Well, we kinda like gadgets – and camping – so we looked back through the cream of camping kit covered recently on Gizmag and compiled a list of some of our faves. Here’s what we came up with... Read More

JakPak, an all-in-one waterproof jacket, sleeping bag and tent could be a very useful piece of clothing for Man vs Wild-type adventurers or anyone unexpectedly caught in the outdoors. Or, if you’ve ever had to queue overnight for those impossibly hard to get concert or sports tickets, this little gem could make you the envy of everyone else in the line. Read More

November 23, 2007 Nissan has released a second dedicated tent designed to fit onto the rear of any Pathfinder, Murano, new X-TRAIL or QASHQAI. The tent attaches onto the rear of the vehicle with the use of adjustable straps and an elasticated sleeve, which fits over the complete rear-end of the vehicle and provides enough room for the tailgate to be opened up into the tent living area. Inside, the living area measures 3 meters x 3 meters to accommodate up to four adults, six if you include the back of the vehicle, and with over 2 meters in height at the peak of the dome there is plenty of standing room. Read More

July 9, 2006 Pitching a tent isn’t hard, but it is one of those things that seems to encounter endless problems for newbies. It’s invariably done when it’s going dark, when you’re dog tired and its almost always done in a less-than-ideal place – like policemen, good camping spots are plentiful when they’re not needed and scarce when they are desperately required due to the onset of darkness or inclement weather or both. French sporting products company Decathlon set itself an unlikely goal when it decided to create a tent that pitches itself – the concept was that such a tent would enable many more people to enjoy the wonders of camping and nature. It also had to be incredibly light and impossibly small and lack nothing in terms of function or creature comforts, oh, … and easily folded back into nothingness. Anyway, they did it! You unclip the tent, throw it in the air, and it completely assembles itself before it lands on the ground. It fits two people, folds up again in 15 seconds, weighs 3.5 kg and costs EU49 (US$63). Read More