Is camping equipment from Decathlon any good??

[Big Worm 1]

I'm looking at buying my first ever lot of camping equipment. I think it would be fun, the kids would love it, but the OH is rather apprehensive about the whole thing.

Now due to the fact that we may go camping for the first time and she might refuse to do it again, i don't want to fork out a great amount.

We went in our local Decathlon and had a look at all the equipment, which to my untrained eye, seemed pretty good. However, colleagues at work have advised me against buying stuff from there, and that i should go to Go Outdoors instead.

I should imagine the basics like stoves, mattresses, etc will all be pretty much the same but my concern is more around the tent itself. I have seen this and it looks ok to me - http://www.decathlon.co.uk/t63-id_8056334.html

Are there any things i need to be aware of? Is it better to have a built in ground sheet, or is a seperate one just as good? That sort of thing.

Like i say, this could end up being a one-off holiday and never happens again, so i don't want to be spending £500 on a tent that may never get used again.

If you have any tips or things a camping virgin needs to know, then i will be grateful to hear them.

Thanks

[Agrilla]

I love Decathlon - their staff are always happy to pull out a tent and give tutorial on how to put it up/take it down which really is a worthwhile 5 minutes especially if you're buying a pop up.

Weve been using this one for three years and even in torrential rain and wind like you wouldn't believe we've kept cosy and dry. The fact that you can stand up in it is a definite plus, and that in the aforementioned rain you can still pitch it or put it down in five minutes (or in more clement weather be supping your G&T after your journey without having to face spending ages putting it up).

This one has sewn in ground sheets for the bedrooms, which then sit over the main groundsheet that attaches to the living room area with strong Velcro.

If you don't like it, the resale prices also keep quite keen on this one on eBay, but I don't know what the others are like.

[Piglet]

Decathlon kit is fab, it's one of the must do's of any trip to France for us. I've not used a UK store but I understand the stock is the same.

Having said that, I wouldn't necessarily pick that tent. It's fairly short so limited places to stand and the sleeping pods are small - with two in a pod the person on the outside will have a face full of fabric as it's very sloped.

I'd be tempted by something more tunnel shape like a Vango Icarus or similar.
I'm not a fan of sewn in groundsheets but I'm probably in the minority.

[prand]

Nothing wrong with cheap gear if it's going spend most of its life in your garage... Decathlon sell reasonable stuff on the whole in my experience, as long as you are not expecting high-end, expedition quality gear.

One thing would recommend is a tent with a full groundsheet, which keeps the outside (drafts, rain, wet grass, creepy crawlies etc) out and much more cosy! We bought a coleman tent (riverside?) online for about £150-£160. For the price it isn't top quality, but for our needs is perfect, sleeps a family 4, and will put up with wind and rain for a few weekends a year it is used.

Then next on the packing list for us is airbeds, real duvets and pillows & blankets which are the things that make camping bearable!

Edited by prand on Wednesday 8th August 14:31

[Du1point8]

Will probably get my ass kicked for this... but for tents (only tents)...

Have you thought about halfrauds?

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/...

I bought a tent in their sale over 5 years ago and its still going strong now... rest of the equipment is always bought from Decathlon.

[LeoZwalf]

Decathlon gets my vote too. Their Quechua brand is good stuff, not mega high quality but that is reflected in the price. We have one of their 2 Seconds tents and it is fantastic. So easy to put up and take down, fits into a bag which although bigger than a non pop-up tent is of a perfectly reasonable size to fit in the car.

We have quite a lot of clothing from Decathlon too, it's good quality, good price, comfortable and they have a pretty big choice.

[StoatInACoat]

Decathlon do some good deals as well. Their half price tents usually really are half price so bargains to be had. Bought out Coleman thingy from them but they currently have a Vango Icarus in the sale at our local one which the missus has decided we're buying.

[Big Worm 1]

Went to Go Outdoors this evening, and saw this one which is the same price as the one in my original post. To me, this one seems better, the bedrooms are bigger, and it has a built in ground sheet.

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/hi-gear-zenobia-6-p148...

So, other things i need to get

Matresses
Sleeping bags (or am i best just taking duvets as i have seen people mention in other threads?)
Footprint
Stove
Mains kit
Lanterns
Chairs
Table

Is there anything else i haven't mentioned?

[StuartGGray]

This was my favourite tent before I went to the caravan side -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aztec-Family-Man-Tent-Pala...

For Mattresses get air beds.
Sleeping bags with downies over them.
Footprint ? what is that?
Stove - CAMPINGAZ CAMPING KITCHEN 2 BURNER COOKING STOVE/GRILL
Mains kit
Lanterns
Chairs
Table
12 volt blower for airbeds. Car 12V Electric Air Pump Inflator Camping Inflatable Airbed
That's about right.

[Piglet]

The hi-gear tent won't open properly on my phone so I can't comment at the moment. it is an ok brand through. How many of you are there, how are you planning to sleep ie kids together or with you? How old are the kids? You're picking tents with the pods very separated but if you have little kids having them in an adjacent pods may be much easier. The other problem with the via-a-vis set up of the tent above us that you lose living space because the bedroom doors open into it from both sides.

Personally I'd avoid airbeds, I hate the bloody things! I find then really cold to sleep on, you'll need to take additional layers of insulation to avoid "wet bed" syndrome and they are prone to going down. We use self inflating mats, much warmer, longer lasting. Look at Alpkit.com at their Dozer mats. A bit more expensive but easier to use and the kids can use them for sleep

You really don't need to spend money on electric hook up, try it without, charge phones out of the car and leave the rest at home. Electric pitches will cost you more, be difficult to get in high season and leave you only camping in areas where hook ups are installed, usually the busier area of sites so the more open tent fields with great views and space won't be available to you.

[tenohfive]

I've got this tent for the same sort of money (about £215 on Amazon, I don't know about elsewhere) :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gelert-Horizon-Person-Tent...

Has done good through two or three trips now, including a week in a boggy field with the Lake District giving it a hammering. For good budget gear I really rate Gelert and the missus and I both love the tent - it's roomy, big enough to stand throughout and when it's just the two of us we can leave the second sleeping compartment in the car and have a 4.5 x 2m kitchen/living/dining room in which you can comfortably cook for and feed 5 adults (with guitars) - we used it as the main communal area when we went away with friends.

[StoatInACoat]

StuartGGray said:

This was my favourite tent before I went to the caravan side -

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aztec-Family-Man-Tent-Pala...

For Mattresses get air beds.
Sleeping bags with downies over them.
Footprint ? what is that?
Stove - CAMPINGAZ CAMPING KITCHEN 2 BURNER COOKING STOVE/GRILL
Mains kit
Lanterns
Chairs
Table
12 volt blower for airbeds. Car 12V Electric Air Pump Inflator Camping Inflatable Airbed
That's about right.

Beware with that camping stove that you'll need a gas can and a regulator as well which will cost a lot if you're not carefull. Best bet is to get an empty 3.9kg calor off ebay for a few quid then pay the £15 to get it re-filled or a full 907 camping gaz one which will be a bit cheaper. It's the stove I have and is worth the cost.

You don't need power, get a gas powered lantern and avoid cheap crappy airbeds. It's the worst thing in the world when you get back to your tent and it's flat and you're too pissed to drive anywhere to get a new one. Buy the quencha branded foot pump, the eleccy ones are more hassle than they're worth to be honest.

Edited by StoatInACoat on Thursday 9th August 09:03

[Big Worm 1]

StuartGGray said:

Footprint ? what is that?

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/hi-gear-zenobia-6-footprint-p146672

[fatpasty]

tenohfive said:

I've got this tent for the same sort of money (about £215 on Amazon, I don't know about elsewhere) :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gelert-Horizon-Person-Tent...

Has done good through two or three trips now, including a week in a boggy field with the Lake District giving it a hammering. For good budget gear I really rate Gelert and the missus and I both love the tent - it's roomy, big enough to stand throughout and when it's just the two of us we can leave the second sleeping compartment in the car and have a 4.5 x 2m kitchen/living/dining room in which you can comfortably cook for and feed 5 adults (with guitars) - we used it as the main communal area when we went away with friends.

I agree with this ... Gelert stuff is decent. I've got a three man tent, just a normal dome tent which I've had over 10 years and it is still going strong. Been used in all weather, standing up to it all. I would always swing to paying a little more for a little bit better quality.

[Big Worm 1]

Piglet said:

The hi-gear tent won't open properly on my phone so I can't comment at the moment. it is an ok brand through. How many of you are there, how are you planning to sleep ie kids together or with you? How old are the kids? You're picking tents with the pods very separated but if you have little kids having them in an adjacent pods may be much easier. The other problem with the via-a-vis set up of the tent above us that you lose living space because the bedroom doors open into it from both sides.

There will be 4 of us. Myself, the OH, 5 year old and 2 year old. The idea was just to have an adult and a child in each bedroom.

[Marvindodgers]

Both Decathlon & Go Outdoors are great value (especially if you pay the £5 annual members card at Go Outdoors). For the odd, possibly one off, camping trip, both of those stores will be able to kit you out for pretty reasonable money.

If it's an experiment, have you not got any friends that you could perhaps borrow a tent off of? Would save you a few quid. Sleeping bags and air beds will always get used for kid's sleepovers etc and so are not a problem if you don't go again, but tents are pretty expensive if they only get used once.

[Agrilla]

Proper duvets are the way to go - you can kick them off if it's too hot, or wrap them around if you're cold.

Edit to add have you considered buying the carpet?

If your missus is a bit iffy about camping, it might be an idea. We just use one of those kids printed road rugs, but it does make a difference standing bare footed on something soft.

Edited by Agrilla on Thursday 9th August 11:21

[prand]

Piglet said:

Personally I'd avoid airbeds, I hate the bloody things! I find then really cold to sleep on, you'll need to take additional layers of insulation to avoid "wet bed" syndrome and they are prone to going down. We use self inflating mats, much warmer, longer lasting. Look at Alpkit.com at their Dozer mats. A bit more expensive but easier to use and the kids can use them for sleep

You really don't need to spend money on electric hook up, try it without, charge phones out of the car and leave the rest at home. Electric pitches will cost you more, be difficult to get in high season and leave you only camping in areas where hook ups are installed, usually the busier area of sites so the more open tent fields with great views and space won't be available to you.

Don't agree - we set up with sheets, a fleece blanket underneath and duvets and pillows, never any issue with cold!

I do agree with the eletrical thing, this starts to make camping complicated, use torches/LED lights and gas for cooking, and the car as an emergency power source instead. We took an electric cooler box round France one year and it just became a complete pain trying to find the power when camping. Much easier without (plus in 30+C it didn't get cold enough). If you need to charge phones etc I have one of these which keeps two iphones and an ipod touch charged over along weekend: http://www.amazon.co.uk/EasyAcc-Portable-Emergency...

[JM]

I got a tent from Decathlon recently.
It's one of the pop-up ones, but a big one.

Easy to set up, once pegged and guyed was pretty stable and lots of space.

Stood up to lots of rain and strong winds too, well apart from one pole which kept bending down, but I was pretty sure it wasn't going to break as it's meant to be flexible. But changing the guy rope fixings would probably help in the long term. For the short term I parked the car to block the worst of the wind and tied a rope to the roof bars on the car from the top guy location and it sorted it out till the worst of thw wind was over.

So, yes I was impressed with the tent and other stuff I have bought from Decathlon and would use them again.

[muppetdave]

Yup, I had to buy an 'emergency' tent at Le Mans this year (don't ask!), got the Quechea 4.2 XL - same as the one Agrilla mentioned but with a larger main area. It wouldn't be the first choice tent I'd buy compared to my sunncamp, but certainly we had nothing to complain about with it (other than headroom) and Decathlon. Not being a great French speaker, if the service in France is anything to go by then the UK will be great too.

As someone else said the value of Decathlon gear is good too - slightly cheaper in France by the looks of it, as I actually sold that tent as soon as we got home for a slight profit.