Hi,

I'm looking for an affordable lightweight 3-season 2 person tent. I am also planning on occasionally using it for solo hiking, thus low weight is important! By affordable I mean a price point of around 350 euros, preferably cheaper. Unfortunately interesting brands such as Big Agnes, Tarptents, Big Sky International, REI aren't readily available in Europe (unless you are willing to pay large shipping & import fees), so those aren't an option.

Based on the BPL SMR on double wall 2 person tents[http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/2_person_double-wall_tents_sotm_2010.html] the Vaude Hogan Ultralight looks like a suitable candidate. It costs around 260 euros and offers excellent weather protection. Drawbacks are its small vestibule, its inner-tent version construction (inner tent gets wet while setting up in the rain) and its relatively small floor area. According to the BPL review it's too small to hold 2 persons and their gear, can a Hogan owner share his experience on this? The XP version of the Hogan UL is a bit larger and offers a more spacious vestibule while also being lighter than the standard UL version. It is however 100 euros more expensive (350 euros for the XP), which is a lot for what the little that get you get extra.

Vaude also makes a Taurus II UL tent. The main difference between the Hogan and the Taurus II is that the poles are outside of the rain fly in the Taurus II whereas they are on the inside in the Hogan. Apart from the outer-tent first benefit of the Taurus I am not aware of any other differences that the pole construction brings? The Hogan is a 100grams lighter than the Taurus though. Does anyone know what benefits/drawbacks outer poles have?

MSR Hubba Hubba (which is American but available in Europe) is an other interesting option. It's roomier than the Hogan with a larger floor area and two vestibules. But its webbing inner tent means that it's less warm. The small bathtub floor height of only 3 cm raises serious concerns on its rain protecting capabilities. It's also 200 grams heavier than the hogan and more expensive (290 euros where I live). There is also an HP version of the Hubba Hubba which is a bit lighter, but at 420 euros it's above my budget.

For now the Vaude Hogan UL looks like the best option, it protects better against rain than the MSR and it's cheapier. The only concerns I have is the limited amount of floor area for 2 persons and the small vestibule for storing two backpacks and two pairs of booths. The XP version might alleviate these issues but hardly seems worth considering it's 350 euros price point.

For the moment I'm considering these three models. Are there any other tents that I have missed and that meet my demands? Feel free to share your opinion/personal experiences on the matter.

Hi!

Honestly, the "available in Europe" part isn't really an issue, as most/all the usual suggestions are available to ship to Europe affordably. How bad are your "import fees?" I'm in Canada and we have significant tarrifs and taxes on imported gear but it's *still* a better deal to import than buy locally. Look outside what is available at your retailers. Do searches on this forum, it has been discussed to death. LightHeart Gear tents (my favourite), Tarptent, Six Moons Designs are typical suggestions and well worth considering. They are all significantly lighter and cheaper than most your suggestions. You probably don't require double-wall. (Only a significant benefit in winter, with a solid (not mesh) inner, or in very specific condensation circumstances where you just can't avoid touching the walls).

I originally looked into tents like the Hubba Hubba, but honestly, they are very average, quite heavy (even though they are often the lightest thing a retailer will carry), don't stand up to bad weather well, and way too expensive for what they are.

Edited by dasbin on 06/13/2012 03:25:56 MDT.

Hi,

i don't want to give you advice about lightweight tents, but there are at least two shops in Germany who sell interesting lightweight tents:

http://www.trekking-lite-store.com

http://www.sackundpack.de/

Importing US goods to where I live (Belgium, Europe), is just a very expensive undertaking. It's actually so expensive that I personally don't find it interesting. Customs charge 21% VAT and 12% import tax for tents.

Let's take the Tarptent Scarp 2 as an example. It has a base price of 339 USD, i.e. about the same price as a Vaude Hogan UL tent. International shipping costs 53 USD. Total custom value is thus 392 USD. VAT is 82 USD and import tax is 47 USD. Total cost raises to 521 USD, which is 53% higher than the original price.
Like I said, way too expensive for being an option.

http://www.backpackinglight.dk/

Thanks, those are two very interesting shops. Any idea about delivery times on the TarpTents?
It would seem that I have more choices after all. Back to drawing board it is :)

How does customs deal with packages marked as gifts?

I'm looking for an affordable lightweight 3-season 2 person tent

You will have great difficulty finding something to meet these criterion.
For example, the new Vango Nitro 200 would be suitable, but is more than 350 euro.
You could look for the Vaude Ferret 1 Ultralight. This has been replace by a new model so you might find some old stock for less than 350 euro. It is a solid tent with lots of room for two, but is 2.0kg light enough for you?

I have an almost unused Big Agnes FlyCreek UL3 for sale. I live in Denmark.
I bought it this year from Dan Durston (here from the site) for a trip for my brother and I, but that has since been cancelled.

It retails around $450 in the states and I paid Dan $250 + shipping which is $61 we splitted and then tax + toll. I'm willing to sell it to you for $250.

Here is the thread including images of the tent as it is now:
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=56105

If your interested I just send me a PM

/Mikkel

Edited by mikkelfilskov on 06/13/2012 15:55:56 MDT.

Hi Ken,

If its marked a s gift the first 60 or 70 dollars is "tax" free, they also charge tax on the shipping cost.

Cheers

Also, this site in UK:

http://www.ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/2_person.html

They carry Big Agnes, Easton, Exped, GoLite, MSR, Nemo, Terra Nova, and Vaude.

@Floris: Both shops have fast delivery times, if the product is in stock.

@Mikel: thank you for the offer, but I'm not interested for the moment. Got my eyes set on the UL TT for the moments.
@Pascal: I contacted both shops and unfortunately the TT Stratospire 2 is OOS in both shops, backorder is as far as two-three weeks for the moment.

My preference is leaning towards the TT Stratospire 2 for the moment. Very roomy tent with two large vestibules and at 1100 grams it's UL. I also like its modular design, allowing it to be used as a tarp for 4 persons. You can also spare the dead weight of normal tent poles and replace those with hiking poles (Fizan compacts weight around 300gs a pair).
Although it's a bit over budget at 400 euros, I'm considering whether or not it's worth it. One of the doubts that I'm having lies with the nylon flysheet that comes on all tarptents. How will it perform in Europe highlands (i.e. up to 2000 meters) where the weather might change rapidly and the precipitation can be become quite heavy really fast? By precipitation I mainly mean rain and the occasion downfall of hail during the spring/summer/autumn months. Is the outer fabric strong enough to survive this kind of abuse and will it keep the inner tent dry (provided that the seals are properly sealed)?

Edited by logion on 06/14/2012 06:21:44 MDT.

Hi again,

Just a little post with a follow-up to this thread. I ended up purchasing a Tarptent Stratospire 2 from BPL.dk. At 1222 grams or 611g(=21.5oz) per person it's pretty light, this is inclusive 8 pegs and exclusive hiking poles(I use fizan compact poles).

So far I've used the tent for a 7-day hike through central Norway and am very pleased with it. Conditions at night were moderate with light rain fall and winds, so I didn't get to test it in extreme weather yet. However, there were a couple of moments of really intense rain and the tent managed to stay perfectly dry, so I don't anticipate any issues. The tent is very, very roomy for two persons and the vestibules are quite large as well. Condensation is an issue however, I'll have to experience further with the tent setup to see how I can further improve this. Don't expect much isolation from the mesh inner tent, compared to other tents it's a rather cold. Decent sleeping bags are obligatory. The announced 50-50 solid-mesh inner might alleviate this issue for warm sleepers.

I would also like to point out that proper seam sealing is paramount. I forgot to seal the seams that hold the guy line attachments on the side and water managed to leak through. Luckily I brought the sealer with me and managed to fix it the day after.

So I'm very happy with my purchase. Thanks to everyone for the helpful comments and suggestions. Now to get the weight of the other items of my sleeping system down :)

Some media to round up my first impression:
Tarptent Stratospire 2 in Jotunheimen:

Tarptent Stratospire 2 in a light drizzle:
http://youtu.be/F47gHKVTUL4

Edited by logion on 08/01/2012 08:25:03 MDT.

Floris,
Nice pitch.
I have used the SS2 at around 1700m on an exposed (windy) area under all afternoon and night rain, no problem.
I keep some of the vestibule open on the lean side to get more air flow.

This is the SS 2 "solid" interior.

Ready soon.
Franco

You keep teasing us with that photo, Franco. I emailed Henry about its availability and he indicated he'd be updating the website to accept orders for it in a couple of weeks.

I found a SS2 on gear swap this week and am excited to try it out once it arrives. The solid inner looks like a good shoulder season addition.