Camping or expedition: Feeling at home outdoors in your tent

With a good tent, you can feel at home anywhere – a roof over your head, protected from the wet and mosquitoes, yet you are right out there in the middle of nature. Camping can take many forms: on a camping holiday for two in a family tent, on trekking tours in the middle of the wilderness or on high alpine expeditions in snow and ice. Eco-friendly tents by VAUDE are the perfect companion for every activity.

The right tent for any adventure

It’s important to choose the right tent so that you enjoy your tent adventures, big or small. If you're staying at a campsite for a fortnight with the whole family, you’ll need a different type of tent than a bikepacker or a mountaineer would need for an expedition. But all tents have one thing in common: they should be well ventilated as well as waterproof and produce as little condensation as possible.

Camping tents are versatile and easy to set up. Their robust aluminium poles provide stability as well as a comfortable height for a successful tent holiday. In this case, the weight and packaging of the tent play less of a role. Storage space and an awning are particularly important for camping tents and family tents, so that there’s for clothes, supplies, crockery and toys if it rains. An inner tent protects against mosquitoes.

Car tents can be attached to cars and vans to create even more outdoor living space.

Trekking tents and expedition tents: out into the wilderness

Trekking tents and hiking tents, on the other hand, should be small and light so that they don't take up too much space in your backpack and don't get too heavy on longer hikes. At the same time, they should be quick to set up so that you can spend every night in a different place. Trekking tents are often self-standing dome tents that can also stand without pegs or guy ropes. Nevertheless, a good trekking tent needs sufficient stowage options so that it can fit into a large trekking backpack alongside a sleeping mat, and so that nothing gets wet. Ultralight tents are the lightweights of all tents. Long-distance hikers, trekkers and mountaineers appreciate workmanship that is particularly low weight, robust, tear-resistant.

Expedition tents must be incredibly robust and wind-resistant so that they can withstand snow and ice in extreme conditions in high mountains. In this case, expectations in terms of functions and durability are particularly high, because if the tent tears, the tour is over quickly. An expedition tent is therefore often constructed in the form of a geo-tent and can be pitched very quickly.

Which tent size is the right one?

Tents come in different sizes – from an ultra-light 1-person tent to a large family tent for six people. If you want to buy a tent, you shouldn’t always just focus on the number of people, but also on the exact dimensions of the sleeping area. A 2-man tent is not always the right choice for trekking as a pair, but may be more suitable for a couple on a camping holiday. Sometimes, depending on the dimensions, it can get quite cosy, especially if you have to fit two backpacks into the tent. For more space, a spacious 2-person tent is worthwhile, whereas it can be quite cramped in ultralight tents for two. It is therefore always worth taking a look at the tent dimensions and the actual purpose of the tent.

Last but not least, the shape of the tent is also important: tunnel tents have steeper walls and offer more space, while the full height of a dome tent can only be used at one point. Geodesic constructions often save space in the tent in favour of stability.

Care instructions for VAUDE eco-friendly tents

Tents are like a mobile home when you're on the road. It's where you sleep, eat and relax. That's why VAUDE tents are made from materials that do not harm people or the environment. It is for this reason that we don’t use PVC in our tents – and yet they are 100% waterproof tents. Find out more about PVC-free. Our tents also carry the stringent Green Shape sustainability label. Find out more about Green Shape.

Another aspect of a sustainable tent is that it is used for a long time. A tent can take a lot of wear and tear, and should therefore be regularly cleaned of dirt. In our service section, we explain whether you can wash a tent, how to care for and how to repair one.