By Sara Baird
My family spent every possible day Minnesota weather allowed at our rustic one-room lake cabin. Because the cabin was so small tents became our bedrooms. This tradition continued as my sisters and I became parents, just expanding the number of tent bedrooms needed. In addition to our time at the lake, we thoroughly enjoyed campouts in state and national parks and wilderness trips. While we just upgraded to a 5th wheel for most of our camping needs I still love to spend the night in a tent, so I was excited by the request to try out No Box Tools Bell Tent.
This tent did arrive in a box. No Box Tools creates products meant to inspire people to live outside the box. I was excited to try it out as soon as it arrived, unfortunately, we were buckling down for a January blizzard. This tent is not intended for winter camping but I figured it could not hurt to try it out in the backyard so I recruited my teen to help me set it up.
The design of this tent is based on a yurt. It is round with a pole in the center and entirely dependent on tent stakes to set it up. The stakes that came with the tent were very sturdy, we were unable to drive them into the frozen ground but were able to use them to anchor the tent by freezing them into the snow horizontally. This is a single layer tent with sealed seams to make it waterproof. It does not have an additional rain fly to place over the top but you can purchase a fly to extend the entryway of the tent.
The tent was extremely easy to set up. It took the two of us less than 15 minutes and I did it all with choppers on my hands. One of the best features of this tent is the easily adjusted straps, just a quick pull or release will adjust the straps to pull the bottom of the tent tight. I left the tent up for two weeks through snow, wind, melting, and freezing and visited it often. I even took advantage of a warmer day to take a cool nap in it. The tent stayed in place and stayed dry.
Did I mention that this tent is huge! It is designed to be an eight-person tent. Reflecting on the days I camped while my kids were young, I believe you could easily fit two full-size air mattresses and a playpen with plenty of room for gear. Five to Six cots or eight sleeping on the floor would also be perfectly comfortable. Considering the size of this tent, it packs up pretty small and only weighs 26 lbs. I would not want to haul it into the wilderness but it is ideal for a car camping trip.
Pros
- Super easy setup
- Large entryway
- Durable zippers and closures
- Plenty of room and tall ceilings
- Relatively small and not overly heavy
- Strong sturdy stakes and poles
- Vented ceiling and two windows for airflow
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Cons
- Entirely dependent on stakes for set up, could be difficult in rocky or very sandy locations
- Too large for backpacking
Overall, I would recommend this tent if you are looking for a large tent that packs up small to use for car camping trips or an extra room at the cabin. I will be happy to use this tent when we do some state park camping this summer and it will replace the one we bring along as an extra shelter when we camp in our 5th wheel. I would have loved this tent when my kids were young and we needed the space.
Sara Baird
I am an adventurer at heart, always looking for the next opportunity to learn something new. I spend my winter days working with high school students to explore their interests and develop passions.
I spend my evenings and summers developing new hobbies and being outdoors as much as possible. I enjoy camping, hiking, cross country skiing, and biking.
The only concern I would have is condensation on the inside surfaces of the tent, especially during Spring and Fall seasons. I am not sure the ventilation provided would cure that and it makes it pretty miserable to touch the inside surface inadvertently and have it “rain” on you. I would also be concerned about how sturdy the fabric is, since even a minor hole in a single layer tent would be a problem. Has anyone slept in this in 40 to 60 degree weather and, if so, any condensation problems? Otherwise, looks really interesting.
I might have missed it in the review but how big was this tent. Diameter and height at the centre? Thanks.
It is 7.5′ tall at the center and 13.5′ across.
Thank you.
I love this!! Now this is my kind of tent…no tools it is an absolute winner xx
We are avid hikers and love to camp. It seems pretty nifty to have on hand.
Thanks for the honest review! I think this is perfect for hikers with kids. It’s spacious enough for the whole family.
Just wanted to let you know that my son mentioned this tent to his best friend and it seems that he will be getting one. They are planning a trip to an island off the coast where you have to bring your own tent. I think the boys will fit in one tent. This bell tent is huge.
looks like a great tent to use! I personally can’t wait to finally camp again
We are planning on going camping this year and this looks like a really great tent.
As someone who as has very little knowledge about tents, it was very enlightening. I think this product would be better if it wasn’t too bulking for packing and if it didn’t need stakes for every setup. Other than that, it looks nice.
I’d love to stay in a yurt and I’m sure this gives the feeling that you’re in Central Asia surrounded by wild horses on a plain. I can barely tolerate snow let alone camping in one or a blizzard. This is preferable in warm weather.
I have always been fascinated by the concept of Yurts and I got to experience one during my travels across Kazakhstan. This product looks so much similar to that and is a perfect one for family camping. Glad to be introduced to this!
I never done a set up for camp due to lots of difficult work involved in it. But setting up camps from No Box Tools Bell Tent looks easy and I think, I can now go for it. Good that it has durable zippers and closures. And have proper ventilation and air flow too, so that one is not suffocated inside. Though it is not good for rough weather but for ideal weather, it looks super easy set up. Thanks for sharing a great product.
This seems like a good product to invest in for camping. The pros definitely outweigh the cons. Super easy setup, large entryway, durability and plenty of room and tall ceilings are a clear winner for me.
Well, this was a good timing to find this post. I am just looking to buy a tent for our future camping trip. This looks like a great option. Last time I have been sleeping in a tent was when I was kid, so I definitely need some reviews and recommendations to help me.
I have been thinking about getting a tent, but I had no idea what brands or kinds to look for. Thank you for telling about this!!
Wow, looks huge! so good it only taking 15min to put up and weighing 26lbs….nice post! thanks! 🙂
I’ve stayed in yurts in Central Asia so it was interesting to see this design in a normal tent. Love the fact it works in all weathers and doesn’t need an extra waterproof layer. Tents that are easy to setup always win in my books, I’ll take a look at these when buying a tent.
The setup and takedown always make a huge difference in tents. This one is definitely a piece of cake!
This is such a great review of this tent. I’m not a camper but with 3 boys I may become one in a few years and need this post
I’m not a big camper but this is super helpful for those that want to camp! The main thing is that we all need to get out and enjoy the benefits of nature. Taking a group of friends with a tent this big would be a good way to immerse yourself in the great outdoors.
We do need to get out there and as far as tents go, this one is pretty comfortable.
That’s wonderful. It is perfect for a family camping trip. Although we haven’t gone camping for many years, I would still recommend this to my cousins who are always taking their daughters on camping and fishing trips.
This is cool. Looks really cold out there though. My family is planning a camping trip this year will definately have to check this out.
Looks like a great tent.
I remember my days of camping and the gymnastics needed to put up tents. Good to hear that the No Box Tools Bell Tent was easy to put up. A pretty good recommendation that you could leave it up for 2 weeks through all kinds of weather. It is always a challenge to balance sturdy, size and weight. It sounds like this gives lots of room without too high a weight penalty. If we were still camping, this would be a tent to consider.
The more I go through your experiences the more I am attracted to camping. Trying out this tent seems to be a winner. It certainly looks like a quality product. The tent looks so spacious.
This tent looks like it would be so fun for both family and friends to share. I like that it’s easy to set up too.
I really appreciate the recommendations, but that snow stopped me in my tracks! Best to use this for summer adventures as you suggest.
This is amazing. An eight person tent that can be set up in 15 minutes? That’s even doable for someone like me! I love the look of yurts – they always look so cozy, so the fact that this is in the style of a yurt is awesome. Hope you get to try it out again once the weather gets better!
I love the winter but I am counting the days until camping season. Can’t wait to try it out for a weekend.
I like the equipment recommendations because it is always easier to make a purchase decision when someone has already tested the item. In particular in severe, e.g., winter conditions. This tent is too big for my needs. But it is perfect for a larger family. I believe that it can also be an excellent solution for a group of friends for a weekend trip.