Best Multi-Room Tent for Large Families and Groups

The NTK Super Arizona has everything we look for in a great family tent. It’s sturdy, durable, highly waterproof, extra-roomy, and has a bunch of convenient features. The fact that it allows you to create multiple rooms with its sewn-in room dividers just seals the deal.

This is, first and foremost, a massive tent. With 210 square feet of space and a peak height of 81 inches, it’s only behind the two Ozark Trail tents in regards to livability. Its large vestibules and interior storage pockets also mean that none of that interior space has to be used for gear storage.

Unlike other tents on our list, the SA uses a full-coverage rainfly with an impressive 2,500mm HH rating. This makes it the most waterproof shelter on our list and perhaps the only one we’d consider using in stormy, three-season conditions. It’s also made with burly materials and has multiple vents and mesh windows to reduce stuffiness and condensation in hot weather.

A few other features that make the Super Arizona a standout are its mesh screen room (handy for bug-free evening card games or drying wet gear and sleeping bags), two large D-shaped doors, and a large gear loft for overhead storage.

As a dome tent, we found the SA outperformed all of its peers in windy conditions thanks to its more aerodynamic profile.

This beast of a tent is our top pick for families or groups who like plenty of space. With a total of 400 square feet to roam around in (enough for 5 queen-size air mattresses!), the OT Base Camp is the closest to a “home away from home” you’re likely to find in anything made from polyester fabric and fiberglass poles.

Dimensions aside, this tent has a lot going for it. Most notably, it can be divided into four rooms instead of three or two, meaning it’s a great option for camping couples or groups of friends who aren’t keen on the idea of one huge, communal living space and all the issues that might entail.

The OT Basecamp also has a ton of endearing features. These include an e-port for electrical hookups, 4 doors, 12 windows, an all-mesh ceiling for ventilation, and one hanging storage pocket per person.

If you’re the kinda camper who prefers to get things underway with the minimum of fuss, this multi-room cabin tent from CORE is a great option.

The Instant Cabin’s 180 square feet of interior space makes it large enough to accommodate three queen air beds and two singles. It doesn’t have a vestibule, but that roomy interior means you can have plenty of space for 10–12 sleepers and extra camping gear. It also has two room dividers, so you can create three separate areas.

Weighing just under 50 lbs., this is the second heaviest option on our list after the Ozark Trail 3-Room. Nevertheless, its pre-attached, telescoping poles and central pole hub make it a cinch to set up – with some help from a friend, it shouldn’t take you any more than five minutes. A handy, duffel-style carry bag also makes it easy to transport.

Coleman tents are famed for offering excellent value for money, and the Tenaya Lake is no exception.

This cabin tent is one of our favorites for summer camping trips with the family. While there’s no vestibule or screen room, it has a closet with a hanger bar and shelves where you can store your clothes and gear out of the way. Its huge door and plethora of windows also make it one of the most well-ventilated options out there.

The TL has just 117 square feet of interior space, making it one of the smaller tents on our list. However, this is enough to fit two queen-sized air mattresses and its near-vertical walls help to maximize headroom from end to end and side to side, giving it a far roomier feel.

And the downsides? The Tenaya Lake is dubbed a “fast pitch” tent by Coleman, but it will take two people in the region of ten minutes to set it up. Its tiny rainfly also makes it a lot less waterproof than models like the NKT Super Arizona and its single partition means you can only create two rooms instead of three.

If you’re looking for a basic family tent for occasional nights in the sticks, the CAMPROS 8-Person is well worth considering.

This tunnel-style tent weighs just 17.4 lbs. and has a simple, color-coded pole system that makes setup a breeze. Its 126 square feet of interior space can easily accommodate 8 sleepers, and a central divider lets you create one room for the kids and one for the adults. While not fully waterproof, it’s 1,000mm HH rainfly will keep you dry in lighter, sustained rainfall.

This is the smallest tent on our list and is a little short on extra space for gear storage. However, given that it costs almost half the price of the next cheapest model we reviewed, the Coleman Tenaya Lake, it’s a decent tent for buyers working with a tighter budget.

If you’re looking for a shelter that can be transformed from packed to pitched in next to no time, and yet still offers enough room for large groups, the CORE 9-Person Instant Cabin is well worth a look.

This cabin-style tent can be set up in under two minutes thanks to its pre-attached poles and central pole hub, making it the easiest and quickest to pitch on our list. This is particularly impressive given its size – with a peak height of 76 inches and 126 square feet of interior space, it’s hardly petite!

Easy setup aside, there’s a lot more to love about this tent. In addition to its huge mesh doors and windows, the CORE Instant Cabin has “adjustable air intake vents” that draw in cool air from the ground and allow warm air to escape through the ceiling. This makes it a great option for hot and humid conditions.

The only complaints we have with the CORE Instant Cabin are that its partial-coverage rainfly leaves a lot of the inner fabric exposed to the elements, and the waterproof rating of the fabric is unlikely to withstand heavy or sustained rainfall.

The OT 12-Person Instant is a great tent for large families and groups of friends who want an extra-roomy shelter without paying a penalty as regards setup time.

This palatial, three-room shelter weighs in at a hefty 61 pounds and offers 256 square feet of floor space, making it the second largest on our list after the OT Base Camp. Despite this, it can be pitched in around two minutes thanks to pre-attached poles and a central pole hub that opens like a giant umbrella. All told, the total setup will take 3–4 minutes.

While there’s no vestibule, you do get a super-handy, oversized awning under which you can dry out gear or chill in the shade.

This cabin-style tent also has a handful of great features. These include oversized ground vents to boost airflow and stave off stuffiness and condensation, an e-port for electric hookups, two walk-through doors, and seven large windows.