What Is The Purpose Of A Tent Vestibule?

A tent vestibule is essentially an awning for your tent.  It extends off of the front of your tent to help protect you from the elements when you are entering your tent.   Tent vestibules will also extend along the ground and sides and can usually be closed up essentially creating another front door to your tent.

Tent vestibules also allow you extra storage space for your camping gear which can come in hand if you are limited in space on your camping trip.  With a tent vestibule, you don’t have to worry about tracking mud to the inside of your tent as you can take off your shoes in the vestibule before you enter the tent.

What Does A Tent Vestibule Do?

With tent vestibules, you will be somewhat protected from the elements while you are entering your tent.  That means if it’s raining outside you can enter the vestibule of your tent and dry off before entering the main portion of your tent which would keep tracking mud and water inside of your tent.

They also provide extra storage space for you and your stuff. However, I wouldn’t recommend sleeping in your tent vestibule as they typically are not as protected from rain as the rest of the tent.

Do You Need A Tent Vestibule?

No, a tent vestibule is not necessary.  Having one is more of a nice to have an option for your tent.  I would compare having a vestibule to having an awning over your back patio.  Sure having an awning over your back patio would be nice but is it really necessary for you to enjoy your patio?  No, not really.

Most tents will not come with a vestibule.  Tent vestibules are usually found on higher end tents with lots of features.

What Are The Benefits of A Tent Vestibule?

The main thing that I like about having a vestibule is the fact that you can take your shoes off before entering your tent.  I don’t know about you but I hate tracking dirt and leaves into my tent to only have to clean out later. With a tent vestibule, you can take your shoes off inside of the vestibule and not have to worry about tracking all of that dirt inside of your tent.  This makes cleaning up your tent when packing it up a much easier process.

The second benefit of having a vestibule is being able to use your vestibule for extra storage space.  You can store your cooler or cooking equipment inside of your vestibule when you are not using them instead of having to put them inside of your tent at night which leaves more space inside of your tent for your other camping gear.

I would mention that you probably shouldn’t store anything that you wouldn’t want getting wet in your tent vestibule as it is more likely to get water inside of it since it is acting as another front door to your tent.

Obviously tent vestibules are designed to help protect you from the elements while still being able to get out of the main portion of your tent.  This is nice at night if you store your cooler inside your vestibule and want to get up for a drink. You don’t have to leave your tent besides to use the restroom if you store your cooler inside of your tent.

If you were really needing extra space to sleep you could also have someone sleep inside of your vestibule on warmer nights if they didn’t mind sleeping under the stars.  As they will mostly have mesh protecting them from the outside world.

What Are The Downsides To Having A Tent Vestibule?

There really aren’t many downsides to having a tent with a vestibule.  The main downside would be that vestibules are usually on more feature-packed tents which means the tent will usually cost more than a tent without a vestibule.

But depending on what features you want on your tent you should be able to find a tent with a vestibule that is comparable in cost to an instant or pop up tent. Usually, cabin instant tents will not come with a vestibule because of the shape of the tent.  If you don’t mind taking a bit more time setting up your tent then I would recommend going with a tent with a vestibule.

One thing to note is that you should not cook inside of your tent vestibule.  It may be tempting to cook inside of your vestibule if it is raining outside but carbon monoxide poisoning is no joke.  If you keep the front of your vestibule open to vent your propane grill you may be able to get away with cooking inside of your tent vestibule but it’s best to not chance it.

Are there tents with a side vestibule?

Yes, there are some tents with side vestibules but tents with front vestibules are more common.  A tent with a side vestibule usually has two entrances that would allow you a place to store your camping gear on one side of the tent and allow you to get in and out of the tent on the other side of the tent.  This gives you more options with how you set up your tent at your campsite.

What is the best tent with a vestibule?

4-person tents

Coleman Carlsbad 4-Person Tent

 This Coleman Carlsbad 4-person tent is a somewhat new tent from Coleman that has a lot of cool new features that I think are worth checking out.

The dimensions of this tent are 9-feet x 7-feet on the interior of the tent with a 5-feet center height. The screen room dimensions are 9-feet x 4-feet.

With that said this tent is going to be a more average size tent and should be able to fit 2-4 people. But if you are taller than 5 foot don’t expect to stand up inside of it.  You should be able to fit a queen size inflatable bed to sleep 2 people comfortably.

One really cool feature that this Coleman Carlsbad tent has is darkroom technology.  With dark room technology, this tent blocks 97% of the sunlight that would normally come into the tent.  This means if you want to be able to sleep in after sunrise you shouldn’t have any problems with sunlight waking you up.

Darkroom technology will also keep the tent cooler in the summer months as not as much sunlight will get inside of the tent allowing it to keep cooler than a comparable tent without darkroom technology.

I also really like the color combination of black, blue, and teal on this tent.  This tent also features Coleman’s Weathertec system which means it’s designed to handle the rain and wind.  Tents that have the Weathertec system have a floor that extends up a few inches on the sides of the tent to help keep rainwater from entering the bottom of the tent.  If you are interested in checking out the current prices of this Coleman Carlsbad 4-person tent on Amazon click here.

6-person tents

Coleman Steel Creek 6-Person Dome Tent

 Another popular 6-person tent with a vestibule option is this Coleman Steel Creek Dome Tent.  This tent features interior dimensions of 10-feet x 9-feet and has a 10-feet x 5-feet screen room.

You could fit 6 people laying side by side inside of this tent or two queen air mattresses that would allow 4 people to sleep comfortably.

The rain fly on this tent is not a full coverage rain fly but it does cover most of the tent and has awnings over the windows on the side of the tent.

This tent also comes with an E-port feature that allows you to pass a power cord through the side of the tent to power your electronics inside of the tent.  This tent also comes with color-coded poles to help you easily set up the tent at your campsite.

You also get Coleman’s Weathertec technology which means it’s built to stand up to the rain.  If you are interested in checking out the current prices of this Coleman Steel Creek Dome tent on Amazon click here.

Coleman Carlsbad 6-Person Tent

 The Coleman Carlsbad 6-person tent is another tent that I would recommend if you need to fit up to 6 people inside of your tent.

This tent is basically the same tent like the Coleman Carlsbad 4-person tent that I mentioned above but is a bit bigger and designed to hold 6 people laying side by side.

The interior dimensions of this tent are 10-feet x 9-feet with a 10-feet x 5-feet screen room. It basically adds on a foot in each direction when compared to the Carlsbad 4-person tent.  It has a 5-feet 8-inch center height.

Coleman says that you should be able to fit two inflatable queen airbeds inside of this tent.  The darkroom technology is the highlight of this tent as it will help keep the tent cool in the summer months by not allowing as much sunlight in.  It will also allow you to sleep in on mornings after the sun has already come up.  To check out the current prices of this Coleman Carlsbad tent on Amazon click here.

8-person tents

Coleman Evanston 8-Person Tent

One of the most popular tents with a screened room or vestibule is this Coleman Evanston 8-person tent.  If you are looking for a tent on the larger side this tent will be able to fit two queen size air beds or up to 8 people laying on camping pads.

The dimensions are 15-feet x 12-feet with a 6-foot center height so this tent is on the larger side. With the screen room, it also creates more room that you can use to store to store your things.

It also comes with Coleman’s Weathertec system which means it will hold up in adverse weather. If you are interested in checking out the current price of this Coleman Evanston tent on Amazon click here.

Wenzel Klondike 8-Person Tent

Another popular 8-person tent with a vestibule is the Wenzel Klondike 8-person tent.  The interior dimensions of this tent are 11-feet x 16-feet. The screen room dimensions are 9-feet x 6-feet which provides plenty of room for storage space and to move around.

There apparently is no image available to use by Amazon so I won’t be able to include that in this review portion.  If you want to see what this tent looks like click the link to Amazon below.

This tent has a center height of 6.5 feet so it should be fine for you if you are taller. It can fit up to 8 people laying side by side or two queen air mattresses. It is made with polyester fabric to help protect your tent against the rain and comes with a partial coverage rain fly to help keep rainwater out of the tent.

One nice feature about this tent is additional ventilation windows that can be opened up if you need to vent your tent on hot summer days. If you are interested in checking out the current prices of this Wenzel Klondike tent on Amazon click here.

Related Questions

Is it better to go with a large vestibule?  If you are planning to use your tent vestibule for storage and have a lot of camping get you may want to go with a tent with a large vestibule.  With a large vestibule, it will allow you more room to move around and will cover more area to allow you to get in and out of your tent while still escaping the elements.

Can you add on a vestibule onto your tent?  Yes, you can buy add on vestibules for your tent but I would recommend buying a tent with a vestibule if you really want one.  An add on vestibule wouldn’t be designed to fit your specific tent and likely would not fit on your tent like a vestibule made for that tent would.

However, you may be able to find an add on vestibule that would function like another rain fly that would help keep rain from getting in your tent. In that case, I would say go for it if you want more protection from the rain.

If you don’t know what a rain fly is or are interested in making your rain fly waterproof you may want to check out my article explaining what the main function of rain flys are and how to make them as waterproof as possible.

What is the best backpacking tent with vestibule?  If you are planning on going backpacking and need a backpacking tent with a vestibule I would recommend going with this Coleman Hooligan backpacking tent.

 This Coleman Hooligan tent is a 4-person tent that is 9-foot x 7-foot in dimensions on the interior of the tent. It also comes with a full mesh ceiling which means that it should have great airflow within the tent and able to vent hot air easily.

The rainfly is a full coverage rain fly that wraps around the front of the tent. This tent also has Coleman’s Weathertec system which means it should be rain resistant and be able to hold up in windy conditions. It also comes with a waterproof floor.  If you are interested in checking out the current prices of the Coleman Hooligan backpacking 4-person tent on Amazon click here.

What is the best way to waterproof my tent?  If you were interested in learning the best ways to waterproof a tent I’ve also written an article on the subject outlining the best ways to make your tent waterproof and which tents provide the best waterproof technology.