Since 2015, I’ve tested camping shelters and large car-camping tents on weekend trips involving more than a dozen families, and I have talked to dozens more about their tent travails. Over the years, I have evaluated gear for magazines including Wired, Popular Science, and National Geographic Adventure, where I was a senior editor. This canopy gives 64 sq ft of coverage with an SPF of 50+ and features an easy-up design with telescoping legs, so it can be set up in just a matter of minutes. Plus it includes stakes, guide ropes, and a wheeled bag for easy transportation and storage. For those extra scorching hot days, the peak roof vent creates additional ventilation. It also helps to prevent it from easily blowing away, seeing as the wind doesn’t get caught on the large volume of fabric.
Its 112-inch center height gives you plenty of room to create an entertainment space for your outdoor furniture and guests. Whether you are hosting a barbecue, attending a sporting event, or spending a day at the beach, you will be able to take your 10-foot by 10-foot Ozark Trail Instant Canopy anywhere. Any $75 canopy tent from a big-box store—we’re talking about the common square canopy with four spindly metal legs—can provide shade during midday.
A handful of REI customers complain that the tent is not stable in strong winds. Though the previous version came with four guylines—the stabilizing lines that allow you to stake out the tent for added security in windy conditions—the current version does not, which is inconvenient. She has personally tested a dozen tents and an equal number of hair dryers. A frequent reader of our site put the lightweight Cool Cabana pop up beach canopy to the test during a West Coast vacation. We put the lightweight Cool Cabana pop up beach canopy to the test during an East Coast vacation. If the purchase is not picked up before the deadline or is unable to be completed for any reason, the item will be removed from your account and made available for sale on our site again.
What better way to enjoy a ballgame, picnic, or any outdoor activity than with a little bit of shade! This 10’x10′ canopy pops up easily, and will keep sun burn and overheating at bay. Even though it technically can, we think you should have a second person there to help out with the set up. Since this model is quite tall, you may even need a small foot ladder, so having someone there will keep things safe. You never know what kind of weather you may encounter but try not to pitch it if you know it will rain.
From a negative perspective, the weight is indicative of a lack of high quality material and components used throughout the shelter. The included carrying bag does not have wheels to aid in transportation, but at only 29 lbs. We don’t find that ozark trail wagon to be a noteworthy drawback as the nylon handles and shoulder strap work just fine in carrying the tent. The legs are locked into place with old school metal push button locks, something you won’t see on many modern pop up tents now-a-days.
One thing we love about ozark trail canopy tents are the accessories that can be added to the shelters. These include sidewalls, weight bags, and a host of other great add-ons that can really increase the use and versatility of the canopy tent. Perhaps our two favorites are camping tent additions that connect to the frame of the shelter and leverage the stability of the 10×10 frame to support a camping tent structure.
But when you’re camping or eating outdoors, you’ll likely want protection from insects, as well. That’s why we focused on collapsible camping shelters with mesh walls to keep bugs at bay. We tested the Coleman 10 × 10 Instant Screened Canopy and Walmart’s Ozark Trail 10′ × 10′ Instant Screen House during our first round of testing in the winter and spring of 2016. These two shelters are the same size and shape (7-foot peak height, 17 pounds) with an almost identical design. The cap-like roofs on both models provided far less shade than we wanted, especially in the beating desert sun.
Like the REI model, the L.L.Bean tent uses polyester (ripstop, in this case), which is more resistant to UV damage and absorbs less moisture than nylon by weight. The Woodlands Screen House also has the advantage of eight guylines, whereas the Screen House Shelter includes none. In addition, this model has the same bug-deterring flap of fabric along the base as the REI tent, but while the REI’s flap is about 9 inches wide, the L.L.Bean’s flap is about 10.5 inches wide. Several REI reviewers who bought both the tent and the fly for rain protection note that the fly has only two walls, leaving much of the tent exposed.
The first trip was an early-February expedition to Indian Cove Campground in California’s Joshua Tree National Park, where our highly exposed group campsite made daytime temperatures in the high 70s feel like the 90s. We used the shelters for sun protection, setting up camp chairs inside one and a play mat and toddler toys inside another, and placing the large Clam shelter over a picnic table piled with markers and coloring books. It’s made with reinforced polyester and heavyweight no-see-um mesh, and it comes with the strongest stakes we’ve seen on any tent. The Clam also sets up and folds down with remarkable speed—we timed the process at 60 seconds. However, this model is too big to fit in the trunks of most sedans, and the muted colors look good when it’s sunny but can feel a bit gloomy if it’s already rainy out.