Kelty - Daydreamer 6P

I have this same tent and love it. Torrential rains this past weekend while we were camping and not one drop of water got it. The vestibule is a great size for shoes, bags or even a color. And we “slept in” til 7 thanks to the blackout material!

I just upgraded an old kelty four man tent to a kelty daydreamer 6. It won't get used until next weekend but when I test set it up in the backyard it was intuitive to set up, a good layout and features, seemed like a good build quality, and the black out feature was more effective than I expected. The old kelty tent has given me no issues in the 200+ nights we have used it so I am hopeful this new tent will be the same.

The tent was great. Easy setup, very dark, materials seemed good. You get a little light bleeding in under the rain fly and through the roof vent, but you could reduce that by cinching the fly down tighter to the ground and closing the vent. It still is dark enough during the day that you would need a flashlight to look for things in a pack inside the tent, even with the vestibule open. My dog and toddler slept in hours last when they normally would because it was nice and dark in the morning as the sun coming up didn't light up the tent. It is annoying that the window on the back of the tent is just a zipped up section of the fly and can't be adjusted from the inside. We left the window closed for the most part and if we wanted to let light in we tied back the vestibule flaps by the door. In that case with rain starting you are only leaning out the tent door to close the vestibule on the fly and you don't actually have to get out of the tent.

Get a blackout tent. I have the kelty daydreamer and my toddler and dog sleep in much later in the morning with that vs waking up at the crack of dawn when the sun lights up the tent. We were also able to put the toddler to sleep at the normal bed time when it was still light outside. I'm curious to see how nap times will go and if the tent stays cool under the summer sun with it closed up to keep it darker inside, but I haven't had to test that yet.

I'm a fan of the Kelty tents. They have held up well for me over the years. If you want your kids to sleep in later in the mornings, the Kelty daydreamer is a black out tent and keeps things very dark so everyone doesn't wake up with the sun.

I just got a kelty daydreamer 6 with black out. Its very nice. However you will need a lantern or flashlight to find things even in daytime. Other than that I do enjoy the blackout material.

Kelty is my go-to “budget” brand but Coleman will work too for beginner stuff. I wouldn’t splurge on Big Agnes until later on. Get cheap basic stuff and then upgrade as you go along.

Kelty Daydreamer. It is made for your exact situation. It comes in a couple different sizes. You can find it at REI or at Kelty online.

I've never had a CORE tent, but Coleman and Kelty have both worked well in the past for car camping. The Coleman "instant cabin" would probably be an easier setup, but not much easier, and at cost of some sturdiness. Coleman Dark Room and Kelty Daydreamer are also neat; they're designed to black out sunlight, so the material is a bit heavier... and yeah, you can sleep in past dawn much more easily.

Both are solid tents. FWIW I have an older model Kelty 6P and it is amazing on rain and wind.

I've had my Kelty for about 12 years now and it has never failed to perform to my highest expectations. I highly recommend them.

We loved our Ozark Trail tent! Set out on a cross country camping trip with a brand new Kelty that we spent a pretty penny on. A week in, a pole broke in the wind and we got SOAKED through the thin floor. Went to a Walmart, picked up an Ozark Trail, and left the Kelty in a dumpster. Never looked back on that decision.

Go with the Kelty version of this same tent instead, better quality and price difference right now isn't much at all with the sales they are running