The North Face - Wawona 4

I use a Wawona 6 for one person. Mostly because my cot was touching the sides of the Wawona 4. It's the perfect amount of room for me and my stuff.

A 4 person like the Wawona 4p or the MSR Habiscape. They are huge palaces compared to the 1p tents you’re used to, but the footprint is small enough to fit into most public campsites. The extra space will be nice to have room to attend to your pup

I have the 4- love it.

The North Face Wawona 4-person tent is pricey, but will keep you dry for days. Excellent rainfly with large vestibule for cooking. One of the most important factors for keeping dry is a rainfly that doesn't lay on tent and covers tent completely to the ground that can be staked out.

absolutely love my wawona 4

We bought the Wawona 4 when it went on clearance a few years ago. I think it was either discontinued or revised? For two adults and two dogs, it is great. We don't camp in weather below 40f. The vestibule attachment went on clearance last year and we got that as well - it's not as good as the tent itself, but I'm glad we got it for the price we paid.

The wawona 4 is just as tall and more than enough for 2 ppl. Smaller vestibule but still plenty of room for two.

Buy once - cry once Don't skimp on shelter. A good tent (like the big Agnes) will last you a lifetime. Kelty is a decent second option (but usually heavier) and Coleman is more likely to tear or break a pole (I have one for family car camping and it broke a pote...repaired the pole but still swapped for TNF Wawona 4) It only takes one failure to make you wish you'd just spent the extra $. Buy the Big Agnes and move on.

I switched from the spartan gear of the last few decades to a 4 person North Face Wawona tent (as a solo camper) and an Exped megamat, and I have been *incredibly* comfortable. I can see using these for many years to come.

If car camping is 90+% of the use case, size and weight are really no longer considerations imo so then you’re really looking at comfort features and weather resistance. If winter camping isn’t something you’ll be doing, the REI half-dome or NorthFace Wawona are two solid 4-person tents. These aren’t backpacking tents, but you’ll be able to stand, you can stow all your gear inside, they’ve got great weather resistance, and you, your dog and your friend will fit comfortably inside. For the few backpacking trips, my suggestion is to borrow or rent to get a feel for what features resonate with you.

All of these are car camping tents. The Wanona and Homestead are 13 lbs, and they're absolutely massive when packed. The skydome 6p is enormous and weighs 19 lbs. You wouldn't ever want to hike with these tents. The North Face tents suffer from outdated design philosophies. There are no clips. You have to feed all of the poles through sleeves. The fabric can bunch up, so you have to be mindful while feeding the poles through. Slow to set up, slow to take down. The Wanona 4P performs well in the rain. It's lovely in the rain, but not so terrific to set up or break down in the rain. These taller tents don't do well in high winds. They're like giant sails, and the poles tend to bend. Questions to ask yourself: What type of camping do you envision for yourself? How many people will you be camping with? Do you plan on thru-hiking? Your ideas about camping will evolve as you gain experience with equipment.