Berghaus have a reputation of making great, high quality outdoor gear. From clothes to climbing gear. They may not be the cheapest, but when you buy a Berghaus product, you know it will accomplish it’s purpose in life with aplomb (whatever a plomb might be!). The Vango Antrim 600XL Air Tent is a new 2021 addition to Vango’s superb Earth Collection. This range of tents uses recycled single-use plastics which have been transformed into rugged 70 denier material for use in tent manufacture. The new fabric is called Sentinel Eco Fabric and it could really transform tent making. We pitch every tent, taking into account how long it takes, how clear the instructions are, how much physical effort is required, and how convenient the process is.

The Antrim is slightly shorter than the Coleman however (600cm vs 665cm) and less wide (380cm vs 450cm) which needs to be borne in mind – do you need the extra real estate? Height is ample at 210cm in both. If you’d prefer a bigger porch, or something that’s a bit lighter you need to look elsewhere. Alternatives The Antrim has a sizeable covered front porch area which is a great place to sit. On a sunny day there is ample room to sit and enjoy the view whilst also offering protection if a shower starts hammering down. You could definitely bring a BBQ or camping stove into this area to cook and there is great visibility. The lounge area is expansive – this is your main living space, with a head height of over 2.15m – perfect for taller folk. The lounge measure 270 x 450cm and has two side doors to the outside, one with a neat little shelter (or ‘brow’) above it to get your shoes on without getting soaked. This also stops water dripping in when the door is open – nice!

There are five airbeams in total which take a fair bit of pumping because of the height of the overall structure. There’s a lot of air in them there beams! We’ve found over the years that if a tent is marketed for a maximum of three people, then the third person has to be on the very small side. It’s therefore typically worth adding ‘+1’ to the number of people you’re looking to accommodate. E.g. if you’re a family of three, we recommend looking for at least a four-person tent. In practice though, bigger is often better and I would not rule out a 6-person tent for a family of four, especially if you have a large car.

The drive to recycle old plastic is an excellent initiative because it helps reduce the amount of plastic going to landfill and harming the environment for future generations. I’m not particularly “green”, but for me it’s a no-brainer to choose a product which can make a difference in this way – especially when you consider that the Antrim 600XL is made with the equivalent of 301 plastic bottles! Dimensions and LayoutTent footprints are available to buy separately from tents at outdoor retailers. They're essentially an extra groundsheet that you can pitch before your tent, with the aim of pitching your tent on top of it. a flexible doorstep that can be dropped to ground level for ease of access. This helps stop water getting in You'll want to ensure your tent footprint is the same size as the tent you're pitching – several manufacturers sell footprints specifically to fit certain tent models. This latter point – the feel – shouldn’t be underestimated. The Berghaus 6XL feels like a luxury ‘proper’ tent. The kind you used to go off camping in with the scouts. It is a quality item and really will not disappoint. Absolutely no condensation in the mornings either.

Actually we should give a shoutout to the windows on the Antrim – they are excellent. The ‘glass’ needs to be seen to be believed and the Diamond Clear name they have chosen is very apt. These are up there with the best windows on the tent scene at the moment. Lounge and Sleeping Area The Berghaus Air 6XL is a very-very good tent, great value for money IF you bear in mind that it is an older model, and you won’t find some of the features that other, newer tents have nowadays. This is however reflected in the price, as the Berghaus Air 6 XL is cheaper than most of its rivals, and oftentimes bigger & better at the same time. The standard polyester 401 is smaller and lighter at 42kg, with the TC 401 weighing in at 54kg. A noticeable increase in weight from the polycotton fabric there. It’s an expensive tent in all guises, but if you think about it for a minute this is not an unreasonable amount of money to spend on what is effectively your home away from home. The Ascension uses very quality materials and has an attention to detail in terms of features which is just not present on the cheaper choices we’ve looked at. The outer covering has a 6000mm hydrostatic head which means it’s extremely waterproof and will survive a biblical deluge. The quality of the fabric and the size of the tent means that it’s a hefty weight though – 28.3kg. Could be a two-person effort to shift it if you’re not built like Sylvester Stallone.

Shows

The Berghaus Air 6 XL’s forte are the size of the bedrooms, the size of the living room and the 2 side doors. The times have been changin’ in the world of tents in recent years. The old ‘bendy pole technology’ which could sometimes be fiddly to set up for large family tents (not to mention the risk of pole-snapping) is slowly getting superseded by tents using easy-to-inflate air pipes instead. In this article we outline the main considerations to look for when choosing the best inflatable tent to cater for your particular needs. Advantages and Disadvantages of Inflatable Tents Once the tents are up, we closely inspect the interior of each one and rate them on how likely campers are to have a comfortable and enjoyable experience that meets their needs. Front porch area (380cm x 100cm) with decent ground sheet. Perfect for sitting on to remove muddy boots.

The lounge living space is a decent 275x 380cm (10.45 square metres) in area and is a lovely space for chilling out and relaxing. The drive to recycle old plastic is an excellent initiative because it helps reduce the amount of plastic going to landfill and harming the environment for future generations. I’m not particularly “green”, but for me it’s a no-brainer to choose a product which can make a difference in this way – especially when you consider that the Joro 600XL is made with the equivalent of 261 plastic bottles! Dimensions and Layout It’s probably better to think of the Antrim as more of a 4 person tent with oodles of space, rather than a 6 person tent with cramped quarters. A well-ventilated tent will make for a more comfortable, condensation-free camping experience, and well-positioned vent panels and doors with fly screens allow for the free flow of air while keeping bugs out of your sleeping space. 4) Indoor space and flexible sleeping compartments It’s big and bulky so you’ll probably need a couple of people to pitch it, but it’s not complicated and with a bit of effort you could put it up on your own.

Preview

Clear windows which you can actually see a nice view through – it’s unbelievable that some tent manufacturers scrimp on the windows. Surely it’s one of the main enjoyments of camping! There are plenty other 6-person air tents that you could consider, however, very few of them can beat the Berghaus AIr 6XL for that price. Let’s talk specs for the Joro. It comes in a rather natty blue colour and is reasonably similar in design to the Coleman Weathermaster 6XL.