Head to head
Big Agnes Blacktail Hotel vs Big Agnes Salt Creek
The Big Agnes Blacktail Hotel gives each person more floor — 16.5 sq ft against 14.0, which is the difference between standard and standard. The Big Agnes Salt Creek is the lighter carry at 4 lb 7 oz, and the Big Agnes Blacktail Hotel is the cheaper of the two at ~$350.
 Big Agnes Big Agnes Blacktail Hotel |  Big Agnes Big Agnes Salt Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Backpacking | Backpacking |
| Rated capacity | 2-person | 2-person |
| Floor area per personestimated | 16.5 sq ft (standard) | 14.0 sq ft (standard) |
| Floor area | 33 sq ft | 28 sq ft |
| Vestibule area | 37 sq ft | 18 sq ft |
| Peak height | 42 in | 44 in |
| Minimum trail weight | 5 lb 9 oz | 4 lb 7 oz |
| Packed weight | 6 lb 10 oz | 4 lb 13 oz |
| Weight per personestimated | 44.5 oz (trail weight) | 35.5 oz (trail weight) |
| Pad fitestimated | 2 × 25 in pads fit | — |
| Fits sleepers up toestimated | 7ft tall | — |
| Doors | 2 | 2 |
| Freestanding | freestanding | freestanding |
| Poles | aluminum | aluminum |
| Wall type | double wall | double wall |
| Season rating | 3-season | 3-season |
| Floor hydrostatic head | 1,500 mm | 1,500 mm |
| Packed size | 21 x 7 in | 20.5 x 5.5 in |
| Approx. price | ~$350 | ~$400 |
Big Agnes Blacktail Hotel
Same tent as the Blacktail, with one side's vestibule blown out to 28 square feet on an extra pole — a covered porch you can put two camp chairs under and sit out a rain shower in. That is 37 square feet of vestibule against the plain Blacktail's 18, for nine ounces and $50. If you camp anywhere that rains for a full day, it is the single most useful $50 in this catalog; if you are counting grams it is the wrong tent entirely.
Best for
Rainy-region camping where you need somewhere dry to sit that is not inside the tent.
Big Agnes Salt Creek
Salt Creek is the tall one. Forty-four inches of head height in a 28-square-foot two-person tent is more than the Copper Spur manages, and it ships with the footprint included, which is a real $60-70 you do not spend separately. Weight lands at 71 ounces — between the C Bar and the Blacktail — and the polyester fly holds its shape overnight instead of sagging onto your face the way wet silnylon does. Big Agnes does not publish interior floor dimensions for it, so the pad-fit reading on this page is the one gap in its spec sheet.
Best for
Campers who sit up in the tent and want a polyester fly that will not sag onto them in the night.
Rows where the two differ are tinted. Specs are the makers’ own; floor area per person, weight per person and pad fit are our arithmetic on them.