Head to head
REI Co-op Base Camp vs Coleman Skydome
The REI Co-op Base Camp gives each person more floor — 14.8 sq ft against 14.0, which is the difference between standard and standard. The Coleman Skydome is the lighter carry at 13 lb 11 oz, and the Coleman Skydome is the cheaper of the two at ~$140.
REI Co-op REI Co-op Base Camp | Coleman Coleman Skydome | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Car camping | Car camping |
| Rated capacity | 4-person | 4-person |
| Floor area per personestimated | 14.8 sq ft (standard) | 14.0 sq ft (standard) |
| Floor area | 59 sq ft | 56 sq ft |
| Vestibule area | — | 0 sq ft |
| Peak height | 63 in | 55 in |
| Packed weight | 17 lb 6 oz | 13 lb 11 oz |
| Weight per personestimated | 4 lb 5 oz (packed weight) | 3 lb 7 oz (packed weight) |
| Pad fitestimated | — | 4 × 20 in pads fit, 25 in pads do not |
| Fits sleepers up toestimated | — | 7ft 6in tall |
| Doors | 2 | 1 |
| Freestanding | freestanding | freestanding |
| Poles | aluminum | fiberglass |
| Wall type | double wall | double wall |
| Season rating | 3+-season | 3-season |
| Approx. price | ~$489 | ~$140 |
REI Co-op Base Camp
The Base Camp is the car tent people buy when the weather is the problem. It is a geodesic dome — more pole crossings than a standard three-pole camping tent — which is why it stays up in wind that flattens vertical-wall cabins, and why it gives up the standing height those cabins offer. Sixty-three inches in the 4-person means you sit, kneel or stoop. Seventeen pounds, two doors, two vestibules, and a shape that is still standing in the morning.
Best for
Exposed, windy or shoulder-season car camping where a cabin tent would be the wrong shape.
Coleman Skydome
The Skydome is the Sundome with the walls pushed out: Coleman quotes about 20 percent more headroom from the near-vertical profile, and the poles arrive pre-attached so the whole thing goes up in under five minutes without threading anything. It trades seven square feet against the Sundome 4 and adds four pounds. The 6-person at 85 square feet and 72 inches of height is the one that makes the most sense of the range — it is the only size in the family where an adult stands up.
Best for
Campers who want the tent up before the car is unpacked and will not be out in real weather.
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.