5 best tents for camping with dogs in 2023: + FAQ’s
Our roundup of the best tents for camping with dogs including seperate rooms, screened porches and shared spaces
Taking your dog camping with you can add so many amazing memories to your trip than if you were to leave him behind. Not only for you, but for your doggo too.
Most dogs love the great outdoors, exploring and spending valuable time with loved ones. Whether you’re going car camping with family or backpacking solo, there are an array of different tents that are suitable for accommodating you and your dog comfortably.
There are tents where you can have the dog inside the interior tent with you, in a separate room or in a screened porch area. The main thing to focus on when finding the best tents for camping with dogs is that they are durable enough that your dog’s claws won’t tear the floor or rain fly.
In a hurry? Check out our top 3 picks for the best tents for camping with dogs.
Best luxury tent for camping with dogs
Tall enough to stand up comfortably in, spacious enough for a small family and a dog, and includes an easy to remove floor for convenient cleaning of dog paw prints and hair.
Best budget priced tent for camping with dogs
Super cheap, durable and comes in various sizes to suit 1-person and a dog, a couple and a dog or a small family and a dog.
Best tent with integrated vestibule for dogs
Featuring a fully integrated vestibule, you can keep your dog comfy and secure in a separate room, preventing dog hair and mud from being trekked into your sleeping area. It’s also large enough to fit a dog crate or dog bed.
5 best tents for camping with dogs
Coleman Evanston with screen room
One of the most popular tents for camping with dogs
The Coleman Evanston tent provides plenty of features to make camping with your dog easier and is one of the most popular car camping tents to use when camping with dogs.
Available in a 6 or 8-person version, there’s plenty of room for a small family and a couple dogs (with or without a crate) to sleep inside the tent comfortably. The porch room provides the perfect place to clean your dog’s paws before entering the main tent or to keep them safe when tired and you’re chilling around a campfire. It’s also perfectly large enough to sleep your dog/s with or without a crate, if you want to keep them separate from your sleeping area.
The flooring and fly of the tent are super durable and won’t rip from your dogs claws. In fact, it can even withstand your dog trying to dig its way through the floor if you have one of those little rascals on your hands. You may also need to lock the door zippers shut with a small padlock or carabiner if your doggo is extra nosey as they will quite easily be able to force their nose through the zippers and open up a hole to escape out of.
While the tent as a whole is super waterproof, the screened porch does gather water inside when it rains for prolonged periods. This is due to there being no floor in the porch area. However if you plan to store your belongings or have your dog sleep in here, you can combat the water logging by placing an extra tarp over the porch area.
MSR Hubba Hubba NX 2
A lightweight, backpacking option sturdy enough for your dog
The MSR Hubba Hubba NX 2 is a great lightweight tent for camping with dogs. If you’re planning to go backpacking with your dog this is one of the most all-round tents for backpacking.
While it’s a fantastic tent for backpacking with dogs, it doesn’t mean it’s not great for every day camping use with dogs. It’s a super spacious tent for 1-person and a decently large dog, but can adequately fit 2 people and a dog if the dog sleeps in the vestibule.
But what makes it such a great choice is its high quality and insane durability. It features a DuraShield coating on the rainfly and uses DAC featherlite NFL poles, some of the most respected technologies in camp manufacturing to protect your tent in extreme wind and rain.
It features a small vestibule area that is adequate for cooking in bad weather and storing your gear, or can sleep your dog if it isn’t too large. If you’d prefer to have more space for cooking or a larger room for your dog to sleep, you can also purchase the MSR attachable shelter to add substantially more room. It’s available on Amazon here.
The shelter integrates seamlessly into the main tent structure and provides a complete weatherproof and waterproof vestibule. The vestibule even features a partial floor to add extra protection for storage or added comfort for your dog.
Coleman Sundome
A budget tent strong enough to handle your dogs claws
The Coleman Sundome dome tent is the cheapest tent suitable for camping with your dog/s. And when we say cheap we mean super cheap. Practically throw away cheap. But that doesn’t make this tent a throwaway tent. In fact, it’s practically the opposite.
Available in 2, 3, 4 and 6-person sizes, there’s a size suitable for anybody. Whether you camp alone with your dog, with a partner or friends or the whole family. The 3-person size is perfect if you’re planning to go camping alone with your dog, while the 4-6 person sizes are perfect for 2 people and a couple of larger dogs.
Whatever size you pick, as long as you stick to the guidelines above, you’ll have plenty of space. The Sundome tents are extremely generous space wise, and you’ll be able to fit all your gear inside as well as your dog (and a crate or dog bed if you use one) and still have plenty of space to sleep and move around and even stand (if you’re around 5 foot 3) comfortably.
Despite it’s cheap price, it is super weatherproof and stands up well to rain and wind. The bathtub floor ensures rain doesn’t seep in, the rainfly ensures no leakages and the strong has been tested to withstand winds of 35mph+.
A couple of other nice features are the internal mesh storage pockets for keeping essentials safe and e-port access to allow feeding electrical wires through the tent without having to use a door or window. The e-port ensures no rain leaks into the tent as it is covered with a rain flap.
If you’re looking for a budget tent or just starting out camping and not sure whether you want to lay out a load of cash, look no further than this tent.
Gazelle T4 Hub
For serious campers looking for comfort and convenience when camping with a dog
Looking for a bit of luxury while camping? Or more importantly, does your dog like to live and sleep like royalty? If so, the Gazelle T4 Hub tent has to be one of the most luxurious, comfortable and liveable tents you’ll find.
Not only does it have ample floor space, but with 78” (6.5 feet) of head room, there is plenty of space for most people to comfortably stand up. If you’re planning on camping for a holiday or for a prolonged period of time, being able to stand up in your tent is a bigger luxury than you may first think. It allows you to be able to get changed easily and get in and out of the tent without having to bend over.
The tent is made from super durable materials that prevent any leaking in torrential rain and holds down exceptionally well in wind due to the all-metal hubs and solid fibreglass poles. The zippers are also YKK branded zippers, meaning they won’t fail or stick like many tent zippers do.
Despite its size, its pop design means it is super quick and easy to set up and can be put up in roughly 90 seconds. Check out this quick clip to see just how easy it really is.
One of our favorite features of the Gazelle T4 Hub for dog owners is the removable floor. It allows you to easily remove and clean the floor regularly of dog hairs and dirt trekked in by you and your dog/s.
If you’d prefer to have your dog sleep and relax in a separate space to where you sleep, the T4 Hub Plus has a large, separate screen room that would be perfect as your dog’s personal safe place.
Ayamaya pop up
Features a fully waterproof, large, integrated vestibule for your dogs
The Ayamaya pop up tent is a super secure and sturdy tent for camping with dogs. It’s suitable for up to 4-6 people depending upon how much space you’d like to have. The separate pet vestibule can easily accommodate 2 dogs of average size.
Unlike most other tents with a porch room, the Ayamaya’s porch room is completely incorporated into the main tent. So rather than feeling like an “outside room”, it is just as secure, comfy and weatherproof as the main sleeping room.
Another difference with the vestibule on the Ayamaya compared to other tents is that it is not “screened”, meaning there are no mesh areas of the doors or outer tent. This means your dog is completely private and out of sight when in the porch room.
While it’s super easy to put up due to its pop up design, it is a little more difficult to take down again for the first couple of times. However, if you practice prior to taking it camping you’ll soon get the hang of it. It’s one of those that once you know how to do it it’s a breeze, but can be a little confusing to start.
It’s got exceptional waterproof properties and can easily withstand torrential rain. Even though it’s a pop up tent, it does in fact include an integrated rain fly. The integration of the rainfly means set up literally involves popping the tent open.
The fact that you can have a tent up in seconds yet have double walls is rarely seen. Double walls are important to help combat condensation while also preventing water from seeping into your sleeping area during heavy downpours.
Recommended accessories
Mud Buster paw cleaner
You don’t want to go camping to feel like you may aswell just be at home, right?
Cleaning up after the dog, the kids, whoever.
Minimize your work load with the Mud Buster paw washer.
The Mud Buster paw washer comes in sizes small, medium and large. It’s super simple to use –
Simply, fill with water, place one of your dogs paws in, twist and then pat your dogs paws dry and you’re done!
FAQ’s
Can dogs sleep in tents?
Dogs are fine sleeping in tents so long as you take the necessary precautions and have the correct equipment.
The first thing to consider when deciding whether your dog can sleep in a tent is its behaviour. If you have a skittish dog that is prone to getting scared and darting, you might want to think twice about taking it camping. If you still want to go ahead, you need to ensure you choose a tent that is secure and the dog cannot easily break free from. Also consider small padlocks or carabiners to keep the zippers closed on the doors.
If your dog is well behaved and doesn’t scare easily, the main thing to consider about sleeping your dog in a tent is the durability and quality of the material used for the tent. Your dog’s claws are strong and sharp and will easily rip the floor or outer of a tent if cheap material is used. The tents we have recommended above have all withstood plenty of extended camping trips with dogs.
Where do dogs sleep when camping?
The best place for your dog to sleep when camping is a place that is as similar as its home sleeping environment as possible.
If your dog normally sleeps in a crate, then take your dog crate with you and have your dog sleep in the crate.
If your dog usually sleeps with you, ensure the tent has enough space to sleep yourself and your dog comfortably. Many dogs can suffer from separation anxiety and if you sleep your dog in a separate room while camping they may become unhappy.
However, if your dog does normally sleep on its own, then the best place to sleep your dog is in a separate room in your tent.
If your dog usually sleeps with a blanket, toy or bed at home make sure you bring this with you for your dog to sleep with.
How do I keep my dog in a tent?
Ensuring your dog stays in your tent largely depends on how well behaved your dog is. Practically no tent will be able to contain your dog if it really wants to get out. However, if your dog is well behaved and trained then you only really need to follow some basic safety measures such as padlocking the door zippers to ensure they can’t break out without you noticing.
Will my dog get cold camping?
Your dog can definitely get cold while camping. Smaller dogs and dogs with short fur are more prone to getting cold, but any dog that is not used to the outdoors will feel the difference in temperature when night time falls.
Particularly in Winter, it’s essential that you provide your dog with enough warmth, whether this is through the use of a heater, a sleeping bag or anything else. You’ll know if your dog is warm enough as they tend to climb out from under whatever blanket you have over them when they get to a comfortable temperature.
Does my dog need a sleeping bag?
In harsher weather or if your dog is sleeping in a porch room separate from you, your dog will definitely need some form of warmth provided. A sleeping bag is a great idea and ensures your dog will stay warm while being able to climb in and out as it pleases.
