Glamping tents - also known as cotton tents, evoke the romantic notion of camping that for many goes back to bygone times when the American expression "a night under canvas" referred to the material from which old-fashioned tents were made - canvas.
If you were to go on a camping trip today, it would probably not be in a glamping tent, but in a polyester tent, the standard tent material today. Polyester tents have the advantage of being very lightweight. They are perfect for protecting yourself from the forces of nature in hard-to-reach and often spectacular places.
The advantage of a polyester tent is its weight and ease of use. On the other hand, you will find it difficult to argue for comfort. Unless you love waking up in a damp room and waiting for the sun to heat the tent to a tropical climate. If it gets too hot for you, you have to crawl to the exit and struggle to put on your clothes and shoes.
This is probably also the main reason why more and more people are opting for cotton or glamping tents. Not just for nostalgic reasons, because glamping tents are great in their own way, and they surpass polyester tents in some areas by far.
What is a glamping tent?
Glamping tents come in various sizes and shapes. Most of them are circular and the structure is supported by a central pole and a v-shaped pole at the entrance. The canvas itself consists of two elements. The wall, which is often relatively low, and a conical roof that is anchored to the ground and stretched with a series of ropes.
The first patented cotton tent was made during the American Civil War, inspired by the tipis you know from the Native Americans. However, the history of cotton tents goes back even further, so you can say they have been tested over generations.
What are glamping tents made of?
Glamping tents are made from cotton or polycotton (a blend of cotton and polyester) and equipped with a floor made of strong PVC plastic. However, you will also find some glamping tents made of pure polyester, but these are rare, as durability and comfort are more important than weight and pack size for cotton tents. Cotton is heavier than polyester but also significantly more durable, breathable, insulating, and UV-resistant.
The advantages of a glamping tent
1. Ample space
The simple design with a central pole that supports the entire tent offers plenty of freedom of movement. And the low wall on the sides, which slightly raises the roof, allows you to set it up right up to the wall without having to worry about bumping into the tent fabric. In many ways, the tent resembles a loft apartment with high ceilings.
This makes a glamping tent perfect for longer camping trips where you want to spend a lot of time in or around the tent, which the changeable summer weather often forces you to do. The glamping tent is also perfect for setting it up permanently in your garden as an additional guest or bedroom.
Here you can read more about the different sizes of glamping tents.
2. Fresh Air
A cotton tent, or a tent made from a cotton blend like ours, is significantly more breathable than a polyester or nylon tent. The breathability is due to both the cotton material of the tent and the large ventilation holes on the side, which are naturally equipped with mosquito nets.
The breathability of the tent means that the interior is almost always dry, and you avoid mold and fungus spores that are often found in polyester tents. All in all, a night in a glamping tent is a much more natural experience, and you wake up with the smell of grass instead of hot plastic and stuffy bedrooms.
3. Pleasant Indoor Climate
Cotton is an insulating material, so glamping tents keep warm when the temperature drops and remain relatively cool during the day. This allows you to sleep better at night, but it also makes the tent a place where you want to spend time during the day - something most people don't want to do in a polyester tent.
The glamping tent is cool and comfortable on hot summer days and warm and cozy when the weather gets colder.
4. Protects from Sun Exposure
Sun exposure is harmful to almost all materials that are exposed for a long period. One of the many amazing properties of cotton is its resistance to UV rays. Cotton is not as severely damaged by UV rays as polyester, making it a better material if your tent is to be permanently set up.
5. Built to Last
The thick cotton material that makes up the glamping tents is very resistant to overhanging branches and sharp objects on the ground.
Our glamping tents are designed for quality. The cotton and the ground are thick. The zippers, pegs, and poles are sturdy. All of this contributes to making the tent more durable.
6. Robust Construction
It's no coincidence that cotton tents in tipi form have been used for centuries. This construction has proven its robustness to peoples since the time of Genghis Khan.
Thanks to the simple construction with a central pole connected to the ground by the strong cotton sail, guy line, and storm band pegs, the tent withstands strong wind, rain, and even snow with ease.
The round shape of the tent means that the wind turns away as it does not hit a flat wall. This helps you avoid the annoying noises when the wind catches the tent, as you know from polyester tents.
7. An Aesthetic Masterpiece
A glamping tent has many advantages when it comes to comfort, and it surpasses conventional tents by far. But when it comes to aesthetics, it is in a class of its own. Nostalgic, symmetrical, and beautiful. A glamping tent meets all the criteria, adorns the gardens of many people, and will certainly become a talking point in your neighborhood.
8. A More Sustainable Solution
Natural materials cost more than lab-made materials. On the other hand, our glamping tents last much longer than most polyester tents. The longer lifespan is not only environmentally friendly but also a benefit for your wallet. If we calculate a price per night, we believe it will be worth it.
Waterproofing and Glamping Tents
Intuitively, you would think that a tent made of nylon or polyester is more resistant to a proper downpour than a cotton tent. After all, most rainwear today is made of polyester, not cotton!
So how can a cotton tent remain waterproof? Two things play a role here. Firstly, it is due to the shape of the tent, and secondly, to the water-repellent properties of cotton.
A cotton tent is bell-shaped and water cannot settle anywhere. It will simply run off directly before the material has time to soak.
The cotton canvas of a glamping tent is incredibly tightly woven, but it is not waterproof. If you place a glass of water upside down on a cotton cloth, the water will run through. But cotton has a trick up its sleeve. When cotton gets wet, it expands. When the cotton expands, it closes the tiny gaps between the weaves and seals them tightly.
We have written an article about why cotton tents are waterproof, which you can read through the link.
Before Your First Trip
As described above, the waterproofness of a glamping tent improves in the rain. That's why we always recommend setting up your tent just before the rain or thoroughly spraying it with a garden hose before use.
Read more about how you can maintain your glamping tent.