REI Grand Hut 4 Tent Review

Pros

AFFORDABLE

The Grand Hut is an exceptional value considering how long it will last due to the quality of its materials and its weather protection. You can surely get a lower-quality tent for less money, but if you plan to use your tent a lot throughout the coming years, getting a tent with solid poles and good fabrics like the Grand Hut is a smart choice. Closely competing tents are often $50-$100 more expensive than the Grand Hut and we consider it to be a fantastic value after comparing it with a whole bunch of other tents ranging from top-of-the-line to budget.

QUALITY MATERIALS

Extra stout aluminum poles and high quality fabrics made the Grand Hut stand out among the camping tents we’ve tested. The mesh, ripstop sidewalls, bathtub floor, and rainfly materials all feel durable and ready to face serious rain, (which can’t be said about all tents). The hardware, including the zippers and rainfly attachment buckles, also feel tight and secure while being exceptionally user-friendly. Overall, the Grand Hut is relatively simple, but performs well in most 3-season conditions without being overly heavy/bulky or unnecessarily complicated.

QUICK AND EASY SET UP

The Grand Hut’s freestanding design features a single hubbed pole assembly with color-coding on the poles and clips for a simple intuitive set up. A couple of us were able to pitch the tent in just a few minutes even though we had to tie on all the guylines before staking the tent out the first time. Breaking down the Grand Hut was also very quick and easy, maybe even easier than the “instant tent” we tested. If you despise tents that are time-consuming and frustrating to pitch, the Grand Hut will be a breath of fresh air.

SPACIOUS

With plenty ofheadroom for standing up and stretching, the Grand Hut 4 is far more comfortable than a cramped basic dome tent. The ceiling is 6’3” high, so changing your clothes is much easier, and near-vertical walls make the space usable all the way to the edges. We found the Grand Hut 4 to be a good size for 2 or 3 adults or a small family with kids, but a 6-person version is also available for those who need more space. We’re also impressed by the 100 inch width, which is gives tall people (over 6’2”) plenty of room to lay down (parallel with the doors) with more than a few inches at the head and foot to spare.

ORGANIZATION POCKETS

With two door stash pockets, four triangular pockets in the corners, and four triangular pockets on the ceiling, the Grand Hut 4 offers a lot of convenient storage for small items like phones, wallets, keys, headlamps, sunglasses, etc. There are also gear loops around the top for attaching lights, though a headlamp placed face-down in one of the ceiling pockets can also be used to illuminate the tent.

Cons

CAPACITY OVERSTATED

Though the Grand Hut 4 is rated for 4 people, we think that estimate is a bit unrealistic unless 1 or more of those people are kids. We can’t knock the Grand Hut too much for this though, because almost every camping tent on the market does the same thing. The Grand Hut 4 would make a luxurious shelter for 2 adults on a queen air mattress, wide camping pads, or single cots. It would also be comfortable for up to 3 adults side-by-side on wide sleeping pads. Four adults could fit with regular width sleeping pads, but it would be a tight squeeze. And remember, there’s also a 6-person version of the Grand Hut if you need more space. 

WON’T FAIR WELL IN HEAVY WIND

The Grand Hut won’t perform very well in high winds due to its height. Like most other camping tents of a similar size and shape, the Grand Hut flexes under heavy winds and will be susceptible to damage in big storms. We recommend firmly staking down the Grand Hut and all its guy-out points to minimize risk in heavy weather. Since the Grand Hut’s poles are aluminum, they will hold up far better than cheap fiberglass poles, but there’s still potential for them to bend and break in extreme conditions. If you frequently camp in places that are intensely windy, a tent with a lower-profile design will perform better. But, if you usually setup in sheltered locations like most campers, the Grand Hut should be plenty sturdy.

GUYLINES NOT PRE-ATTACHED

A staked out tent has more interior space, looks much sleeker, and is far sturdier. It’s not a dealbreaker, but the guylines don’t come pre-attached to the Grand Hut, so it takes a little extra time to tie all the knots and stake it out the first time you set it up. The best way to attach them to the rainfly is with a bowline knot. Some tents pre-attach guy lines, and we wish REI did that with the Grand Hut.

NEEDS MORE STAKES

It’s sadly common for tent manufacturers to not include enough stakes for a full pitch, and the Grand Hut is no exception. At least 2 extra stakes are absolutely needed to pull out the sides of the rainfly for proper ventilation, but really the Grand Hut could use up to 8 additional tent stakes for all the storm guy-out points. We recommend picking up a set of aluminum tent stakes, which are lightweight, strong, and inexpensive. You may also want some extra guylines, so you can fully secure the Grand Hut in nasty weather. 

Bottom Line

The Grand Hut 4 has a superb balance of quality to affordability as well as an excellent amount of interior space for how light and compact it is. The Grand Hut has a lot of features that make it feel more livable than other tents, but it’s also one of the quickest, easiest, and most intuitive tents to pitch and pack up due to it’s hubbed single-pole assembly and color-coded materials. On the whole, the Grand Hut stands out to us as having the excellent traits of weather protection, affordability, durability, spaciousness, and practicality, which is why it’s our top all-around value choice on our Best Camping Tents list.