For years I’ve bucked against carrying a two-person tent while backpacking just for me. But I also realise there are times when sleeping in a so-called “coffin” tent, the lightweight, tiny one-person tent, is not ideal because it feels cramped. The time arrived, for my Mountain leader assessment in the chilly, wet and windy Scottish mountains, when I decided that I should use a heavier two-person tent. I looked around – and asked a few friends – and decided that the MSR Hubba Hubba™ NX 2-person tent would fit the bill.
My requirements were for a three-season tent with enough space to store all my kit inside, yet I didn’t want to be overly weighed down. I also wanted a tent with enough height for me to easily sit up and get changed inside; side vestibules for cooking; a simple design that is easy to erect; and with the strength and durability to cope in most conditions in Scotland. Cost was also a factor but I was fortunate to be sent the MSR Hubba Hubba™ NX 2-person tent to review. My first thoughts were: It’s a great and roomy tent at a mid-range price. It is heavier than my Alpkit Ultra 1 – some 700g or so – but I didn’t actually notice this while carrying my overnight pack.
Features of MSR Hubba Hubba™ NX 2-person tent
Minimum weight is 1540g
Packaged weight is 1720g
Two-part construction
Rainfly fabric: 20D ripstop nylon 1200mm Durashield™ polyurethane & silicone
Mesh Type: 15D nylon micromesh
Two large side-entry vestibules
Two large StayDry™ doors with built-in rain gutters
Unified hub-and-pole set-up
2 x side entry
Adjustable integrated stake-out loops
Reflective guy-lines
Durashield™-coated rainfly and bathtub-style floor
Floor dimensions: 213cm x 127cm
Vestibule areas total: 1.62sqm
Interior peak height: 100cm
Packed size: 46cm x 15cm
Compression stuff sack with compression straps
Compatible with a footprint (sold separately)
Price: Around £435.
See: MSR and Amazon (I gain a small commission for Amazon sales through this website.)
My thoughts: MSR Hubba Hubba™ NX 2-person tent
As someone who is fairly lightweight and, therefore, has usually worried about the weight of my backpack, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I DIDN’T notice the impact of the extra weight of the MSR Hubba Hubba™ NX 2-person tent. It added some 700g to my pack above my Alpkit Ultra 1, but what it gave was so much more than I’d hoped for.
The extra space inside the tent is luxurious compared to a one-person “coffin’ style tent. It is meant for two people obviously but when there is only one of you, there is tons of space for kit indoors. The length of the tent feels generous, too.
The other great bonus is the head height. I could easily sit up and move about, get changed etc without touching the inner fabric.
There are two large side entrance doors with two covered vestibules. When it was raining, I could use these one of these for cooking. I kept the outer door open so it wasn’t affected by the heat and steam of my MSR camping stove but it also offered enough cover to keep the rain off.
Erecting the tent was straightforward once I worked out the colour-coding system. Basically, you peg out the inner tent, then insert the lightweight pole. The tent has one pole all elasticated together. Then inner tent is hooked on the poles before adding the outer sheet.
It’s important to match the red/grey colour match system to ensure the outer tent is the right way round. Then you can make everything taut and non-flappy in the wind with easy-to-use adjustors. (Make sure you loosen these when dismantling the tent because it means the construction when you use it again is far easier.)
There are also guy lines to ensure the tent remains stable in stronger winds.
The tent pegs are lightweight and fairly robust, although I did manage to bend one on my first use when I tried to push it through a rock in the ground.
The tent was tested in heavy rain and it held up excellently. I felt safe and secure inside and nicely dry. There was no obvious flapping of the fabric in strong winds either.
Packing up the tent was straightforward and I could easily stash it into the stuff bag, which I then tightened up with the compression straps. The tent when packed is quite long, so you should be aware of this when choosing a rucksack to carry it although it did fit neatly into my 55l pack.
I am now converted to carrying a heavier two-person tent simply because it’s so much more enjoyable for camping and sleeping.
The tent is not particularly cheap, but good quality outdoor kit does seem to be pricey. I suppose you need to think of it as a long-term investment. Hubby G commented the other day that he is still using a tent he bought 20 years ago. It will depend on how you care for the tent and how often you use it, but tents can serve you well for many decades.
Note, there are other lighter weight two-person tents, so if it’s grams you want to shave, you should shop around.
In addition, this tent will long live in my memory because it was the one I used when I passed my UK Mountain Leader assessment.