Tent Lighting Rated and Reviewed

When I was young and camping with my parents there was no such things as proper tent lighting to be honest. We did have an old lantern style thing that had two batteries the size of a house, that would last for a couple of nights if you were lucky.  There was light off the campfire if you were old enough to stay up late and sit by it. But once you went to bed that was it. Pitch dark with only the light of the moon to comfort you. As a small child I have very fond memories of this but I’ll be honest and say I was a bit terrified at times by the darkness.

Things have come a long way since then and in todays modern world there are is a whole range of camping and tent lights available for you to choose from. What we wanted to try and do with this post was look at some of the features (both good and bad) of some of the most popular ones so you can make an informed decision next time you go buy lighting for your tent.

Lets take a look at some camping and tent lanterns to get the review started

Coleman MicroPacker Review

The Coleman MicroPacker LED Mini Lantern review is first up and let me tell you this is superb.

Its multifunctional from the point of view that it is both a camping lantern and a flashlight. It only weighs 6 ounces even when the batteries are installed. Speaking of batteries, the light will run for up to 15 hours with three AA batteries so cheap enough to run as well. The bulbs are ‘lifetime LEDS’ so you wont have to worry about changing them either.

You can change from normal to directional lighting mode by sliding up the reflector. A very handy feature if you need to head out of the tent in the night. Both lantern and flashlight in the same place. While it is small – important when packing your bag – it still gives off plenty of light. Great for hanging in the tent for reading.

The final point to make is that it is a Coleman so quality wise it is top notch.

Rayovac Sportsman – Rugged Quality

Next up we want to look at the Rayovac Sportsman 240 Lumen 3D LED Lantern.

The Rayovac Sportsman is a compact very bright handy lantern for both camping and home use. Easier to justify buying something and better for the environment if you can find more than one use for it.

It comes in at seven inches tall and puts out a startling 240 lumen in lighting so perfect for any camping trip or walk at night.

Also popular with emergency preppers because it is lightweight, durable and water resistant.

It has a built in green led that flashed every few seconds when the light is turned off so you don’t have to fumble around in the dark looking for it. It sports optimized beams and comes complete with a fold out rubber grip. You can pull out a hook from the bottom of the lantern and hang it upside down in your tent for full handsfree lighting.

This light may be small but do not let that put you off. It will give off enough light to fill a room or even better – a tent. Happy camping.

Coleman Quad LED Lantern

The final tent lantern we want to cover is the Coleman Quad LED Lantern. This is very popular when you are camping with the kids because of its design.

When fully together the lantern runs of 8 D size batteries. This gives it a bit of weight but it has a solid sturdy handle so nothing to worry about there. It gives off a serious amount of light and is perfectly suited for camping.

Set it up while cooking or just in the tent for relaxing a reading and you are good to go. Despite all the LEDs it runs cold and safe to the touch.

You get about 75 hours running time when its all together which is unbelievable if you think about the light it gives off.

You can take all four panels off the light and use them individually. Its great that you can give each of the kids one when they go to bed, or when there is a toilet run. Each individual light has a handle on the top so its easy to carry.

You then just simply clip them back onto the base and you have a very bright and powerful camping lantern suitable for every need.

Each light will give you about one and a half hours of light, provided by a built-in rechargeable battery. We have used these for the kids coming back from kids camp in the evenings or at dusk when outside with their friends.

They give great comfort at night and saves you having to buy individual lights for each of the family.

All in all our favorite lantern style camping light.

The final thing I want to discuss here are batteries. Often overlooked when you are packing up for a long trip and its very hard to find a shop in the middle of a forest. I suggest you go for a set of rechargeable batteries and a good quality charger (likethis one.) The panasonic charger is first class and once charged the batteries will last for ages.

Why not leave us a comment and let us know what type of lighting you use when camping or do you have any thoughts or opinions on our selection. Remember it you guys and gals that are using this gear and we love feedback.

Thanks for stopping by and see you at the campsite some day soon.