CORE 6 Person Bell Tent with LED Lights 13 x 12

The CORE 6 Person Bell Tent with LED Lights is tall and pleasant, with a huge framed door, multiple venting options, and with a great price tag. 

---

Key features & benefits

---

What this is about

I have been following the Core Equipment for more than a decade, and from what I remember this is the first bell-type tent they have had.

As usual for this type, it is quite tall, the peak height is 94 inches (239 cm).  I have included it in my list of very tall family camping tents.

A few of its features are mentioned in the picture below, and they are described in detail farther in the text. The tent is single-layer, and non-freestanding, as usual for this type.

The base is an octagon, and the numbers 13 x 12 in the title are for its long and medium diagonals, respectively. 

This is a single-room structure, and also with a single door which you see in the pictures. The door is double layer, U-shaped, with a mesh and a panel for rain protection and privacy. You can roll it up and fix under the roof. But note that the door has a unique frame (more below), see the picture:

Here you have the view inside, with two zippered roof vents visible:

The picture from the camp shows how tall it is, you have a stand-up height in the central area. But note that there are no windows here.

Integrated light

The tent comes ready with a wall switch control and the battery-operated integrated LED string lights with 3 levels of lighting: high, low, and twinkle. Here you can see some details:

But bear in mind that the lighting  is on the outside of the tent. This may be useful to avoid tripping. It bleeds through to the inside, but you will need your own light too. Due to this feature, I have included it in my list of lighted tents.

Materials

All the elements are shown in the picture below. It includes tent, center pole, door poles, door mat, tent stakes, battery compartment, and carry bag.

One person can easily set this tent up in 20 minutes or so. They provide a detailed manual for this tent so have a look. 

The poles: You have the main central pole and door frame poles, all made of a thick steel.

There are two door poles of unequal length, shown in the picture above. You connect them, and you will hear a click. After that, the ends of the rubber-caped poles put into the places on the sides of the door, and fix them to the tent with Velcro tabs that are in place:

The fabric: The walls and roof are made of a 68D polyester with 1200 mm waterproof rating. The floor is a much thicker polyethylene.

As usual, they use their own H20 Block Technology that combines water-repellent fabrics with sealed seams to resist rain.

The tent comes with a full set of ropes, so each of the octagon corner has one, plus a couple for the door frame. I have seen some people complaining about tripping. Imagine, a tent with guylines, who would expect such a thing? Please be reasonable. 

There are a few wall pockets for small items, and you also have a cable port.

Ventilation

This tent has all ventilation features that you can expect in a nicely designed shelter. The huge door has mesh as one layer. But this must be closed when it rains.

However, they have included several large floor vents (one shown below, view through the door), and roof vents. All of them are closable so you can regulate vertical air circulation as you wish.

There is nothing to object here, so if you see people complaining about condensation, it is best to ignore this. Namely you cannot avoid this in any tent, and in particular in a single-layer tent.

---

Who is it for

Regarding the area, the tent offers 119 ft² (11.1 m²), and its official capacity is up to 6 people. Below you can see how they think you can use the area for such a number of people inside. 

The area per person is 19.8 ft² (1.85 m²), so this is quite a lot. But they also suggest that it is best suited for up to three people plus gear, and I would agree with this. Observe that the length of each of its 8 sides is around 1.5 meters.

The tent can be used with two queen size beds inside. Note that on Amazon they give completely wrong numbers regarding the floor area. 

You might want to compare it with the Timber Ridge 6 Person Glamping Tent built in a similar style but with many windows.

Regarding seasons & climate, the tent is good for year-round use, but best suited for up to three seasons. The waterproof rating is good enough, and the tent is nicely ventilated yet fully closable.

Here is what I have seen one user complaining about:

 “The weather was very foggy but there was no rain and yet the tent walls were wet. The tent was wet all night and by midday the tent was very hot. … The tent held up well the last night in high winds, the wind gust was about 35 mph. I wanted to like this tent but with the leaking every night I would not recommend.”

Clearly, the complaint about leaking makes no sense. What was leaking when there was no rain? Also, hot in the tent during the day, what a surprise!

This is all about condensation which cannot be avoided in any tent. It depends on weather conditions and on venting design. But there is nothing wrong with ventilation in this tent, this is more than obvious. 

Notice the statement about its performance in the wind, so this is at least one good side of this baseless complaint.

Regarding the weight, with 22 lb (10 kg), the tent can be described as lightweight, you will see my rating below.

The packed size is also not bad, it is a bit long in its carry bag, but it is narrow, see the numbers below.

Regarding the price, I would say it is more than fair. Please follow the links below for updates.

---

Specifications

• Weight: 22 lb (10 kg).
• Official capacity: 6 people.
• Dimensions: 13 x 12 ft (396 x 366 cm).
• Inner area: 119 ft² (11.1 m²).
• Inner area per person: 19.8 ft² (1.85 m²).
• Peak height: 94 in (239 cm).
• Packed size: 41 x 9 x 9 in (104 x 23 x 23 cm).
• Warranty: 1-year limited warranty.

---

Final thoughts, rating, pros & cons

Below you can see how this tent stands against my standard rating criteria that I apply consistently to all of them here in the site so that you can easily compare:

 

BEST PLACEs TO BUY:

Bass Pro Shops

Amazon

Cabelas

For more options, please check under the category Teepee and Bell Tents.

Let me know if you have questions, there is a comment box below. Bookmark this site and come again, this will keep you informed, as you realize I add texts here on a regular basis. Thank you for reading.