Big Agnes Flying Diamond Tent Review

We picked up the Big Agnes Flying Diamond Tent (8 person version) with the footprint last summer and have put it to use in a wide variety of weather and locations – and this tent performed beyond any expectation we could have had.

Big Agnes Flying Diamond Tent Review – What’s in the box?

• Tent body
• Rain Fly
• Reflective guylines (enough to make it pretty sturdy, but not enough for every tie out)
• 30 aluminum hook stakes
• 6 DAC Aluminum poles
• A convenient polyester carrying case that fits/organizes everything

Durability – 9/10

Big Agnes didn’t cut any corners with this tent. The fabric they went with is a durable polyester (polyester ripstop on the fly) and a thick mesh that I haven’t seen any rips or snags in yet.

The 6 poles are DAC aluminum and while they aren’t expedition worthy, they have stood up to everything we’ve thrown at them so far.

The plastic clips that connect the tent body to the poles are thick and even though I stepped on them a few times, didn’t show any signs of cracking or breaking.

As with every tent, you want to be careful around hot and sharp objects and fire, but I have seen literally zero wear and tear in the 6 months we’ve had it.

The tent also uses a dome shape which is going to minimize the effect wind will have on your tent. BUT, make no mistake! This tent has a BIG profile and if the winds pick up, you need to make sure you use EVERY guyline available or you will end up with bent poles.

Livability – 8/10

I love the design of this tent. Whoever was the mastermind behind this must have had their share of getting stuck inside a tent because they thought through everything to make this tent as livable as possible.

Here are a few of my favorite features:

• Huge Vestibule
• Lots of standing room in the front room of the tent
• Steep walls
• Great ventilation options
• SO MANY INTERIOR MESH STORAGE POCKETS
• Gear loops are everywhere
• A room divider that is actually a divider, but easy to move
• Since the sidewalls don’t have a ton of mesh, the tent offers privacy – even without the rain fly

The only reason it’s not a 10/10 is due to the variable height of the back room. It works great for a kids area, but other tents like the REI Kingdom Tents that have a constant height just makes it feel like a palace.

Setup/Takedown – 8/10

The Big Agnes Flying Diamond 8 is a big tent. Which is AMAZING – once you are inside, but can make it tough to set up by yourself in all but the perfect conditions.

The 2 person set up is pretty fast and easy. Once you get the poles in the right places, the set up will be familiar if you’ve ever set up a tent before.

The carrying/storage case that the tent come has great setup instructions sewn into it, so if you ever need a refresher, it’s right there!

Weatherproofness – 9/10

This is where the Big Agnes Flying Diamond series tent really shines. For a tent this massive, it becomes so much harder to keep it weatherproof. But for a family/car camping tent, this tent is the best 4 season tent I’ve ever seen.

Living in California, our tents see desert, beach, mountains and everything in between. And I need a tent that can stand up to the weather that comes along with those places. I don’t want to wake up with my family in a puddle, wake up to a collapsed tent, or have the tent flapping around so loudly in the wind that no one even falls asleep.

This tent gives me confidence that those scenarios will likely never happen (again). It’s handled a light-moderate snow load, 30 MPH consistent winds (40 MPH gusts), and days and days of wet rainy weather without a single drop of water on the inside.

IMPORTANT: For any tent to live up to the weatherproof level it should, the tent needs to be set up correctly. That means poles all clipped to the body, fly velcroed to the poles and guylines properly tied out. Your tent site selection can also make your tents job MUCH easier!

Price – 7/10

At an MSRP of $799.95, this tent is definitely on the higher end of the price scale with tents, even ones of this size. It’s about $250 more than the REI Kingdom 8 Tent ($549.00), but the Flying Diamond is significantly more weatherproof (especially wind and snow).

So the question is, is this tent $250 more tent than it’s competitors?

I think so. 100%.

Even with the hefty price tag, the quality and confidence I have that I won’t be woken up by a soaking wet family or a collapsed tent in the middle of the night make it SO worth it.

Flexibility – 9/10

One of the most important aspects of a family/car camping tent for us is flexibility. How many situations will I be able to use this tent? Will this be the only tent I need to own for car camping?

Big Agnes knocked it out of the park here as well. As long as your campsite can fit this tent, the chances are good that the Flying Diamond tent can serve your family/car camping trips year-round.

It will even make a great basecamp for our guided backpacking trips that start and end near a campground!

The tent also comes in 4-person and 6-person models as well.

The ventilation is good enough for summer use (especially if you utilize the feature where you can roll up the fly halfway – or don’t use the fly at all), it can handle winter in all but the most extreme weather, and it packs up small enough (a medium-sized carry on) where you could take it anywhere!

Overall – 8.5

Hands down, the Big Agnes Flying Diamond Tent is one of the best, most well-rounded family and car camping tent I’ve ever used and It’s made so well that I’m pretty sure I’ll be using it 10 years from now!