The L.L.Bean Acadia Tent is a cabin-style family camping tent that’s available in 4-, 6- or 8-person options. Its most innovative feature is its fantastic self-closing door that makes it much easier to step in and out of the tent.
I’ve personally set up, slept in, and tested dozens of tents ranging from huge canvas wall tents down to ultralight backpacking tents. I’ve camped in the mountains of the Northwest, as well as rafted hundreds of miles to camp next to rivers in Idaho, Washington, and Alaska. I’ve slept in the Acadia 6-Person Family Tent more than a dozen times over several years, using it on car camping trips on river and lakeside destinations in Idaho and Oregon.
Every time I’ve taken this tent camping, all my fellow campers rave about the easy-opening door, sparking jealously among those stuck with standard zippered doors. It’s particularly great for young kids who forget to zip regular tent doors to keep the bugs out!
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Acadia Tent Review: The Door Is Worth It
Let’s say this again: The door on the L.L.Bean Acadia Tent is simply outstanding. It’s hard to overstate how much we appreciate the self-closing, magnetically sealed door. If you think it might be a gimmick, rest assured it’s not. The door is legit.
The door uses magnets placed around the perimeter to keep it closed. To self-close, the wall of the tent has a slight angle to it so gravity basically pulls the door shut. It works surprisingly well. When the door is shut with just the magnets, it’s pretty secure, but you can also zip it shut.
To ensure that your door works properly, you’ll want to make sure you stake out the tent floor to ensure the proper tension in the tent walls. If you’re sloppy with the stakes, we can see where it might not have the tension needed to self-close. When the tent fly is attached, I like how I can prop the door open when it’s time to toss in the sleeping bags or get everything out to pack up.
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Cabin-Style Construction
The L.L.Bean Acadia Tents feature near-vertical sidewalls with ceiling peak heights up to 6′ 8″ in the four person model, 6′ 9″ in the 6-person model, and 6′ 10″ in the 8-person version. All versions are roomy and spacious, making them great for summertime car camping.
The four corner poles are made from rugged steel while the top fiberglass poles are made from stout fiberglass. The 8-person model includes two additional center support poles as well as an additional roof pole to help support the extra span.
The top of the interior has plenty of mesh for good airflow, plus you get three windows on the non-door walls.
For the body material, L.L.Bean uses a lightweight but durable 75-denier polyester with a 1500mm PU waterproof coating. The fabric offers a good balance between weight, packability and ruggedness.
Inside, L.L.Bean includes plenty of stash pockets and gear lofts for storing phones, keys, and flashlights.
Near the bottom of the door, L.L.Bean includes a port for a power cord if you want to run an extension cord into your tent.
Overall quality is excellent, on par with most every L.L.Bean product we’ve used over the years. When you add up the overall design, build quality, and door, the L.L.Bean Acadia is easily one of the best camping tents we’ve tested over the years.
Size Options and Specifications
Dimensions: 8′ x 8′
Peak Height: 6′ 8″
Weight: 22 lbs
L.L.Bean Acadia 6-Person Family Tent
Dimensions: 10′ x 10′
Peak Height: 6′ 9″
Weight: 23.5 lbs
L.L.Bean Acadia 8-Person Cabin Tent
Dimensions: 14′ x 9′
Peak Height: 6′ 10″
Weight: 37.5 lbs
Tip: Oversize Your Tent for Comfort
If you’re a first-time camping tent buyer, the manufacturer stated person sizing is considered the maximum number of people who can share a tent. It’s basically only possible if you use narrow sleeping pads with narrow mummy-style sleeping bags. If you want space for larger sleeping pads or cots, as well as space to stand up and get dressed, plan to sleep 1-2 fewer people per tent than specified. Or just size up! If you do this, you’ll have a lot more fun and everyone will sleep better.
These are my real-world sizing recommendations for the L.L.Bean Acadia Tents:
- The 4-person Acadia tent is best for two adults or parents with small kids or up to three older kids/teenagers.
- The 6-person Acadia tent is best for families of four (but can fit a family of five in a pinch if everyone is happy with coziness).
- The 8-person Acadia tent is for families up to six people with awesome roominess for families of four or five.
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Competitive Alternatives and Options:
There are many different types of roomy family camping tents, and these are some of my favorite options to consider:
White Duck Outdoors Regatta Bell Tents — These luxurious canvas bell tents are round with a tall center pole, creating a cozy, even nostalgic space for camping. They range from just 8′ in diameter to a huge 20′ option. I reviewed the 16.5′ Regatta Bell Tent and it’s still one of my favorite tents. The only drawback is that it’s heavy and bulky to pack around, but it is great for multi-person camp outs.
The North Face Wawona 6 Tent — What I like most about the super popular Wawona 6 Tent is that its rainfly includes a massive vestibule that can keep your shoes and gear out of the rain, plus it’s large enough for a couple of camp chairs for dry seating in bad weather.
Coleman 6-Person Instant Camping Tent — If you’re willing to transport a slightly larger package, this Coleman instant pop-up tent can be pitched in a single minute. It’s not the sturdiest in the worst weather, but for the majority of summertime camping, it’s fast, effective, and surprisingly affordable.
The Bottom Line: Is the Acadia Tent right for you?
The Acadia tent door is really something special. It’s awesome if you go camping with kids, and it’s darn handy for adults, too. Aside from the door, L.L.Bean delivers an outstanding cabin-style tent construction. The four corner poles are rugged steel, and the fiberglass roof poles are stout. You get three windows to help with cross-breeze and airflow, and the rain fly offers good coverage when it rains. Plus, you get plenty of guy lines and lots of stakes, making the L.L.Bean Acadia Tent surprisingly solid in windy conditions. Very highly recommended.
