Pop-Up Shelters

What a pop-up shelter is

A pop-up shelter has a sprung frame folded flat inside its bag. Take it out, let it go, and it opens by itself: one beach shade here within 2 seconds, a family shelter in around 3 seconds on its hydraulic frame. An inflatable one goes up on air beams instead. The point is speed, for a quick stop on the beach, on a riverbank or at a picnic, or when a shower comes in. The price of that speed is the packed shape, a wide flat disc or bag that is easy in the car and awkward on a long walk.

Beach shades, weather shelters, clear domes and family pop-ups

• Pop-up beach shades are the biggest group here: small, light and made for shade, with UV-protective fabric. One has a zipped top pocket so you can use your phone inside. See beach tents.
• A weather shelter for one or two, rainproof and windproof, for fishing, walks and sports days. See fishing tents.
• A round transparent picnic tent that keeps the view while it keeps off wind and rain. See bubble tents.
• Family pop-ups: one in 210D Oxford with a silver inner coating, in 4 to 6 and 6 to 8 person sizes, and an inflatable shelter with a bedroom and a living room covering 6.4 square metres. See instant and automatic tents and inflatable air tents.

Folding it back up

Opening is the easy half. A sprung pop-up has to be twisted back into its loops before it will go into the bag, and each maker's way is slightly different. Practise at home before the trip, with the instructions in front of you, rather than on a windy beach with everyone waiting. When you fold it outside, hold it down, keep it away from faces while the frame is under tension, and let the air out of an inflatable before you start.

Shade only, or rain as well

The pop-ups here run from shade only to properly waterproof, and the product text says which. The beach shades give UV protection and no waterproof figure. The weather shelter is described as rainproof and windproof, and so is the transparent picnic tent. The inflatable shelter states over 3,000mm for both the outer tent and the groundsheet. A light pop-up blows away when nobody is in it, so peg it down as soon as it opens.

Questions people ask about pop-up shelters

Is a pop-up shelter the same as a pop-up tent?

No. A pop-up tent has a floor, a door and room to sleep, while most pop-up shelters are for the day. See pop-up tents.

How heavy are they?

The beach shades are light enough to carry under one arm; the family and inflatable shelters are made for the car. Each product page gives the weight where the maker states it.

How long does delivery take?

Delivery is included in every price and tracked to your door. Each product page says when that tent usually arrives, so check it before ordering for a set date.

More to look at

• Sun shelters
• Pop-up tents
• Beach tents
• Instant and automatic tents
• Fishing tents
• Windbreaks
• Guide: Beach tents and sun shelters
• Guide: Fishing and ice-fishing tents