Northwest Territory Olympic Cottage Deluxe Cabin Tent

Our family does A LOT of camping. We've tried and used LOTS of tents. Overall, this tent is a great one. It is spacious, the 2'x3' closets offer a place for posh campers to put a portapotty, a child of short person 5' or less could change comfortably in a closet and have a little privacy. The room divider is also awesome!

We did an initial home set-up of the tent, sprayed with about 6 cans of waterproofing silicone stuff and let it dry thoroughly (good to do for all tents, BTW) and bought a ground cover tarp to go under the tent to protect the floor. I also used 7 old washcloths (on each short end where the roof peaks) to put between the frame and the rain fly to protect the rain fly and one where the peak is in the front of the tent.

First time out, we got A LOT of rain. You will have issues in heavy rain of pooling on the roof, you need to be available to dump the water off from the inside of the tent and keep that free, or I've heard it will bend up the poles. I only had one spot (that I need to spray again with some more silicone) that leaked. Even places where objects inside the tent came into contact with the walls, no leakage.

I would NOT leave this tent set up during heavy storms, not sure how it does in wind. You need to buy an extreme weather tent (the kind you'll pay $500 or more for a comparable size for) to handle rough weather.

Setup of the tent is somewhat difficult, I'd take it easy the first time, get to know the setup, and it's not too bad. I think this is overall better than a dome tent, it has plenty of ventilation and more headroom than a dome tent, also the walls are straight instead of slanted in so there is more floor space that is usable. It is also better ventilated than any tent I've ever owned.

We really like this tent, we plan on using a canopy slightly larger than the tent size to keep rain off to prevent the roof pooling problems. Another tip is to ALWAYS set up the tent every time with all of the stakes tied down and guy lines/stakes installed properly or else even mild weather can cause broken tent poles, ripped tent, leakage, etc.

Another neat feature of the tent was not only a power port to run an extension cord through but a small battery-powered light that can velcro to the inside roof to give you a little light at night. The carrying case is very sturdy with wheels and hefty handles to be able to lug it around easily. It also has an expandable zipper in case you are not the type who rolls up the tent into a perfect roll.

I'd plan on putting something - indoor/outdoor carpet or a falsa blanket maybe, over the mud flap on the tent as it might easily become a tripping hazard. We have contemplated adding grommets to stake it down.

We enjoy this tent so much that we plan on buying a second one as a backup, in case anything happens to this one.

Also, in reality, I'd say this tent sleeps 4-6, you could put 2 queen air mattresses AND gear in it and be okay.

My husband and I are the parents of 2 scouts (7 y.o. and 11 y.o.). He has been camping with the pack for several years, and I just got more involved last summer (2007). We've used a 7 X 12 Ozark Trail tent for years. This summer, we decided to shop for a cabin tent that would fit us, the boys and our Doberman comfortably. My husband is 6'4" and a "big guy", so size was important to us. We fell in love with this tent immediately because of the floor space and the interior height.

I brought it home and put it up all by myself. It took me the better part of an hour, but it wasn't so much difficult as involved. We rainproofed (using Thompson's deck seal, as we had read this worked well) and sealed the seams that first weekend. Then packed it away in preparation for the upcoming weekend camping trip we had planned. He went on ahead of us with friends that were camping with us, and the men had the campsite set up when we got there.

Unfortunately, we had chosen to camp during Tropical Storm Fay, and the winds made hanging our tarp over the tent like we usually do impossible. The first night, we had no problems and perhaps 1/2 - 1 inch of rain, with some wind gusts to 5-10 mph. The interior of the tent stayed dry, and the fly and roof were good.

Saturday morning, it was still raining, and during a calm wind period, we tied off the tarp as well as possible, with plenty of overhang around the tent (16 X 32 tarp). We left the campground and came back to pools of rain caught in the roof of the tent. Unfortunately, in order to make the tent as stable as possible, there are not only three poles/systems running from the front of the tent to the back, but also poles running along the roofline from one pole to the next, and therein seems to lie the design problem. The steady rain (6 inches in all) eventually pooled on the tent side and the fly sagged behind these poles. We emptied the water, and watched it for more issues.

Round about midnight, though, I woke up with my husband calling my name. He's on the floor (on all fours), while the tent roof is on his back, literally 2 feet from the floor. The center roof bracket has broken, the pole has pierced the fabric of the tent, and were it not for the tarp over the whole thing, we would have been very, very wet. We got the water off, and propped up the center roof support with an extra pole on the inside and made it through the rest of the night dry, but sadly, we'll be returning the tent and not buying another like this.

If you plan to tent only in dry conditions, or could possible rig the fly so the water wouldn't have a chance to puddle behind the horizontal poles, you may very well love this tent. We've racked our brains and not been able to think of a way. I really, really wanted to LOVE this tent, but it's just not going to happen.

Love it.

Love this tent, bring it back with minor upgrades.

When properly set up it is sturdy. Very spacious. 

I would cancel the closets. The shelves are only good to hold light stuff. But the rest is great.

What I did when I first got it (before I even took it camping) is get color tape and clear tape. I taped the color codes around each end of the poles and then covered that tape with clear tape, which immensely helped with setup.

The instructions are vague, so refer to the pic. Be careful, don't rush setup. Make sure when you stake it down, stake the base all the way out taut, but not wrenching it over tight. Then do the frame.

The side peak on the roof is the most confusing, so when you do the figuring out setup, mark the ends (as you look at the tent) like LHF (left hand front) and RHF (right hand front). That would be the MOST helpful in setting it up.

For the company: more detailed markings on poles, main part of the tent is OK, but thicken the rain protector, and advise spraying on a rain protector yearly. The floor is decent but offer an add-on zippered floor separate. Put in larger teflon zippers (oversize even) on the doors. People get indoor outdoor cheap rugs for the inside. It helps save the floor. Offer replacement parts, including the poles, connector parts, rain fly, floor.

With a few modifications and offer of replacement parts and or add-ons the company would have an awesome tent with years of replacement parts and the word of mouth with a good product would sell new tents beyond your expectations. In fact I would order a second one (if I could find it) 

We do a lot of camping. Absolutely love this tent. We call it Taj-Matent as do others passing by.

As for the comments about rain pooling. We camp in south Florida so I think it's safe to say we see fairly heavy rain.  The trick with this tent is to crank the rainfly down super tight and make sure it lays around the outside of the support poles.

We had pooling the first time we saw rain with it but taking some extra time on the rainfly made all the difference. And the thing has CLOSETS, with dowel rods..  TAJ-MA-TENT. 

Love it so much I went out and bought another one for when we beat this first one to death.  I did have to order a replacement rear roof pole (horizontal), the plastic joints don't take the torque well when you're setting it up by yourself.

I purchased this tent at k-mart this summer. We just went on a family camping trip last month and were able to use this tent for the first time. WOW it is the condo of tents - my whole family loved our House.

Erecting the tent was fairly difficult because the instructions were of no help. However, if you are familiar with tents you can put it up in about 30 min with 2 people. I am sure next time will be easier, we did label the poles.

I have read some of the reviews and I went through similar problems with the Northwest vacation cottage . We had a storm and 2 poles broke and we had a collapse with the roof. I realized that we did not have it staked down properly. I say this because my sisters both owned the same tent and during the same storm their tents were fine. Upon careful inspection of ours, the general belief of everyone was that our rainfly was not properly installed. We did have some rain on this trip and this tent did fine.

I love having the 2 closets, it is great for keeping your tent tidy. It is huge, we like having space. It is just my husband and I and my 7 year old son. I can say that it would sleep 6 easily and again I like space.

The windows are great, 2 in the front, 2 on the sides and 1 in the back. When you open all of them you have great air flow. It has a couple of nice hanging compartments that are a nice touch and very handy. I think that the tent looks great too - much like a house.

The only thing that I would change is that it would have 2 doors instead of one. If you love space, this is the tent for you.

The tent received many ohs and ahs. We had a thunderstorm the first day we put the tent up. We stayed dry as did all of our gear. We utilized the two closets that are part of the tent. We used the room divider and it leaves one larger size room than the other.

We had two sleeping bags and a twin size air bed on one side of the tent with plenty of room to walk around each one of them. On the slightly smaller side of the divider we had a king size air bed. We even had room to move around either side of the bed. It has two large mesh windows on the front, with a nice window pane design. Each side has a window, and a window on the back of the tent between the two closets.

The roof is mesh and you can see the stars. The tent is easy to set up for two people and once you put it up once or twice one person could probably do it alone. The rain fly is snug.

The height of this tent is great. My husband is 6' 3" and he didn't have to bend or stoop at all in this tent. The poles are colored coded and easy to assemble, they are chain corded steel poles. The tent hangs from the steel from by use of clamps and s hooks.

We gave many tours. The owners of the campground said it was the nicest tent they had ever had at the grounds. Most people thought it was a house, as that is what is looks like. We are so happy with our tent we will be doing alot more camping.

My boyfriend and I like to go camping with his family in the summer and so we've been in the market for a tent lately. My boyfriend is 6'2" so we've always hated having so little room: when he lays down he's too long, when he stands up, he's too tall. So when we walked in to the local KMart and saw this, we got it. We had some extra money, plus his birthday was this weekend. It took us about an hour to put it up because, as previous reviews noted, the instructions were not that helpful. But that was okay, but while we were setting up, there were no stakes. The manufacturer only provided the structure poles. So this morning (6/15/10) we were sleeping and a windstorm kicked up. It lifted the right side up and moved it, and when we were getting out to take it down, I walked away to use the restroom and when I came back, my boyfriend said that there was a snapping sound, and the front left side was not being supported. When we got the rain-fly off, I noticed that one of the corner plastic pieces had completely snapped, leaving no room for it to be repaired manually.

This tent was great for our friends that we had over, and it was great to stay in, but they didn't consider that the tent would need to support it's own weight. It makes me sad that we have to take it back, and also, that I may just get a smaller one. This tent is beautiful, and it's gigantic. I don't want to get another one, but I don't want to have to keep taking it back.

We brought a Olympic cottage tent 16x12 from KMART a couple a years ago and we have always had a difficult time putting it together; but once up we love the room for 10 people. We have lost our instructions to assemble it now and if anyone can help us find some please reply to lindagsmith65@netzero.com

This cottage tent is not easy to set up; it takes forever; but once we get it setup it is great for camping for a week or two. It is stable and doesn't leak. We were in a terrible storm last year and it didn't leak at all. With the screens it is very cool. The extra room was great for our family.

Nice and big but started leaking when it rained. The first time only a little and the second time (in same week). I don’t have a manual but it come with some smaller poles that I can’t figure if they go in the little “closets” and if so how?

Setup was difficult because some of the “dots“ were missing. Need manual please. Instructions on tent bag are difficult to read!

Leaked like a sieve the second day it rained after having dried out from one earlier in the week. Withstood high winds well. I really like it but can’t use it until it’s weatherproofed. Please help. 

Background

I’m a lifelong camper and have put everything from a huge army tent to probably every popup tent made or at least enough different ones that I’d say I am not a novice, but with this tent it was confusing to set up and I still don’t know what the smaller poles are for or how to attach them and where do they go?

Fantastic tent and we still love it. It is like a little cabin. I can't understand the rain comments—we have no problem and live in Washington State. We don't use it now because we graduated to a RV which is a whole another ballgame, but we are keeping it because we love using it once in a while

Setup: Difficult

Stability: Strong in wind

Weather Resistance: Very good

Ventilation: Good

Room and Storage: Fantastic

Packability: Good

Ease of Use: Very consistent

Features: Great cabin design and room inside

Background

Have this for at least 10 years and used it at least three times in summer until we got our RV.

I fell in love with the look of this tent so I bought one. On the first night of camping it got windy and the pole hubs broke, three of them to be exact. This made the tent unusable. It ruined our trip.

Nothing in a tent frame should be plastic...EVER! If the tent is remade with everything metal on a frame, I would buy it.

Long story short, to overcome the water pooling problems with this tent I bought eight 1/2-inch pvc ts and two 10-inch lengths of pvc pipe. I made four more roof supports, two for the front and two for the back spaced evenly between the original roof supports.

I then put dollar store bungee cords from peak to eve on each side of the pvc pipe. Total cost 13 dollars. Now there are supports every 2 feet instead of two 7-foot spaces. Water runs right off.another thing you can do is to buy some extra guyline  5/32 from Lowes, 2.89 for 50 ft. and 4 stakes $1 a piece.

The four grommet holes in the roof that they don't mention anything about are for extra guy lines. Run the line through the grommet from the top down and tie off couple of knots so they don't pull through. Pull slightly tight and stake them down. That should keep your fly nice and tight.

Hope this helps. Stay dry.

Water pools during rain and no replacement parts available. Poles punctured holes in the canopy and we cannot find a replacement canopy ANYWHERE. There seems to be a serious design flaw in this.

During rain, water pools on the canopy and the poles are not strong enough to withstand the water that pools. Either the poles bend and break or the collapse puncturing the canopy. Replacement parts are impossible to find.

Huge waste of a HUGE chunk of money!!

Again I am another camper who loved the tent and the space it had to offer only to have it get blown down and break 6 or 7 of the plastic ends on the first night. It poked holes through the mesh ceiling which, as others have stated, without the rain fly you have no roof.

My biggest problem is finding WHO built this tent for K-mart to see about getting it replaced. There is no Northwest tent factory and no one, even K-mart, can point you in the right direction.

Just take it back and get your money back if you can or put it up in your garage if you have the room. But don't try this alone, it's not possible -- you need someone there to help you keep your sanity.

We have used ours for three camping trips, good space, love the closet features and the partition. I had to color code the instruction label in order to remember how to do it each time.

On the 3rd trip the hubby didn't pay attention to taking it down properly (taking down wall poles first) then setting the ceiling framing on ground to separate. He snapped the steeple hub ( if I remember correctly). Turns out there is no place to get replacement parts!

Rain killed my large Northwest Cottage as well. I loved everything about the tent minus the obvious design flaw. I didn't mind too much, realizing it was basically a good weather only tent and I will just get some replacement parts online...yeah right.

Been searching and searching and not only can I not find the actual manufacturer, but nobody seems to want to even claim the darn thing, basically making replacement parts impossible. Has anybody been able to find parts?

We just used our tent for the first time this past weekend. We camped three nights and it rained for the better part of 2 days. It was great!

We had a queen size airbed, a full size airbed and a twin side air bed in there...also put 4 chairs in there and sat inside during the rain and still had PLENTY of room. (didn't get wet either) I would highly recommend this tent to anyone.

I can't figure out how to set up closet.

I like it, but it is not detailed good and the instructions are trash.

We put up our tent. It was great at first, love the size, and then we had a rainstorm. The structure gathered water and then broke the structure, sending the pole at our head with a ton of water. It wasn't even raining hard.

I wish tents came with zippers on the inside ceiling. The mesh brings in cold air a night. We sewed a layer of material from an old tent into it. This made a big difference. A porch would be good also.

We used this tent 2 times in the past 2 summers. It rained both times, both times water pooled on the roof and caused the poles to collapse and plastic ends to break.