The patented and award winning Double Rainbow is our most popular, best-value, 2 person tent. Designed for versatility, this tent is ideal for people who camp in a wide variety of conditions and need an all purpose shelter for hiking, hunting, bike touring and more. The Double Rainbow is easy to setup and can be converted to freestanding with trekking poles.
Want to get 1/3 lighter? Have a look at the Double Rainbow Li.
Want a full double wall? Have a look at the Double Rainbow DW.
Going solo? Have a look at the Rainbow.
Your order includes:
- Fully enclosed Double Rainbow shelter with integrated fly and floor
- Aluminum or carbon fiber arch pole
- Carbon fiber cross strut
- Six 6” aluminum stakes + stake bag
- Silnylon tent bag
Holly W –
Awesome tent. So glad I have it. I’ve used for many backpacking and bikepacking trips. I even used it for snow camping once. I had it more than a dozen years. In case you are interested, here are some words of wisdom from someone who has had this tent since 2010:
Condensation is just something you deal with with single-walled tents I have found. The top inside can be quite wet in the morning or even frosty. The mesh isn’t wet which is what I and my sleeping bag will be touching generally, so no worries. I actually don’t have the liner but it doesn’t drip on me (seam sealed of course). I just use a microfiber cloth to wipe the inside down when I get up in the morning because when I am crawling in or out is when I am most likely to touch the single-wall parts that are wet. Dries fast in the sun.
I’ve never set up the tent “free-standing” (mostly because my trekking poles aren’t long enough- use kid poles) but that’s another story but I’ve never needed to. For my work-around I use sand anchors if I can’t stake the tent down due to pitching it on a solid surface (you can use rocks or snow to hold sand anchors down too FYI). Still sturdy enough to handle a decent among of wind.
The bathtub bottom is rather low to the ground so I have to be careful not to get dirt in the tent but otherwise its very tough. I’ve never needed a ground sheet.
If you aren’t super tall there’s usually plenty of room lengthwise to bring your backpack in with you. Even my 6’3″ son brings his backpack inside when we are sharing.
Zack Z (verified owner) –
I’ve been using the Double Rainbow for over a year in all weather conditions as my only tent and it has held up no problem. I recommend ordering the condensation sheet if you plan on cold weather camping but it’s still doable without. The tent dries out fairly quick if you open both sides. I’m 6′ 185lbs and my Siberian husky is 60lbs, we both fit great and still have room for the backpack to be inside as well. The bathtub floor hasn’t ripped from the ground or my dog’s sharp nails. I set the tent up in my yard for a month straight in July heat and there weren’t any signs of damage or stretching. Overall, I liked this tent so much that I bought the lithium version and will be writing a review about that model in the future. Lastly, communication and customer service is top notch just like their shelters.
Tim Cadman –
I’ve had this tent for five years now and used it hiking and cycle touring around the world (e.g. French Alps, Norway, Andes). It is a phenomenal tent.
Pros: Very light, packs down really small. It gives ample room for two people plus gear. Despite the minimal design, it’s withstood high winds and rain without problem. Super quick to put up and take down. The design is really neat – I love opening the tent in the morning and looking out over beautiful landscape.
Cons: Not many! I had it sealed by the tarptent, however it did still leak after this. I’m sure they would have redone it, but as I ordered to UK I resealed it myself to save posting there and back. I’ve had no problems with leakage since. The the other to note is that it is quite drafty. In summer this is great, but in cold conditions you need to make sure you have a nice warm sleeping bag.
Tips: It takes a bit of practice putting it up to ensure that it tight. The key is to not try to pull the vestibule to the ground – this should be pegged as high as possible.
kacy –
I’m 5’5 and my partner is 6’3, we’ve been using this tent w/liner exclusively for about 3 years now. It’s kept us warm and dry all throughout the cold and rainy trips of the UK and protected us from some wild winds atop a few mountains in Norway in late November. We are fine sleeping real close so we didn’t have an issue keeping our gear inside as I had plenty of space below me. If you want to step into lightweight packing go for it, this company has been excellent.
Steve –
I just hiked 57 miles with this tent. It worked in wind and rain just fine. It was my second time using it and got to learn a lot about its capabilities. My only recommendation is that they create a softer bottom so if you ever accidentally set up camp on a ground bee nest (noisy, but non-aggressive), you can have a more peaceful sleep, lol.
BubblesTheHiker –
I was just a day hiker who raced through big miles in a day to avoid camping until a month ago when I spent a week camping my way through the West Highland Way in Scotland. I did some research on tents prior and it came down to tarp tent and gossamer gear – comparable in price, size and weight. I went with Tarptent due to the reviews about the floor design, the condensation liner (which I did purchase), and the ease of setup (I didn’t want to mess around with trekking pole angles while setting up in the rain) – this seemed really hard to get wrong with the Rainbow design. Because it’s so light I went with the Double Rainbow, even though I was the only one using the tent. I’m almost 6 ft tall and there was ample room to sit up and fit my pack at the end of my long sized sleeping pad. My stake placements weren’t the best in the beginning, but the tent remained structurally sound. After a few days, I had the stake placement down to a science with minimal repositioning.
I used Tarptent’s sealing service and while I was able to practice setting up the tent before I left I was not able to test it in rain.
So, the first night it started raining around 10pm. Hard rain. I was wild camping in some ruins and held my breath hoping the reviews were right – and they were!
The liner prevented any condensation drip and I was well protected. Through a stroke of luck, the rains stopped right before I packed out every time so that is something I have yet to contend with. I was careful to fold and pack it without getting the interior wet, though I was careful to wipe down the interior before I did, then gave the whole thing a good shake. I packed the liner separately and during the day would take it out and dry it with all the ample wind. If I do go back to Scotland to do the Great Glen Way, I might get a double-walled tarptent to help pack out the interior while sheltered from the blowing, heavy rains.
I did purchase the footprint, but left it at home based on many many reviews on many different websites – this was a good choice. The interior remained dry as a bone and is extremely durable. I do think a good improvement would be to have an optional dyneema base, which would eliminate the need for a footprint altogether – but that would increase the price (another reason I narrowed my search down to TarpTent).
I couldn’t be more happy with my purchase – and this once dayhiker is now hooked on backpacking!
BRANDON EMMONS –
Amazing tent! I bought this tent for hiking the Long Range Traverse in Newfoundland. We needed a free standing tent for the platforms on the bogs. It is easy to set up, spacious, and the sides can be opened for great views. On the trip we encountered two hardships, an incredible windy storm and bugs. I have never previously been bothered by bugs but there was a bumper crop of black flys, I still have scars on my wrists from their bites 3 years later (do this hike later in the season!). The only refuge from the incredible aggressive swarms was inside the double rainbow. They could get in my bug suit but not the tent. The last night an intense storm blew up the draw we were camped in. The tent was amazing in the wind. The wind was so strong that the ridge pole blew down onto us and every time recovered. In the morning ours was the only tent in the group undamaged. Since then I have slept sound every night in this tent :)
Kevin Mullens (verified owner) –
I had the opportunity to take my new Tarptent DR out for a test drive, with all of my other new backpacking gear, this past weekend. I’ve camped my whole life, but backpacking is a new endeavor of mine. I can’t be more pleased on the quality, ease of setup, and protection from the below freezing temps, and strong winds. I’ve spent many an hour investigating my shelter purchase, and this fits my 6′ 2″ frame with room to spare. Thanks for a great product!
Kevin Mullens
Enoree, SC
Michael Schlitters (verified owner) –
Just went early march 2019 3 weeks on the Pinhote trail in Alabama tent performed above expectations
2 severe thunderstorms extreme wind no problems at all 2 minute setup and take down
very pleased with the quality
Justin –
Love it. Most annoying thing is packing and unpacking after or before a long hike. Perfect for quick take down or setting up. Very very light and havent used a footprint yet.
Highly highly recommend!
Reed –
I’ve had mine for a little over two years, use it about 40 nights per year and absolutely love this tent. Easy to set up, spacious even for someone 6’4”, intelligently designed and well executed.
The only tweaking I’ve done is to go with MSR Grounhog stakes to better help me set the depth of the bathtub floor.
The 2019 edition seems to carry on with improvements that never crossed my mind but now that I see them, I’m a little envious. My 2016 model shows no sign of wearing out anytime soon so it may be a while before I get another DR. Bummer in that respect!
Highly recommend this tent.
Squirrel Therapy (verified owner) –
My original review didn’t post, or was removed. Tent leaks in the rain via the mitten hooks, and was seam sealed by Tarptent. Appears to be a potential design flaw, but unsure. 3 stars.
Tarptent –
We had no idea. Please contact us so we can fix the leak for you.
Charles Sadler –
I have used the double rainbow for many backpacking hikes and it has held up to extremely strong winds, thunder storms, sleet, as well as desert like conditions. As long as you know that you need to seal it before you end up in a rain forest getting soaked, it works great. The bag it comes with eventually ripped, due to me trying to stuff it in the bag without rolling it up properly when I was tired and in a hurry, but the tent itself has been flawless. It fits 2 people 5’6 130 lbs with all our gear in the tent. We are smaller people so you may need to leave your pack under the tent flap if you are much taller, which I have done with my boots when they get to be unbearable. Other things is it is pretty light, easy to set up, but mildy annoying to put in the bag, although it makes for a compact and lightweight design when storing it.
sandbox –
this is a newer review