How to choose your camping tent: 2 Seconds vs classic?

There are many different types of tent available, we can tell them apart by their structure. There are three main kinds:

• Instant "pop-up" tents, or the "2 Seconds" tent: it self-assembles thanks to a spring-loaded figure-"8" arch, in its iconic version Quechua’s "2 Seconds Easy" tent is based on the same principle as that used for umbrella beds for kids. They are both part of self-supporting structures (convenient for "travelling" without having to disassemble it!).
• Pole tents: we can cite dome, tunnel and even geodesic tents for the architects among you. Our dome-shaped Quechua designs are self-supporting.
• Inflatable tents: The arches are replaced by air-filled tubes. This is the real inflatable bouncy castle of camping.

The “2 Seconds” tent came to be at the Quechua premises, at the foot of Mont Blanc. Its design was conceived of in 2003, following a widespread phrase seen in user surveys, which could easily have remained ignored: dreaming of a tent “that you throw in the air and that blows up on its own”. It was Jean-François (product head) and "Abi" (designer) who would turn this dream into a reality, marketing it in 2005.

The main advantage of the 2 Seconds tent for which it is celebrated: its easy and speed of pitching. It’s simple, and instant! An absolute revolution in the world of camping, it has made it possible to side-step numerous diplomatic, family or friend issues, allowing those allergic to tent pitching to go camping with peace of mind.

It’s true that it was not always so easy to fold, but our teams created a system to easily fold it (even when exhausted after a week of a festival). As its name suggests, the "2 Seconds Easy" tent is even easier to fold up!

And as everything is built-in from the flysheet to the groundsheet, it’s impossible to forget a pole at home, or lose part of the tent.

You can imagine that at Quechua, with our practical spirit and desire to make hiking and camping easier, we would have stopped offering you pole tents a long time ago if we only found drawbacks!

Pole tents have an advantage when it comes to size: their weight and compactness! There are classic, super-light tents that will fit in your backpack, with minimal bulk. The iconic "2 Seconds" tent is very flat when folded, but when in the shape of a circle, it’s not always easy to transport. As for the "2 Seconds Easy", it’s more traditional folded form is easier to store in a bag, but it will be heavier, for an equal number of places, to a pole tent.

Another advantage of pole tents: very spacious designs with several bedrooms exist, whereas the 2 Seconds tent remains a trendy "loft"-style design with a single bedroom able to accommodate 1 to 3 people, depending on the model.
Discover camping with the 2-people MH100 pole tent

Who hasn’t seen a video, or watched with their own eyes someone throwing a “2 Seconds” tent into the air to see it go up before even hitting the ground? (be careful not to handle it in strong winds, at the risk of saying "bye-bye" to your tent, or having to go and collect it from far away - very, very far away). No need to draw you a picture!

The new one no longer launches, it unfolds like an umbrella bed. After having put the tent into position by having first "laid it out" on the floor, you just need to pull on the two red cords (impossible to miss them), until you hear a "pop" that tells you you’ve pulled hard enough and that the structure is locked into place. An image is worth a thousand words: here’s a video showing how to pitch the “2 Seconds Easy” tent.

With the “2 Seconds Easy”, it’s exactly as the name suggests... even easier! Taking it down is exactly the reverse of putting it up. Watch a video on the folding of a “2 Seconds Easy” tent, you’ll see, it’s as easy as pie.

Find out more about the "2 Seconds Easy" tent

Although an inflatable tent will be easy to pitch, it will generally be more costly. You will, however, on average find it has a higher level of comfort. It’s also a good choice for lovers of glamping. Indeed, these tents are often large, have several separate interior rooms that are sometimes pre-assembled (while a pop-up tent only has one large interior room for everything). What’s more, Quechua inflatable tents all have a living room you can stand up in, which cannot be done in the 2 Seconds tent.

Fresh and Black technology is a tent canvas that keeps the cool air in and allows you to lie in later by blocking the light (with 99% darkness provided!). Enjoy the advantages offered by patented Fresh and Black technology, whether you opt for a “2 Seconds” tent, a pole tent or an inflatable one! In fact, Fresh and Black technology was so popular that we extended it out to all types of tents, to benefit campers who are late risers. Because we love camping, but not waking up at the crack of dawn ;) So long live the coolness and darkness, the “2 Seconds” tent is the 8-people inflatable tent!

At Quechua and Forclaz, our tents are tested in a laboratory and in the field. That’s why we offer warranties: we trust our products in keeping up with your adventures. And if your tent ever lets you down when it shouldn’t have, we take care of it. For more information about our warranty terms and conditions, visit the following page: "Your Decathlon tent’s warranty".