Bisinna 2 Review

The Bisinna 2 tent's 190T polyester taffeta fly and 190T polyester taffeta plus B3 no-see-um mesh body and canopy will do the trick if you just need a shelter for an overnight with friends.

Performance Comparison

Comfort

Though it's a little short in length, this tent is reasonably comfortable. The two circular side doors provide easy access, and a tall peak height offers plenty of headroom. Many less expensive models have a single side door which makes it super annoying for the person on the far side of the tent since they have to climb over the other person to get in or out. With two doors, sleepers can enter and exit without disturbing the other person.

Its 55-inch width is slightly above average for the category and is more than sufficient for two standard 20" sleeping pads, with room to spare. If you are car camping, it can also fit a pair of wider, thicker 25" pads. Its shorter 83" length makes it less than ideal for taller sleepers (though if you are camping solo, you can always sleep diagonally to get a little extra space). However, its exceptional peak height of 47 inches is one of the highest in the whole category. This means there is plenty of room to sit up without your head rubbing against the canopy.

Having said that, we wish this tent included a cross pole to increase the lateral space in the head area to make it a little more comfortable for two people to sit simultaneously. It also only has two storage pockets, one on each side. These are sufficient to hold a phone, hat, extra socks, or other small items. But in our estimation, adding another large stash pocket or two wouldn't hurt.

Weather Resistance

We wouldn't choose the Bisinna 2 over other models if we knew we'd likely be riding out a long storm. However, this tent is passable for short stints of poor weather. It has two generous vestibules that provide ample space for footwear, a backpack, and anything muddy or wet that you wouldn't want to bring into the tent. The fly also runs all the way to the ground, preventing precipitation from running off and splashing up underneath the tent.

Though the fly zippers aren't waterproof, a velcro cover flap keeps them mostly protected. We also appreciate the inclusion of a vent in the ceiling of the fly. The vent easily props open with a kickstand to facilitate airflow and the release of condensation, even (or especially) when it is raining. The vestibule doors also tie back partially so you can still catch a breeze to keep the tent from getting stuffy, even if it rains lightly.

Our biggest issue is that the fly will eventually wet out in heavy rain. The stitching at the seams is also chunky enough that the thread creates micro pinholes where water will eventually start to seep through. This tent will keep you dry for a little while, but in true downpours, we wouldn't rely on it for protection.

Ease of Setup

Requiring just two aluminum poles, this tent is fairly straightforward to set up. These poles slide through two mesh sleeves attached to the tent, cross in the middle at the peak, and click into grommets at the four corners. The only thing that made this take a little longer to pitch and break down is that the mesh sleeves are a loose weave, so the ends of the poles sometimes get caught in one of the holes when passing them through instead of sliding seamlessly.

The fly clips into buckles at the four corners, and basic J-stakes hold the tent and the fly vestibules in place. The breakdown is the same but in reverse, and we had a similar issue with removing the poles from the sleeves — sometimes segments would separate from other when sliding the poles out, which makes it super difficult to get the rest of the pole out unless you reattach them.

Durability

We wouldn't count on this tent holding up in the long run. But the main tent and fly fabrics are thick, and compared to its closest competitors, it has superior construction. Both the tent and fly are polyester taffeta, and the canopy is no-see-um mesh. We didn't experience any issues during testing with the integrity of these fabrics. We also appreciate that the poles are aluminum instead of fiberglass, which tends to splinter much more easily.

Our biggest issue with durability is around the seam stitching, which we discussed above regarding weather resistance. We would expect the chunky stitch to run after several heavy uses. The pole sleeve mesh is also quite loose. Because it sometimes catches the end of a pole during setup, we could easily envision exerting a little too much force at the wrong time and jamming the whole pole through one of these holes and ripping it.

Weight

At just under five pounds, this is actually one of the light tents in the category. Though budget tents aren't often made with materials that are exceptionally lightweight, all things considered, the Bisinna 2 isn't too bad.

Having said that, its comparatively lighter weight isn't enough to make it worthy of backcountry travel. So maybe this just means you'll have a slightly easier time pulling it off the storage shelf or having one of the kiddos carry it over to the campsite.

Packed Size

Similarly, with a stuff sack packed size of 5.9 x 16.9 inches, it's bulky, but not any more so than others in the category.

When stuffed, the polyester taffeta material has some volume, but it is easy enough to roll up when it is time to break camp or put it in the stuff sack for the off-season.

Should You Buy the Bisinna 2?

The Bisinna 2 is comfortable enough and has some key features that make for a serviceable tent at an unbeatable price. It presents a great value for folks who know they need something for camping but tends to stay close to home when they go out or might only go once a year with friends. We wouldn't recommend it for people who need a lightweight and reliably stormworthy tent for deeper or extended backcountry adventures. But as an overnight tent that can be used at an outdoor concert or for a backyard campout, the value of this model is unbeatable.

What Other Budget Backpacking Tents Should You Consider?