Instant Shader Dark Shelter XL Beach Tent 99" Wide for 4-6 Person Sun Shelter UPF 50+ with Extended Zippered Porch Sky Blue

We purchased this for the beach mainly for sun protection in the brutal South Florida heat and where you can burn in less than 5 minutes. Reading other reviews we did take it out of the bag and assembled it at home first as a "dry run". The tent is very easy and quick to set up. I was able to do it myself and I am in my 40s. It was simple and easy to disassemble. I absolutely love that there are no parts to remove or install. Pull it up until it clicks and its open. Push down with your thumbs and it collapses easily. I do suggest you watch some YouTube videos to see how to collapse it though, they are very helpful. The material is lightweight yet durable. For sun protection it gets a 100%. I burn very easily and was able to spend 8 hours at the beach without any burning. I highly recommend this unit because it is one of the few that has 3 window panels and they are very much needed for air flow, otherwise it gets hot inside but that is typical for any tent style unit. Opening the windows allowed for a great air flow which kept us cool and not stuffy. We loved that we could hang our wireless speaker from the top so it did not take up any room. The side pockets surprisingly came in handy as well. I didn't think we would care about the "porch" which is the material that extends out the front. However we found it to be an amazing feature that let us expand our area and stretch our legs. On populated beaches this was amazing as it keep others at a safe distance where we did not have to fear someone setting up their chairs etc six inches in front of us. It created a nice personal space so to speak. We did use the included spikes on the sand. They were easy to use and come out easy when it was time to go. The better feature is the built in exterior Velcro pockets you can fill with sand to stabilize it and prevent wind gusts knocking it over. When packing up it was simple to undo the Velcro and dump out the sand. Now for the downside - which is more of things to keep in mind and not negative items per say. This is definitely built with standard beach chairs in mind which are 4 to 6 inches off the ground. If you have taller chairs and taller people you may have an issue. We brought three chairs and 3 people all about 5 foot 9 inches. The first standard Tommy Bahama beach chair that is 6 inches off the ground fit well and was comfortable to sit in. The second chair was a higher end teak beach lounger with leg rest that sits about 8 inches off the ground and that also had no issues. The third chair was considered a "tall" beach chair which sits 12 inches off the ground and that was an issue with height. This had our heads up against the ceiling of the unit and was uncomfortable. I point this out as taller beach chairs are gaining in popularity for those who either had bad knees or don't like to sit so close to the ground. The other thing to watch out for is how much stuff and people you have. Most of the pictures posted show only people sitting in chairs. But if you have a chairs and a cooler and beach bags for towels, food, etc. it does become somewhat cramped in there. For our needs this was great. Yes there are larger tent style options out there but they require more than one person to set up and they require a lot of weights to ensure it doesn't blow away. This serves the purpose of a light weight, easy to open & close beach cabana and stores away nicely without taking up a lot of room. We were approached a lot at the beach asking where we got it and we did refer this. We hope to use this often and should something happen to it I can say with confidence we would but it again.

Only have used on the beach 2x so far but it is AMAZING. Works so well keeping us cool and very shaded. Assembly and dissemble is SO easy and convenient and it’s nice and compact, not too heavy to haul! I did feel it was easier as a 2 person job, as a short as I am (5’3), it was hard to pull it all the way up and tie it off at the tip top. We also found it difficult to be a 1 person job bc you have to maintain keeping the poles straight, stretching the the fabric out amidst the wind, whilst pulling it upwards to secure the top. I can’t complain about that though because the product is much worth it and the two of us together got it up and down in only minutes time each time. The material is a little uncomfy to sit on when sand/wet sand gets on it so in the future I’m gonna lay a blanket out inside of it. We hung my LO’s stroller fan from the ceiling and it was perfect. My SO doesn’t favor the beach much and this made the days alot more enjoyable for him! He is also 6’1 and has plenty of room.

This tent is a big upgrade over the canopy that I used to have to fold flat. This thing is easy to pop up and put away. I love that the carrying bag isn't overly snug, as you can actually easily repack the tent. The sand bags with velcro straps are also super useful as those were sufficient to permit us not to need to use stakes on a calm day at Crystal Cove.

Pros... (1) this thing is huge both me and my 6'8 husband could get into it easily and stretch out comfortably. (2) It keeps ALLLL the sun out. The black interior really really makes a difference. (3) This thing withstood some REALLY REALLY high winds on our 1st day at the beach. We tried to do it without the strings but read the directions and discovered that we need to use the lines in high wind conditions. (3b) The sand bags around it REALLY REALLY help. It seems they really put a lot of thought into the design of this unit. (4) I was able to stand up and I'm almost 5'9... now I had a little head/ neck bend but for the most part, i could stand up at the middle point of it. (5) speaking of standing up, I was able to zip it up, close all the windows and not only keep out the cooler air as it got later in the day & keep out the sun when unwanted, I was able to change clothes standing up. (6) It looks very aesthetically pleasing. We walked away from it down to the water and looked back up. It really looked very very nice compared to other tents and shelters out on the beach. (7) And maybe the most important pro, IT IS SUPER EASY TO PUT UP!!!! LIKE, SERIOUSLY! JUST AS EASY AS SHOWN IN THE VIDEO!!! NO JOKE!! I will record a video of us putting it up later. EXTREMELY EASY!CONS: It was INITIALLY really difficult to pack back up. Letting it down was easy but all the legs wouldn't fold in as shown in the video. But my husband just strong-armed the 1 onery leg (I was against it...I thought he would break it).... but that actually worked!!! After that, it was a breeze to put away (pun intended). (2) The window coverings flew up a tad impacting the privacy when I was changing clothes inside.ALL IN ALL... the pros FAR outweigh the cons. This is an EXCELLENT UNIT... ON sunny and breezy days at the beach.

First off this is a great source of cover. First, when unpacking the beach tent the first thing I noticed is the smell. Horrible. I can't even describe how it smells but it was bad. So definitely air out before you use it.I purchased this for our family beach trip and it was perfect. When unpacking it went smooth. The ease of opening the tent and closing it up was easier than setting up a tent. We used the stakes for support but what really helped was the stability of the sand. It had pockets to put sand in so the tent doesn't fly away.Lastly, it was a great purchase! I loved how portable it is and how light! You can use it anywhere where you need some shade!