WHETHER you’re a canvas connoisseur, a festival fan or a green space geek, there’s nothing better at the end of a busy day outdoors than settling down and putting your feet up.
But how many times has your chair sunk into the sand, or emitted a terrifying tearing noise as you lower yourself in?
The world of the camping chair is a tricky one to navigate. How often have we spent a small fortune on what promises to be the next big thing, only to have it collapse at the mere sight of our hovering bottoms?
But fear not. Sun Reviews has spent the first part of the summer testing a whole range of chairs so you don’t have to.
We even took them all on a camping holiday with 25 people, who all took great delight in sitting in all of them in turn and then shouting their opinions over a campfire.
From high-end to low-end and from rocking chairs to budget-busting, we wanted to bring you a whole host of comfy, clever camping chairs.
Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin….
Best camping chairs at a glance:
- Best overall: Outwell Casilda XL
- Best compact & lightweight: Mountain Warehouse
- Best inflatable: Easycamp
- Best budget: Decathlon
- Best table and chairs: Decathlon
- Best stool: Mountain Warehouse
Best overall: Outwell Casilda XL
- Outwell Casilda XL, £67.94 from Amazon – buy here
Truly the Queen of the campers – this huge moon-shaped chair is an absolute delight. Hands down the winner on our trip – it proved so popular you were lucky if you got ten minutes to sit in it. When you’re on the larger side – it's nigh-on impossible to find a comfortable outdoor seat – but this accommodates a 150kg load, so there were a lot of happy faces in the fields. It’s also really well padded and because of its extra large size, it really does fit everyone. And it comes in a bag that's easy to sling over your shoulder.
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Let's face it, with a chair that big though, it's not going to fold down small. So be prepared for that. If you’ve got a small boot and need to fit in a tent, food, sleeping bags and a couple of chairs, plus some kids, this is not the one for you. But if you’re blessed with a big car, a caravan, trailer or campervan, this is most definitely the winner. It folds down easily and isn’t too heavy either – weighing in at 6.2kg. It costs £89.99 – but feels like it will last the distance, so a very sensible investment.
Best compact & lightweight: Lightweight Folding Chair
- Lightweight Folding Chair, £34.00 from Mountain Warehouse – buy here
The amazing thing about this chair is that you could literally fold it up and fit it in your shoulder bag; it’s that compact. But it's the mechanics behind it that really blew our minds.
Using very small weighted steel poles, it snaps together like a dream without any effort at all. And its collapsed length is an astonishing 34cm.
Weighing just 0.8kg, this is perfect for traipsing round festivals. It is low to the ground when erect, but it's also surprisingly comfortable and super sturdy, considering its size.
The only downside we can see is that its not for great big tall people, as your legs would have nowhere to go. But apart from that, a very clever camper.
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Best inflatable camping chair: Easycamp
- Easycamp inflatable camping chair, £40.95 from Amazon – buy here
An inflatable camping chair does beg the question: why? And for the answer, I would point you in the direction of any children you may be camping with.
Blow it up and watch them circle like small grumpy tigers, waiting to pounce on a chair that is not only incredibly comfortable but really doesn’t matter if you roll it over backwards in a particular feisty game of Uno.
It's unbelievably durable and can take a proper pummelling, although it might need re-inflating over a week-long stay. It’s actually surprisingly cosy and the flecked lining is soft on your skin.
So bring the indoors out, and give it a go – you’ll be surprised how once you're in – you won’t want to get up.
Best budget camping chair: Decathlon
- Folding camping chair, £14.99 at Decathlon – buy here
At £14.99 this camping chair takes some beating. We’ve had ours for over a year and they show no sign of wear, tear or breakage. They’re simple and ergonomically designed and fold up easily.
The handy cup holder is a nice touch – as is the attached elasticated strap that holds the chair in the folded position. It's also got a decent built-in strap for carrying/transporting.
It’s lightweight (2.8kg) and it folds up small, so you could easily bring a few camping with you, or sling one over your shoulder if you’re at a festival or facing a decent trek. Its max load is a reassuring 110kg, so one size fits nearly all. Nothing not to like; an absolute bargain.
Best table and chairs combo: Decathlon
- Folding camping table with stools, £59.99 at Decathlon – buy here
This sneaks onto the list for its sheer brilliance and fun. It essentially looks like a large metal briefcase with a proper handle. But once you’re at your destination, undo the clasps, open it up, take out four secretly stashed stools, unfold the table – and voila – an entire seating area in one!
No more balancing your plate precariously on your lap, this is the business. Whether it's for delicious dining, a cheeky card game or just for some colouring in, if you grab another couple of stools, you’ve got seating for six.
The stools are small but mighty and unless you have an absolutely huge behind, they’re perfectly acceptable for seating. In all honesty, they're probably not comfortable enough to sit on all night, but the table has an aluminium frame and steel legs, so it's very, very durable.
And it actually only weighs 8.6kg altogether. So as long as you’re not hiking up a mountain, this should definitely do the trick.
Best stool: Mountain Warehouse stool and cool bag
- Stool With Cool Bag, £19.99 at Mountain Warehouse – buy here
Those clever designers at Mountain Warehouse have thought of everything here: a canny cool bag that doubles as a study stool; it's a backpack with extra oomph.
The stool is light, so it won't break your back and the rucksack has nice thick straps to save your shoulders. At a budget-busting £19.99 it's an affordable way to keep your cans cold while taking the weight off.
It's small at just 13cm in height, but it can support up to 110kg, accommodating over 17 stone in weight. Whether you're off to the beach or a festival, it's one cool stool.
Best rocking camper: Mountain Warehouse
- Rocking camping chair at Mountain Warehouse – buy here
Why on earth would you have a rocking camping chair? I hear you ask. And I’d be asking the very same question if I hadn’t spent a soothing, sunny, Sunday afternoon testing this beauty out.
It was an absolute eye-opener, proving that four legs are not always good – and two – albeit it curved rails – are definitely not bad.
This is the ‘chill and chat’ chair, the ‘relax and read’ or the ‘snooze and sway’; it's for sitting around a campfire at night with a blanket, staring at the stars and putting the world to rights.
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An altogether much more relaxing vibe, which of course is the whole point of an outdoor recliner. It's sold out at the time of writing, which is very frustrating – but will be back on the shelves imminently, so keep your eyes peeled.
Of course, with a chair this size, although it folds down easily, its not small. So make sure you have the space before you spend.
Sun Vouchers is your one-stop shop for every deal and discount code currently available from your favourite online retailers. Don’t click ‘buy’ until you’ve checked Sun Vouchers for a discount code to apply to your basket.
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