5 Top Rated Beach Tents and Shelters (2024 Guide)

Last updated: February 28, 2024

Reviews of five of the best beach tents and shelters in Australia, based on build quality, size, convenience, comfort, price, and more.

If there is one thing you need to have in your beach kit, it would be a beach tent or sun shelter. This is especially true in Australia, where the sun can be powerful and unforgiving.

Bringing a tent to the beach might sound like a hassle, but there are so many light and affordable options available to make your day at the beach that much more enjoyable.

In this guide, we have reviewed and shortlisted five of the best beach tents and shelters, plus some practical tips on how to get yourself a suitable model that offers the best value.

Top Pick:
Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter
Runner Up:
CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade
Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade
1.85 kg 5.3 (6.2) kg
210 x 148 cm 200 x 200 (240 x 240) cm
Check Price Check Price

Top 5 Beach Tents and Shelters:

Beach Tent Price
1 Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent Price
2 CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade Price
3 Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter Price
4 Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter Price
5 Zomake Pop Up Beach Tent Price

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The beach tents and shelters recommended in this article are sold by Amazon, Snowys and Anaconda. Please note that we may earn a small commission if you purchase via our site at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

Top 5 Beach Tents and Shelters

Here is our top five beach tents, shelters, and shades, ranging in price from around 60 to 300 Australian dollars.

1. Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent

Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent
Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent

The Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent is a compact yet spacious beach home that can fit a small family. It features a large 2.1 metres wide opening, allowing easy access and more space to sit at the front overlooking the beach.

The design of this shelter allows for a quick and easy set-up, while the sandbags and sand pegs offer that extra stability. The fabric has a UPF 50+ UV rating to keep you safe and well-protected against the sun while relaxing on the beach.

The side and rear mesh ventilation ports help to keep the inside of the tent nice and cool. Considering the ease of setup, the internal size, and the affordable price, the Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent is a good option for your next beach trip.

We’ve picked the Caribee Collaroy as our favourite beach tent, as it offers the best value for money considering the build quality, space inside the tent, ease of setup, sun protection, and purchase price.

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Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent
External dimensions: 210 x 148 cm
Weight: 1.85 kg
Head height: 120 cm

2. CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade

CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade
CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade

Most of us will be familiar with the CoolCabana brand. They specialise in beach shelters that are lightweight, quick to set up, and offer plenty of shade.

It is not a traditional tent you can go in; instead, it’s a canopy-style structure that you can sit under to find relief from the sun. Like other tents and shelters on this list, the CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade is indeed super easy and quick to set up, with one centre pole and four columns anchored by sand.

We love the CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade because it does the job without any issues: it’s easy to set up and carry around, offers UPF 50+ sun protection, provides plenty of shade, and also has a trendy design. You can choose between two sizes: Medium (200 x 200 cm) or Large (240 x 240 cm).

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CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade
External dimensions: 200 x 200 cm / 240 x 240 cm
Weight: 6.2 kg
Head height: 200 cm

3. Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter

Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter
Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter

The Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter is a spacious and sturdy beach shelter solution with an easy setup mechanism. It’s a reliable, good-quality shelter that can easily accommodate a small family.

This beach tent is essentially an umbrella that can be anchored into the sand via an auger bit with easy twist handle. That sturdy twist handle makes setting up this umbrella incredibly easy and intuitive. It doesn’t stand upright; instead, it’s set up at an angle so that one side is always fully protected and covered.

Like most other beach tents, the Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter offers the necessary UPF 50+ sun protection. Also worth mentioning are the two small side panels for extra protection and privacy, and the two zippered windows for extra ventilation.

We recommend the Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter as it offers a unique sun shelter solution that is easy to set up and offers a ton of space without feeling locked inside an often overheated tent.

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Sport-Brella Premiere Sun Shelter
External dimensions: 244 cm
Weight: 3.7 kg

4. Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter

Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter
Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter

Like the CoolCabana 5 Beach Shade product at number two, the Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter has a spacious beach shade setup that works like a roof.

The Sun Ninja is made with water-resistant fabric and offers UPF 50+ sun protection. This shelter is easy to set up, and the stability poles and anchors help to stabilise the structure even with strong winds. It even comes with a little sand shovel to help with digging. Admittedly, we’ve found that the CoolCabana is slightly easier to set up than the Sun Ninja.

If you’re looking for a spacious shade and/or a slightly more affordable alternative to the CoolCabana product, this Sun Ninja is worth considering. It is available in two sizes, suitable for 4 or 8 people. Also worth mentioning is the convenient travel bag that makes it easy to store and transport.

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Sun Ninja Pop Up Beach Shelter
External dimensions: 228 x 213 cm
Weight: 2.27 kg
Head height: 176 cm

5. Zomake Pop Up Beach Tent

Zomake Pop Up Beach Tent
Zomake Pop Up Beach Tent

This pop-up tent by Zokame is designed with convenience in mind. There is no need to deal with poles, covers or other accessories to get this beach tent up. All you need to do is throw it out, and the tent will pop up on its own.

The tent can accommodate up to 3 or 4 people and has openings on both ends. The bottom section is made with durable tarp materials and is super easy to keep clean and tidy. A handy carrying bag is also included. In short, this is a great sun shelter for the beach.

Note that this pop-up beach tent is available in three different colours, and the manufacturer offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

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Zomake Pop Up Beach Tent
External dimensions: 240 x 180 cm
Weight: 2.2 kg
Head height: 100 cm

Buying Guide

There are several important things to look for in a beach tent, shelter, or shade:

  1. Sun protection
  2. Airflow
  3. Ease of setup
  4. Size and capacity
  5. Privacy
  6. Storage and accessories

1. Sun Protection

The number one thing that you need a beach tent to do is to protect you from the sun. What makes a beach tent a step up from an umbrella is that it should protect from multiple angles at any time of day. Beach umbrellas can be great, but you have to adjust the umbrella throughout the day to follow the sun.

A beach tent has at least three sides and a roof to protect you. Some tents even have extendable awnings to provide you with extra shade. The tent material must also be certified to at least UPF 50+ sun protection to block those UV rays.

Read more about the importance of UPF in fabrics here.

2. Airflow

Airflow is also essential for a beach tent. Under the glaring sun, a tent can get pretty hot, so you need one with windows or flaps that you can roll back to provide good ventilation.

3. Ease of Setup

You don’t want to waste time setting up a tent on the hot sand, so get a beach tent that is quick and easy to set up. You can get tents with flexible poles that pop up into place. These are usually lightweight and easy to carry.

Beach tent

You also need a way to stop your beach tent from being blown away in the wind. Most tents either come with ropes and stakes to plug into the ground or have pockets you can fill with sand to weigh the tent down.

4. Size and Capacity

Make sure you get a tent that is the right size for your needs. You need to ensure that your tent can accommodate everyone sitting or lying down comfortably for a few hours.

Also pay attention to the size of the doors. Some tents have small doors, while others, like the Caribee Collaroy Beach Shelter Tent, have a much larger front entrance.

5. Privacy

If you plan to use a tent to change into beach clothing, you will want one that can be closed for privacy.

This is also a nice feature if you want to have a quick nap!

6. Storage and Accessories

A few other good features to look for in a beach tent include a built-in plastic floor to protect you from the sand.

Storage pockets are also a nice feature in a beach tent, especially for items like water bottles that get used regularly.

 
 

Best beach tent (Australia buying guide)

 
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