Alpkit
Alpkit Polestar
Best use
- Made for
- Backpacking and wild camping
- Also works for
- Bikepacking
- Not for
- Winter mountain
Why these labels
- Backpacking and wild camping: The maker states this use, and the published specs do not rule it out.
- Bikepacking: Light and short: 0.9 kg, packs to 42 cm
- Winter mountain: 3-season rating, not built for winter storms
From the maker's stated use and the published specs.
- Summer wild camp: 8/10 UK, roughly May to September, nights above about 8 °C, sheltered pitches.
- Three-season hills: 8/10 UK hills in spring and autumn. Wind, rain, and nights near freezing.
- Winter camp: 4/10 UK winter or high ground. Below freezing, strong wind, possibly snow. Capped at 4: needs the maker's 4-season rating and wind 7+.
- Weight: 9/10 How much it adds to your pack, compared with the whole market.
Solo walkers and bikepackers who carry trekking poles and want a double-skin tent under 1 kg
- Pitches
- Outer first
- Walls
- Double
- Sleeps
- 1
- Seasons
- 3-season
- Min. weight
- 883 g
- Flysheet
- 3,000 mm
- Inner length
- 200 cm
Packed size 3.99 L, 42 cm long and 11 cm across Compare with a 2-litre bottle
About one and a half 2-litre bottles long and about as wide as one. Drawn to scale.
Where to buy
Alpkit £83.97 In stock. Free delivery. Sale price (list £139.99); Kelp colour on pre-order, despatch from 26 October; free UK delivery over £60.
View at shop: AlpkitPrices checked 8 Nov 2026 on each shop's own page; shops can change them. We earn no commission on these links; shops are listed by price. More
Our ratings (out of 10)
1 to 10, compared with the whole market. Each says what it's based on. How we score
Weight
From maker's figures 9/10How much it adds to your pack. This is the whole tent: two people sharing can split it. 9: Among the best you can buy for this.
Alpkit's part weights (fly 430 g, inner 360 g, footbox pole 93 g) add up to 883 g, in the under 1.0 kg band; its 980 g total adds 8 pegs and the stuff bag. Your own trekking poles are not counted. The Great Outdoors gives 910 g with stuff sacks.
Rain protection
From maker's figures 8/10How well it keeps out heavy, long rain. 8: Clearly better than most.
Fly 3,000 mm is in the 3,000 mm+ band, and the 3,000 mm floor is over 2,000 mm so nothing is taken off. (The Great Outdoors and Gear Assistant both list the floor at 5,000 mm; Alpkit's page says 3,000 mm. Either way the score is the same.) The printed figure alone gives 8 at most: a 9 or 10 needs 3 reviews that say it stays dry in real storms.
Wind
Estimate: only 2 reviews about wind (fewer than the 3 we need, so never above 8) 6/10How steady it stays in strong wind on open ground. 6: A bit better than average.
The crossed trekking poles provide stability when the high end faces the wind. Gear Assistant found moderate wind manageable with adjustment.
Space
Estimate from maker's specs: inner floor area per person 8/10Room to lie, sit up and keep kit inside. 8: Clearly better than most.
Estimate from maker's specs
Packed size
From maker's figures 9/10How much room it takes in your rucksack. 9: Among the best you can buy for this.
Packs to 42 cm long x 11 cm across: 3.1416 x 5.5 x 5.5 x 42 = 3,990 cm³, so 3.99 L, just under the 4 L line of the under 4 L band.
What reviewers say (out of 10)
Ratings marked * are from reviews and are not part of the trip score. They are reviewers' scores, not our own measurements. How we score
Pitching*
Reviewers' average 8/10How quickly and easily one person can pitch it, including in wind and rain.
3 reviews on pitching, e.g. "Pitching this one-person tent is quick and easy with a little practice.".
Condensation*
Estimate: only 2 reviews about condensation (fewer than the 3 we need, so never above 8) 6/10How dry it stays inside on still, damp nights; higher is drier.
2 reviews on condensation, e.g. "There was one drip when I sat up in the morning which was most likely from condensation and not the rain.".
Durability*
Estimate: only 2 reviews about durability (fewer than the 3 we need, so never above 8) 7/10How well the fabric, poles, zips and seams hold up over seasons of use.
2 reviews on durability, e.g. "The fabrics feel tough and hydrostatic heads are quite high, especially for the groundsheet.".
In short
Good for
- Solo walkers and bikepackers who carry trekking poles and want a double-skin tent under 1 kg
- Long-distance routes and wild camps from spring to autumn on a budget
- People of average height or shorter (low foot end, 90 cm at the high end)
Strengths
- Light: 883 g without pegs and bags, or 980 g complete, using the poles you already carry
- Packs to 42 x 11 cm, about 4 L
- Separate breathable inner and a fly of 3,000 mm HH, with two vents to cut condensation
- Pitches quickly with the inner left attached (The Great Outdoors, Gear Assistant), or the fly can go up on its own (430 g by Alpkit's part weights)
- Crossed trekking poles make a stable frame, and The Great Outdoors tested it in the Cairngorms in winter
Weaknesses
- Needs two trekking poles of 120–130 cm to stand up; it does not come with them
- Small, shallow porch (50 cm deep, per The Great Outdoors), so cooking under cover needs care
- Low inside: Alpkit gives 90 cm at the peak, and The Great Outdoors says the low foot end suits people who aren't tall
- Side panels can flap unless you adjust them with a longer peg (Gear Assistant)
- Footbox pole sleeve is a tight fit and the fabric is thin
- The tent gets very hot inside with the door closed in full sun (Gear Assistant)
Sources
We haven't tested this ourselves. Every score comes from these specs, tests and reviews.