ALPS Mountaineering Lynx 1-Person V.S. 2-Person Tents (TESTED!)
I have both the Alps Mountaineering Lynx 1-Person and 2-Person Tents, and in this blog post, I’ll go through all the differences between these tents.
Here’s a table listing all the differences I found during my testing:
| Characteristics | Lynx 1P | Lynx 2P |
|---|---|---|
| Set Up Timing | 4.5 mins | 6.5 mins |
| Number of Poles | 2 | 2 |
| Number of Pole Clips | 13 | 17 |
| Number of Guylines | 5 | 6 |
| Number of Vestibules | 1 | 2 |
| Vestibule Width | 28 in | 31 in |
| Vestibule Area | 8.5 sq. ft. | 19.2 sq. ft. |
| Peak Height | 37 in | 47 in |
| Base Dimensions | 88 x 31 in | 89 x 59 in |
| Base Area | 18.9 sq. ft. | 36.5 sq. ft. |
| Number of Doors | 1 | 2 |
| Door Size | 36 x 27 in | 41 x 39 in |
| Weight | 4.0 lbs | 6.0 lbs |
| Packed Size | 19.5 x 7 x 5 in | 22 x 8 x 7.5 in |
| Pockets | 2 | 2 |
| Gear Loft | 1 | 1 |
| Lantern Loops | 1 | 1 |
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Check out the Alps Lynx:
RELATED: The 6 Best Tents Under $100 (Bought & Tested!)
1. Set Up
2-Person Lynx
The 2-Person Lynx takes longer to set up, coming in at about 6.5 minutes, or about 2 minutes more than the 1-Person Lynx.
That’s because you have a bigger rainfly to set up, 4 extra pole clips around the tent, 1 extra vestibule, and 2 extra rainfly vents at the bottom.
1-Person Lynx
On the other hand, the 1-Person Lynx takes just 4.5 to about 5 minutes to set up.
Other than that, the set-up process for both tents is mostly the same, with 2 orange poles crisscrossing each other, to be secured into the grommets at the corners of the tent, as well as the pole clips on the tent body, and the rainfly is to be secured to the tent via the quick-attach buckles.
2. Peak Height
The next difference is in the peak height.
1-Person Lynx
The 1-Person Lynx has a peak height of just 37 inches, and I’d recommend using a pad of no more than 3-4 inches inside this tent.
If you’re really tall, like 6 feet and above, you might want to go with an even thinner pad, like my 1.5-inch-thick Sea to Summit pad (pictured below), so the pad wouldn’t eat into your livable space too much.
2-Person Lynx
On the other hand, the 2-Person Lynx has a peak height of 47 inches, which is a whopping 10 inches taller. That’s a huge difference.
It was so roomy for me that I could fit not just a 4-inch-thick pad inside this tent with plenty of headroom leftover, but I could fit even a 6-inch-thick mattress, still with lots of headroom leftover.
In fact, when I was deflating both my pads, I could crouch inside no problem at all to deflate them.
You could fit taller mattresses inside this tent, but that would probably eat quite a bit into your livability, so I wouldn’t really recommend it.
3. Base Dimensions
1-Person Lynx
As for the base dimensions, the 1-Person Lynx has a length of about 88 inches, and the width comes in at about 31 inches. So, I could fit up to extra wide pads of 25 inches, or even 30 inches, although that might be pushing it a little bit.
2-Person Lynx
As for the 2-Person Lynx, it has a length that’s about the same as the 1-Person Lynx, of 89 inches, while the width is slightly less than double, at about 59 inches.
So, I could fit not just 2 regular sleeping pads with plenty of leftover space, I could even fit a slightly smaller than Queen-sized mattress, like this Alps Mountaineering Vertex Airbed that I have here.
This Vertex Airbed measures about 80 by 56 inches, so it fit perfectly into the tent, because remember, the width of the 2-Person Lynx isn’t long enough to squeeze a full queen bed (dimensions of 80 by 60 inches) in.
4. Vestibules
1-Person Lynx
The 1-Person Lynx comes with just 1 vestibule, which has a longest width of about 28 inches, and this gave me a vestibule area of about 8.5 square feet.
2-Person Lynx
As for the 2-Person Lynx, it comes with 2 vestibules, each with a longest width of about 31 inches, which means a vestibule area of about 9.6 square feet each, which is a whole square foot bigger than the 1-Person Lynx.
Together, both vestibules give you about 19.2 square feet of vestibule area alone, which is incredible.
5. Doors
1-Person Lynx
When it comes to the doors of each tent, the 1-Person Lynx has just 1 door, on the same side of the vestibule, and this door has dimensions of about 36 by 27 inches, so not the biggest.
2-Person Lynx
The 2-Person Lynx has 2 doors, both are exactly the same, there’s one door at each length of the tent, each with dimensions of 41 by 39 inches, so way bigger than the door on the 1-Person tent.
That, plus the high peak height of the 2-Person Lynx, makes it pretty easy to get in and out of the tent through either of the doors, especially because I’m not very tall.
6. Storage
Weirdly enough, I expected the 2-Person Lynx to have double the storage options of the 1-Person tent, but it doesn’t.
1-Person Lynx
The 1-Person Lynx has 2 pre-attached pockets inside the tent (each measuring 9 by 6 inches), plus 1 more removable pocket that goes here on the side of the tent (12 by 6 inches, pictured below).
It also has 1 lantern loop at the top of the tent.
2-Person Lynx
The 2-Person Lynx also has the same 2 pre-attached pockets (9 by 7 inches), and 1 gear loft (21 by 12 inches), but I guess the gear loft is quite a bit bigger, so that counts for something, at least.
It also has just 1 lantern loop, so basically almost the same storage options as the 1-Person Lynx.
7. Rainfly
Another difference I noticed is in the rainfly design. What I like to look for in a good tent is whether the rainfly can be pulled away from the tent body at all 4 sides.
1-Person Lynx
And unfortunately, the 1-Person Lynx can’t do that at the 2 short widths of the tent, because there’s no stake loop there for you to guy it out. The rainfly is right up close to the tent body, at most 2.5 inches away. Not that great for sure.
Thankfully, at least there’s the vestibule that’s pulled away at the front, and the back of the tent can be pulled away as well.
2-Person Lynx
As for the 2-Person Lynx, on top of the 2 vestibules of this tent, 1 at each length, I was also able to attach my own guylines, and guy the widths of the tent out.
This gave me a small vent at each width that’s about 11 inches away from the tent body, much better than the 2.5 inches of the 1-Person tent.
This is much better for rainy day ventilation and also to reduce any condensation inside the tent.
8. Amount of Mesh
Weirdly enough, there’s actually more mesh on the 1-Person Lynx than the 2-Person Lynx.
1-Person Lynx
For the 1-Person tent, while there’s quite a lot of fabric at the front, the sides and back of the tent are a little bit better, about half of these sides are covered in mesh.
I would estimate maybe 40% of this tent is covered in mesh.
2-Person Lynx
However, for the 2-Person Lynx, because of the 2 doors of the tent, the back and front of this tent have so much fabric.
Only the sides have a little less fabric and a little more mesh. For this tent, I’m guessing that only 30% of this tent is covered in mesh, maybe even less.
9. Cross-Ventilation
2-Person Lynx
Thankfully though, there’s a lot more cross-ventilation in the 2-Person Lynx.
If you’re planning to use this tent in summer, and if there aren’t too many bugs around where you’re camping, you can always leave the 2 doors open for lots of cross ventilation, and this cuts down on the stuffiness inside the tent.
1-Person Lynx
On the other hand, for the 1-Person Lynx, it’s going to be a lot stuffier in the summer because of the lack of cross ventilation.
10. Weight
As for weight, the 1-Person Lynx weighs exactly 4.0lbs for everything, while the 2-Person Lynx weighs exactly 6.0lbs for everything that came in the box, so like all the stakes and guylines and stuff. I didn’t change anything out.
11. Packed Size
As for the packed size, the 1-Person Lynx comes in at about 19.5 by 7 by 5 inches, while the 2-Person Lynx comes in at about 22 by 8 by 7.5 inches.
I know that this is a packed volume of almost 2 times the size of the 1-Person, but it really doesn’t look all that big. It’s actually only about 10 to 15% longer.
12. Pricing
As for pricing, I bought both these tents quite a while ago, so I can’t remember the exact price I paid for both tents, but I just checked Amazon and it seems like the 2-Person Lynx is only about $20 to $30 more expensive than the 1-Person Lynx.
Recommendation
Overall, both the Alps Mountaineering Lynx tents are great, especially for their insane price point.
But I prefer the 2-Person Lynx to the 1-Person Lynx, and here are the reasons why.
Why I Prefer the 2P
One, I don’t usually camp alone, so it’s always nice to have the option to fit more pads, and even an almost entire queen bed.
Two, it has a whole 10 inches more in headroom, which really adds a lot to your comfort inside the tent, and I could fit mattresses as thick as 6 inches while still feeling comfortable.
Three, there’s 1 extra vestibule, bigger vestibules, 1 extra door, and bigger doors at that as well. That adds to comfort and user-friendliness. (Not to mention that there’s lots cross ventilation through the doors as well.)
Four, I really like that I could pull the rainfly away from the tent body all around the tent, for all around ventilation.
Five, I love car camping, and I don’t mind taking on 50% more weight and 15% more in length, that’s no issue to me at all.
Six, the 2-Person Lynx is just $30 more expensive, so I’d definitely spring for that.
Yes, I know it takes about 2 minutes longer to set up, but for me, it’s totally worth it to spend that couple of extra minutes to set it up, and in return, I get loads more comfort than I do in the 1-Person Lynx.
When to Pick the 1P
On the other hand, if you usually camp alone, if you need to shed that extra 2 pounds in weight, and you prefer a shorter set up time because you’re always moving on the trail, then the 1-Person Lynx is still a fantastic pick, it’s still great bang for your buck for sure.
Bonus: Must Read!
To find out how these 2 Alps Mountaineering Lynx Tents compare to other similar budget tents in the market, check out my ‘Best Tents Under $100’ blog post right here.
Or, check out the Lynx Tents here:
