By: Camping Guidance
The Coleman 4-Person Skydome Tent and the 4-Person Carlsbad Tent are both great tents, but there are some differences between the two. The Skydome Tent took nine and a half minutes to set up, while the Carlsbad Tent took eleven minutes. The peak height of both tents is about the same, but the Skydome Tent has 20% more headroom. The length of the Skydome is 1 foot less than the Carlsbad, but both tents can fit four regular sleeping pads or two double pads. The Skydome does not have a screen room, but the Carlsbad has 27.6 sq. ft. of screen room space. The door of the Skydome is slightly bigger, measuring 4 feet in length, and 39 inches in width. The Carlsbad door is slightly smaller, measuring about 47 inches in length, and about 35 inches in width. The Skydome Tent comes with three mesh walls and one window, while the Carlsbad Tent comes with one mesh wall and three windows.
The Carlsbad Tent has a slightly bigger base area in the dome tent itself, not including the screen room. When you include the square footage of the screen room, the base area of the Carlsbad is 60% bigger than the Skydome. The Carlsbad can also withstand more heavy rain than the Skydome before leaking. However, the screen room of the Carlsbad has no rain protection at all, so you need to get an extra tarp if you expect rain. The Skydome Tent has a super user-friendly door pocket, the storage options are better than your average Coleman tent, and ventilation is also much better than your average Coleman tent. But the base area is slightly smaller, it does not have a screen room, it does not have an e-port, and it is recommended to seam seal this seam.
Overall, both the Carlsbad and the Skydome Tents have a ton of pros, and of course, some cons. Before you buy anything, it is highly recommended to watch a video comparing both the Carlsbad and the Skydome Tents against more than ten other Coleman tents.