ALPS Mountaineering Chaos 3 Tent 3-Person 3-Season

I bought a couple of these tents almost two years ago for my family of four. We had a larger 8 person and cheaper tent that had a couple problems. The old tent had a large side profile, no vestibule, and was simply too big and airy. When I decided to replace it, I wanted to get two smaller tents to keep in heat a little better, smaller profile to hold up better against the wind, and a vestibule for shoes and shelter for the entrance. This tent had all the features I was looking for. It packs fairly small, and I like the fact I can use the built-in straps to keep the poles on the outside of the bag, which makes repacking the tent easy. I did get the matching Alps footprint, which definitely helps to keep out moisture.
We've used this tent on several trips, including one on the beach of Assateague Island, which was very windy, and the tent held up great. Would definitely recommend.

This tent is fantastic for car camping. It is easy to set up and breakdown, it is durable and it is easy to pack in the bag they give you even when you add a tarp to it. The poles have become slightly bent overtime but that is with about 100 nights using it. The bent poles have no effect on the tent and I am still able to use it perfectly. The one annoying thing I will say is that if you're camping in an area where you cannot get stakes in the ground, it is hard to secure the rain-fly and then it will blow against the tent in the wind a lot. The tent is perfect for car camping but I have used it as a backpacking tent a couple times. It is a bit heavy so you need 2-3 people to split it up with. Overall, a great tent that I would buy again.

I have taken this tent on 2 trips now, most recently the Black Hills. We were rained on each night while out there and never had a single drop of water in the tent. The vestibules do an excellent job keeping the extra gear dry. My only wish is that it came with a foot print. I used a plain tarp from the general store to protect the bottom, and it worked well. It sleeps 2 friends and myself snuggly (each about 140lbs) and 2 people very comfortably. The other bonus is it is small enough to fit into my kayak and sets up easy after a long day of paddling.

Easy set up and it has plenty of room for two people sharing a double sleeping bag.

I had very high expectations for this tent. The first night in the backcountry was a huge disappointment. Under light mist with occasional light showers this tent provided a consistent flow of rain water into the top of the tent. My wife and I both had saturated sleeping bags creating a perfect environment for hypothermia. Day two I dried the tent out and by morning I found that the ventilation of this tent is also very poor with the under side of the vestibule dripping with condensation. I contacted backcountry.com and they have said that this is a Alps Mountaineering warranty issue. I have contacted Alps, we shall see our their customer service is.

This tent holds up well. It fits my girlfriend and I, along with the dog comfortably, considering I'm 6'2". It's easy to assemble and take down, and the fly has kept the moisture out each time we've used it. I haven't had any issues with it yet

Overall, I've greatly enjoyed the durability of this tent. I've had it out in a couple of good storms and haven't had any issues with precipitation entering the tent. -- and that's without having used a footprint.

I can't say enough about how quick and easy it is to set up this tent. One person should have no issue getting this bad boy up in a matter of a few minutes!

While it is technically a 3-person tent, I found it to be better suited for two people plus packs. That said, we'd did manage to fit an extra body in the tent when their tent had a zipper failure!

In order to avoid future wear and tear, I do wish that the tent had come with a footprint. Otherwise, I have no complaints whatsoever and will definitely be sticking with this company for future purchases.

Overall, I've greatly enjoyed the durability of this tent. I've had it out in a couple of good storms and haven't had any issues with precipitation entering the tent. -- and that's without having used a footprint.

I can't say enough about how quick and easy it is to set up this tent. One person should have no issue getting this bad boy up in a matter of a few minutes!

While it is technically a 3-person tent, I found it to be better suited for two people plus packs. That said, we'd did manage to fit an extra body in the tent when their tent had a zipper failure!

In order to avoid future wear and tear, I do wish that the tent had come with a footprint. Otherwise, I have no complaints whatsoever and will definitely be sticking with this company for future purchases.

Easy to set up and a great value for the price. Good tent for backpacking and scout camp outs.

Just used our Chaos for the first time on Loft Mountain in Shenandoah National Park on October 8, 2016. Little did we know that Hurricane Matthew would come further inland than expected and kick up winds throughout Virginia. Two of us survived what I would estimate as 30-40 mph sustained winds and rain on top of the mountain. (The camp store said they had reports of gusts to 70mph). This great tent stayed put all night, kept us dry and wind-free. Went on to camp two more days in West Virginia. Would definitely buy again. Like others, I had to buy the footprint on that big site named for a long river, but it was definitely worth it. I don't know why Backcountry doesn't carry it.
Aluminum stakes worked great. We were car camping, so I can't speak to the weight/bulk, but everything packed neatly, including the footprint and stakes, and the tent went up very fast in less than ideal conditions.

My wife and I recently went on vacation and took a road trip to visit friends in Colorado. We bought this tent to forgo hotels and camp instead along the way and on the return trip. Alps Mountaineering did a wonderful job on this tent with design and setup. Like one reviewer stated make sure that the crossbar pole goes above the main pole system and it'll keep the doors taught and easy to unzip and zip. I set up the tent at home before going out which was good because the first night in Amarillo there were some high winds but I was able to setup with minimal help. The one pole design is fantastic. Only nib I had was during breakdown one the pole ends kept coming out along with knot of the shock cord. Was easy to re-insert. Backcountry doesn't sell the ground tarp which is weird but a I got it on Amazon. I got the 3 man for my wife and I and we had plenty of room for our gear and mats. There are plenty and I mean plenty of inside storage pockets and a gear loft which most companies charge extra for. This tent had surpassed all my expectations and I look forward to many more nights under the stars.

So far I used this tent in Moab and Capitol Reef.
Set-up is easy! I set up the tent in the wind and the rain by myself and didn't have any problems. It was an easy set-up. I barely used the instructions. The poles come together easy and they snap onto the tent well. Took 15 minutes the first time, under 10 minutes the next time.
The tent also withstands weather well! Went through rain and wind. As long as the tent is fully staked out with the guidelines the tent withstanads both wind and rain no problem. I did have sand blow in the tent. That is because the rainfly stakes out past the tent quite a ways and the wind picked up it blew in sand. It was not a big deal to me, any tent is going to git some kind of dirt inside. It was not a problem while I was sleeping. The sand just sort of crept in.
I would say the tent would comfortably sleep 2 with gear, maybe 3 small people. I only ever intend to use it as a 2 person tent.
The one down-side I see is how low the tent is. You can comfortably sit up and move around. However, getting into the tent you have to stoop pretty low, and if the rainfly is staked out the entrance is narrow and you feel like the tent is birthing you. I didn't see it as a problem because I wasn't going in and out of the tent a lot, but some people might.
Sidenote: I also bought the floor-saver for this tent as well. Backcountry doesn't sell the floor-saver (Weird, I know!) The best price was on Amazon. I don't know if it makes a huge difference in protecting the tent, but I prefer to try to keep gear going as long as possible.

My wife and I bought this tent last year for backpacking. We wanted something light enough to bring in the backcountry but also something we could fit the two of us, our gear, and our 50 lb lab in for car camping. We've now used it for both and we love this tent. Just got back from 4 days in the boundary waters and we had severe storms 2 nights and it kept us warm and dry as well as our gear. We kept our packs and shoes in the vestibules (one one each side) and I was sure they got soaked after several hours of heavy rain...nope...bone dry. It's just enough room for 2 people and backpacking gear, setup is very fast and easy, and it held up in severe rain and wind.

I bought this tent back in May since my boyfriend and I like to camp. We first took it to Niagara Falls as a trial run to see how to set it up and everything before we got into more serious things.

Then I went on a trip to the Badlands in South Dakota for two weeks. This was to be the ultimate test for this tent. The weather varied wildly from almost 100 degree heat, to pouring rain, to one of the worst storms I have every seen. During the storm we had 60-80 mph wind and rain was going sideways, our group was told to be in a safe location so I just watched as this tent took the beating of a lifetime. After the storm was over two people had poles broken in their tents, and a third person's tent literally blew away and could not be found. The only thing that I didn't care much for was due to the extreme wind the poles are now slightly bent from the force. I can still use it and it works just fine, I just thought I would put that in there. Another person in my group had the two person version of the tent and his held up just as well as mine. I am so pleased with how this tent handled the harsh weather that I can't wait to take it on many more trips. The one pole design is also easy to set up for one person. Also, the folks at Backcountry did an amazing job with the speedy shipping and even a few samples of other things which were much appreciated. I honestly can't say enough good this about this tent and this company! Thanks again!

I own 4 tents and this is by far my favorite. Sure its not the lightest, biggest, etc. but it can handle anything I've thrown at it so far (and I'm not easy on my gear). My favorite part has to be the single pole system which makes setup and take down an absolute breeze. Each time I have used this tent, it has rained and I am happy to report that we stayed dry, without question, even in torrential downpours. For a 3 man, its pretty roomy, then again I'm only 5'5" so I suppose its all relative. The gearloft is another neat feature to keep items handy like flashlights and keys, plus there are a bunch of pockets placed around the tent and large vestibule space for packs. Weight is average (I also own the footprint which I would recommend getting), but not terrible. Honestly I don't even notice the extra pound or so in difference from this and my 2-man. Bottom line, awesome tent.



Update (July): Over the summer, I brought this tent on a camping roadtrip to South Dakota where we encountered the worst hail storm I have ever been in. In one hour it dropped almost 2 inches of rain and an inch of hail. The Chaos 3 not only stayed standing, but remained dry inside(I attribute a good majority of its dryness due to the footprint). Still can't believe how awesome this tent is!