Review: Vango Halo 300

If you’re planning on spending a lot of time camping in the rain, this is the tent you want to be in. A solid, semi-geodesic structure, trail weight of 3.89kg and true 3-person sizing, makes it the perfect wilderness tent for a team of three.

Update: The Vango Halo Pro 300 seems to have replaced the standard version locally, but for all intents and purposes, the review is still perfectly applicable. The Pro version retails for R6995 (at time of update).

Quick Specs

Size: 3-person
Weight: 3.89kg (without storage bag)
Waterproof rating: Flysheet: 5000mm HH; Groundsheet: 6000mm HH
Structure: Semi-geodesic (3 poles, 2 crossings)
Price: R4750 (at time of writing)

Features

The Halo 300 is feature-rich with a number of well-designed details. Here are a few that really stood out:

Flysheet-first pitching: If you’ve ever had to pitch your tent in the driving rain, you’ll know that by the time the flysheet goes on, the inside is often soaked. Vango have solved this by running the poles through sleeves on the outside of the flysheet while attaching the inner tent with toggles. This also allows you to pitch the flysheet on its own as a shelter.

Door storage pouch: Instead of a toggle system to tie the door down when open, Vango have created a triangular pouch for the door to be stuffed into. The O-shaped doors allow the fabric to collect neatly in one small area — simple and clever.

Corner storage pockets: The internal storage pockets are located halfway up the tent’s corners, saving valuable floor space.

Equalised guy lines and Line-Lok runners: There are 12 guy line points, equalised through O-rings for consistent tension. Quick-release Line-Lok runners make adjustments effortless.

Twin flysheet door zips: The flysheet doors have two-way zips, allowing you to open the top for additional ventilation.

Weight

Advertised as 4.13kg total, the trail weight (without storage bag) comes to 3.89kg. Not ultralight, but reassuringly solid for a true 3-person, 4-season tent.

Ease of Pitching

All poles are identical, simplifying setup. It can be pitched flysheet-first or all-in-one with the inner tent pre-attached. The first full setup took just under 11 minutes — fast for a tent of this size and complexity.

Sleeping Quarters

Unlike many tents that undershoot capacity claims, the Halo 300 truly fits three people comfortably. Two large vestibules provide space for gear and cooking.

Entrances and Vestibules

Dual entrances make entry easy and allow strategic use in wind or rain. The vestibules are large enough for sheltered cooking and gear storage.

Overall Construction

The semi-geodesic, self-supporting design balances weight and stability perfectly. The Protex® 70D 5000mm HH polyester flysheet, combined with PowerLite alloy poles, ensures durability and weather resistance. After 6.5 hours of rain testing, the interior remained completely dry.

Both the flysheet and inner tent are made from fire-retardant fabrics that meet European EN5912 safety standards.

The tent was supplied for review by Ram Mountaineering Gear and can be purchased from Mountain Mail Order or Drifters.

A tent-specific footprint (groundsheet) is sold separately.