It has two open panels in the seat back for breathability, and when packed up in its ripstop polyester stuff sack, it’s totally tiny. This is a perfect option for throwing in a tote or backpack to take to the park and on hikes. We love that setup is quick and easy, because no one needs to struggle with poles after sweating it out on the trails. Its light weight also impressed — when we threw it around to assess its durability, the chair basically sailed like a feather.
For a classic fold-up camping chair, the REI Co-op Wonderland stands as a great mixture of comfortable and durable. In regards to comfort, I noticed almost immediately the slight wider seat ozark trail hammock chair that gave me enough room to actually adjust my body around to find the right spot. The wooden arm rests also happen to feel significantly better than most made of fabric or plastic.
Finally, we made sure to keep price in mind, so you can find a long-lasting and comfortable chair no matter your budget. Heavier, larger chairs will start to weigh on you as you walk and can be far more cumbersome to store. That said, these chairs oftentimes have heavier weight limits and are more comfortable to sit in. If you are traveling by car or for short distances, you can splurge on the bigger chair.
Anecdotally, we found that this chair category in general is more popular among women than among men, who generally prefer a higher, upright seat. The Renetto chair usually comes in between 8 and 10 colors and is rated to hold up to 350 pounds. “This is the Platonic ideal of your camp chair,” one of our campers gushed.
If you’re looking for a chair to take on the move, opt for something weighing under 2 pounds that can be stored as compactly as possible. These no-frills seats are more tolerable for resting your terrain-tested feet than for enjoying multiple meals, drinks, and the company of other campers around a fire. For this special purpose, you’ll need a rocker made from a water-resistant, flexible material with a foldable frame. Some require little or no assembly and can be spread open and set on the ground. Collapsible rocking camping chairs have removable rocking rails; these take a little more effort to put together, but they provide smoother rocking motions. These Ozark Trail camp chairs are perfect for taking with you to kids’ sports games, camping trips, firework displays, or simply having them around so you can lounge in your backyard.
The firm-yet-cozy seat is supportive enough to sit in for hours, and we were particularly pleased by how supportive the armrests were compared to other chairs with a similar design. You don’t always find comfortable over-sized chairs, and this chair works for everyone in my family. And after regularly using the chair for six months (and leaving it out in the rain on occasion), it’s still in great condition. We tested 29 of the best camping chairs on the market to find the perfect option for everyone.
So you can easily misplace a carry sack on a dark night in a crowded field, especially if you’re in a large group or have a lot of stuff. At a fireworks show and at the beach, we appreciated a chair that was ready to go without even 30 seconds of hassle. The Everywhere Chair closes like a book—simply lift the padded strap and go. Portable outdoor chairs are also helpful for anyone who doesn’t have the room or budget for permanent backyard furniture. And they can save your back, make it easier to juggle a picnic plate and a cold beverage, and generally help you to relax comfortably outdoors. Camping trips, beach days, picnics in the park, outdoor movies and theater performances, a fresh-air get-together with friends—there are countless occasions when you might use a camp chair.
We also tried out a few in-house, setting them up in the office and in Central Park to see how they felt. Regardless of size, many camping chairs come with straps or carrying cases to make travel easier. Keeping in mind that good portability is key for outdoor chairs, we broke down and packed each for transport, testing their carrying cases and any and all straps and handles to judge the placement, size, and design. Testers considered whether the chairs would be too heavy, bulky, or awkward to carry for either a long distance or simply from a house to a car trunk. After our product team extensively researched the market, a group of editors with a wide range of camping experiences gathered in our New York City lab to test 29 of the best portable outdoor chairs.
The seats should be at least partially water resistant and treated to stand up to harsh UV rays. You can stow this featherlight, compressible chair in a backpack or even a work bag. Select a chair with a built-in canopy, which will give you a little patch of cool at any campsite or cookout. She has written feature stories for publications like Outside Magazine, SkyLife Magazine, Playboy, Frommers, INSIDER, and more, and contributes couples travel and honeymoon content for TheKnot.com.
The 1-pound seat comes with a miniscule stuff sack that can easily be slipped into a backpack or suitcase. We also loved that setting up and breaking down the aluminum frame and seat cover is conveniently intuitive. You may doubt a chair this light and compact could also be sturdy, but it held up beautifully to all the plopping, dropping, and throwing they could put it through.