Road trips are a way of life for us. The longer and more off the beaten path, the better. And now that the little Roarbots are 8 and 10 and have fallen in love with the outdoors, those road trips often include a fair bit of hiking and camping.

So when it came time to pack for this summer’s extended adventure through the U.S. Southwest, which would include stops at six national parks, I realized I had some missing pieces in my arsenal of outdoor gear.

And if I have one weakness, it’s for outdoor gear.

My reliable “whole-family” tent (REI’s Grand Hut 6) was simply not going to cut it – not when it’s a chonky 16 pounds! Not only would that’ve been a fair percentage of our airline luggage weight, but it was just unfeasible to take it backpacking.

On this trip, weight was decidedly a major factor. We were road tripping, yes, so the tent could happily live in the trunk of the car a majority of the time, but it also needed to pull double duty as a backpacking tent. So, while the tent would see some basic car camping at drive-in campgrounds, we would also be taking it to the bottom of the Grand Canyon (during a rim-to-rim hike) and along the entire stretch of The Narrows in Zion National Park.

It would be on my back for 40 strenuous miles and five days for just those two hikes, so I needed something that wouldn’t send me to a chiropractor at trip’s end.

Climbing out of the Grand Canyon

And – curveball! – since we’re a family of four, it needed to be big enough to accommodate everyone.

Weight and size. The two biggest determining factors of any new tent purchase.

MSR’s Papa Hubba NX 4-person tent, on paper, seemed to satisfy our needs perfectly. It’s ultralight, packs down small, and is roomy enough for four. It looked perfect. However, all those benefits do come with a caveat: price. It ain’t cheap.

Price. The third biggest determining factor of any new tent purchase.

Before I get to the price, though, I need to mention one more thing. In the time since we took the Papa Hubba NX out on the trail (just two months ago), MSR has discontinued the model we have and released an updated version with slightly different specs. I’ll note the important differences below.

I say this because two of the biggest differences are re: price and weight.

Capitol Reef National Park

The now-discontinued model retailed for $599.95. The updated Papa Hubba NX will set you back $699.95. There’s no way to soften that blow. That’s a lot of money. But when you’re shopping for a 4-person ultralight backpacking tent from a reliable name brand, this is within that established price range.

Oh, shiny new expensive outdoor gear. Why must you be so tempting?

Also, the older version weighs in at 5 lb 15 oz (2.67 kg), and the ultralight option (sold separately) trims that down to 4 lb 11 oz (2.11 kg). The new version is a bit heavier at 6 lb 7 oz (2.91 kg), with the ultralight option (still sold separately) taking that down to 5 lb 8 oz (2.49 kg).

At about 6 pounds, the Papa Hubba NX is considerably lighter than our hefty REI tent. Six pounds is still nothing to sneeze at, especially as you’re hiking 23 miles with roughly 10,000 feet of elevation change. But when you take your family of four on ridiculous hikes, sacrifices must be made.

The Papa Hubba is also part of MSR’s Hubba line of tents, so if you don’t need a 4-person tent, you might want to check out the Hubba NX Solo, the Hubba Hubba NX 2-person tent, or the Mutha Hubba NX 3-person tent. All have similar design and construction and should be comparable to the Papa Hubba.

How hard is it to assemble?

Once you get used to it, it’s fairly easy. But the first few times you get this tent up, you might want to have someone else on hand to help.

The Papa Hubba NX goes up with three Easton^® Syclone^™ MAX poles (made with aerospace composite materials and with an extra-large diameter). Though this obviously adds durability, a majority of the weight you’re carrying is right here in the poles.

The main pole is shaped like a large H and is the spine of the tent. Two smaller poles arch over the sides and provide additional support.

With two people (which you probably have if you’re using a 4-person tent), you can have it ready to go in about two or three minutes. Easy peasy. Color-coded webbing also makes the process (including getting the rainfly attached) pretty foolproof.

Setting up the Papa Hubba NX on the Grand Canyon North Rim

So how spacious is it?

The peak height inside the tent is 44 inches, which is pretty standard for a dome tent. You won’t be able to stand up inside, but were you really expecting to? The 53 square feet of floor area is roomy, but how well does it really accommodate four people?

We were two adults and two kids (8 and 10), and we fit – more or less – comfortably. The kids’ sleeping pads aren’t exactly “economically sized” (my fault), so there was some overlap of the four pads, but there was certainly enough room to sleep and not feel cramped.

Four adults would fit, sure, but I’d recommend they all be fairly close friends – or at least open-minded. You’re gonna get friendly. If you’re three adults, I’d probably still recommend the Papa Hubba over the 3-person Mutha Hubba. Depending on the adventures you have in mind, you’ll likely want the space.

Relaxing at Bright Angel Campground, on the bottom of the Grand Canyon

Will this thing be passed on to future generations?

Inevitably, most tents will show their age and fail in various places. MSR makes a high-quality product, and the Papa Hubba NX is certainly no exception (nor should it be, for the price). Rough it up on your adventures, and it’ll serve you well. I can’t see this tent totally failing anytime soon.

However, that being said, it does have two doors on either end, and there’s a lot of mesh. Mesh is mesh. If you poke it with something sharp, it’ll rip. Remember, this is also an ultralight tent. The canopy and rainfly are made with 20D ripstop nylon, and the floor is 30D.

It’s built for your all-weather, extreme adventures in mind. But be realistic. It’s not bombproof.

So? What’s the tl;dr?

Well, if you made it this far, it’s too late for that. But ultimately, the Papa Hubba NX is a great tent with a solid design and construction that should last you a long time and be a reliable companion on almost all of your adventures.

It’s certainly not ideal for solo or two-person trips, but if you’re heading out with three or four adults (or a family) and need a light tent you don’t have to worry about… then I can’t recommend this highly enough.

Beside the Virgin River, in The Narrows at Zion National Park

(Disclosure: MSR provided a review sample of the Papa Hubba NX. All opinions remain my own.)