A windbreak can often be one of those things you don’t think about until it’s too late. After you’ve set up camp, and you stand back to survey the result of your effort, the wind rips through the site, sending plates, papers, maps and small children flying.
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The humble camping windbreak is an excellent bit of kit, preventing such mishaps and preventing the weather from pestering your holiday. It’s essential for your next campsite holiday. They offer many benefits, with the most obvious of all being found in the name – they give you a break from the wind.
While UK campers are not averse to a little hostility from the British weather, wind can be particularly bothersome. Gusty weather can interfere with your cooking, eating, map study, card games and more. What’s more, if you’re set up in a basic one or two-person tent without an awning, the wind can tear right through into the tent’s interior, which is certainly unpleasant.
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A windbreak offers more than just a reprieve from blustery weather, offering you some portable shade for when the sunshine gets a little strong. They're even great for adding little extra privacy into your camping patch too, either reducing people’s ability to see into your tent or giving you something to sit and relax behind without feeling observed from all angles.
Whether you’re looking for a windbreak for protection from the weather or for adding some privacy to your camping pitch, here are the best camping windbreaks available.
The best at a glance:
Yello Outdoor Tall Thick Stripe Windbreak
Yellowstone Weatherproof Outdoor Windblock
Vango Airbeam Modular Windbreak
Brunner Laola Wind and Privacy Screen
VidaXL Green Wind Screen
Volkswagen Windbreak
The best in detail:
The best camping windbreak
1 of 6Yello Outdoor Tall Thick Stripe Windbreak
Yello's windbreak is very much the traditional windbreak. The wooden poles can be hammered into the ground as needed, and the plastic cap reduces the chance of splitting the wood. It's a pleasant design that fulfils the brief – though those heading to sites with particularly dry or hard soil may have some trouble hammering it in place.Height: 120cmWidth: 224cm
2 of 6Yellowstone Weatherproof Outdoor Windblock
Lightweight and quick to erect, the Yellowstone windbreak provides privacy and weather protection with ease. Unlike other options, the poles are not spiked and cannot be driven into the ground. However, the guide ropes help to anchor the windbreak to the ground to withstand much of what Blighty can throw at it. While it won't hold up to a storm, this will certainly be ample for the standard country campsite.Height: 130cmWidth: 300cm
3 of 6Vango Airbeam Modular Windbreak
The Vango Airbeam Windbreak is a significant bit of camping kit. Rather than opting for the traditional windbreak design, this model uses air-filled tubes to form each panel's frame. They are then held in place using tent pegs and guidelines – this design makes them extremely resilient to high winds. The panels can also be attached and detached as needed, allowing you to select the configuration which works best for the pitch. There's also a window panel for increased visibility, and as they are inflatable, it packs up to a small, transportable size. This set comes with three panels, but additional ones can be purchased separately to increase coverage.Height: 125cmWidth: 490cm (125cm per panel)
4 of 6Brunner Laola Wind and Privacy Srcreen
The Brunner Laola is a robust windbreak, offering a wide area of weather protection. As with other options listed, the Laola uses guidelines and pegs to anchor the product to the ground – the wings offer additional stability and anchor points. For this reason, it's best used on firm ground – campsites and garden will be fine, but this isn't one for the beach.Height: 110cmWidth: 400cm (460cm inc. wings)
5 of 6vidaXL Green Wind Screen
The vidaXL is more of a garden fence than a windbreak. Measuring at 800cm long, this seven-pole option will comfortably provide weather protection and privacy for any camping family. The construction here is back to the traditional design, with 150cm wooden poles being driven into the ground to give a useful 120cm. Height: 120cmWidth: 800cm
6 of 6Volkswagen Windbreak
The Volkswagen Windbreak is a great homage to the iconic camper van design. It's the standard wooden pole design, capped with plastic to reduce the pole damage from mallet strikes. The panel materials are treated for all-year-round use.Height: 145cmWidth: 390cm