Hilleberg Allak 2 Tent

The Allak 2 was the second Hilleberg I purchased, primarily for kayaking trips, and indeed those are the trips where I’ve used it the most, especially in Scotland.

Essentially, the Allak is the two person version of the Soulo, one of Hilleberg’s most well known models (and a frequent trail companion of mine on backpacking trips during the winter).

Unlike the Soulo, the Allak is too heavy and bulky, in my opinion, for solo backpacking trips but with space and weight being far less of an issue for kayaking (my sea kayak has a vast amount of onboard storage), I often bring it along when I’m out with my boat during the colder months. I also use it on those rare occasions when I can convince my partner to come along on a winter adventure in the hills.

As such, I’ve used it in a range of conditions, from breezy coastal sea kayaking camps around western Scotland, gusty kayaking weekends in Pembrokeshire and lakeside pitches in the Lake District, to mountain pitches with sleepless nights of incessant flysheet flapping in gusts that were definitely not in the forecast.

The strongest wind I’ve camped with it in was in excess of 50mph, measured on my Kestrel, pitched in upper Eskdale, behind Scafell Pike in the Lake District during the ludicrously windy summer of 2024. It was a noisy, largely sleepless night as the entire tent bent from one side to another, and the screaming fly sheet constantly battered my head, but the tent survived unscathed.

Being a Hilleberg the build quality is as premium as it gets. Unlike a very popular Chinese clone of it, the Allak is a true four season tent, something of a misnomer as indeed anyone who owns a four season tent will know that they’re actually only really comfortable in the winter. It will, however, truly manage the overwhelming majority of winter weather you may encounter in the UK, keeping out drafts and spindrift with its flysheet which extends to the ground, and handling significant snow-loading with its strong geodesic design.

The stats at a glance:

• The outer fabric is Kerlon 1200, Hilleberg’s tough, silicone-coated proprietary midweight nylon fabric that’s incredibly tear resistant and waterproof. Kerlon’s claim to fame is its extremely high tear strength; the chances of a Kerlon tent tearing from extreme weather incidents are incredibly slim and this is one of the main selling points of Hillebergs.
• The poles are 9mm DAC aluminium, strong enough to keep the tent standing in very rough weather. Like all Hillebergs, the pole sleeves have space for double poling should the weather turn exceptionally nasty; alternatively, you can buy 10mm poles to use instead, which gain significant strength with little additional weight penalty. However, these upgrades are largely unnecessary for the vast majority of UK conditions (even though the Hilleberg user group on Facebook is full of po-faced middle aged men who will persistently claim otherwise).
• The fully freestanding design is one of its biggest selling points; there’s no need to rely on perfect ground for pegging. You can pitch it on rocky ground, sand, or even frozen terrain. I’ve used it on beaches on sea kayaking trips where the ground was absolutely impossible to get pegs into; not a problem with the Allak, although admittedly the lack of a taut pitch in these instances does exacerbate condensation.

The Allak is pretty straightforward to pitch. Like all Hillebergs, the inner tent can remain attached to the outer from the get-go, so you can set it up in one go; hugely beneficial in UK weather, which frequently conspires to make everything soggy and gross.

It’s a simple case of threading the three identical poles into their respective sleeves (before doing so, I would recommend lifting each pole and just gentle shaking it slightly to allow gravity to bend the pole into its correct shape, otherwise you can get a slight twisting of the poles once pitched), clipping the flysheet into place, and staking it down (or not, if the ground doesn’t allow). It’s basically like the Soulo, but all the poles are the same length.

I can pitch it in about 10 minutes solo, even in grim conditions, although there’s invariably a bit of faffing with the guylines after this. But t freestanding, self supporting structure means it stays put even before you get the guylines sorted, which is a major plus.

It also means you can tweak its placement before pegging everything down, to get the ideal pitch. For extra strength, the tabs that attach the upper guy lines to the fly can be wrapped around the poles to better distribute the pressure being placed on the flysheet if the weather turns foul, although I always pitch it like this anyway, regardless of conditions.

At around 3.5kg (with the optional footprint, which I always use), the Allak 2 isn’t exactly lightweight, but for a fully freestanding four season tent, it’s light for what it offers. Inside, it’s comfortably spacious for two people (my partner and I have comfortably spent nights together in it, although it’s worth mentioning that it cannot fit two “wide” sized sleeping mats), and when I am using it on my own it’s a veritable palace.

• Two large doors and two vestibules make it easy to store gear and cook in bad weather; if doing the latter, however, be sure to open the door for some ventilation.
• The inner height of 105cm means most people can comfortably sit up and move around without feeling too claustrophobic.
• Ventilation is okay, thanks to adjustable vents and the double-door system, though like all four-season tents, condensation can and will build up in humid conditions. However, I’ve never found condensation on the inside of my inner; only on the inside of the fly. Unless you’re expecting rain, it’s a good idea to leave both doors at least partly open to increase air flow.

Hilleberg tents are built to last a long time, and the Allak is obviously no exception. With proper care, this tent could easily last decades. That being said, it’s not indestructible; the lighter weight of Kerlon 1200 means it’s not quite as rugged as the Kerlon 1800 found on Hilleberg’s Black Label expedition tents, although it’s certainly strong enough for pretty much anything the UK can throw at it.

Again, there’s a certain contingent online who’ll insist otherwise, but realistically the Red Label tents are strong enough for anything you’d be out hiking in. In the UK we don’t have people doing expedition base camping for weeks on end when they may have to sit out big storms; those are the conditions Black Label tents are made for.

My only gripe, and I have the same minor complaint about my Soulo, is that I am not a big fan of the “T-zip” doors; by this, I mean that the inner doors in the Allak open in an inverted T-shape, as opposed to a flap style door (I can’t really think of a better term than that!). The T-zip always has a tiny gap where the three zippers meet, and I’m always convinced that somehow bugs might find their way in. Mainly ticks. This has never actually happened though.

The Allak is undoubtedly one of the best freestanding four season, two person (there’s a three person version too) tents out there. It combines excellent weather performance, durability, and ease of pitching in a relatively lightweight package, if we compare it to tents with similar stats from other manufacturers. If you can swallow the hefty price tag, the Allak is an exceptional choice, especially if, like me, you camp very regularly throughout the year.

Would I recommend it? Absolutely. But only if you actually need this level of durability; if you’re mostly camping in mild conditions, there are lighter (and much cheaper) options out there.

For serious four-season adventurers, though? It’s a solid 9/10.

An alternative tent to consider is the wonderful Hilleberg Nallo 2. While you lose that versatility of a freestanding tent, it’s significantly faster to pitch and has a much roomier vestibule.