We try to spend as much time as possible when we get to go to the beach. Using the Neso Tent, we had great sun protection and a cool place to sit for over 6 hours, with more shade than three umbrellas combined for the Neso 1 Tent and more shade than 5 umbrellas with the Neso Grande (we ordered two tents for our large family) - with a lot less hassle to set up. Through use over two of the windiest days, the tent withstood strong gusts of wind while other umbrellas were flying down the beach. I wish I found this years ago!! I had people coming up to me asking where I got it all weekend. I would suggest ordering the Neso Grande as it is only a little more expensive and you get a lot more room. They come in lots of bright colors, so my kids always knew where to find our stuff and people meeting up with us could find us easily as well.

Set Up - It only took a minute to set up and was easy enough for my kids to put together. The shelter and sandbags are made with quality materials that look like they will hold up over time. The corners of the tent are reinforced with heavier material so that they are stronger and will not tear, which I did not see on any of Neso competitors. The poles have foam balls at the ends that hold up the tent so that they do not tear through the material. After taking down the tent, the poles did not leave a mark in the material, even though it was pulled taut for hours.

Usability - The tent comes with a dual-pocket carrying bag that is made with strong material with a strap to put over your shoulder. One pocket contains your tent connected to the sandbags, the other pocket contains the two poles. The entire tent breaks down to fit into a bag that is about the same size or smaller than a school bag and weighs less than 5 lbs. It is so much easier than an umbrella, I wish I found this years ago and stopped having to mess with angling the umbrella to get the most shade and chasing the umbrella when there is a gust of wind.

Customer Service - I ordered two tents and they both arrived in two days. There are a bunch of videos on their site on how to set up your tent, how to reinforce the sandbags in high winds and how to angle the poles to withstand the highest of winds. Even with all that content on their site, I also received two emails asking how if I was happy with my purchase with instructions on how to get the most use out of my tent and if I had any questions - directing me to call the seller's company line. My family is really happy with our purchase and I would definitely recommend them to anyone who likes to spend time outdoors.

Side note- while we use ours at the beach, I've had friends say they use it to go camping and instead of filling the bags with sand, they fill the bags with whatever they have available - clothes, rocks, wood etc.

I bought this for a 6-day beach trip and the first day was a failure. I thought it was too windy. On the following days, I learned that you need to be more aggressive with it. Fill the sandbags as full as possible and stretch them out as far as possible before raising it with the poles. This made all the difference! I saw another person with the same beach tent and I noticed that they had buried their sand bags and it appeared to be working very well.
On the more windy days, you have to face the open/taller side toward the wind so that the wind doesn't blow the fabric down.

Be sure to wear some sunscreen though. Since the material is stretchy, it's going to allow some sun through.

I normally don't do a reviews but this tent earned one. Great quality material and carry/storage bag is heavier material than you see in any tent or chair bags. It also packs very compact 1/4 size of an umbrella. Such easy setup and amazing shade for the beach. First use was in high winds and the tent held up great. It flopped some but never moved. The key is to fill the sand bags as much as possible and stretch the fabric in a X shape fully. Then add your poles accordingly. You can do some things to help shade according to sun. Move a pole in more to create more of a side flap help block sun from side. I recommend buying the two extra poles easy to have if you need make tent higher around back or sides. All four poles fit easily in storage bag. Taking it down is as easy as setup. 9' X 9' seems be a great all around size and can move your poles in more to accommodate size restriction beaches. Best beach or tent item I have ever bought. Will use it with anchors off the beach when shade is needed.

I purchased this after having several Tommy Bahama beach umbrellas with the sand anchor tip break on me through the years. The tent is lightweight and easy to set up.

I've used this with both the 2 pole and 4 pole set up. I recommend getting the 2 extra poles. The photo is with 4 poles, set up on a south Florida day with winds at @ 15 mph. This was the first day I used it.

Things I've learned from first day of use:

When putting this up, I start with one corner, fill the sandbag 1/2 up, place it into position and move on to the next sandbag and repeat. After all 4 sandbags are 1/2 full, position in the "X" as the website describes. I fill each one up full after the tent is pulled taut. I place the sandbag in the hole that I get the sand from, then push surrounding sand around to secure the bag from moving (helpful on windy days). The poles are the last things up a few inches from the corners.

Pros:

Easy to set up solo.
Can be used with 2 or 4 poles.
Attractive design.
Lightweight.
I'm 6'2" and can stand straight up under it.

Cons:

Not sure of the sun protection. Seems like my umbrellas filtered out more of the UV rays, but, can't confirm.

Windy days, I worry that the tent won't hold up and poles will fall, causing tent to collapse. Which would be easy to reassemble.

Tent should be set up facing incoming wind (2 poles). I live on the east coast of Florida and usually have a East or SE incoming wind. This means I set up the tent facing the water, or in the SE position. Since the sun rises from this direction, the tent doesn't provide much shade early in the morning. 4 pole set up provides better shade, but you need to position your beach chairs almost outside of the tent to have the shade.

I haven't checked to see if there are after market accessories for this. Would be awesome if they had replacement bungees/sandbags (just in case).

I would highly recommend this product. I get compliments every time I put it up. I chose Neso over the other guys because of the design. I'm not convinced that the other guys sandbags connected to the tent directly with Velcro straps around the poles is superior.

Easy to set up, moderately light but not ultralight. Better with 4 poles. 2 poles collapses in wind and often blocks the view depending on sun position. Good for a sunny calm beach day, not for a windy bluff. Nice material. Sand bags rip easily with rocks. Not durable enough for camping. Very cute.