Customer Reviews L.L.Bean Vista Camp Pants

...of the LLB pants; I won't buy another and wish I'd returned this pair. They seem to run large. I had to order down a size (am usually a 14 at Bean). Pros: comfortable, good colors, wash well, lightweight, cool. But for me there are too many cons: Very soft but rather flimsy fabric causes anything in pocket(s) to bulge quite visibly and pull the pants downward. The drawstring already hangs below a shirt; tightening it to solve the "pull down" doesn't work, merely makes more cord to dangle. The thigh pockets are VERY small, will not hold most phones made in the last decade. The side pockets will hold an iPhone plus, but it looks like you might have a small bomb strapped to your leg! It's nice that these pockets are zipped because you'll need to do so to prevent the pocket from bulging outward or dumping your phone. For me these pants are too flimsy to work as camp pants. On a trail I'm sure they wouldn't survive brush encounters or rock scrambles.

I had hoped this would be like the cargo pants you discontinued but they weren't. I returned them.

I purchased two pairs of these pants for post surgery recovery bc of the easy on and off waist. I really liked them at first bc they they fit well and easy styling. As time went on, they started to lose their shape, the fabric pilled and they started to look raggy. I was disappointed after two months of wearing.

I love the overall design of these pants, but the waist design is a bit strange. The waist is elastic and was a little loose on me. I cinched the waist cord only to find that it too was elastic so to gain a good waist fit, I had to stretch an elastic cord and I found I could not get good control over the waist fit with it. Why a regular, non elastic cinch cord was not in the waistband, I can't understand. The elastic cord just makes adjusting the waist very difficult.

I have worn them once for cooler option for trail maintenance. To tie the waist tight enough to keep the pants up, I have feet of the tie to tuck down in the pants. The pants fit well but the stretchy ties on ankles and waist are too stretchy and long. We were clearing debris from an ice storm and I wasn't adequately protected from the inevitable branch scrapes and I even got poison ivy through the pants on a dry day when ivy isn't growing yet. They are called camp pants and I was using them in harsher service but even at camp I don't think these would hold up. These would be good for around the house where you aren't sitting on logs to eat etc. I would love these in a bit sturdier construction with less tie length. I love the elastic waist and zip pockets. By the way I LOVE llbean and their support of the AT and use llbean pack, boots, shirt, my go-to for outdoor gear,

Used these pants on birdwatching trip to Myanmar. They do snag easily on thorny grass and Velcro. The resulting snags won't keep me from wearing them on bird walks but if I had bought them for general wear, I would be very disappointed. They did wash well in a sink and dried quickly. They work for my intended use but need different material that isn't so fragile.

I like the fit and versatility of the pants. I wear them for the gym and outdoors and even around the house because they are so comfortable. I think they are stylish enough to go anywhere. However, the fabric pilled within the year. I don't know if that fabric always pills or if I got a bad pair. Beware.

The material is great, very smooth/light, but I'm wondering if they will "catch" or snag.They were way too big, if I re order I will get a XL. I have slender arms/legs and a fairly large stomach/waste due to prednisone. These were way too big all over waist, hips and legs. I'm 5'7 with long legs, they were way too long, maybe 4 inches with a lot left over to blouse at the ankle. I was not happy with the waist/ankle cording. Its very thin and all stretch. Nothing to tie and hold the pants up on waist. They keep falling down because the drawstring is all stretch. There is about 2 feet of extra of waist string because when I pull it to tie it in order to keep them up on my waist, thats how far it stretches out plus more. Need a material that won't stretch. Ankle ties are same material but fine. I would like these in all nylon or a non stretch light weight cotton and a light Kaki color and a light sage/olive. The LLBean buyers are still buying dark colors. Why? I would give 3.5 stars but its not an option.

I love these pants! They run slightly larger, and I've found the small fits me best (although I'm a Medium in most other pants). They are so comfortable and travel well. My only complaint: I've bought at least 6 pairs over the past year and a half, and every time, about 6 months after I wear them, they start to pill. The pilling gets steadily worse the longer I wear them. I wash them according to directions, so I'm at a loss as to what to do! I want very much to continue to buy these pants, but, at $69 a pop, that gets to be pretty expensive, especially when they don't last more than 6 months without looking badly worn. I've read other buyers complaints about the same issue, however, LL Bean doesn't seem to correct the problem. Anyone have any suggestions?? Are there any pants comparable (without the pilling) that you suggest? LL Bean, can you help??

I ordered these in black, size LP, my usual size. When I tried them on, they were too long in the crotch. I would have had to roll the waistband over to make them fit. Back they go.

Even pulling the tie out until over a foot extended on each side, as the tie is stretchy itself they still felt like they would fall down if I put my phone in a pocket. If I got a smaller size they would have been too tight on my legs. I love the material but don't want to put in the time or effort to try to fix the problem.

Ok, I had a picks, pills,and pulls problem with my first pair but these pants are SO comfortable so I bought another pair in a different color hoping the fabric would perform differently but alas not so. I only recommend these if you are okay with comfort but don't mind picks etc. Stay away from Velcro, animals and brush (anything at all abrasive) and your pants might continue to look nice. I wash them in a delicates bag

I recently wrote a 5 star review but would like to amend that as these pants have starting to get pulls and balls on them but only in one area and that has me totally puzzled. It could only have been from the label in my shirt!. I had read other reviews that complained about the same thing but I thought they must've treated the pants roughly for that to happen....not so. They look shabby now, already! But, my shirt overs that area; my concern is what will happen if I sit on a wooden bench or something? These pants are not for cold weather unless long undies are also warn. With all these problems the pants are still extremely comfortable and work well on cooler (not cold) days. I only recommend them is you are comfortable with the problems I've encountered.

In this day, I would expect at least one of the zip pockets to be sized to hold a phone. Great disappointment for this as I want to use these for travel pants.

The positive: I like that these are a loose and comfortable pant for the summer, since I don't wear shorts. I purchased the olive because I like how it goes with summer color tones. These have been my "go to" pants this summer. I'm a mother of 2 children under the age of 3, so I need to be comfortable, but like to be stylish, even if it's casual. The negative: The material picks so easily, no matter how carefully I launder and care for these pants. After 2 weeks of moderate wear, they are picked everywhere. To be fair, I think any pants of this material will get picked, so perhaps this isn't the fault of LLBean, but the price is steep for that.

These pants are super comfortable, but the fabric started to pill within the first few months. I have had this particular pair for about a year, and the inseam area is almost too pilled to wear. I had purchased the lined version of this pant for the cooler months, and have not had as much of an issue. Pros: Super comfortable and lightweight Cons: Fabric pills with the first wearing

These initially appear to be great pants. Lightweight, flattering fit. I bought several pairs. But, I am 5'2' and even with the drawstring I felt they were too long so I had them hemmed up. After several washings, they are shrinking in length! At first, it was little by little, but I put on a pair this morning and they look like bad capris (length is a few inches above the ankle). I am stunned. I have never had pants shrink UP before. Has anyone else had this issue? Sadly they are now too short to wear, which is a pity because they are otherwise great pants.

I like so much about these pants, bought black and nautical navy. I purchased large, my usual size, and they were huge. Exchanged for medium and they fit but too short, especially cinched. I am 5'8" - maybe a tad over average. This is yet another example of why Beans should offer options - reading the reviews, some people complain these are too long, others think they're too short. I am very loyal to Beans as it is a great company, but in this respect you fall behind your competitors who offer more options, Petite, Regular, and Tall in pants. I'm keeping these but won't get as much use from them as I'd hoped. Also, hand pockets way too short.

I thought these would be a good change from sweat pants when lounging around. They just didn't work with my body shape. Way too big around the hips and thighs and too short. Kinda looked like a clown. I sent them back.

Yes these are stylish, comfortable, great pockets, quick drying etc. I purchased 2 pairs because they were exactly the material and waist I wanted. Cinchy legs are a bonus! I feel like Princess Jasmine! Unfortunately they are starting to pill in between my inner thighs after about 3 wears. Very disappointing.

I was very excited to get these for an upcoming trip to India, where I expect it to be hot. They look well-made, but the dark color is not appropriate for weather that is hot anyway. I didn't really have a choice there, but I'm taking away a star for it. In stone or khaki, they would have looked better. The flare of the legs would have been much more flattering if slimmer, so beware that it's almost a bell-bottom; in combination with that, they are huge, so I took another star away. For reference, I am 5'5" in good shape and 128 lbs. The small was gigantic! I may consider re-ordering in an XS if I could figure out a good way to taper the leg. If you don't look good in a large-leg pant, steer clear of this one. Too bad, because they do have some cute features, like the seaming and the pockets.

I ordered the Vista Camp Pants in Women's 1x because the Petite XL were backordered. So no surprise that the rise was too high (I'm 5'3") and legs too long. I could live with that...BUT though there are drawstrings at the ankles for snugging them up and thereby taking up some length, there was no cordlock so you just have to hold the drawstring in place with a half knot. No, NO! Drawstrings need cordlocks. The waist was actually a bit too large for me (comes of settling for the Women's 1x instead of waiting for a Petite XL) but it has wide comfy elastic. Now I've never understood why elastic waists would even NEED drawstrings, if the elastic is strong & sturdy enough. Doesn't pulling a drawstring tighter defeat the purpose of elastic waist? In this case however I really needed to snug the waist up a bit tighter but NO! The drawstring itself is made of elastic! Who thought that was a good idea? It's just crazy. And LONG! The elastic drawstring was so long the tails hung down to my knees practically. OK...hats off to Bean for including us in the size range. I couldn't find fat sizes or petites anywhere else. But seriously elastic drawstring in waist? No cordlock on ankle drawstrings? Uh-uh, not good. Enough griping, these are details. The pants were super comfy, the stitching neat, fabric more durable apparently than its thinness would suggest, olive color pretty. So they're keepers after all.

Based on the reviews, I was hoping that this pant's cargo pockets would be large enough - but they are way too small. All I want is a pair of pants that look good (not too baggy), are short enough for a petite person (5'2"), and have 2 proper cargo pockets - zippered please - that can hold my smart phone (so easy access for photos or trail maps). At Bean and elsewhere I can get any 2 of those things, but I cannot find all 3.

My waist size is 29.5 inches (I just measured it) and size S in these pants is supposed to fit 27.5 to 28.5. So if anything, I might have expected the size S to be tight. Instead, they are WAY too big. I am returning them for the size XS and hoping those aren't too small. It is frustrating to have to pay for postage to return the size S when my mistake was in believing the size chart. Other than the sizing problems, the pants are appealing with the soft elastic waist and two cargo pockets. The bottom drawstring will probably disappear because I will have to hem the pants (if the XS works out), since my inseam is not 29 (petite) or 31 (regular) but 30 inches. Sigh. I wish these pants came in a light tan color - better for hot temperatures hiking.

I LOVE these pants BUT I am amazed that LL Bean has a product that really does not hold up well for more than a season. The pants themselves are super comfortable, attractive, versatile. The fabric pills after a while - not at all what I would expect from Bean! They get washed in cold water, in a front loader with clothes of similar fabric and weight. LL Bean please tell those of us who are having these problems what we are doing wrong. Maybe the people who aren't having the pilling just are not having it YET. Maybe there is a laundry magic the rest of us need to know. Why are you suddenly making a product that does not last? please tell us this is not a sign of things to come...