I’m looking to invest in a new bed for camping, something not too heavy or bulky. Just wondering what the views are on self inflating mattress’s, how comfortable are they? Would I be better off with a camp-bed?

invest how much ?

failing to see past my neoair at the moment – alot of dosh but by god you wake up refreshed – like no other camping experiance ive had from roll mats to self inflators to full on air beds ….

I love my Alpkit ones. No way I’d ever go back to a regular airbed thing now.

Well worth the cost/effort of blowing the thing up, downsides are carrying it on the bike (hahahaha) Nah, take the car.
Uber comfort well worth the cost. Look around before you buy and you can pick up aright old bargin £20.00 form Argoooose..

Yes. Very.

We’ve had our two Thermarests about 9 years now and they are worth every penny of the £45 each we spent on them

Only had one puncture, but I fixed that and iot’s been fine ever since.

And they convert into chairs as well 🙂

I don’t see how the neo-air is any more comfortable than an equivalently thick blow-up (may well be wamer of course), but I’ve not slept on one. I do want one though,I value sleep!

Can’t believe I once thought karrimats were ace, then 25mm thermarests…

Would I be better off with a camp-bed?

self inflating mat will be warmer than a camp bed.

whens your next trip cynic-al …. could perhaps loan on a demo if you promise to give it back no matter how much you like it 😉

Apart from anything else, they provide thermal insulation that you don’t get with a conventional airbed. And comfort.

+1 on the Alpkit jobbies. I have an Alpkit Fat Airic and it was a revelation. I had previously used foam roll mats and air beds.

Ooh! Hoping for next Friday TR!

Vango ones are a good alternative if you don’t want to spend too much.

I have one of these, to bulky for a rucksack but ideal for car camping.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vango-Adventure-DLX-Self-Inflating/dp/B0036OU0KC/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1312906879&sr=8-10

FWIW – I had 3 Alpkit ones and they all leaked. They’ve changed the design now though. Thermarest are considered the best but they do cost a lot more.

What makes a neoair so good?

Ive slept many nights (at least 150) on an original 3/4 length Thermarest. Sometimes it’s very comfortable, other nights it’s not. The right pressure is very important.

It#s not small though. Would a neoair be a real upgrade?

I have basic thremarests. They just work. I like the chair gadget for them as well

If you’re car camping, try an aerobed.

Barely bigger than 2 thermarests, but you’ve got a full size/thickness double mattress within 60 seconds (from the 12v socket) not as waterbeddy as some I’ve used and, more importantly, it doesn’t leak (or it hasn’t yet after probably 50 nights on it) The extra thickness means you can camp on lumpy ground/molehills and it just doesn’t matter!

Yes

Al email me . Stoner look at packed dimensions and weight on a full length !

trailrat – thermarest site says a large one is 550g and 28cmx11cm packed.

So for £100 Im not sold! 😛

We had an aerobed for camping. As others have said, you end up cold and damp because of the air beneath you.

We have recently got the thick alpkit mats (dozer I think), and they are the best camping purchase we have made in ages.

PSA: I’m not sure if you’re interested, but I’ve just popped into my local Aldi (who do a reasonable selection of beers (Jennings @99p a bottle anyone?)) and they had some 5cm deep jobbies in the sale for £6.99. Worth a punt?? ❓

Just bought 3 x thermarest having tested borrowed ones for a week in May. Couldn’t fault them, expensive but excellent.

Not used these before, sooooo we use normal cheap aero beds for wife n kids i use an ex army canvas cot. Wife moans about beds deflating a bit etc would these self inflating mats be an improvement in comfort and warmth for her n kiddies also?

They are termed as self inflating what/how does it achieve this and are they hollow or some sort of inner foam?

Just been on go outdoors to buy some of these self inflaters! Is 20 quid each gonna be any good?

Thanks for all the advice, a self inflater sounds like the way forward. Cheers for the heads up Freddy but it looks like my local Aldi has sold out :(, a trip to decathlon might be on the cards instead……

Neoairs are good for their intended use: superlight backpacking. They are a bit narrow and noisy and a bit of a faff to blow up (they don’t self inflate at all). They are lighter than a normal Thermarest and much smaller pack size. They are also not as robust as normal Thermarests.

For car camping I’d go for a Fat Airic or similar – fantastic comfort but too heavy and bulky to carry.

For ‘normal’ duties you need a Thermarest Prolite or whatever they are called now. More robust than a Neoair, mostly self inflates and quieter.

So, you need to buy three mats now 🙂 Time for the perenial ‘original Thermarest vs the wannabe’ debate. I have 4x normal Thermarests, a NeoAir and an Alpkit Fat Airic. The only one that’s been a problem is the wannabe. If there is a problem, Cascade Designs (the Thermarest maker) warranty is legendary.

not a freakishly big hand either ….

i guess they are a little more fragile but have not encountered an issue yet !

youd probably be able to drop weight from your sleeping bag too on a full length mat as well from experiance of the 3/4 length mat i had previous to this !

fwiw i agree with the above poster that thermarests customer care is legendry !

Thermarest are regarded as “the best,” but three times the price of the Alkits. Whilst I don’t doubt they’re better, I doubt they’re three times better.

I had an Alkit wee whatever it’s called (3/4 length mat) and after about the equivalent of 2 – 3 months use it developed a general leak so unfixable. I would not buy again. I would hope a thermarest dose better than that.

Did you contact Alpkit? Given that a) it’s still in warranty and b) their customer service is excellent?

alpkit quickly offered me refund for my 2 arrics that died in under 3 weeks ….

only issue was i was in new zealand on a 4 month cycle tour ….

thermarest has been faultless since – and have the cascade back up – then i bought the neoair and havnt used the other since – doesnt get cold or damp like the self inflators ….

My first Fat Airic did that. Leaked all round the seam. They replaced it no questions asked. One of my Thermarests is well over 20 years old (probably getting on for 30) and is still as good as when I bought it. It’s been punctured and driven over (not at the same time) and it’s still fine.

No I never bothered. It was over a year old in wall time (maybe about 2?) but number of nights use was only about equivalent to 2-3 months and only that because I used it at home for a stint when I had no mattress but on a nice new carpet so nothing sharp. For the money I paid I suppose it was not bad but I just don’t like treating stuff as disposable.

No I never bothered

Can’t blame them for that. They’d probably have swapped it if you’d asked.