Hello, do any of you camp regularly? By that I mean the slightly warped world of car camping not proper hiking and camping 😉

We need solid recommendations for something for the wife to sleep on – any tips? I know that her sleep = family happiness.

(Personally I'm gonna go for an Alpkit Airic.)

Any experiences? Thank you.

I sleep on an Alpkit fat aeric. Only issue I've got is sliding off it on slopes thanks to sleeping bag fabric and fat aeric fabric not being the grippiest. Keep meaning to make some strips to go around the aeric to stop that. But it's the comfiest thing I've ever slept on in a tent, camp beds creak and wobble and airbeds are flipping freezing.

We both use ALpkit mats and they are great, would recommend them without hesitation.
Don't know about your wife but generally when we're camping we're either a) exhausted or b) slightly tiddly at bedtime or c) a and b and could probably fall asleep on a fence.

I've got a Mutimat Ice mat for car camping – fantastically comfortable and warm. If you do go for the airbed option, then just put a closed cell-type mat on top and then it keeps warm.

After countless unhappy nights, the missus has settled on a fat airic…

This has taken 8 years to get to this point. She has yet to be warm at night and has stolen my Sleeping bag, my silk liner bag, my roubaix longs, several baselayers, and a few fleeces in an effort to remain vaguely more than freezing at night.
i think we have reached a point that she is almost comfy at night 😉

Thanks guys.

Damn shame that Alpkit aren't making the Fat Airic any more – website says it's 'retired' 🙁

Anyone else with tips / recommendations?

I use one of the Pacific Outdoor mats – they're sort of like a cross between an airbed and a thermorest. It's warm, comfier than a thermarest and also pretty light and packs up small.

I had to order mine from the US but there seem to be several places in the UK doing them now e.g. Link

alpkit are getting replacement range in stock soon.

You're doing it all wrong. 5cm (at least) thick self inflating double mattress of almost any brand. There are some 7.5cm ones around.

Two square sleeping bags, one with a left hand zip, one with a right hand. You can then zip the two together. Just because you're camping, you don't have to pretend you're in an old film where husband and wife have two single beds…

Decathlon do S20 and S15 sleeping bags cheap, so you could get a mismatched pair if she's nesh.

The whole point of car camping to me is that you can make it comfy, take a 4 man tent for 2 people, have thick airbed, picnic blanket, 2 ring cooker etc. so that it's viable as an actual comfy holiday.

PS, don't buy camping chairs. Get Ikea's folding exam style chairs. And Decathlon's folding tables.

Agree with Tron. We use a 7 man tent. Enough room for me and the mrs and the bikes. Nice big double airbed and a duvet and proper pillows for us, too.

Fat airic for me and fat airic for her.

Ooh, if we're veering off into other camping equipment, these are ace. You can sit in some of them cross legged, curled up in the sun with a book and a drink. Heaven.

You guys are the bomb. Thanks for all the suggestions. Following up tips and links now.

Fat airics all round in our tent.
Check out UKCampsite.co.uk.Its the camping version of STW

two suggestions if you keep sliding off the kipmat try using a" big agnes " sleeping bag and kipmat combined
the mat slides into a sleeve on the bottom of the bag, i use an exped down mat i justify the cost by sleeping out in all weathers and all seasons four inches of down filled insulation keeps me toasty

Thermarest do an extra-large mat with an additional layer of memory foam which I was about to invest in a pair of til I saw this thread, now I'm going to investigate these fatty eric things.

Fat Airics for us too. Find them far more comfier than an airbed (warmer too)
Used to be that we put 2 double duvets in with us – one to go over the airbed to give insulation from the airbed, the other to sleep under.
Had tried other self inflating mats, but none where as comfy as a FA.

other equipment – we like having our Tilly lamps, nice amount of light, plenty of warmth and a relaxing hissss of the parafin. warms and lights the tent in one go. Picked up one at an Autojumble for a fiver, the other was in my folk's loft – both date from the 60s. Yet all spare parts from Tilly fit them.

airbeds are generally cold, a nice big thermarest is excellent and if extra warmth and comfort is needed, bear with me on this, but a nice big section of vet bed (for dogs) over the top is great. Its like a machine washable quick drying sheep skin. So warm and comfy I kicked the dog off it and slept on it myself. like this

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VET-BED-VETBED-NON-SLIP-BEDDING-LARGE-150cmx100cm-GREY-/180498270581?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item2a06890975

Kathmandu do good thermarest-a-likes – and they do a 7.5cm thick one that is very similar to the Fat Airic.