Camping mats: Some of the best roll mats for festivals

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A decent roll mat is a festival essential. You lose most of your heat through the floor, so whatever sleeping bag you’ve got, a good camping mat will make loads of difference to your temperature.

What about air beds?

Cheap air beds are more trouble than they’re worth at a festival. You probably won’t have access to electricity for a pump, so inflating and reinflating by mouth each morning is genuinely exhausting. Budget ones also pop with alarming regularity on the rough floors of festival tents, and if you haven’t got a brilliant tent with a proper living area, a full-length airbed can push against the tent walls and let water in.

That said, if you want to genuinely sleep well and are happy to spend a bit more, there are decent camping-grade airbeds available with built-in pumps that solve most of those problems. We’ll cover those in a separate article. (Link coming soon.)

For most people though, particularly at the budget end, a self-inflating roll mat is a much better option. They insulate you from the ground, they are straightforward to use, they weigh nothing, and they will not leave you sleeping on a flat plastic sheet at 3am on Saturday.

Even a basic foam mat makes a big difference

Even the most basic, cheapest roll mat will make a significant difference to your body temperature as it insulates you from the ground. It will be slightly softer to sleep on too. If you’re on a tight budget or just going to one festival, a simple foam mat is all you really need.

The cheapest option is a basic closed-cell foam roll mat, available at most outdoor shops and discount stores for around £5 to £10. Argos, GoOutdoors, and B&M all stock them seasonally. Simple, lightweight, and virtually indestructible.

Self-inflating roll mats are the sweet spot

If you spend a little more, you can get a self-inflating roll mat. They roll up small like any other roll mat but are filled with open-cell foam. Open the valve and the foam causes them to inflate in seconds. Close the valve back up and you have got a comfortable inch or two of air cushioning you from the ground below.

These are loads more comfortable and loads warmer than a basic foam mat. They are also easier to carry and far less hassle than an airbed. From years of festival experience with airbeds, foam roll mats, and the hard cold ground, the self-inflating roll mat has become my personal choice. I bought mine several years ago and have taken it to every festival since.

Here are the best options currently available online and on the high street.

Best roll mats for festivals

Best value self-inflating mat: Active Era Self-Inflating Camping Mat

The Active Era self-inflating mat is the go-to budget recommendation. It’s a proper foam self-inflating mat that requires barely any effort to set up — just twist the valve open, leave it for a couple of minutes while you unpack your bag, and the internal foam expands and draws in the air for you.

There is nothing flashy about it, but it does everything you need a festival sleeping mat to do. It has an integrated inflatable pillow section at the top, it packs down into an included carry bag, and it’s highly rated for the price point. Available with Prime delivery too, so it is a solid last-minute option.

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Best for couples: Nhowin Connectable Camping Mats

If you are sharing a tent with a partner, the Nhowin mats have one genuinely clever feature: they clip together along the sides. Anyone who has shared a tent on two separate mats will know the problem — you spend the night slowly sliding apart until one of you ends up half on the cold tent floor. The connector strips on these mats stop that from happening.

It is worth noting that these aren’t traditional foam self-inflating mats, but rather lightweight inflatable air pads. However, you still don’t need to bring a pump or exhaust yourself blowing them up. They feature a built-in foot pump—just stomp on the valve at the bottom for a minute or so and it is fully inflated. Buy two, pump them up, clip them together, and you have got a proper double sleeping surface that won’t drift apart in the night.

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Best mid-range: Vango Comfort Self-Inflating Mat

If you go to multiple festivals a year or want something that will last a decade, the Vango Comfort range is worth the upgrade. Vango are one of the most trusted camping brands in the UK and their self-inflating mats are noticeably thicker and better insulated than budget alternatives. The 5cm version hits a good balance between comfort and packability and is widely available from GoOutdoors, Millets, and Amazon.

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Best premium: Thermarest ProLite Plus

If comfort genuinely matters to you and you want the mat you will still be using in ten years, the Thermarest ProLite Plus is the benchmark for self-inflating festival mats. It is significantly more expensive, but incredibly light for its warmth rating and packs down smaller than anything else in this list. A serious bit of kit for someone who takes their festival sleep seriously.

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Best budget foam mat: Argos Single Camping Mat

If you want to spend as little as possible, a basic foam mat from Argos does exactly what it needs to. It’s a rolled-up sheet of closed-cell foam that comes with two straps for rolling it back up. Try not to lose the straps, but if you do, some string works just as well.

Cheap and cheerful, but it’ll do a job and keep you feeling warmer than your mates who haven’t bothered bringing anything. As it’s Argos, you can check stock in nearby stores online and reserve one to pick up today.