Homecamp Camp Rug – Review

The Homecamp Camp Rug is a rugged, do-it-all queen-sized cotton canvas picnic rug. In the name of product testing, Matt ate a burrito and drank a beer on it while watching the surf as the sun set.

The first time I used the Homecamp Camp Rug was at a one year olds birthday party. There was unicorn cake and toddlers running around like headless chooks. The Camp Rug felt like a sanctuary — suffice it to say, none of these kids were mine.

While Homecamp’s product description on the website notes, ‘Because it’s quilted, The Camp Rug makes for an ideal play mat for toddlers and babies,’ I’ve been more interested in how it goes as an outdoor picnic rug and on some uneven and damp surfaces. 

I’ve endeavoured to lay it out on sub-optimal terrain, and so far it’s been more than up to the task. Product testing really doesn’t get more comfortable! 

Construction and Comfort

The Homecamp Rug is made to handle whatever surfaces and shoddy campsites you can throw at it. I’ve plonked it on dry grass, wet grass, the dirt ground and some very uneven and knobbly rock, and it’s devoured it all. 

This is thanks to the ultra-tough and water-resistant 500 GSM poly/cotton canvas on the ground-facing side of the rug. 

As for the bum facing side of the rug, well, there you can enjoy a much softer, 280 GSM quilted, premium cotton canvas. 

Basically, it’s the best of both worlds. A rug that can stand up to – or rather, be laid down on – pretty much any surface without damaging its underside, while it’s still supremely soft to lie on top of. 

If using it around a campsite, you can even peg it in place with the six large brass eyelets that run along its perimeter.

It also still looks casual and comfortable enough that it doesn’t feel at all out of place down at your local park.

Durability and Cleaning

The benefit of using a material like cotton canvas is the durability that it affords. 

Unlike your standard ‘throw’ style picnic rugs, or puffier quilts, you won’t have any reservations when it comes to plonking this thing down and walking all over it — shoes and all. 

If it gets wet, you won’t have anywhere near the kind of headache you would with some of the lighter and softer quilt options and the cotton surface is easy to wipe down with some cold water.

If it gets proper dirty, Homecamp reckons some mild castile soap and cold water will do the trick — thankfully no unicorn cake landed on the rug, so I’m still yet to even clean mine.

Cotton canvas will also repel pet hairs, so you can invite your pooch to the picnic too. 

Size & Weight

When flat on the deck, the Camp Quilt is 220cm x 150cm, which I’ve found is wide enough to fit three adults comfortably. But, you could pile more than that on if push comes to literal shove as it’s larger than a queen-size bed.

Obviously, the heavy-duty canvas and impressive surface area mean it’s not going to be the lightest rug around. 

It weighs in at 2.2kg, but since its purpose is spontaneous picnics and car camping, this isn’t really an issue at all.

Read More: The Dos and Don’ts of Boondocking – AKA Sleeping in Your Car

Portability and Packability

In spite of its size on the ground, the Camp Rug actually rolls into a neat little portable bundle. 

Simply fold the rug lengthways into thirds and roll it back into itself. Once rolled up, a clever in-built hook system uses two custom-designed black aluminium ‘G-Hooks’ to secure the blanket with some stitched in cotton/poly webbing straps. 

These straps also function as a nice little carry handle, or you can chuck the rug back into its cotton bag. It also comes with a neat little zip pocket, which is perfect for stowing valuables when unfurled.

Final Thoughts

The Homecamp Camp Rug does everything you’d expect a durable rug to do. 

It’s clearly made of premium and hard-wearing materials, and it’s settled comfortably into its new home in the back of my car. 

I think my old beach towels are jealous they’ve been replaced as the go-to picnic platform, but my girlfriend, the manic one year olds and their parents were all very impressed.