Finding NEMO: Deluxe vs Lightweight Camping Setup

When it comes to choosing what type of camping equipment to buy, there are two main paths you can go down. 

First, we have the car camping route. The luxury of a car to transport your gear means that weight and space aren’t a limiting factor, allowing for more extravagant setups with creature comforts. Then we have backpacking, which requires you to trade many of these comforts so that you can carry your camp setup to remote locations. Every gram of your gear matters, and what you pack needs to be practical and reliable.

Should you get a car camping or a backpacking camping setup? I headed out to Lane Poole Reserve to compare NEMO Equipment’s solution to each type of camping setup.

Who is NEMO Equipment?

New England Mountain Equipment, or NEMO Equipment, is an independent outdoor brand based out of New Hampshire in the USA. 

Operating under the philosophy, ‘We won’t bring anything to market that doesn’t offer a meaningfully better experience’, the team has built a glowing reputation with Explorers worldwide by creating quality performance products that are sustainably made and have lifetime warranties. From committing to halve its carbon emissions by 2030 to prioritising recyclability, NEMO is putting the planet high on its list of priorities.

Luxury Car Camping – Is bigger better?

The smallest things can make the difference between a comfortable stay and a tough night out bush.

Using your car as a mobile storage unit, you’re able to pack gear that brings the comforts of home with you. Plus, amenities that come with established campgrounds often offer more comfort and convenience than backpacking ever will.

From a large family tent to a reclining camping chair, I packed the boot with some of NEMO’s most deluxe camping equipment to see how it performed.

Tent – Aurora Highrise 4P

Dimensions: 228.6 x 254 x 190.5cm
Packed size: 64 x 21 x 21cm
Packed weight: 7.2kg
RRP: $899.95

The Aurora Highrise tent is family-friendly, available in both a four person and six person option. As its name suggests, the best feature is its vertical sidewalls that allow campers to stand upright through most of the interior space. Think of it like a spacious apartment with high ceilings, but you can pack it up and throw it in the boot of your car.

Boasting both a front and back door with two large vestibules, access is never an issue and there’s extra storage space to keep any additional gear out of the weather if needed.

Two large windows with integrated rain protectors make adjusting the ventilation a breeze. Though aesthetics aren’t everything, the vibrant colourway paired with the pattern on the heavy-duty 150D polyester floor is a treat to the eye.

Sleeping Mat – Roamer Double

Dimensions: 198 x 132 x 10cm
Packed size: 66 x 28cm
Packed weight: 3.75kg
RRP: $799.95

The self-inflating NEMO Equipment Roamer Double sleeping mat packs 10cm of plush open-cell foam once inflated, providing a pleasant spot to get horizontal after a day outdoors. The thickness of the pad means any rocks or roots that might be under the tent will be eaten up, providing an even sleep surface and an incredible level of comfort.

Setting up and packing it away is hassle-free with the included FlowCoreTM technology, allowing for quick self-inflation through high-volume air holes, and easy deflation through a one-way deflate valve. It’s rated for extreme cold with an R-value of 6.0, and with room for two happy campers, you can probably chuck extra points onto that if you’re snuggling up (body heat!).

Chuck the mat down early to make setting up the rest of the tent super comfy

Sleeping Bag – Jazz Sleeping Bag 2P

Length: 198cm
Compressed volume: 26.6L
Packed weight: 4.23kg
RRP: $599.95

This luxury two person Jazz sleeping bag helps bring all the comforts of your bed with you on the road.

As it’s made from 100% recycled fabrics, this bag is filled with features to help retain warmth and ensure comfort. The dense quilt and featherbed-style bottom are lined with Stratofiber™ synthetic insulation, a draft tube stuffed with down keeps you toasty, and a blanket-fold draft collar prevents cold air from blowing in.

An integrated sleeve is compatible with the Roamer sleeping mat, meaning the bag can slot in perfectly to keep the support of the mat in place even as you reposition during the night. Pairing these two together also means you can easily roll up the deflated bag and sleeping mat to store in the included oversized duffle, providing grab-and-go convenience on your next adventure.

Accounting for the heat of another body in your two-person sleeping bag, there are symmetrical zippers on either side, so both sleepers can personalise their experience with individual foot and upper body venting.

If you’re partial to a snuggle, there’s just about room for a third person too!

Pillow – Fillo King

Dimensions: 43 x 36 x 15cm
Packed size: 32 x 12cm
Packed weight: 400g
RRP: $129.95

Designed for side sleepers, the ultra-soft jersey blend cover and the baffled internal support create a real pillow feel in the NEMO Fillo King, giving it a big head up on alternatives.

With 15cm of loft, this camp pillow also packs impressively small into its stuff sack. Finding the right inflation level for any type of sleeper is simple with the easy-inflate valve. The machine-washable cover is the cherry on top and means you can always get that freshly washed feel with prior planning.

The foam filling is also upcycled during the production of self-inflating sleeping pads, helping reduce waste on the production line – a nice touch. 

Chair – Stargaze Recliner Luxury

Dimensions: 68 x 94 x 105cm
Packed size: 68 x 18.5 x 18.5cm
Packed weight: 3.94kg
RRP: $449.95

When it comes to luxury at the campsite, look no further. When it was released in 2018, NEMO did something that hadn’t been done before by creating the packable, swinging, and auto-reclining Stargaze Recliner Luxury chair. Though there’s nothing wrong with your bread-and-butter camping chairs, being able to recline anywhere you park up is incredible.     

Putting it together was intuitive, never taking over 30 seconds to build. The low centre of gravity offers stability, and once you’ve leaned back with your head cushioned on the headrest, the sound of the tensioned straps smoothly adjusting to accommodate a deep recline was as satisfying as any ASMR video.

Timing the camp with the start of a new moon, the Stargaze Recliner performed as advertised, and I enjoyed an incredible show of stars in the sky, swaying well into the night.

Hike-in Camping – Is lightweight more alluring?

As a fan of overnight and multi-day hikes, there’s something quite satisfying about the minimalist approach that comes with a lightweight camping setup. When backpacking, you forgo amenities and extra comforts in exchange for a chance to truly immerse yourself in nature and spend the night at amazing remote campsites.

But carrying everything you’ll require for your adventure on your back changes how you pack. Having essential gear that’s functional and practical is just as important as the weight and how much space it takes up. So how does an ultralight backpacking setup compare to a car camping one?

Tent – Hornet Elite Osmo 2P

Floor Dimensions: 216 x 128/107cm (wider on the head end)
Packed size: 48 x 10 x 5cm
Packed weight: 935g
RRP: $1099.95

An ultralight hiking tent you can count on is a must when backpacking. Designed with performance and sustainability in mind, NEMO took rain resistance seriously for the two-person Hornet Elite Osmo by developing a new fabric to create the tent.

The OSMO™ poly-nylon ripstop fabric, a composite weave made out of 100% recycled nylon and polyester, takes advantage of the best qualities of each fabric. The nylon is lightweight and durable, while the polyester is hydrophobic and doesn’t stretch. By covering that fabric with a proprietary coating developed solely for the OSMO collection, it delivers four times better water repellency and three times less stretch when wet.

The tent packs down astonishingly small and only weighs 935g. There’s enough room for a couple of hikers looking to split the weight and share a tent on a trip, and the dual doors and vestibules on each side make this very practical. I also appreciated the little bit of extra headroom inside created by the FlyBar™ volumizing pole clips at the top.

Sleeping Mat: Tensor All Season Ultralight Insulated Regular Mummy Mat

Dimensions: 183 x 51cm
Packed size: 20 x 7.5cm
Packed weight: 410g
RRP: $359.95

The all-season Tensor Ultralight Insulated Regular Mummy Mat provides incredible bang for your buck in regards to weight-to-warmth ratio, and could easily be your go-to sleeping mat for every trip.

Available in a range of shapes and sizes, the mat has just over 7cm of cushioned loft and is built on the SpaceFrame™ baffle design system, providing stability and preventing hips and elbows from hitting the ground. 

An added suspended film in each baffle also removes the sound of the mat rustling as you readjust, so you can enjoy uninterrupted sleep throughout the night.

Two sheets of Thermal Mirror™ metalized insulation are suspended throughout the mat, bouncing heat back to you as you sleep while compartmentalising cold from the ground so it doesn’t reach you.

An included pump sack means you can save your breath after a long day hiking and reduce set-up times. The outside of the mat is made from recycled nylon, with a heavier-duty fabric on the bottom to help protect against punctures.

Sleeping Bag: Kayu Mens 15 (-9°C) Sleeping Bag

Length: 183cm
Compressed volume: 5.9L
Packed weight: 985g
RRP: $599.95 men’s / $549.95 women’s

Coming in two sizes and temperature ratings, the Kayu Mens 15 (-9°C) sleeping bag is filled with a hydrophobic 800FP PFC-free down, which is 100% RDS-certified, meaning it’s sourced from farms certified with welfare requirements.

Tailored to be ultralight and space-saving with its sculpted mummy shape, this sleeping bag includes a contoured hood, internal draft collar, and a down draft tube to keep the cold at bay.

To combat overheating, two Thermo Gills™ vents on the sleeping bag create a unique way to vent body heat. Simply open or close the zippers to control your body temperature, without letting in cold drafts.

The 20D nylon ripstop on the shell is finished with DWR and the inclusion of a breathable, waterproof footbox and hood kept my head and stompers dry from any tent wall condensation build-up overnight. As an additional bonus, the opposite-sided zippers allow the Kayu men’s and women’s models to be zipped together to make a double sleeping bag.

Pillow: Fillo Elite Ultralight Pillow

Dimensions: 39 x 27 x 8cm
Packed size: 10 x 8cm
Packed weight: 80g
RRP: $89.95

Weighing in at a tiny 80g, the NEMO Fillo Elite Ultralight pillow packs down somewhat magically into the size of a small avocado, inside an integrated stuff sack.

Despite the miniature pack size, when inflated, the length of this camp pillow is longer than other lightweight hiking pillows I’ve used in the past, giving it the feel of one you might have on your normal bed.

As a side sleeper, I found that the interior baffled support coupled with the easy-inflate valve meant that it didn’t feel like a balloon under my head, and adjusting the inflation level was hassle-free. Like its car camping counterpart, the cover is washable and as soft as advertised.

The deluxe pillow is pretty small, but the ultralight is next level

Chair – Moonlite Reclining Chair

Dimensions: 52 x 51 x 65cm
Packed size: 10 x 10 x 35cm
Packed weight: 956g
RRP: $249.95

There’s nothing like having a good old sit after a day of hiking, and once you’ve tried a lightweight model like this Moonlite Reclining chair, you’ll never want to go back to sitting on a rock around the campsite.

The seat reclines using nifty two-way buckles on either side of the chair. Ball and socket seat attachments lock the seat in place and provide comfort by rotating fluidly when you reposition your body. 

This chair is great for hikes, and its lightweight nature makes it the perfect companion for other events like picnics and music festivals.

Which camping set up is for me?

So which camping setup is right for you? Why not both? What you choose will depend on what type of adventures you’re looking for in the outdoors, but there are huge benefits to having both options in your arsenal.

For starters, the ability to mix and match your gear for any occasion means you never limit the types of camping experiences you can take on. Plus you’ll be able to spend more time in the great outdoors!