Alpkit Cloud Base Review

Overview

The Alpkit Cloud Base is a 5 cm-thick inflatable sleeping pad made from recycled nylon. It costs about £45 and weighs 410 g. It has become the British brand’s best-selling mat by offering most of what a three-season hiker wants for a fraction of what premium pads cost. The trade-off is warmth: with an R-value of 1.4, it is a summer pad and not a shoulder-season one.

Key Specs

Spec	Detail
Weight	410 g
Dimensions	189 x 56 x 5 cm
Packed size	28 x 8 cm
R-value	1.4
Thickness	5 cm
Material	20D nylon with TPU laminate (recycled fabric)
Valve	One-way valve
Included	Stuff sack, repair kit
Warranty	3 Year Alpine Bond

Performance

Comfort. The Cloud Base skips long tubes. Its surface is a matrix of diamond-shaped air pockets in two sizes. Reviewers at The Great Outdoors and road.cc both found the pattern more forgiving than it looks. It helps flatten uneven ground, and the texture is noticeable through a down bag. Five centimetres is not much by current standards, but road.cc’s tester found it enough for a good night’s sleep. BikePerfect rated it very comfortable for back and front sleepers.

Side sleepers get less out of it. BikePerfect’s tester noted that with no insulating foam layer, hips and shoulders can bottom out toward cold ground, and recommended Alpkit’s thicker 8 cm Numo for that sleeping style. Outdoors Magic’s tester, by contrast, found it fine on their side. The tapered shape suits people who sleep on their back or front.

Warmth. An R-value of 1.4 is enough for summer nights and little else. A UK Hillwalking forum owner added a closed-cell foam mat on top for winter and kept the Cloud Base for three-season trips. Anyone hiking into near-freezing nights should stack a foam pad under it or buy a warmer mat.

Weight and packability. At 410 g, the Cloud Base is respectable but not class-leading. road.cc pointed out that a NeoAir XLite Regular weighs about 350 g, though it cost £160 at the time of that review. Earlier reviews weighed samples at 422 g (BikePerfect) and 492 g without the stuff sack (road.cc). Those figures suggest the mat has been refined over the years. Its packed size of 28 x 8 cm is closer to a 750 ml bottle, and bikepackers value that. The included stuff sack is roomy enough that road.cc’s tester called it easy to leave at home.

Inflation and valve. Inflation takes a few lungfuls through the one-way valve, and BikePerfect’s tester said it makes the job light work. Deflating means pressing the flap inside the valve. The valve sits along the side and not at the end, which owners on UKClimbing found made squeezing out the last air a chore. Breath-blown pads can also build up internal moisture, and BikePerfect flagged that as a risk to long-term durability. The fabric is slightly translucent, so condensation is visible inside. A separate pump sack would solve both problems.

Slip and durability. The thin 20D fabric is slick. Testers at BikePerfect and The Great Outdoors both reported sliding around on it, especially under a synthetic bag. Some found the surface texture helped keep feet on the mat. A groundsheet is sensible with 20D fabric, and the included repair kit and three-year Alpine Bond warranty offset some of the durability worry. Outdoors Magic included the pad in its Outdoor 100 Gear of the Year guide, and credited the fabric’s high post-consumer recycled content (95%).

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Very low price for a 410 g inflatable pad
• Compact pack size of 28 x 8 cm
• Diamond air-pocket design copes well with uneven ground
• One-way valve is simple, with a repair kit and 3-year warranty included
• Recycled fabric

Cons

• R-value of 1.4 rules out cold-weather use without a foam pad
• Slippery surface; sliding under synthetic bags is a common complaint
• Side-sleepers may find 5 cm marginal
• Side-mounted valve makes full deflation awkward
• Oral inflation brings internal moisture; thin 20D fabric needs care

Who Should Buy This

Summer backpackers, bikepackers and budget-conscious hikers who want a comfortable inflatable pad without spending £150 or more on a premium one. It suits back and front sleepers on warm-season trips. Winter campers, side sleepers who want thickness, and gram-counters chasing a sub-350 g pad should look elsewhere. The Numo is a better fit for the first two groups, and a premium pad for the third.

Verdict

The Cloud Base earns its popularity: it is light enough, packs small, sleeps comfortably in warm weather and costs a fraction of its rivals. Its limits are cold nights and a slippery top, and neither will matter for a summer hiker. For three-season use at this price, it is a sound buy.