Air mattresses are not only perfect for overnight guests and for visiting friends and family, they are also ideal for camping, weekends away, for vacation homes and some people even use them every day, in place of a regular air mattress.

In the last few years the variety and popularity of the air mattress bed has increased. For instance, many air mattress beds now offer built-in support systems, these have valves which enable you to control how much support you need. You are able to adjust how hard or soft you need the air mattress bed to be, to ensure a comfortable nights sleep. This can be helpful if you have back problems and are often used in the home as an extra bed.

For weekends away and camping, the camping air mattress can now include built in sleeping bags and internal insulation. When choosing a camping air mattress, the size and weight of the mattress can be an important consideration. Nowadays, however, there are many modern mattresses that are both light and provide good insulation and comfort. If you are planning to go camping in warm weather its now possible to buy an air mattress that weighs less than 20 ounces. For flexibility (and those cold mornings!) its may be better to go for a medium weight insulated air mattress.

Inflating your air mattress is now very quick and convenient too, battery pumps mean some mattresses can be inflated in less and a minute and deflated in seconds. Those of us old enough to remember inflating an air mattress with a foot pump will appreciate the difference!

The battery powered air mattress pumps are usually echargeable, some are cordless and with some you have the option of running the pump from the car battery lighter socket. You can also get standard electric plug-in pumps.

There are some extremely light air mattresses available now. In the past it used to be a choice between a light but hard air mattress, or a bulky and heavy but comfortable mattress. However with modern air mattress beds it is possible to have both comfort and a reasonably low weight and size. This gives them the flexibility for use in both camping and home.

To find the best air mattress for you answer these quick questions...

What size air mattress bed will you feel comfortable in? Do you want a large bed so you can roll over or do you want to save weight and space with a smaller bed? Do you want multiple air chambers to adjust the firmness of different areas? Is an inflatable pillow needed?

Before buying an air mattress it is recommended that you research first on the internet before heading to the stores to get a feel for size, weight and comfort levels. When deciding what air mattress to buy you need to consider what you will be using it for. Take into account factors such as the weight, durability, ease of inflating and deflating, what level of insulation and comfort it will provide, and whether it has any extra features.