Tested: Jayco Tempur mattress

Getting a good night's rest in a caravan is not always possible.

Whether it's the noisy neighbours, penetrating car lights or other external disturbances, or the varying climatic changes of road travel, getting a solid snooze inside a van can be a tricky task, particularly if you're a light sleeper.

Then there's the issue of caravan mattresses, which can be too small, too firm, too soft, or just uncomfortable, depending on how fussy you are and how much you spent on the caravan. Of course, you can always upgrade the mattress, or add a pillow topper, but that's just another expense to add to a long list...

I've slept on a number of caravan mattresses over the years; from lightweight foam slabs in cheaper vans, to more pleasant pillow-top innerspring bases on upper-spec models, although there's also been a few with 'jabbing' coil springs!

So it was interesting to hear that Jayco is now offering a 'NASA proven' Tempur queen mattress as standard on its up-spec MY25 All Terrain and Silverline caravans.

What's a Tempur mattress? According to the Aussie website, the original foam-like material was invented by NASA scientists in the late-1960s for the Space Shuttle, before being developed by Tempur as the "world’s first viscoelastic mattress".

Tempur says its mattresses are "made from billions of visco-elastic spherical shaped, open cells", and are similar to memory foam but superior, moulding to and supporting the body better with the in-built "pressure-relieving technology". They also reckon they breathe better than a memory foam or latex mattress, and also wear better, and come backed by a 10-year replacement warranty.

To test one out, we spent some time inside a 2025 Jayco 21ft Silverline Outback model, kicking back on the slide-out east-west queen bed in this spacious couple's van that costs $106,550 tow-away.

Made in Poland, the 152.5cm x 201cm Tempur queen mattress is labelled the Ease RV2 model. It's 20cm thick and weighs around 25kg, and felt quite firm and slightly forgiving when we took a short nap. No cause for alarm though, as Tempur reckons that's a normal reaction, especially if you come from a more spongy, traditional-style inner-spring mattress.

"It shouldn’t take longer than a few weeks for your body to adjust to the feel of your new Tempur mattress, to start enjoying the exceptional comfort, support and pressure-relieving qualities that encourage a wonderful night’s sleep," Tempur says on its website.

The Tempur mattress replaces a more traditional pillowtop innerspring mattress fitted in Jayco's 2024 premium caravan range, which by comparison is a lot softer and sinks further under my 90kg body weight.

I reckon if you suffer from a bad back and prefer a slightly firmer mattress, can get hot under the sheets, or tend to toss and turn a lot and disturb your partner, the Tempur could be a good option. I've actually slept on a Tempur mattress before in an Airbnb and ended up having a very good night's sleep.

One thing with the Tempur is they don't recommend using an under-body electric blanket with it. Also, if you buy one of the All Terrain family models, the Tempur mattress only comes with the parent's bed -- not the bunks!

It's not surprising given a Jayco salesperson told us they're worth around $3000 a pop, and you can pay anything from $4000 to $8000 online for a Tempur queen mattress depending on the variant.

Now Jayco just has to introduce a 'cone of silence' around the bed, for the ultimate night's sleep!