I have the Mini mat in another color and bought this one for my hardcore camping/backpacking friend. She loves hers and tells me all the time!!! While it is a bit heavier and smaller than the traditional "tarp" that backpackers will carry, it is a great upgrade and worth it! I take mine on every trip - camping, backpacking, and multi-day river rafting trips, even on day hikes for a place to sit. I take it out first and use it to place all my gear on it to keep it out of the dirt and sand as I set up my tent. Then I use it outside my tent opening as a vestibule for things like shoes and keeping sand and dirt out of my tent. I have used it for stretching, standing on it when I change, doing impromptu yoga in the woods, and even placing it under my sleeping pad in my tent when the ground was particularly rough even with a footprint. I love this and take it on every outdoor adventure. Dirt/dust/sand shakes right off, and when I get home, I wipe it clean. This is one of my favorite pieces of gear because of its overall utility, and it basically always travels with me!