What Sleeping Bag Do You Need for Camping in Australia?

September 26, 2026

Australian camping nights run from 20°C on a summer beach to well below freezing in the Snowy Mountains, so the right sleeping bag depends on where you're going and when. We've pulled long-term overnight lows for popular camping and hiking areas from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) and matched each one to a comfort rating and to bags in our range.

How to read the numbers

For each area we give three figures from BOM's climate statistics:

Typical night: the average overnight minimum for the month.
One night in ten: BOM's "decile 1" minimum. One night in ten is colder than this, and it's the figure we'd plan on.
Coldest on record: the lowest the station has logged in that month.

Weather stations aren't campsites. On clear, still nights, cold air drains into valleys and hollows, so a camp down low can be colder than a station on a ridge. Take the one-night-in-ten figure, choose a bag whose comfort rating is at or below it, and add 5°C if you sleep cold. Our guide to temperature ratings explains why we use the comfort figure.

Where and when (BOM station)	Typical night	One night in ten	Coldest on record	Plan on a comfort rating of
Coast, Sydney north, January (Sydney Observatory Hill)	18.8°C	16.1°C	10.6°C	About 10°C
Victorian coast, January (Wilsons Promontory Lighthouse)	14.2°C	11.7°C	5.6°C	About 5°C
Tasmanian coast, January (Hobart)	12.1°C	8.7°C	3.3°C	About 5°C
Blue Mountains, July (Katoomba, 1,017 m)	2.6°C	−0.4°C	−5.4°C	About 0°C
Grampians, July (Mount William, 1,150 m)	1.0°C	−1.1°C	−4.1°C	About 0°C
Kosciuszko, January (Thredbo Top Station, 1,957 m)	7.0°C	1.4°C	−6.0°C	About 0°C
Victorian Alps, October (Mount Hotham, 1,849 m)	0.7°C	−4.6°C	−8.4°C	About −5°C
Kosciuszko, July (Thredbo Top Station)	−5.1°C	−8.2°C	−13.5°C	−10°C or colder
Overland Track, January (Lake St Clair, 742 m)	6.4°C	1.8°C	−2.5°C	About −5°C (see below)
Red Centre, July (Alice Springs Airport)	3.9°C	−1.2°C	−7.5°C	About −5°C

Coastal camping in summer

From Sydney north, summer nights are warm. Sydney's January nights average 18.8°C, Cape Byron's 21.3°C, and one night in ten is still above 16°C at both. A bag rated comfort 10°C or so is plenty, and on the hottest nights you may use it open as a blanket.

Further south it's cooler than many people expect. At Wilsons Promontory one January night in ten falls below 11.7°C, and Hobart has recorded 3.3°C in January. For southern coasts and Tasmania, plan on about 5°C.

Our Goose Down Envelope Bag in 400 g opens flat and suits warm coasts: we'd plan on it down to about +10°C.
For the southern coasts and Tasmanian summers, the envelope bag in 600 g (about +5°C, our guide) or the Goose Down Mummy in 600 g (about +3°C).

Blue Mountains and the Grampians in winter

Winter nights on the ridges are cold but rarely brutal. At Katoomba (1,017 m), July nights average 2.6°C, one in ten falls below −0.4°C, and the July record is −5.4°C. BOM's station on Mount William (1,150 m), the Grampians' highest peak, averages 1.0°C in July, with a record of −4.1°C. Down on the plains at Stawell (235 m), July nights average 4.1°C, and most Grampians camps sit somewhere between the two.

Plan on comfort 0°C, or −5°C if you sleep cold or you're camping in a valley.

The Goose Down Mummy in 800 g: about −1°C on our guide, 1.29 kg all up.
Tall sleepers can take the Cozy 300 (220 cm long; the maker says comfort 0°C, we'd plan on about +3°C). If you sleep cold, step up to the mummy in 1,000 g.
Warm sleepers who like room can take the envelope bag in 600 g, on a mat of R 4 or more.

Kosciuszko and the Victorian Alps

The Australian Alps are where people most often underestimate the cold. NSW National Parks warns that alpine weather can change very quickly and be extreme at any time of year.

Summer

At Thredbo Top Station (1,957 m), near the Main Range, January nights average 7.0°C, but one in ten falls below 1.4°C and the January record is −6.0°C. Plan on comfort 0°C, or −5°C if you sleep cold: the Goose Down Mummy in 800 g, or 1,000 g for cold sleepers.

Autumn and spring

By April and October, typical nights hover around freezing. At Thredbo Top Station one October night in ten falls below −5.0°C, and both April and October have dropped below −9°C there. Plan on −5°C, or −10°C if you sleep cold: a 1,000 g bag like the Goose Down Mummy for most people (about −5°C on our guide), or the Extreme Cold Mummy (about −10°C in 1,500 g) if you feel the cold.

Winter

In July, Thredbo Top Station averages −5.1°C overnight and one night in ten falls below −8.2°C. Charlotte Pass (1,755 m) is colder again: one July night in ten falls below −12.2°C, and in June 1994 it recorded −23.0°C, the lowest temperature on record in Australia.

For winter above the snowline, plan on −10°C or colder, on a mat rated R 5 or more. Our warmest bag for that is the Warm Haven Expedition Mummy: about −15°C in 1,850 g and −22°C in 2,750 g on our guide. For snow trips, or anywhere a wrong guess is dangerous, choose the warmest fill and add a liner and a snow-rated mat.

A warm bag is only one part of snow camping. NSW National Parks advises avoiding icy conditions unless you're experienced and equipped, and taking a four-season tent in winter. It also recommends a trip intention form, and suggests carrying a personal locator beacon (PLB), which you can borrow free from its visitor centres. Check the park alerts and the alpine forecast before you go.

Tasmania: the Overland Track and the Western Arthurs

Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania warns that snow, rain, strong wind and sun can occur at any time of year in its alpine areas.

At Lake St Clair (742 m), at the southern end of the Overland Track, January nights average 6.4°C, one in ten falls below 1.8°C, and the January record is −2.5°C. Much of the track is higher. The Western Arthurs have no BOM station on the range: Scotts Peak Dam (408 m), near the start, has dropped to 2.6°C in January, and the camps on the range sit well above it, fully exposed.

Parks Tasmania's safety checklist for its alpine walks, including the Overland Track, asks for a sleeping bag with a minimum temperature rating of −10°C, kept dry in a waterproof bag, and a tent even if you plan to use the huts. It doesn't say which rating it means, so we read it conservatively: a limit of −10°C or colder. The Western Arthurs, which Parks Tasmania grades 5 and ranks among the state's most challenging multi-day walks, deserve at least the same.

In our range, the Warm Haven in 1,850 g or 2,750 g meets that with room to spare on our own guide, not just on the maker's limit figure. Pack the bag in a dry bag inside your pack: wet down barely insulates. Our down vs synthetic guide covers keeping it dry.

The Red Centre in winter: Uluru and the Larapinta

Desert winter days are mild, but the nights are cold and clear. At Alice Springs Airport, July nights average 3.9°C, one in ten falls below −1.2°C, and the record is −7.5°C. Yulara, the resort town near Uluru, averages 4.5°C in July, with a record of −3.6°C. Camps in gaps and creek beds can be colder on still nights.

The airport figures alone point to about 0°C. NT Parks' advice for the Larapinta Trail is a sleeping bag rated below −5°C, with thermals and a beanie, and camps in the ranges run colder than town, so plan on comfort −5°C: a 1,000 g bag such as the Black Snow 800FP or the Kamperbox AM1000, or the Alpine Guest Letu in its winter fill if every gram counts. The ground is rocky, with plenty of spinifex, so a foam mat under an air mat earns its bulk.