Is natural rubber worth the price premium for travel?

Natural rubber mats generally grip better, especially when hands get sweaty, and reviewers in r/yoga and r/HerOneBag repeatedly cite multi-year durability. The trade-offs are weight (denser than TPE), a noticeable rubber smell out of the box, and a higher price. If you do hot or vinyasa-style yoga while traveling, the grip advantage is the main reason to pay up.