American Tourister 2 in 1 Magic Pillow Reviews
The enquiry
- Why you lot should trust the states
- Who this is for
- How we picked our best travel pillow finalists
- How we tested travel pillows
- Our pick for the all-time travel pillow: Travelrest Nest Ultimate Retentiveness Cream Travel Pillow
- Flaws but not dealbreakers
- Runner-up for the best travel pillow: Cabeau Evolution Archetype Pillow
- Also great for portability: Trtl Pillow
- Too-not bad chin-support pillow for frontwards-nodders: Bcozzy Pillow
- What to look forward to
- The contest
- Sources
Why you should trust us
I am a frequent flyer who often takes crimson-eyes from coast to coast—I now live in Brooklyn but fly home to San Francisco to visit my parents. I'g too an insomniac, so falling asleep on planes has never been like shooting fish in a barrel for me. While writing this article, I tested eight travel pillows on two five-hr flights and slept with our 4 picks on two more than cross-land flights. I also spoke with Rebecca Robbins, a postdoctoral boyfriend at the NYU Center for Healthful Behavior Change, to see what she looks for in a travel pillow.
In add-on, my Wirecutter colleagues equally a whole are an uncommonly mobile group. We've worked remotely from every continent except Antarctica, and so I asked some folks on staff which pillows they like and use regularly. (They've as well since contributed some additional testing.)
Who this is for
Boarding a red-center without a travel pillow in your handbag is like choosing to sleep on the floor when at that place's a perfectly good futon nearby. Sure, it'due south no bed, but it'south a hell of a lot amend than hardwood. In an interview she did with The Atlantic reporter Kelly Conaboy, Dr. Mary O'Connor, director of Yale's Heart for Musculoskeletal Intendance, said that despite a lack of clinical studies that support the efficacy of travel pillows, "Many of u.s. who travel have experienced falling asleep with our cervix in a weird position and information technology bothering us thereafter. So, I call back they tin can be helpful, but that depends on how they're used and whether they support the cervix." In other words, using a supportive pillow may decrease the chances yous wake upwards with an unwanted crick. It certainly has in our experience.
However, not all travel pillows are the aforementioned, and if you also happen to have a zealous hatred of your travel pillow, yous probably take a bad one. So fifty-fifty if you have a generic pillow you picked upwardly at some airport a few years ago, consider upgrading to one of our picks. And of course, these pillows work well on buses and trains, too.
How we picked our best travel pillow finalists
So how can yous tell if a pillow is likely to really back up your caput? Rebecca Robbins, a postdoctoral young man studying sleep, says the best travel pillows volition continue your head elevated and in alignment with your spine: "Look for something that would really be supportive. My 1 gripe with virtually travel pillows is that they're as well soft and not as well full—y'all want something that will be supportive as you try to get comfortable in your limited space." Robbins as well recommends finding a pillow that tin can keep yous cozy merely not as well hot, equally she says it's easier to sleep with a lower body temperature.
Robbins does her best to avoid one common travel situation. "My number one sleep tip is to non take a red-eye if yous can avert it," she said. "If the flight is v hours, yous're going to only take three hours of true rest, because all the announcements—'lower your window,' 'enhance your window.' Those can be significant distractions."
We besides looked at existing editorial reviews for guidance. Ethan Green, founder of the sleep resource blog No Sleepless Nights, compiled an extensive comparative review of 10 popular travel pillows that we plant helpful when deciding what models to test.
For people who want a travel pillow that will ease some of the discomfort of sleeping upright on a bumpy plane ride, we've identified the following central features:
- Comfort and back up: The pillow should offering ample support for the weight of your neck and head but non restrict your movements or feel too tight.
- Portable (but not inflatable): You don't desire your travel pillow to take upwardly so much infinite in your carry-on that y'all can't bring other things you need, so information technology should compress to a smaller size. Barring that, there should at to the lowest degree be a fashion to clip it to the outside of your pocketbook or luggage. Inflatable pillows are easy to pack just should be avoided. They inevitably spring a leak, often sooner rather than later.
- Soft: The cloth should feel plush against your peel but not trap so much heat that information technology'south uncomfortable to wear.
- Universal fit (or equally shut equally possible): The pillow should permit space for people to sleep with a ponytail or accommodate bigger hair, as well every bit a whole variety of caput shapes and sizes and neck lengths.
- Sleeping styles: It should besides accommodate people who movement their caput in whatever direction while they sleep. It should also work in a window, a centre, or an alley seat.
- Speed of compression/decompression: In case y'all need to quickly stow your pillow before exiting the plane, or if yous desire to catch some shut-middle in a moment's notice, it shouldn't take too long to stuff the pillow into its conveying instance or unfold information technology to full size.
- Weight: Ideally, the pillow shouldn't add together undue burden to your deport-on. While inflatable pillows volition always be the lightest choice, retention-foam pillows don't weigh much more and tin can offer significantly more comfort.
- Grip/traction: Your head will likely move effectually a fleck while sleeping on a aeroplane, especially if there's turbulence. So whatsoever kind of grip or traction around the lesser of the pillow volition help it stay in place and keep yous snoozing.
- Machine washable: Equally you might expect from a vessel that ferries hundreds of people back and forth across the sky on a daily footing, planes can be filthy. So you lot'll want to be able to wash the whole pillow—or at least its cover—earlier yous have information technology on your side by side trip.
How we tested travel pillows
We researched more than than twoscore travel pillows—which ranged from variations on a hemi-donut to inscrutable crowdfunded designs—and after comparing hundreds of glowing and enraged Amazon reviews, we decided to test eight. We asked a panel of ten people to endeavor each of the pillows in a chair pushed confronting the wall of a conference room (the closest we could come to airline atmospheric condition in our office) and surveyed them on the fit, comfort, and support of each pillow. The panelists all had a variety of cervix lengths and jaw sizes, and one even had a substantial beard. We besides ran all of the pillows or their detachable pillowcases through a washing machine as instructed to see how well each stood up to a spin wheel and tumble dry.
And because simulations are rarely enough, I brought eight travel pillows on two cross-country flights to see how the pillows felt in the specific dorsum design of an aeroplane seat. As I was lucky plenty to have unnecessarily kind and understanding neighbors (thanks, Mike and Deborah!), I wore each of these pillows in a window, a middle, and an aisle seat to run across if they felt comfortable in each configuration. I also tried on Deborah'due south Muji travel pillow (as she offered), only determined it had much less support than our picks. I also carried all of our picks on two more cross-country flights on a different airline to ensure the pillows did just also in dissimilar seat designs.
Our pick for the best travel pillow: Travelrest Nest Ultimate Retentivity Foam Travel Pillow
Our choice
The Travelrest Ultimate remains our top pick subsequently several years because its plush merely firm memory-foam core offers more support to your neck than that of whatever other pillow. Information technology'due south also i of the few pillows we tested that felt specifically designed for an airline seat, with an angled, grippy back that aligns perfectly to both upright and reclined positions and ensures the pillow won't slide downward as yous nod off. The velvety-soft pillow supports heads and necks of all sizes and tin can exist fitted with an adaptable cord and squeeze. In the tried-but-true shape of a hemi-donut—imagine a donut with a bite taken out—the Travelrest Ultimate may look similar other pillows, but a number of thoughtful details make it a softer, more supportive pillow than all the remainder.
The Travelrest offers better all-around support than any other pillow nosotros tested. Its broad, marshmallowy walls hug the whole circumference of your neck. It feels supportive but not stifling.The easy-to-fasten Velcro strap means it can exist adjusted to a snug fit for necks of many sizes. In that location'southward even a small scissure for curlier hair or a ponytail.
In addition to fitting your cervix, the Travelrest'southward back tapers up to a point to fit flat against an airline seat back. Well-nigh neck pillows lack this tapering on the back and the excess padding tin push your neck away from the headrest, causing your neck to droop forward. Additionally, the Travelrest has grippy dots on the back that foreclose it from slipping.
In addition to its first-class back up, the Travelrest is very comfortable and cozy to habiliment. Its memory-foam cadre is wrapped in velour, which kept my neck warm without overheating information technology. The Travelrest's velour besides felt softer and smoother against my pare than similar coverings on other pillows, such as the Cabeau Evolution. Information technology's also easy to clean: The Travelrest's cover is easily unzipped and motorcar-washable. The velour retained its softness after going through a wash and dry cycle.
While non deflatable, the Travelrest still compresses down to a quarter of its size for easy packing.
While the Travelrest isn't inflatable, it packs downward to the size of a roll of toilet paper in its carrying case. Once y'all fold it cinnamon-ringlet fashion and it's small plenty to fit inside the bag, a Velcro strap on the pouch helps you compress it even further. If there'due south still non enough space for it in your bag, you can always clip its drawstring to any outside loop.
All of these thoughtful details were not lost on our testing console. They gave the Travelrest the highest marks of any pillow in comfort and neck support, and 2-thirds of our testers picked it as their favorite pillow.
Long-term Testing Notes
After over a twelvemonth of use, this pillow has not lost whatever of its supportiveness. The retentivity foam is just as house and springy as information technology was when we bought it. Its velcro strap is nonetheless piece of cake to secure. If information technology fits yous, this is a pillow that stays secure and comfortable on your cervix for the duration of a long flight. However, we've too heard from multiple travelers that this pillow doesn't fit them. The memory cream is quite house, which offers first-class back up, but non much give. If a pillow of up to 5 inches doesn't fit comfortably on your cervix, we think you lot'll be happier trying one of our other picks.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
The Travelrest Ultimate will never compress to the thin, flat size of a tiny pillow like the Trtl. Simply its unparalleled, cushiony support can still pack down to a reasonable size, and its thirteen ounces won't make your carry-on noticeably heavier. And if saving infinite is your highest concern, we think the Trtl provides space-conscious support without the spit-filled fuss of an inflatable pillow.
While the Travelrest's voluminous plush can support all heads that lean left, dorsum, or correct, the pillow may non hold up the chins of people with smaller faces. When my head bobbed forrard, my modest face sank into the gap between the pillow closure and my neck. You can adapt the Velcro strap for a tighter fit, merely the brusque strap cannot be pulled as tight as the Cabeau's adaptable strings.
The Travelrest Ultimate's unbeatable support is in part due to the acme of its sides, designed to come to the jaw of the wearer. This means the pillow may exist incompatible with larger over-the-ear headphones for people with shorter necks. For instance, when I tried to clothing the Travelrest Ultimate with my noise-cancelling Bose headphones, the pillow pushed the headset uncomfortably far up on my caput, taking my earlobes with it. Withal, my editor, who has a longer cervix, didn't have this problem.
Runner-upwards for the best travel pillow: Cabeau Evolution Classic Pillow
Runner-up
If you want a tighter, more than adaptable fit, the Cabeau Development Classic (which used to be called just the Evolution) is the way to go. Its contoured retentiveness-cream blueprint offers almost as much neck back up as our main pick does, admitting without some of the Travelrest'south luxurious height. Merely the Cabeau's adjustable clasp allows a far greater range of cinching than the Travelrest. In other words, the pillow tin can fit as tightly as you similar.
Like the Travelrest, the Cabeau'south hemi-donut shape offers 360 degrees of support for anyone wearing it. It besides boasts a cushioned memory-foam core and a contoured top that will keep your neck upright and caput in identify. But unlike the Travelrest'due south gently arched bottom, the Cabeau'due south flat lesser won't sit as deeply on your shoulders and may move around during your sleep. The Cabeau also lacks the Travelrest's smartly tapered, grippy dorsum that helps keep the pillow in place during flying. The Cabeau's velour cover is also automobile-washable, but it feels less soft than the Travelrest'southward.
Although the Cabeau'due south fit and shape aren't quite as practiced every bit the Travelrest'due south, this pillow is more than adjustable. It tin exist tightened or loosened with two adjustable strings that clip together, which results in a far more adjustable range than the Travelrest's short strip of Velcro. If you lot have a smaller cervix and know you find a tighter grip on your neck comforting, the Cabeau may be the mode to go.
Like the Travelrest, the Cabeau also packs down to a quarter of its size, thank you to an adaptable strap bisecting its conveying case. But at 15.2 ounces, it's a chip heavier than the Travelrest.
Unlike whatever of our other picks, the Cabeau Evolution is sold in many of those ubiquitous news stores inside airports. So if you discover yourself lacing up your shoes afterwards security and wishing yous had bought ane of our picks before your flight, look for the Cabeau's contoured shape among the novelty hemi-donuts dangling off the travel pillow racks. It'southward the all-time pillow you can buy at an airport. Just if y'all accept the adventure to order online, the Travelrest offers more support at a better cost.
There is a new model of the Development Classic, the S3, which has straps to hook onto a seat'due south headrest. We think it's a good choice if the Archetype version is out of stock or otherwise unavailable. Information technology's still supportive and comfy, merely not as thick or soft equally the Classic.
Also cracking for portability: Trtl Pillow
Also dandy
The Trtl Pillow, though odd-looking and unconventional, won a contingent of ardent fans with its house back up and slim, packable size. But it's not our top pick considering information technology works on simply one side, and its warmth-trapping fleece can cause your neck to overheat. The Trtl consists of an arched plastic skeleton within of a soft, fleece scarf that wraps one time effectually your neck and so closes with Velcro to hold the pillow in place. Yous merely lean your head against the convex stop of the bendy frame, wrap the pillow around your neck, and your head has a soft but business firm pedestal on which to remainder while you sleep. It sounds weird, merely it's not that different from a cervix brace—but it's 1-sided and softer.
Considering the Trtl Pillow is picayune more than than a scarf with a plastic plate in it, it packs down to the size of a sandwich and can lay flat confronting the back of your bag. This is the smallest travel pillow we tested and also requires none of the squashing or awkward cinching information technology takes to stuff the Travelrest or Cabeau into their property bags, which are also easy to lose. Different any of the other pillows nosotros've seen, the Trtl is small enough to fit inside a briefcase or handbag, making information technology the all-time option for people who don't unremarkably travel with backpacks. And at a featherweight 5 ounces, the Trtl is the lightest pillow nosotros tested.
Though the Trtl can back up your head from only one side, the tall, bendy plastic frame within offered more back up on that one side than either the Travelrest or Cabeau. Yet even with its soft, wraparound design, information technology lacks the all-around support provided by our height and runner-up picks. If you are an asymmetrical sleeper (if y'all adopt sleeping with your head leaning to i side), the Trtl may be a adept choice. Nonetheless, it'due south not a expert selection for people who nod forward—the plastic insert is too strong. If that's you, we prefer the Bcozzy, which nosotros talk more about below.
Some testers found the Trtl'south quasi-corseted-turtleneck design off-putting. Simply then again, no ane looks absurd wearing any travel pillow. And on that note, the Trtl's cozy fleece will keep your neck toasty. So if you lot know you run hot, the Trtl may not be the pillow for you.
Wirecutter's special projects editor Ganda Suthivarakom swears by the Trtl: "It packs almost apartment, weighs next to nothing, and tin be helpful for sleeping even when you are stuck in a middle seat. As someone who is always common cold on the plane, I don't mind the whole fleece scarf pattern, either."
Trtl has released a new, more padded version of the pillow that claims to be more than adjustable; one of our longer-necked staffers tried it and reported that information technology is indeed more comfortable for him than the original Trtl was. Nevertheless, the same limitations of the original apply to the new version.
Besides-corking chin-support pillow for forward-nodders: Bcozzy Pillow
Also great
Bcozzy Pillow
Great with large headphones
Featuring an adaptable design that accommodates over-the-ear headphones, the Bcozzy is an first-class chin-support pillow for people who nod forward as they sleep.
The Bcozzy is a snakelike spin on the traditional hemi-donut that's perfect for anyone traveling with large headphones or people who tend to nod forward while sleeping and wake themselves upward. It lacks the tall, supportive sides of our other picks, only the overlapping front is the perfect height to keep your chin from nodding forward as yous doze off. Information technology's not as supportive on the sides, but this leaves ample room for big headphones.
The Bcozzy's best reward is its overlapping circular design, which allows you to accommodate the pillow to degrees of personal preference. You can identify the overlapping ends of the pillow around whatsoever signal of your neck (though it only really makes sense in the front or on the sides), and habiliment the pillow every bit loose or as tight as you'd like. We think it's most comfortable when the ends meet right under your neck—and in that position, information technology cushions your mentum better than any other pillow we tested.
The longer, leaner Bcozzy lacks the plush, ensconcing neck support of the Travelrest Ultimate or Cabeau Evolution. It lays so depression on your shoulders that it might not even affect your jaw. Simply this makes the pillow perfect for anyone who likes to article of clothing over-the-ear headphones along with a travel pillow while they sleep on the flight. I personally like to fall asleep to music and drown out the dull roar of an airplane, so the Bcozzy works perfectly for me.
We still recall the Travelrest Ultimate is a superior overall hemi-donut pillow, merely the Bcozzy is an excellent selection if you program to wear large headphones or know the feeling of that sharp, waking drop when your head falls frontward on a plane.
The Bcozzy is also one of the to the lowest degree packable pillows, equally it doesn't come with a conveying case and does not compress specially well. Only its 7.4 ounces is around one-half the weight of the Travelrest or Cabeau, and information technology does comes with a little loop that clips onto the exterior of a backpack or duffel. And even when squished downwards at the bottom of a bag, it doesn't accept up that much more than space than the Travelrest Ultimate or Cabeau.
What to look forwards to
Bcozzy has recently released a new version of our headphones travel pillow pick, updated with a Velcro closure and a carrying case. (Both the onetime and new versions are currently beingness sold past Bcozzy.) We're testing the new one and will report back with our findings.
The contest
If you're a back sleeper who tin fall sleep sitting upright in your seat, facing frontwards, and non need to curl up or lean your head on the airplane window, the BR2 Travel Pillow may exist worth trying. It's a U-shaped cervix cushion, padded with memory cream, that looks like the back one-half of a cervical collar. When testing it, we slept surprisingly well, but information technology won't suit all (or even most) sleep styles. The BR2 is also not machine-washable, and it is pricy.
The Trtl Pillow Plus, a new add-on to the Trtl lineup, is more height-adaptable and has more than padding than its older sibling. Our self-described "giraffe-necked" tester said that it did indeed fit him better than the original Trtl had. All the same, it still supports your head from but one side, making it not a neat choice for sleepers who nod frontward. It's also bulkier than the original and costs twice equally much.
The Cabeau Evolution S3 is a new version of our runner-up selection, the Evolution Classic. We liked it, and nosotros think information technology's a solid choice if the original Evolution isn't available. It has added straps that you can hook onto a headrest to keep your head from falling forward while you sleep, but our runner-upwardly pick is softer and slightly thicker, which offers a bit more than back up. Nosotros did find the S3 to be easier to coil up into its carrying case, notwithstanding.
After reading some online reviewers' complaints nigh their necks overheating under more than fleecy travel pillows, we tested the ventilated Cabeau Evolution Cool. The combination of a silky polyester cover (similar to spandex) and vented design did feel mildly libation against our necks. And we liked the pillow'due south silky feel, packable size, zippered carrying case. Merely information technology was significantly smaller than the standard Cabeau Evolution and the Travelrest Ultimate, and information technology left the chins of long-necked testers totally unsupported. It's also much more expensive—about double the cost of the Travelrest at the time of testing. If yous take a shorter neck and tend to run hot on planes and would adopt a pillow designed to go on you lot cool, it may be worth the premium, but information technology'due south not a great value overall.
Intrigued by one of the stranger innovations that we've seen in travel pillow pattern, we tested the Huzi Design Infinity, but we can't recommend information technology. Instead of cinching or clasping at the front, it is designed to be looped several times around the wearer's neck like an infinity scarf. But the pillow failed to back up our testers' necks. Regardless of who tried it, testers found that looping it twice was too loose and thrice was too tight. It was as well the largest and least compressible pillow we tested.
The J-Pillow offered a singular, 3-pronged pattern that proved incommunicable for anyone to figure out without instructions. After some explanation, our testers could vesture the pillow correctly, but they still felt that its squishy stuffing offered insufficient support, and only to 1 side of the head. Information technology'south likewise impossible to pack away efficiently due to its pyramidal shape. If you lot want a ane-sided pillow, skip this and go for the Trtl instead.
We tested the inexpensive Travelrest Curl because nosotros loved its plush and contoured big cousin, the Travelrest Ultimate. But while the Curl contains the same luxurious retentivity-foam filling as the Ultimate, the pillow is and so small and simplistic that many testers found that the pillow didn't fifty-fifty come up to their jaws when worn. It does take an attractive cost, but its skimpy size and unsupportive blueprint could support only the shortest of necks.
Nosotros establish the air-filled Sea to Summit Aeros Traveller Pillow to be similarly lacking. We liked how easy it was to fill—its dual-valve inflation mechanism ways information technology won't let air out betwixt breaths—and we appreciated that it weighed only nigh a fifth as much as the Travelrest, but the Travelrest'due south 360-degree back up made information technology as well hard to go dorsum to an open up-ring design that offers no support in the front.
For an before version of the guide, we tested the Caldera Releaf and Travelrest'due south All-in-One. We don't call up they're for virtually people, simply if you slumber a certain style and don't move around a lot, they could exist nifty for y'all. The Caldera Releaf is less travel pillow and more neck brace, and information technology's very supportive. It does offer superior cervix support that'southward great for forwards-falling head bobbers, just information technology constricted the throat likewise much for our comfort. The Travelrest All-in-One has a novel across-the-shoulder design that could be good if yous ever lean to the same side while sleeping. It has a like fabric to the visitor's winning Ultimate Memory Cream Neck Pillow, merely in our tests its bulky inflated tube offered no structured head support, which could pose a problem in bumpy conditions.
Sources
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Rebecca Robbins, postdoctoral fellow at the NYU Center for Healthful Behavior Alter, phone interview , Oct 20, 2017
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Hashemite kingdom of jordan Bishop, The Best Travel Neck Pillows, How I Travel , March 31, 2017
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Ethan Green, The x Best Travel Pillows: My Favorites On Long Journeys, No Sleepless Nights , November 27, 2017
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Kelly Conaboy, Against the Travel Neck Pillow, The Atlantic , October 10, 2017
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-travel-pillow/
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