TRAVELREST Ultimate Inflatable Travel Pillow, Airplane Neck Pillow, Blue

I travel a lot, internationally, never less than a 12 hour flight, so I was looking for a neck pillow that would be easy to carry, etc. I had an inflatable neck pillow, but I found it took quite a bit of effort to inflate, and I have never successfully been able to fully deflate it... When I stumbled across this rather innovative pillow on Amazon, I was intrigued. I bought it, and I've been just one happy camper over and over. I've seen some people complain about losing air, etc., but I've never had any problems, so I'd chalk their experience up to either user error or simple Mfg defects that are part of any mass produced item. That's what "return for replacement" is all about. It's a pain, but it's an option from a reputable seller and no reason to dog a product that is great. This pillow inflates in just 3 or 4 breaths. That's about 1/10th what my previous little neck pillow took. What I LOVE about the inflation process is there is a big pink button to push, and the air just rushes out. You can inflate or deflate this pillow in seconds. Neck pillows really feel more like a whiplash collar. They immobilize your neck and are not anything like a true PILLOW. This little guy takes some getting used to, but it is so comfortable that I never travel without it. Period. I have found that the adjustment cord works best, for me, by taking the loop at the bottom of the pillow and snapping it closed around the cord, making a full 'sling'. As the instructions show, I then put the pillow over my shoulder with the cord slung from hip to neck across the other side (think guitar sling) and then snug it up with just a little bit of 'play'. Then, when I go to sleep, I can place my arms under the pillow and this pulls it tight against my body and doesn't move around at all. Some people have complained about the pillow shifting while sleeping, but I haven't had this problem, and having a place to rest my arms makes sleep much easier in the confined space of typical airplane seating. I prefer a window seat, and can rest the pillow against the fuselage (which reduces the impact of the outside cold), but if I prefer to shift to the other side, I just sling the pillow over the other shoulder and adjust the headrest to make a 'bumper' and rest against that. I've never had any problems with 'banging' into my neighbor. Also, having this on one side of my head and body allows my head to move around a little more freely to permit 'adjusting' for more comfortable neck/head placement that a 'whiplash collar' neck brace pillow won't allow. It's also cooler whereas the neck pillow just overheated for me. Lots of comment, I know, but I just love my pillow ;) I also bought the Amazon-recommended pillow cover to reduce the impact of cleaning and to add another layer of softness, but I've written my review of the pillow cover on that page already. All in all, I see no downside to this pillow and have no qualms recommending it to everyone.

My wife and I bought two of these for plane travel based on the glowing reviews. The concept was pretty compelling, and I have to say that the pillow works almost as well as advertised. ***UPDATE*** This product deserves a minimum of 4 stars. My original review failed to take into account some additional ways to use the pillow effectively. First off, the excellent: 1. The pillow is very easy to inflate, and only takes 3-4 puffs of air depending on your lungs. It is also very easy to deflate, rolls up, and takes up a minimum of space in your carry on bag. 2. The pillow is comfortable enough for an inflatable. It is covered in a soft faux velvet that doesn't irritate the skin or cause discomfort due to pressure points. You can make it even more comfortable with a small cotton pillow or even by putting a cotton pillow case over it, if you prefer that. 3. When it used properly it will support your head and neck very well and will allow you to sleep on an airplane, car, or even sitting in the airport lobby. 4. The 'arm' of the pillow resting along your chest and mid section is very comfortable. I found it soothing since I tend to sleep holding a pillow anyway. Your mileage may vary on that one though. A Few Problems: The pillow can be hard to keep in one place if you use the rope to fasten it to the seat back. There are two bands that connect the pillow to your chair: the first is a loop that you can put around your belt, your seat belt, or even a belt loop. This connection works well and is fastened in place by a quality metal snap. However, the top is held in place by a nylon piece of rope that you can adjust with a plastic thump clasp. It is intended to go around the backside of your seat and then tighten down to hold the pillow in place. This can work pretty poorly on certain airplanes because A. the seat backs in are sometimes slick, B. the nylon rope doesn't have any traction to it (although this is intentional because it allows the thumb clasp to move easily), and C. The top of some airplane seats are angled and as time passes the rope works itself free. My experience was that it was very hard to make the cushion stay in place for more than an hour at a time, and it required readjustment frequently. This may frustrate the person sitting next to you, or the person behind you who you keep turning around and looking at while you make adjustments! ***UPDATE*** After receiving some additional information from the makers of the TravelRest pillow, I've learned that there is an alternative (and far superior in my opinion) way to use the pillow that involves wearing it like a messenger bag by connecting the pillow strap to the bottom strap. This forms a loop you can put around your body and which keeps the pillow much more stationary. Using the pillow in this fashion is easier and more secure. I'd recommend using the pillow this way virtually all of the time. 2. The pillow only gives you support on one side at a time, unlike traditional neck pillows. If you shift while sleeping, you will find yourself with a massive neck cramp. ***UPDATE*** However, you can easily shift the pillow from one side to the other if you're 'wearing it' messenger style. This alleviates that problem pretty satisfactorily. Advice and Observations: 1. Don't over-inflate the pillow. It is actually more comfortable at about 80-90% capacity. 2. It is easy to let air out once the pillow is in place, but it is much harder to add air because the access point is on the bottom of the pillow. Go for a little over full and then let air out as necessary. Conclusions: This is pretty solid invention for sleeping on a plane. In my estimation, it is superior to a traditional neck pillow, but has its share of advantages and disadvantages. I'd recommend it if you prefer strong directional support to softer universal neck support provided by a traditional neck pillow, and if you like the comfort of having a pillow 'hugging' you as you sleep. This pillow also works really well in the car, and if you've got kids who have a hard time sleeping on road trips, these are probably a must buy. ***UPDATE*** I'd like to thank TravelRest for their customer service. This company went out of their way to assist with my pillow by providing additional information on how to use the pillow effectively. They have produced a short video on using the pillow that I have put a link to in the comments section. It is pretty PR-ish, but does show the various ways to use the pillow. I'd also like to say that TravelRest in no way bartered for any changes to this review. They were straight shooters who wanted to make sure I understood their product and was using it properly. I've got no problem recommending them to anyone. It's actually pretty amazing when a company goes above and beyond to provide solid customer service as they did for me.

I'm the type of person who falls asleep almost immediately on road trips. I have gotten used to lugging a pillow around with me everywhere so that I can also have a good nap when I travel. I've tried other travel pillows but have always been disappointed. The "Total Pillow" is very prone to breaking and leaking out the tiny white beads everywhere. The "Horseshoe Shaped" ones usually require that I sleep with my head tilted back on it - making it so I usually end up with my mouth wide open, which usually makes me snore, allows bugs full access to my stomach, great for people to punk me and drop weird stuff in there, etc. It's just horrible. It's not very comfortable, flattering, or sanitary. My head often drops forward and I wake up with a jolt too. I just hate it. Memory Foam pillows are more comfortable, but not very portable so that is out of the question. With as much stuff as I travel with, I really don't want to be lugging around a bulky pillow around too. So here is where the TravelRest pillow comes in. Pros: Very comfortable, easy to inflate and deflate, very portable, very easy to pack/carry - very compact when deflated. Very easy to adjust firmness and settle into. I lean into it and my head goes to the side in a very natural position - allowing for me to finally sleep without my mouth gaping wide open for the whole world to see. No more worrying about snoring and eating bugs while I sleep out in public. I can now sleep without worrying about my head falling over to the person next to me too and it gives me a nice separation too. I can use it like a border between me and strangers. It's actually long enough to lay across my lap and it sits on the armrests and becomes a little table too. Not a real hard table, obviously, but I can then rest a food tray or book on it - so it's very comfortable that way too. Cons: The seams are on the sides of the pillow, right on the inside where I'm resting my neck so it kind of annoys my neck right there. This is easily fixed by sliding my favorite super soft t-shirt over it as a sort of pillow case. I see that they sell a microfiber fleece cover for this pillow as well and that might be another option. That or a flannel pillow case...or just throw whatever overshirt/jacket you are carrying with you over it. Since there are options, I would consider this to be a very minor flaw - easily corrected. My favorite way of using this pillow is to wear it messenger-bag style. You loop the string onto itself so it becomes a strap and you throw that over one shoulder - like how you would wear a messenger bag - then you just hug/lean into the pillow. It's very comfortable and stays put. I really don't understand all the complaints about tying it to head rests and bothering other people's food trays/tvs, etc. I think that the messenger style of wearing it is the most comfortable and that elimates all those complaints easily. When I travel, I tend to be very mobile too and would be uncomfortable tethering my personal item to a seat. It's not like I'm setting up camp here...I'm just sitting here temporarily and I'll be on my way. It's nice to have those options - but if those options are not viable at that particular moment and you still have the option of just wearing the pillow. I don't see what the big deal is. I've also found that it's not like you HAVE to have your head tilted to the side all the time. The pillow has a "L-shape" to it so you can hook it behind your neck a little more and lean back into it. This was something I was worried about when I first saw the pictures in the reviews so I'm glad that I can still just lean back (in case I want to watch a movie or something). ...speaking of movies, I would seriously take this into a movie theatre with me. I always have a hard time getting comfortable in the theatre for the long movies and this thing is just so comfortable no matter where you're sitting to just blow it up and lean/hug into it. It's like a body pillow that you can take with you everywhere. In fact, if they offered up that option, I would sooo buy it in an instant. Possible improvements to this product: Another pillow that's larger, more huggable. To me, that would make it just that much more comfortable and since this is inflatable, it wouldn't be adding that much more bulk. It would still be very compact. Another thing I would like is a longer "L-shape". It might be nice if it wrapped around your neck more, giving you even more option of how you can use it. One last suggestion would be different options for pillow cases: different colors, different materials, something more soft and cuddly. Conclusion: I really like this travel pillow a lot. I am taking this with me everywhere: road trips, plane rides, movie theatre, etc... Anywhere where I can sit is where I can pull out this pillow and hug it, easing into a very comfortable position. It really takes the strain out of lower back/lumbar pain when you can lean over to the side a little. Takes the strain out of my neck/shoulders when I can rest my head over to the side. I would definitely recommend this pillow to anyone. There are some things that could be improved upon, yes...but it works well as it is and if they improved this product in the future, that would be just icing on the cake.

This is a great design - everything about its shape, the connections, etc., are terriffic. So imagine my disappointment when I open it up, only to find it covered with that horrible flocked vinyl. For those of you who don't know, flocked vinyl is a widely-hated material. For a significant portion of the population, touching it is similar to nails on a chalkboard - it just sends shivers up and down your spine, and completely discomforts you. Not really what one is looking for a pillow. If you absolutely must cover your pillow in some sort of cloth, do like most bath pillow manufacturers are doing these days - use terrycloth. By using the flocked vinyl, the manufacturer has completely alienated a not insignificant portion of the population. Yes, I bought the cover, hoping it might somehow help (although it would still be rubbing against the flocked portion, so the chances of that were slim). Not surprisingly, it was no better at all. TravelRest, this is a great idea, but a horrible choice of materials. It's going back to Amazon tomorrow. EDIT: I sent a similar message to the manufacturer via their website, and was pleasantly surprised to get a call from them the next day. And it wasn't just some drone in a cubicle - it was the inventor's wife! She said that they had heard similar complaints from others, and that she herself wasn't thrilled with some of the materials they were using. They're investigating new materials, but are limited because of the unusual shape - apparently it's hard to find a material that will allow them to use this shape and still provide the quality they require. While the review stands, I will throw in a couple extra stars for excellent customer service, and listening to their customers.

I'll admit, I am a bit of a princess. I am picky, picky, picky. And the older I get (just turned 50), the more important comfort becomes to me. So, I was worried about my 11 hour flight to Tokyo, back in steerage (United economy ;-). I read tons of reviews and articles about the best travel pillows, and finally decided on the Travelrest Pillow. It looked a bit large to me, but seemed to roll up compactly, so I gave it a try. Per instructions, I connected the loop, and wore it like a guitar, strapped across my body. I added earplugs and eye mask, then settled in to try to sleep. OMG! I slept for 2 hours, right off the bat. I can NEVER sleep on planes. Then I shifted positions to the other side. And slept for 2.5 hours more! Later, I slept for another hour+. This is the first time I've ever been able to sleep on a plane, except for once when I had all three seats to myself, and I laid down. Flight back, same thing. I slept for more than half of the flight, in 2-3 hour increments. (And I didn't even recline, because my 6' 4" husband was in the seat behind me.) Bottom line, this pillow really worked for me. It inflates quickly, and the valves make it super-easy to adjust how far it is filled, in subtle increments. I loved how I could rotate it slightly to get the shape that fit best with my neck. (For me, cinching the cord somewhat snugly allowed the pillow to support my head without slipping.) And it cleverly wraps around the handle of your bag for storage. Amazing, smart (if albeit, a bit unconventional) design! This pillow is my new travel companion. So glad I ditched that unsupportive horseshoe pillow I kept trying to get to work. NOTE: I also purchased the velour cover, so it's hard to know how to rate the pillow on its own. I considered giving it 4 stars, because I really don't know if I would have loved it as much on its own, without the cover. I'm not sure if the seams of the pillow would be at all problematic, without the cover. But the design is so unique, and it does such a great job of allowing you to sleep upright, I decided it deserves 5 stars on its own. But add the cover, and the pillow deserves 10 stars. See my review of the cover.

I am a frequent flyer and count on my naps when traveling. In the old days, I carried my bed pillow (awkward) and then tried a variety of other smaller pillows, some that I had attached Velcro to in an attempt to lesson my "hand" load by attaching them to my computer bag, backpack or plain old belt loops. I finally gave up and just toughed it out as it was just too much stuff and something had to give. Anyway, saw this pillow advertised on my "Smarter Travel" newsletter and was just interested enough to give it a try (since the airlines have taken away just about every perk they used to have). Had a trip scheduled and used my Amazon Prime to get this pillow before I left. It came in plenty of time. I briefly read the instructions, didn't actually blow it up, but liked the concept so rolled it up and neatly attached it to my purse/computer bag. I had an early morning flight that required that I get up about 4am so when I got into my assigned seat on that airplane, I grabbed my pillow and blew it up. Yes, I felt a little silly but figured out how to put the strap behind me, all the time thinking "this'll never work." Wow, was I wrong. I'm a side sleeper and have never been able to tolerate those little airbag pillow that go around your neck. Anyway, I positioned the Travelrest, closed my window and turned as much as possible to my side and made ready for a nap. Now that my face was actually ON it - it felt wonderfully comfortable, although I will admit when I had opened the package before my trip I did think that perhaps the covering was a little 'cheesey.' Not the case at all when I actually laid my head/face on it. It felt like it had been custom made for me. It did take me a bit to adjust the air inside to my liking (I had filled it a bit too tight which was not as comfortable), but once I did that - I was out like a light. I woke up 2 hours later on the tail end of my 3 hour flight, elated that my trip was almost over. Even when I was awake and reading for the last hour of my trip, my new best friend was not in my way. And when we landed, I simply unplugged the air hole and rolled the air out of it and secured it, once again, to my purse. My neighbors, who had previously looked at me kind of funny, I could tell, were jealous that they didn't have one. I was SO pleased. No crease in my face from leaning on the window or wall, no neck cramp from trying to attain some kind of comfortable position, no fumbling to find an extra hand to hold on to another piece of travel equipment that wouldn't be used again until I got on another plane. In addition, when using it - it very nicely blocks the view and noise from the person seated directly behind you. I didn't have to take off my earrings or re-style my hair. In fact, I have some scars on my head from being burned as a baby that I am VERY self-conscious of and this pillow didn't muss my carefully-arranged hair one bit. I know I'll never see that person again, but hey - it's my phobia. On the plane ride home 10 days later, I sat on the other side of the plane and was just as comfortable then as I was the first time. I will never travel again without this pillow and will be buying another for my little 4-year old grandbaby for his car seat, totally eliminating that uncomfortable sound asleep, head hanging down over the seatbelt which just looks torturous. Just my experience but it was an excellent one and well worth the money. Sometimes you get what you pay for and in this case, it's worth every penny. I just wish I had one on these when I was flying back and forth to the UK.

The material it was make of was not very soft and the edges stuck out and were rough. The would scratch your neck. Love the design, but they need to use softer skin friendly material to make it out of.

This is one of the best travel pillows I have tried. It is really compact so does not take up a lot of room, it inflated easily and deflated easily. By inflating and deflating, you can make it as hard or soft as you like. I like the design as I feel I need to have a place for my hands, so you can hug it. It works on both sides. I was by the window and it did work better leaning against the wall. Overall one of the best pillows for design, comfort, weight and space saving. Wish I had purchased the cover.

Volo diretto Roma-Tokyo a/r 12/14 ore riposo veramente comodo.

Siempre he tenido problemas para dormir en autobuses, coches, aviones, etc. Había probado las típicas almohadas hinchables que te rodean el cuello, pero yo tengo el cuello largo y delgado, así que no me resultaban, la cabeza se balancea y no me resultan cómodas, no descansaba. Decidí mirar otra cosa. Es en este punto donde veo la Travelrest y me decido por ella. El resultado es que sigo sin poder dormir en la mayoría de los viajes (no hace milagros, tampoco lo espereis), pero voy más cómodo, no acabo con dolor de cuello, es como llevar una almohada hinchable en la que descansar la cabeza, que gracias a su correa, no se te va a caer facilmente cuando estés a punto de dormirte o relajado. Es fácil de inflar y desinflar (ojo en el avión con la altura, cambia la presión), fácil de transportar... en el peor de los casos , si no se te adapta, tendrás una almohada para otros usos (para la playa, por ejemplo).

Lo he probado en un viaje reciente en el que me tocó pasar parte del vuelo de noche tanto a la ida como a la vuelta. Es una maravilla, puesto que te puedes agarrar al mismo y parece que tienes una cómoda almohada. Como va sujeto en la parte inferior al cinturón, no molesta en absoluto y en caso de que sea preciso quitarlo para tomar algo o salir, es tan sencillo como desenganchar el cinturón de seguridad y quitar el tapón que tiene para desinflarlo, lo que se hace en un santiamén. Las otras almohadas parece que te estrangulan, pero con esta, vas comodísimo. Estoy encantado con la compra y por supuesto que si tuviera que repetir, ni me lo pienso, vuelvo a comprar este modelo. Por cierto, el complemento es la funda que trae, la cual tiene un tejido de lo más agradable, ni sudas ni nada y además hace que sea más mullida, con lo que es una maravilla. Iba buscando no tener dolor de cuello y desde luego con esta almohada se consigue. MUY RECOMENDABLE.

The worst travel helper ever. Uncomfortable to lie your head on: hard when properly inflated and equally useless when slightly deflated. It is impossible to place it in the right spot, at least that’s the experience I had on a plane. Not recommended at all!

Everyone seems to like something different, but this is the best travel pillow for me (and I have tried a lot of them). It works wherever you sit on a plane and is excellent on car and coach journeys too. Well worth the money.