Comfy TravelRest Travel Pillow

I always carried an inflatable travel pillow with me when I was backpacking around the world and there are times I still use one on a stingy airline with no pillows. There are basic flaws in the two main types though: the basic pillow-shaped ones and the C-shaped ones that go around your neck. Neither is all that flexible in terms of how you can use it and where it will fit when you're in a cramped coach seat.

I've been testing this new TravelRest inflatable pillow from HiGear Design and as is often the case, a slight change in outlook has made a huge difference. By reimagining the shape and design of a travel pillow, this company has turned out something that looks strange but works really well.

Deflated, it rolls up into a small and light package about the size of a pair of tube socks. A snap keeps it from unraveling. You can even snap it to the outside of your carry-on bag for easy removal on the plane.

Once you're ready to use it, a few puffs into the valve gets it ready. What you're holding looks like an oversized quotation mark, one that can be used in several ways. The attached cinch line allows the TravelRest pillow to attach to the back of your seat and stay in place when your head starts lolling around. You can snap the bottom of it to your seatbelt to keep it more secure. If you're stuck in the airport, you can just sling it over your shoulder, hug it like a Teddy bear, and snooze for a while during your delay. (Don't be surprised if you start dreaming of your childhood bedroom...)

This pillow is also handy in the car. It can attach to the headrest and seatbelt for a nice nap during a long car ride---especially good for kids who have to be stuck in a car seat for hours on end. It's easy to wash after someone drools on it too.

The TravelRest pillow lists for $27 and you can buy it direct from their site or in some luggage stores.

Portable Travel Bed for Babies

I almost never review something on this travel gear blog that I haven't used myself, but since my kid is 8 now and this is a bed for babies, well...

Friends of mine will soon have a new baby though and I've been looking around for a good travel-related present for them. I'm sold on this portable travel bed from Peapod. It's more of a tent than a bed, which makes it easier and lighter, plus it looks like it would be more fun for the tyke as well.

We used a pack-and-play set when my daughter was a baby, but it was really large and heavy. It just added to the incredible bulk of stuff you end up with when traveling with a little creature that only weighs ten pounds. This portable travel bed folds up to a manageable size (14"L x 5"W x 14"H) and it only weighs about 5 pounds for the smaller version.

There's a self-inflating (with a small included pump) air mattress at the bottom, lots of flaps to get to baby, and screens to let the air come through---just like a real tent. It comes in several colors and two basic sizes, so check the Peapod site to figure out which is best. Hint: if people commonly say to you, "Wow, that's a big baby," then you will probably want to go for the large one.

Almost anywhere you see customer reviews of this item, you see parents gushing about how great it is, so I feel very comfortable buying it sight unseen for my friends. You can find this portable travel bed for around $50-$70 at the likes of Target and Kohl's, or you can order it online from lots of outlets. Click here to get it at Amazon.

Nap26 Wants to Help You Power Nap

A lot of the things I review on this travel gear blog I'm very enthusiastic about and I use them in my travels. Sometimes I try out an item that's a total bust and I don't mention it. The Nap26 sleep inducer CD falls somewhere in between.

The idea is that you listen to this audio recording with headphones or earplugs and a little later you wake up refreshed: "Feel like you slept 3 hours after 26 minutes."

If that sounds to you like the kind of outrageous claim you'd hear on an infomercial, I'm with you. But I do highly value a good afternoon nap now and then (especially when I can swing in a hammock in Mexico). The claim that the almost inaudible pulses in this sync up with your brain waves probably has some grounding in good scientific principles. So I gave it a shot on three different lazy afternoons.

The verdict? For me anyway, a 33% success rate. And for that time, I fell asleep halfway through it, which means I only got a 13 minute nap. Good enough for Thomas Edison maybe, but not for me.

The success of the Nap26 probably depends on how well you sleep normally. My significant other has all kinds of sleep problems and wears earplugs and a mask at night. But then put her in front of a TV and pop in a movie---out like a light. She's going to try this out soon and will probably have better success than me. I normally don't need any help dropping off to sleep and the white noise in this distracted me more than it helped me.

The Nap26 website is full of testimonials from happy customers though, from all walks of life, and there's a money back guarantee if you don't see results. So if you could use more plane naps when you travel, for 20 bucks it's worth a shot.

You can download the CD to iTunes or as a MP3, but be advised it's not as simple as that. You have to tweak the settings so it is downloaded in full data-hogging mode, not as a compressed file.

Get it at the PowrNaps store.

Get it at Amazon.

Vibrating Alarm Watches from Vibe

If you don't want to carry an alarm clock in your travels a watch with a built-in alarm can be useful. For some heavy sleepers though, that wimpy little beep isn't going to help them catch the 6 a.m. train to Budapest. This VibraLite 8 watch I've been trying out has the wimpy beep, but it gives you the option of something more novel: a vibrating watch that buzzes your arm.

While our brains may be conditioned to ignoring minor noises when we're in a deep sleep (especially if our arm is buried under the pillow), it's hard to sleep through the feeling of someone putting electrodes next to your skin and shocking you. No, that's not what this does---it is really like a small vibrating cell phone stuck onto your arm---but it's a strange sensation. Either you'll wake up and start getting ready or you'll keep dozing and have dreams about being prodded and tested in an asylum. There's a built-in light too, so you can check the time in the dark while you're groggy.

As always seems to be the case with these watches that come with pages of tiny type instructions for functions you will never use, it takes some time and effort to get everything set up. On my third try I finally got the alarm to work. Apparently setting it isn't enough: you then have to go to a separate function mode and switch the sound from off to on. Or go to an entirely different one to turn on the buzzer. If you are the type that salivates over being able to run your whole life with a wristwatch though, you can use this to remind yourself of appointments, time a race, set multiple alarms, keep track of two time zones, and count down to a specific event.

The main reason I'm not too bummed about sending this review copy back, however, is that for something I learned about from a site called SeekingDesigners, most of the watches in the Vibe line are far from stylish. It's hard to make a digital display watch look great, but it can be done, just ask Swatch or Tati. The one I tested (pictured at the top) is a little heavier than a cheapo digital watch from a kiosk at the mall, but does the vibrator make this mostly plastic watch worth $70? If you like the concept but are looking for something more attractive, check their whole line at the company website.

Get it at Amazon

Solutions to Airplane Pillow Woes

In the latest sign that nearly every U.S. airline has given up on making its customers remotely happy, JetBlue is now going to charge $7 for a blanket and pillow. I've got a better idea: either fly on Continental (where they're still free) or buy your own much nicer kit and keep it.

In the past I reviewed the great Pacn'Nap flight kit pictured here and it does a great job of solving both issues at once. It contains an inflatable pillow and a fleece blanket and it feels much nicer than what you're going to get on any plane in coach. You can get a very similar double-duty item from eBags from a different manufacturer: Foldable Blanket Pillow/Lumbar Cushion


If you don't care about the blanket and just want a pillow, you sure aren't hurting for choices. At REI.com for example there are 25 to choose from and at Backcountry.com there are even more.

Judging by what you see in airports and luggage stores, a lot of people go for the horseshoe-shaped pillows that conform to the neck, but they turn into useless baggage once you deplane. I prefer the idea of a regular-shaped pillow like this Comfort Plus pillow from Magellans because that can also be used in other circumstances, including when you need something under your butt for hard train/bus seats, watching a ball game, a hostel stay, whatever.

Plane Comfort Pac'nNap Flight Kit

We all know that flying in coach is far from comfortable these days. Flights are packed, but at the same time the budget ethos has spread to the likes of American and United. Your chances of getting a pillow and blanket, even for an international flight, are iffy. Then when you do get these items, how clean are they? Airlines usually give some vague dodgy answer when asked how often their blankets are laundered, but with cost cuts so rampant, you can bet it's not very often.

So if you plan to catch a nap on the plane, bring your own accessories. I tried out this Pac-n-Nap kit from Planecomfort and it offers a good way to get comfortable without carrying too much. It's about the length and width of a piece of copy paper, and about three fingers thick when repacked. Inside there's a 50" x 60" fleece blanket (five feet long!), inflatable pillow, fleece topped pillowcase, zippered storage pocket, and reusable totebag. You blow up the pillow, put it inside the pillowcase, and you're good to go. That pillowcase is actually the bag it comes in -- the inside of the bag is fleece -- which shows that the designers have done their best to keep the package compact. There's a handy outside pocket on the bag too, good for keeping your phone and boarding pass in, plus there's a detachable shoulder strap for carrying it.

Yesterday a magazine writer interviewed me about avoiding stress in the airport when flying and this item could definitely help in that department. If your flight gets delayed, which it probably will this winter if you're flying through a Northeast hub, you could whip out this Pac'nNap kit and be far more comfortable for those extra hours than the other passengers around you.

Plane Comfort's Pac'nNap is available at some luggage shops or direct from the company at PlaneComfort.net. Order from them before January 5 and there's no shipping charge. The regular black, red, or navy model is $30, a shocking pink one with zebra print or polka dot accents is $40. The latter includes a luggage finder strap to put around the handle of checked luggage.

An Air Mattress That Really Works - AeroBed

I've been through three air mattresses in the past ten years and have slept on a few others. They're just the ticket when you've got more guests than beds or you will be one of those guests that outnumber the beds somewhere else. Or if you're going camping and don't feel like sleeping on roots and rocks, an air mattress can be a godsend - if it's made well.

Of course blowing them up is no joy and neither is carrying along some extra machine just for that purpose. So the AeroBed Premier Classic is worth the small step up from the cheapie models. You just plug it in and let it rip. The thing inflates itself in "less than 60 seconds," but in my test the twin version was ready to lie on in half a minute. It's not all or nothing either: the inflate and deflate controls are surprisingly precise, and on a device you can mess with while you're still laying down. When you're done, no pinching a little tube to let the air out. You press a button and "whoosh" it's done.

It has an "official Seal of Approval from the Orthopaedic Research Institute," for supporting your back well. All I know is, it's quite comfortable. So if you've got some people crashing at your house from a free crash pad service or you're heading somewhere that requires an extra bed on the floor, one of these will ensure a good night's sleep in the process.

The AeroBed also scores points by including a carry bag for easy transport and storage. Once in the bag, it could potentially fit in the overhead compartment of a plane and won't take up much space in the trunk of a car. It comes with a fleece mattress cover too.

The Aerobed Comfort Zone is available in Twin ($99.99), Full ($159.99) and Queen ($199.99) sizes and you can sometimes find it on sale at the major big box retailers or at Amazon. For more info go to www.aerobed.com.