What to look for in a travel pillow for kids and reviews of the best kids travel pillows, including toddler neck pillows and kids airplane pillows.
Having a really good kids travel pillow can make a real difference to how comfortable your children are on the plane, or during a long car journey.
For years we have used the inflatable 1stClass Kid Travel Pillow for my kids to be able to lie flat on the plane. Now that they are older, we have recently entered the world of kids travel neck pillows.
(Note: they don’t need to be older; we also found some great options for toddler travel pillows.
We have found both types of travel pillows: the leg rest pillow for the plane and the kids neck pillow to be a bit of a game changer for travelling with kids and wanted to share all our research.
So if you are trying to find the best travel pillow for kids to add to your travel accessories, then read on.
In this article we cover what to look for in a travel pillow for kids and review some of the best kids travel pillows on the market. We cover:
- children’s neck pillows for travel
- toddler neck pillows
- car seatbelt pillows
- kids airplane pillows that act as a footrest in between the plane seats.
You can read the full travel pillow reviews below.
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Table of Contents
Top Picks
No time to read the whole article? Here are our top picks:
- Best kids neck pillow: BCozzy Kids Chin Supporting Travel Pillow
- Best Neck Pillow for Toddlers: Trunki Yondi
- Best Car Seatbelt Pillow: SSAWcasa Seatbelt Pillow
- Best Inflatable Footrest Pillow: HOMCA inflatable travel footrest pillow
Kids Travel Pillows Comparison
Image | Title | Type | Machine washable | Check prices |
---|---|---|---|---|
Top | BCOZZY Kids Neck Pillow | Neck | yes | Check prices |
Top | NIDO NEST | Neck | yes - removable cover | Check prices |
Top | Critter Piller | Neck | yes | Check prices |
Top | INFANZIA Kids | Neck | yes | Check prices |
Top | Seat Belt Cover for Kids | Seatbelt | yes | Check prices |
Top | Inflatable Travel Foot Rest Pillow | Foot rest | no | Check prices |
Kids Travel Pillows Reviews
We have selected our pick of the best kids travel pillows and have listed them below. We have detailed all the most important features in our travel pillows for kids reviews to help you decide which is the best kids travel pillow for you.
All of these travel pillows can be ordered on Amazon and delivered to your door.
BCozzy Kids Chin Supporting Travel Pillow
This kids neck pillow provides support to the head, neck and chin in any seated position, with the chin support preventing the head from bobbing when falling asleep.
Although it is the most expensive travel neck pillow in our reviews, it is the only one in our selection that provides true wrap-around chin support.
The soft fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle into when using this neck pillow for sleeping and it can be contorted and twisted into different positions. You can also control how tight it is around the neck for added comfort.
This neck rest pillow comes in a fun selection of colours and patterns that will appeal to kids of all ages, including cow, flamingo, snake, camouflage, stars, hearts and more, as well as the ever-popular plain pink and blue.
It is lightweight, and has a snap strap to make it easy to attach to your luggage or stroller. It is also machine washable.
This would be an ideal neck pillow for plane use or a long car journey or road trip.
Features:
- Chin support prevents head bobbing
- Soft fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle
- Easy to adjust to fit each person individually
- Fun selection of colours and patterns
- Snap strap to attach to luggage
- Machine washable
Nido Nest
The Nido Nest is another good option for a microbead kids travel pillow. The microbeads make this neck rest for travel soft and comfortable, and the breathable fabric is not only soft, but cool to wear, preventing kids getting hot and sweaty.
The cover is removable to make cleaning easy. However, if you have a big spill of course bear in mind that this could soak through into the pillow.
This travel sleep pillow comes in a range of cute animal designs, including owl, frog, bumble bee and ladybug, and it has a snap on strap to attach it to your luggage or a stroller.
Features:
- Soft breathable fabric is comfy and cool to wear
- Microbead filling
- Cute selection of animal designs to choose from
- Chin snaps double as a snap strap to attach to luggage
- Removable washable cover
Critter Piller
Kids will love the cute design of these special neck pillows, which look more like soft toys than travel pillows. The range of animal designs includes hippo, cow, elephant, lion, dog, leopard and more.
Not only do these kids neck pillows double as a cute travel buddy, but the fuzzy fleece cover also makes them soft and cozy to cuddle into.
We love that the soft hypoallergenic micro-fibre filling is sustainably made from recycled materials, such as water bottles. However, we did find that this made the pillow quite firm and not as malleable as the microbead filling.
Critter Piller recommend this baby travel pillow for the neck for ages 3+, but due to the firm feel of the pillow and how thick it is, we think this would be better suited to slightly older kids. The thickness of the kids neck cushion also means that it isn’t really suitable for using as a car neck pillow in a car seat.
This pillow is machine washable.
Features:
- Cute selection of animal designs double as travel buddy
- Soft fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle
- Microfibre filling made from recycled materials
- Machine washable
- Not suitable for use in car seat
Infanzia Kids
Offering 360-degree support, this kids travel pillow is made of 100% cotton. Its surface has a honeycomb structure, making it breathable and soft and not prone to pilling.
The kid-friendly design offers wide support at the sides, but is thinner at the back to prevent small heads being pushed forward.
The adjustable snap button not only prevents the head from rolling forward with chin support, but is useful for hanging the pillow on a stroller or suitcase when not being used.
Features:
- 360 degree support
- Soft fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle
- 100% cotton, breathable fabric
- Thinner at back to prevent pushing head forward
- Snap button to attach to suitcase / stroller
- Machine washable
Trunki Yondi
We love all the Trunki products for kids travel. We have previously reviewed the famous Trunki suitcase and we have used the Trunki BoostApak a lot over the years as a portable car booster seat.
This soft and supportive Trunki travel pillow connects under the chin using hidden magnets, which prevents the child’s head from nodding forward as they nod off.
The microbead filling and soft plush fabric make this neck support travel pillow super comfortable to use.
This microbead travel neck pillow comes in two sizes: Small (for ages 2- 5 years) and Medium (for ages 5+). We did however find both sizes quite small in size and so we really recommend this as a toddler travel pillow and for younger kids.
This travel neck cushion comes in a range of cute animal designs, such as monkey, owl, koala, panda, lion and fox and also in plain blue or pink.
Another feature that makes this small travel pillow an ideal toddler travel neck pillow is the Trunki grip that allows you to attach a kids travel blanket, comforter or soft toy to it. I have however heard reports of kids getting their fingers stuck in this, so you might want to remove it if you don’t intend to use it!
Features:
- Chin support prevents head bobbing
- Soft fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle
- Microbead filling
- Cute selection of animal designs to choose from
- Chin magnets double as a snap strap to attach to luggage
- Trunki grip to attach a blanket/soft toy
- Machine washable
SSAWcasa Seatbelt Pillow
If you are specifically looking for a kids car pillow, then a seatbelt pillow can be a good alternative to a children’s neck pillow for car use. Often a neck pillow can be too thick for using with a car seat, pushing a child’s head forward and making it hard to get comfortable.
With a seatbelt pillow, you attach soft padding to the actual seatbelt, giving kids somewhere soft to rest their head and preventing them from slumping and slouching in the car.
This seatbelt pillow is filled with PP cotton and covered with soft micro-suede fabric, making it soft and cozy.
The pads are easy to attach and remove and are machine washable. It is available in a choice of grey, pink or blue.
Features:
- Soft filling & fabric makes it comfortable to snuggle
- Easy to attach and remove
- Machine washable
- Perfect for long car journeys and road trips
Inflatable Foot Rest Pillow
These inflatable leg rest pillow for plane use are inflated once on board the plane and fit in the space between your child’s seat and the seat in front to create a leg rest for the child.
I found using this blow up travel pillow a bit of a game changer for long haul flights with kids.
We used to use the 1stClass Kid Travel Pillow for our kids. You can read my full review here. By filling that space in the footwell, you effectively create a flat bed for the child, making it SO much easier for them to get comfy and go to sleep.
These pillows do take a bit of puff to blow it up by mouth, but I have managed it easily on my own with two of these travel pillows for airplanes.
You can also find them with pumps, which would save your breath! They are easy to deflate and can easily be stored in the kids hand luggage once deflated.
Features:
- Turns your kids plane seat into a flatbed
- Inflatable and easy to deflate and store
- Perfect for long haul flights
What to Look for in Kids Travel Pillow
When choosing travel pillows for children, there are a few things to consider.
- Look for a microbead pillow
- Make sure it is easy to clean
- Ensure it is easy to attach to luggage
- If using in the car, make sure it is not too thick
Firstly, kids necks aren’t as strong as adults and so, while memory foam travel pillows may be popular with adults, they tend to be too dense for kids, whose necks aren’t strong enough to push the memory foam back.
So for a kids travel neck pillow, it is best to look for a microbead travel pillow. These small polystyrene beads are more malleable and therefore easier for small kids to move into the right position.
Another feature to look for (and it sounds obvious, but you will be surprised how many aren’t) is that a children’s travel pillow needs to be easy to clean. If you’ve ever been on a flight with a small child, you will know that kids spill things ALL THE TIME.
Being stuck in a confined space for a period of time inevitably means that drinks, food and bodily fluids will get spilt at some point and so you need to make sure that your kids travel cushion is easy to clean.
Finally, a feature we find helpful in a children’s neck pillow is some kind of strap or ability to attach it to your kids luggage, backpack or stroller. This saves it being constantly dropped or dragged along the ground.
If you want to use your kids neck pillow for the car, make sure that the pillow is not too thick so that it doesn’t push your child’s neck forward when they are seated in their car seat.
From a car safety point of view, you need to ensure that your child’s back is aligned with the back of the seat and that the car seat straps are not loose.
Are you allowed leg pillows on the plane?
The only downside to these inflatable airplane pillows is that some airlines are now banning them from their aircraft for safety reasons. These include Qantas, Jetstar, United, Etihad, Thai Airways and South African Airways.
Other airlines, like Singapore Airlines have specific rules as to where they are allowed to be used, such as the window and middles seats only. Some airlines don’t specify their rules and so it can really come down to the air crew on the day of the flight.
You should therefore check with your airline before purchasing and before flying.
And that concludes our reviews of travel pillows for kids. Have you tried a kids travel pillow for your kids? What do you think?
Looking for more tips on flying with a toddler? Click here!