I am a sensitive sleeper, and have a dialed-in home sleep setup. When it comes to travel, I’ve become fed up with never knowing what discomforts I’ll find in my temporary accommodations.* So I came up with a compact travel sleep kit that has transformed my zzzs away from home and vastly reduced the number of exhausted days dealing with a sore back and/or neck.
I am a side sleeper - a dedicated knee pillow was the best discovery for improving my sleep quality at home and away, especially this model with a strap that keeps it from dislodging during sleep. Less stress on the spine. No more back pain in the morning. I’m sure back sleepers can find a similar under-the-knees memory foam pillow.
My small memory foam pillow beats pretty much every shape and size pillow I’ve had the displeasure of knowing at hotels and Airbnbs around the world. Some side sleeper folks may need a larger pillow - for reference, I am 6’1” 165 lbs.
I picked up this REI 10L compression stuff sack and it fits both my pillows perfectly. It also fits nicely inside my 28L daypack when fully compressed along with my laptop, a toiletries bag, a book, and a couple changes of clothes.
For an eye shade, I use a soft t-shirt - I prefer this over any eye shade with a strap I’ve ever tried. If you prefer a dedicated eye shade, there are many good ones to choose.
For ear plugs, I like my Loops with the mute added in. If I don’t want to wear ear plugs or want additional sound protection, I’ve found that a white noise app like White Noise Lite works wonders.
For me, sleep is one of the most powerful medicines I have access to. It is also something many people seem to struggle with, so I’m happy to share more about how I’ve been tuning my sleep.
*If you find that many Airbnbs and hotels offer you better sleep, you might take that as a nudge to invest more in improving your home setup!