Camping Pillow

Camping pillows, judged on packed size and on what they do to a neck

A camping pillow earns its place in a pack for one reason: a bad night outdoors ruins the day that follows it. The range covers inflatable designs that fill in a handful of breaths, compressible pillows stuffed with foam or fibre, and roomier shapes meant for a tent you drive to. The filling matters less than the answers to two questions: how small does it go, and does it still hold the head up once the air has settled.

Inflatable or compressible: which type suits the trip?

An inflatable pillow packs to a fraction of its inflated size and adds almost nothing to the load, which is why the backpacking and ultralight versions are built that way. The trade is feel. Air is firm, it can squeak against nylon, and a slow leak turns a good night into a flat one. Foam pillows behave like a small cushion from home, forgive a poor head position and never deflate, but they take real room in a rucksack. On a trip where the sack already holds a sleeping bag, food and spare layers, that difference usually decides it.

Why does a camping pillow slide away in the night?

Because the surface underneath is far smoother than a mattress at home. Nylon on nylon sends a pillow off the mat within the hour. Three things stop it: a brushed or textured top face, a width that sits between the shoulders rather than perching on the edge, and a raised head end to fall back against. Some designs carry a strap or elastic loop that anchors them to a sleeping mat. Surface matters too: a self inflating mattress with a soft fabric face grips better than a bare air mat ever will.

Which camping pillow details are worth checking?

• Packed size: measure it against the space left in the lid pocket, not against the pillow's own inflated dimensions.
• Valve: a two-way or flat valve lets air out in small amounts, so firmness can be dialled down without starting again.
• Face fabric: brushed polyester or a stretch knit avoids the sweat-and-slide problem that bare coated nylon creates.
• Shape: a contoured cut with a dip in the middle suits side sleepers, while a flat rectangle suits anyone who sleeps on their back.

Does a pillow still make sense outside a tent?

It matters more there. Sleeping under a bivy bag leaves no porch to spread kit out in, so something that inflates by mouth and stows inside the bag saves a lot of fumbling in the dark. In a hammock the same logic applies in reverse: a narrow inflatable sits neatly in the curve of the fabric, while a thick foam block folds and pushes the head forward.

How should a camp pillow be stored?

Store it unrolled with the valve open, so neither the foam nor the internal coating spends months compressed. Wipe the face fabric instead of machine washing anything with a bladder inside, and let it dry completely before it goes back into a stuff sack. When a leak appears it is nearly always at a seam or around the valve base, and soapy water finds it in a minute.