To be honest, I’m not a huge fan for long roadtrips. I always dread the drive there and back again. The open road, the playlists, endless Starbucks stops are fun for the first few hours before everyone falls asleep and the driver has to be alert and awake. This Memorial Day weekend, my friend and I decided to do a 12-hour drive split into multiple legs—visiting a few friends along the way to a wedding, which was only 7 hours from Los Angeles. We felt it was a better alternative than flying up to San Jose than having to drive another 4 hours to the wedding venue would have been 9 hours with the hassle of car rental. I realized something that honestly made me question the way we think about travel comfort: whether it’s by car or plane, why is it always the neck that takes the hit
Car seats these days are 10 times more comfortable than airplane seats—no contest. But they still completely miss one essential thing: proper neck support during the drive for the driver. They’re designed for posture, sure. Lumbar support, leg angle, seat height—they’ve thought of everything except that crucial few inches between the back of your head and the headrest. And on long drives or in bumper-to-bumper traffic, that tiny gap becomes a big problem.
That realization didn’t come to me in a focus group or from a customer review. It came to me 2 hour before hitting Santa Cruz, when my neck started screaming at me.
The Drive That Sparked Everything
We were heading up from Los Angeles to Nevada City for a friend’s wedding( 9 hours nonstop and zero traffic): real life 12 hours total, broken up into three legs and starting at 4 am:
• L.A. to Santa Cruz (6.5 hours for lunch)
• Santa Cruz to San Mateo (1.5 hours for dinner)
• San Mateo to Nevada City (3.5 hours to Airbnb)
The first two hours were fine. But by hour four, I started shifting in my seat every few minutes, adjusting the AC, sitting up straighter, then slouching down again. It didn’t matter. The tension in my neck and upper back was building fast.
While filling up the gas tank, which I always gas up when my tank is on half, I reached into the back seat and grabbed my Bolstie. I had packed it like I always do—stuffed with some emergency changes of clothes, soft and compact. I like being prepared and boy am I glad I did. Usually I bring it on flights, where it shines and always have 2 in my car for naps. My friend in the passenger seat was snuggled up with the other Bolstie. But this time, I was desperate to try something different. I looked at the headrest in front of me, looked at Bolstie, and had an idea:
What if I strapped it around the headrest to fill that awkward gap behind my neck? I tested my theory out while the car is parked at the gas station. It seemed to work but the rest test would be on the road.
Guess what? It did! And it was like flipping a switch.
I didn’t have to tilt my head too far back or slump forward anymore. I could just sit normally, hands on the wheel, neck relaxed, supported, and stable. The neck pain faded, the drive got smoother, and I suddenly realized I’d been missing this trick for years.
This Small Shift Changed the Whole Road Trip
I was so excited I immediately told my friend in the passenger seat, “This is about to change both of our lives for the rest of this trip.” She laughed—until she took over the driving hours later and tried it herself. She couldn’t stop talking about how much better it felt. “Why isn’t this built into all cars?” she asked. Good question.
When I wasn’t driving, I shifted into full passenger mode. I reclined my seat I used Bolstie like I would on a plane. In a reclined position, the front sling worked in the car like it did on a plane. I love to lean my entire weight onto Bolstie. With only a slight recline, I wedged Bolstie between the car door and my upper shoulder, then leaned into it with both my body and my head. Omg, this is magical.
I slept like a baby.
And when I woke up and it was my turn to drive again, I actually wanted to. I wasn’t stiff, sore, or dreading the next four hours. That never happens on long-haul road trips.
Bolstie Was Designed for Airplanes—But It’s a Road Trip Hero
Before this trip, I mainly talked about Bolstie as the best neck travel pillow for flights. It fits in a personal item, it’s washable, adjustable, and incredibly versatile. But this road trip opened my eyes to a whole other level of usefulness.
Now I genuinely believe that every car should have one—or everyone who have to drive long distances like commuters and truck drivers, especially for big holiday drives like Memorial Day weekend, when you’re stuck in traffic for hours and your body is taking hit after hit. What is a holiday roadtrip without being stuff in bumper-to-bumper traffic. But this time, I didn’t even stress out. I was chilling, enjoying the music, and leaned my head back.
Trust me. I tested those neck wrapping pillows as well- same problematic issues on planes in the car. No support but they do get hot and sweaty. Other neck pillows aren’t built for driving or flying.
But Bolstie is different because:
• You decide how firm or soft it is (based on what you pack inside).
• It wraps securely around car headrests-driver and front passenger
• It doubles as an extra lumbar travel pillow when your lower back starts to tighten up after mile 200.
I created Bolstie to solve problems during travel, but on this trip, I realized how big the problem really is on the road—not just in the air, especially for reducing stress and jet lag.
Final Leg: The Drive Home
Wanting to spend time with our own families on Memorial Day, we decided to leave the wedding after lunch, which ended around 2:30pm. The drive home from Nevada City to Los Angeles—another 6-hour drive—which would be 9 pm. I was curious to know if the comfort wasn’t a fluke. Was I tired during the drive home? Of course, but I noticed something strange: I wasn’t dreading the drive. I wasn’t just trying to “make it through.” I was actually comfortable.
That’s the moment that sealed it for me. I always knew Bolstie worked on flights. But now I knew it worked just as well on the road. Maybe even better, because most of us drive more often than we fly.
What I Hope You Take Away From This
If you’ve got a long drive coming up—especially over a holiday weekend like Memorial Day, Labor Day, or Thanksgiving—please don’t let your neck suffer. You deserve better than a sore back, a stiff neck, and a grumpy arrival.
Whether you’re the driver or the passenger, Bolstie gives you options. And in the world of compact travel pillows and adaptable support gear, that’s the whole point—comfort that fits your life, wherever the road takes you. Bolstie has a permanent spot in my car. Isn’t it ironic that Bolstie is wrapped around the neck of my car seat headrest—where it’s meant to be rather than around my and yours neck.
Safe travels out there!
