Hotel Hair Dryers Are Notoriously Bad. This Travel Dryer Is Better.

My friends would scoff at this statement, but I used to be a light packer. Once upon a time, I put my trust in free-to-me hotel amenities. Body soap? Covered. An iron? They always have that. Hair dryer? Guaranteed—but it’s probably a really bad one.

I picture the tiny cream-colored hair dryer that resides in hotel bathrooms, and a shiver runs down my spine. What would be a somewhat enjoyable step in my getting-ready routine became rushed, frustrating, and unsatisfactory due to the archaic hotel blow dryer. The air was never hot or powerful enough. The cord was always too short. My hair would end up looking mid at best.

Because of such conditions, I’m now known to bring my large-and-in-charge Conair InfinitiPro on practically every trip. It’s heavy, and it doesn’t pack well, but it’s better than hotel dryers. Despite its undesirable heft, it has been a pick in our best hair dryers guide since 2020 because it checks the two most important boxes: It’s hot and fast.

So a tiny-but-mighty hair dryer, as the Panasonic Nanoe Compact Quick-Dry Hair Dryer seems to be, is intriguing to me at first sight. This foldable hair dryer claims to help you maintain salon-quality style while you’re traveling—a veritable dream for me, as someone who uses heat-styling tools multiple times a week to achieve the smooth look I like.

While this dryer has been around for a few years (Panasonic patented the dryer’s technology in 2005), the company more recently rolled out a limited-time, complementary designer bag from New York City–based luxury-fashion label Monse that’s available for purchase in a bundle with the dryer on the Panasonic site. The buzzy collab is what put the dryer on our radar.

I tested this hair dryer for three weeks on my thick and wavy hair. I experimented with various methods and brushes to work toward the claimed salon-quality results, and I packed it in a few different bags to test how compact it really is. Because I already owned our budget pick, the InfinitiPro by Conair Quick Styling Salon Hair Dryer, I compared the results of a rough dry using the same paddle brush with both dryers.

I also paid a visit to a professional stylist to get their take on this unique dryer, and I consulted our in-house grooming writer, who has tested hair dryers for more than three years.