Cooling Towel for Sports, Workout, Fitness, Gym, Yoga, Pilates, Travel, Camping & More

I bought this towel a month or two ago, but wanted to put some good uses on it before I reviewed it. I've taken it to multiple indoor workout classes, hiking a couple times and horseback riding once on rather hot days. I don't really perceive the extra cooling properties it claims to have over regular fabric type objects, but then I never do with these types of items, despite trying a few different kinds. However, it does cool when wet, so I still say it performs as advertised.I tend to get overheated very easily, and this towel does keep me cooler than no towel or a dry towel, and at least as cool as any other wet towel would. However, even if it works only exactly as well as any other wet towel, I prefer this one for a few reasons. Its long rectangular shape is super handy. I can wrap it around my neck and tie it loosely so it will stay, or drape it so it goes down onto my chest (or down my back if I wouldn't feel like I was choking if I did that). I can put it over my head and also cool my cheeks and neck. Very versatile. Also, it's thinner and lighter than, say, a terrycloth towel of the same dimensions would be, yet still retains the moisture for at least as long, maybe longer.In the indoor workout classes, there wasn't much of a breeze, so it didn't feel as cooling as it did in my outdoor activities, but was still much better than a dry towel or no towel at all, and was a welcome relief to wrap it around my face during brief breaks. For hiking, it was great--I wet it in a creek, and it stayed damp a long time. I switched up between having it around my neck, draped over my head and down the sides, or tied around the top of my head. For horseback riding, I draped it over my head before putting my helmet on over it. I was doing quite a bit of trotting (8-ish miles an hour or so), and there was a dry hot breeze, so it dried out rather fast. It didn't become any more uncomfortable than just my helmet, but also wasn't helping any more at that point, so I removed it. Would've been nice to have a creek nearby to re-wet it, or I guess I could've sacrificed water from my bottles, but it was nearing dusk so I didn't bother.Excellent product, love the color selection, and the only improvement I can think of would be to add a grommet to the towel so the free carabiner that's included could be used on the towel itself, and not just the plastic envelope it comes in.

I bought seven of these, in different sizes and colors, on impulse during a lightning deal. They're to keep our whole party cool during a trip to Disney later this summer. In hindsight, I probably should have bought seven different ones for comparison, since I've never actually used a cooling towel before.Anyway, when I took them out of the bag, they had a plastic-y, chemical smell. I washed them as instructed on the bag though, and the smell came out completely. These towels do stay cool. They got my t-shirt a little damp, but they didn't drip, and I don't imagine any of us will mind dampness when we're in line at the park. If you're looking for one to wrap all around your head and neck, you'll need at least a large, but a medium worked well for me as I don't picture myself walking around that way. I was able to drape the medium around my neck my neck, bunched up in the back but spread out on both sides, and it was like wearing sleeves of coolness which would work amazingly with a tank top. I kind of wished there was a little hole in either side of the towel so I could use the matching carabiner (a handy little bonus) to make it into a cape.The towel stayed cool a long time, and when I dried it, it came out soft and folded nicely back into its pouch. The only downside is that the pouch is where the plastic/chemicaly-y smell came from in the first place, and now it will only stink again when I get it back out. I did wipe the pouch out a bit in hopes of minimizing that, but we may decide to package them differently for the parks if the smell keeps transferring onto the towels.Edit: I'm adding a star, because smell of the pouches aside (we ended up tossing the pouches and just bringing a ziplock bag to toss them into) these cooling towels are excellent. They were lifesavers at Disney, and we've since used them on trips to the zoo, Six Flags, and the state fair. They're great to have at the gym, and for yard work. I haven't noticed any decrease in their cooling ability, and after multiple washes they still look new.

Here is what I like:The sizeThe colorThe travel pouchIt keeps you cooler than not having oneWill cool when you flip/whip itDoesn't dry stiffHere is what I don't like:It certainly doesn't stay cool for as long as they claim.On a really warm, sunny day, it will dry out quite fastYou need quite a bit of water to keep it lastingUsed it on a very hot, humid day during EAA in Wisconsin. Had soaked it and wrung it out for first use. After maybe an hour or less, it was drying out. Had to keep flipping/whipping to release the water droplets and it would cool you for a few minutes, but felt you had to keep whipping it. Eventually it dried out. Had only a half bottle of water left and couldn't get the whole towel wet enough.Overall, it is better than no towel at all and does make the hot days somewhat more bearable, but don't expect this to be like an all day, keep you cool solution. And make sure you know if there are water fountains or bathroom facilities with sinks (versus port-a-potties) where you are going. Buying water bottles to dump on your towel isn't very cost effective.

Worked very well at keeping me cool enough to be bearable.