Top Travel Essentials For Your Next Big, Or Little, Trip

Let’s talk Travel Essentials! For us, this list, is ever changing. Dependent on the type of trip, length of trip, where you’re going, where you’re staying, what you’re taking. It also depends on what I happen to find online, as I think I need something new for every trip. Literally, you should see my bag collection. So over the years of traveling, I have learned what works really well, and what works only sometimes.

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Here’s your one stop shop for all the travel essentials. Now of course this is all based on my, and our, experiences. It may not be the same case for everyone. These are items that we’ll be using for a while.

Top Travel Essentials For Every Trip

Packing Items

• Toiletry Bag – This hanging travel toiletry bag has become easily one of my favorite travel essentials. It’s affordable, and fits plenty of my toiletries. It’s got plenty of compartments, zippers, and pockets, making it easy to store things neatly. My favorite part is that you are able to hang it. This makes accessibility to your toiletries very easy, while not having to unpack the bag. An added plus is that it packs well.

• Packing Cubes – It took me a long time to give into these. Truth is I didn’t believe it would save that much room. I ordered these specific bags, and loved them. It also came with another toiletry bag similar to the toiletry bag listed above. I did like these for packing my rolling suitcase, as I feel like it definitely helped storage. I could fit so many more sweaters, shirts, and pants using these. Very helpful for a colder trip, like the one we took to Alaska. However, I did not find them helpful for packing my backpacking pack. I struggled with it saving more room this way.
• Compression Bags – Compression bags for traveling was something I never knew I needed. I can’t find the exact ones I purchased a few years ago, but these ones are pretty much exactly what we have. Let me tell you these, bags saved us SO much room when we backpacked through France and Switzerland. Especially in regards to packing sweaters and sweatshirts. They are super easy to fill with clothes, roll, and get rid of the air in the bag. This gives you a compressed and compact way to travel. Also really good for storage at home.
• Travel Bottles – This travel bottle set comes as a 16 pack, and I absolutely love the convenience. With 2 oz and 3 oz bottles, spray bottles, small containers, and all the things needed to clean and insert your liquid toiletries seamlessly. I have had great luck with no leakage, and easy storage. It’s nice to be able to use this set to take any specific, or expensive products, traveling with you; without having to purchase new separate TSA approved sizes.

Extra Essential Items

• Selfie Stick/Tripod – Phone cameras nowadays allow you to zoom out far enough, typically, to get everyone or all the background you want in a picture. However, I love this selfie stick + tripod combination. It allows you to set up your phone on any surface, without having to find something to lean your phone against, and get the pictures you really want. Then, of course, you can also use it as an extra long arm for those great selfies. Highly recommend, especially if you’re someone who dislikes bugging or asking people to take a photo for you, or if there’s no one around. Easy to pack too!

Top Travel Essentials For the Beach Trips

• Waterproof Phone Case – We loved having these waterproof cases for our trip to Mexico. We were able to take awesome underwater pictures, with no water damage to our phones. This product has been tried, and it is amazing. Nice that it also allows for easy carrying, as you can wear it around your neck. It is also super affordable. We were able to go pretty deep into the water, as shown in the picture.

In summary

Our travel essentials list is ever changing and evolving. As we go on new trips, and find new products, we find what we consider essential changes. One thing that stays the same is we love products that make things convenient and easy, so we can focus on what travel is truly about – making great experiences. These travel essentials are things we find we will probably use for the foreseeable future, but be sure to check back to see if we have any new finds we love and love to share with you!