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After 3 international trips last year-one for about a month with two kids, these are the things I leave in my carry on at all times. Even at home, because I’m forever forgetting things when I’m packing. Lists are a must!
Laundry Detergent
I love these detergent sheets! They not only make your laundry smell good, but also they make your bag smell nice as well. Added bonus when you are traveling and have dirty laundry/shoes in there, things can start to stink fast! These sheets are eco friendly AND they are similar to dryer sheets so they don’t cut into your precious liquid amount. They are super easy to use-just toss one into the wish with your clothes and let the magic happen.
I feel like everyone carries one with them anyways, why not take them on your travels? Perfect for that small stain of ice cream your kid just spilled on themselves. Ask me how I know lol.
Clothing Line
Because sometimes travel isn’t glamorous and you need to do laundry in your sink. When we traveled through Europe I did laundry almost every night to stay ahead of laundry. I feel clean laundry is easier to pack than dirty. I got a routine down by the end of it. I like this one, it comes with the clothes pins attached to it with sliders to keep them in their place. It also has hooks you can hook it to and easily hang it across the bathroom or wherever you find space.
Eye Mask
I got my kids some cute animal eye masks but went with an upgraded one for myself. It is gel around the eyes and comes with ear plugs. This was a game changer when we were on the plane (economy on the way over haha). I also made my kids use them when we were above the Arctic Circle-growing up in a similar environment I knew what to expect and came ready! No one wants your kids staying up all night on vacation.
Packing Cubes
Some people love them-some don’t. I’m team packing cubes/compression cubes. Not only can you fit so much more, I also appreciate the organizational aspect of it. I have yet to upgrade to the more expensive ones but these are the compression cubes and these are the packing cubes I use. I typically put underwear, socks, tshirts, and leggings in the compression cubes since they easily compress. Although this summer I stuck our winter coats in them!
Charging Cube
Originally I had bought some expensive Anker Charging Block, but it’s a block that doesn’t travel well. So I went with this travel charger. It charges slowly, but it’s good for overnight and doesn’t use up a ton of cords. I like to charge my watch and airpods on it but you can charge your phone if your phone has wireless charging capabilities.
Portable Charger
Because Google Maps and Google Translate are a lifesaver! I typically will bring two portable chargers since my phone is a little older and dies faster. I like the anker wireless one but have found it’ll stop charging if it’s in my pocket so I use this one since it plugs into the charging port and stays in place better. I’ll use my Anker if I’m at a restaurant or somewhere I can assure my phone stays attached. If I know I’m going to be gone for a period of time I will sometimes actually bring a box with a cord as well. If you know me, you know I’m terrible with directions and somehow I still got on the wrong train in Belgium so just know you don’t need to take all THREE one would probably be sufficient for a normal traveler.
Cord Organizer
As much as I try to cut down on the amount of cords I take, I still end up with a few. I like that this one has elastic to hold the cords in place and then zipper pockets for extras like blocks. I do take this out of my carry-on since it has my blocks in it, but I probably shouldn’t since one time I went to legoland without my watch charger. All those missed steps that didn’t get logged!
Adapter
I like this one because it works for almost all countries. Certainly all the ones I’m going to. You just slide out the type of plug you need. I have started to use it even when traveling in America since it has one universal socket, 3 usb-c and 2 usb-a ports. I typically will only take one block with me, this adapter and my 3-in-1 charger.
This takes up a bit more space but if you are wanting to use a hair dryer or a straightener you’d need a voltage converter. I never actually needed it for that purpose, but my tween used it to charge her devices since it has two plugs, a usb-c and a usb-a port.
