Travel: Ten Easily Forgotten Travel Essentials

 Ten Easily Forgotten Travel Essentials

With holiday season around the corner, I thought it might be fun to share a few suitcase summer essentials with you all. I’m imagining a trip to Italy with this one, but many of these are relevant for so many destinations! Also, for anyone curious, this rather lovely suitcase is by Linea at House Of Fraser, for years I had grubby looking, hard-to-wheel suitcases, but now I have a hefty collection of great suitcases. This one is great as it’s black so my boyfriend isn’t embarrassed to wheel it around, it has a hard shell and super sturdy! Anyway, onto ten easily forgotten travel essentials.

Passport, Travel Documents, ESTA, Vaccinations, Currency & Travel Insurance

I know it sounds crazy, but the amount of times I have almost forgotten my passport and travel documents. Similarly, if you are travelling to America, make sure you have a valid ESTA. I once had to apply for an ESTA in the car on the way to the airport and the amount of times I have had to withdraw currency front the airport because I forgot to go to M&S to exchange money there. (Tip: M&S generally gives you the best exchange rate)

Adaptor Plug

Often forgotten, but oh-so-essential. I have a whole heap of travel adaptors and I often end up taking them all, just in case. Even if I’m in America, I will often find myself with Europe plugs in my suitcase, just for fear of packing the wrong one. LBQ showed me her Smart Plug and I rushed out to get one. This bad boy has all the major plug in one handy cube, as well as USB plugs. Brilliant!

Out-of-office

Put on your out of office, I’m talking personal and work. If you have an answerphone message, change that to an out of office too and if you are going far-a-field, consider turning your answerphone off as you can be charged a lot for your answerphone taking calls. (especially if you get PPI / car insurance calls daily like I do!). You may also want to pre-pay any bank transfers, credit card bills etc. and stop any paper deliveries, Graze subscriptions too.

Suncream & Aftersun

Never, ever, ever forgot these two. Layer it on and if in doubt, take extra, just in case you use more than you expect or your friend has forgotten theirs. My absolute favourite is Dermalogica’s Sport Factor 50 and After Sun Repair. The suncream works flawlessly and feels more like moisturiser than sunscreen and the aftersun is wonderfully healing and soothing if you do get caught out. I once missed a bit and I layered this on all evening and the next day all the redness and soreness was gone. Brilliant!

Travel Mini’s & Multi-purpose Products

Whilst many hotels do provide the essentials, it’s always best to have your own, just in case! I save up mini’s from Glossybox, Love Me Beauty and magazine freebies and take them away with me. Also, don’t forget to take a multi-use balm with you, as these can be used for hands, lips, heels, elbows and anywhere you might have forgotten cream for!  In terms of make-up, try and pack waterproof eyeliner and mascara and multi-use products like lip and cheek stain. Also make sure that you have plenty of highlighter and bronzer so that you can get the glow, even if the sun doesn’t give it to you. There are plenty of shimmer body oils out there too, which gives you a glow and nourish your skin. Personally I love Too Faced Royal Oil, it saves time, effort and suitcase space and it’s a treat to use!

Backpack & Handbag

Y’all know I love a handbag, but leave the new Chanel at home and take something cute you don’t have to worry about. You don’t want to skip dinner on the beach for fear of getting a sandy handbag. Pack something in a neutral colour (like this Sophie Fleming shoulder bag) which will work with any outfit, also make sure it’s got a good clasp on it to ward off pick-pocketters! It’s also worth having a backpack for any day trips, something nice and big to fit in your sun cover-up, water and sunscreen which you can carry around hands-free. Personally, I’m obsessed with this Leo Studio Design, isn’t it cool!?

Footwear

Holidays generally mean a lot of walking, so make sure you have flip-flop’s,  Birkenstocks, as well as going out shoes. However, do many sure that you have one super-comfortable pair of shoes which you can rely upon if your new sandals rub. I don’t know why, but I often get sore feet on holiday from new shoes, so an old slipper-like pair of Converse can really save the day! Also, pack a couple of plasters too, just to be on the safe side!

Sunglasses

An every day essential for me, even more important when on holiday for protecting your eyes from the sun. I often pack a couple of pairs, just in case! You never know when you are gonna loose a pair, or need to lend a pair to a friend. If in doubt, double up! PS. Don’t forget to head over to this post to enter to win a all-expenses paid trip to NYC with Sunglasses Shop (which is where these sunnies are from!)

Perfume

There’s nothing better than having a beautiful new fragrance for a holiday, you can wear it every day and feel great and when you return home, it will remind you of sunny days! I have reserved this bottle of Liz Earle Botanical Essence No. 20 for my next holiday. It smells of rose but with a really fresh twist, as it contains notes of jasmine, mandarin and bergamot, there is also a touch of pink pepper in there too! Floral, fabulous and the perfect summer evening fragrance!

 Books, Magazines & Podcasts

Try and have a *bit* of a digital detox whilst you are away, pack a book, pack your favourite artsy magazine and maybe download a podcast or new album to listen to on the beach. Don’t worry about being too high-brow, no-one on the beach is going to judge you for reading something trashy. Nor will they care if it’s Kinfolk or Cosmo sticking out your beach bag. One of my all-time favourite books is Valley Of The Dolls, Betty Magazine is always worth a read and there is a new issue just out now. As for Podcasts, if you have not yet listened to Serial, it’s time to get on it!

Happy Travelling! I hope this list has been of some help to any holiday makers out there!