Essential Packing List and Travel Tips

Organize + Streamline
for Easy Travel

 
A woman points at a map and sits down to organize her travel plans.

Stress-free is the way to be.

Ease the mental load as you prepare to leave your home for your next travel adventure with these tips below!

 

Store travel-related items together

I always recommend having a dedicated bin for “travel accessories” (i.e. travel-size toothpaste). These are items that you only use when you travel. When they are all stored together, you simply have to select what is relevant to pack for this specific trip.

Things to do before your trip

  • Create a calendar reminder alert to remind you when to check-in for your flights.

  • Save confirmation numbers, reservation times, important trip addresses & contacts in a digital note for fast access.

  • Place a travel alert on credit cards and bank accounts.

  • Depending on length of your trip, put mail delivery on hold for free, here.

  • Consider travel health insurance.

  • Pre-charge any electronics so they are at 100% to start (I always do this for my electronic toothbrush!)

  • Have plant babies? Give them some more water before you go or setup a plan to have someone come water them.

  • Take out the trash! Don’t want to come back to a smelly home.

  • Tidy up the home - there is nothing sweeter than returning to a tidy home after a long day of travel!

Packing List

I’ve created a free download for a comprehensive travel essentials packing list below. Here are the general categories to remember to pack:

  • Clothing - daywear, nightwear, sleepwear, athletic/swimwear, outerwear, undergarments, and accompanying accessories like jewelry, shoes, hats, and purses/bags. I also recommend packing a plastic bag for separating dirty clothes from clean.

  • Toiletries - toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, face cleaner/makeup remover, deodorant, sunscreen, bandaides, nail clipper, vitamins/medicine, contacts/glasses, and bug repellent.
    Optional: body wash, shampoo, conditioner, lotion (many hotels will have this).

  • Beauty products - makeup, comb/brush, hair styling tools & accessories.

  • Electronics - phone chargers, headphones/airbuds, camera, GoPro, and portable charger power bank. *If you are flying, make sure to pack wired buds with a 3.5mm headphone jack to take advantage of in-flight entertainment.
    If traveling internationally: adapters. Not sure which adapter you’ll need? CheckPlug is the hero we all need.

  • Entertainment - when there’s downtime, options could include a book/digital reader, playing cards, and journal/pen.

  • Food - I highly recommend traveling with a reusable water bottle (and filling it at the airport), snacks to ward off sudden hunger (like snack bars), and mints to keep your mouth feeling fresh on the go. I also like to bring immunity boosters with me like EmergenC or Airborne to stay healthy while traveling.

  • Bag Essentials - hand sanitizer, tissues, pen, chapstick, and hair ties.

  • Most Important - passport/driver’s license, wallet with credit cards/cash, and phone - if you at least have those items, you can make anything work! 😊

Don’t forget a thing!
Fill in the form to download your free travel essentials packing checklist:

Helpful Travel Organizing Products

  • Passport Wallet: this one for the solo traveler and this one is great for families needing to hold more than one passport.

  • Portable Charger Power Bank: I love this one because it’s slim and is like the swiss knife of power banks — it has built-in cables for different devices!

  • Packing Cubes: Packing cubes are a game-changer for solo travelers and families with multiple kids. With multiple kids, assign each child a different color packing cube set. Or use cubes for different types of clothes. Or use cubes for different days. Either way, it keeps things organized and easy to find!

  • Electronic Cable Organizer: for fast and easy access when you need to charge up your devices, use an organizer like this.

  • Travel Jewelry Box: I was gifted one similar to this for my wedding, and it was so useful not only for packing my jewelry for the wedding, but other travel trips, too!

  • Universal Adapter Plug: grab yourself an international adapter plug that is all-in-one like this.

  • Luggage Scale: Guarantee your luggage is within the weight and dimension requirements with this luggage scale with hook that also has a built-in measuring tape.

  • Laptop backpack: If you are traveling with a laptop, this one by Timbuk2 makes travel easy with a separate padded compartment to keep your laptop protected.

How-To, TravelStacy LeeFreebie