Packing can be a crazy fiasco if you don't have an organized system, or if you are just throwing things into random bags. With the bag size requirements and the TSA rules, packing can seem impossible, but as long as you keep these 10 items in your carry-on, your travels will be easy, breezy, beautiful.
1. Collapsible Water Bottle (or regular bottle) with a Filtering System
Waters can be so overpriced at the airport and when your on the plane the tiny bottles can barely keep you hydrated during your flight. After you get through security, fill it up with tap water and enjoy. When you are done you can just roll it back up and throw it back in your carry on, or even clip it to the outside of your carry-on.
2. Portable Charger/ Phone Charger
Since your phone is your primary source of everything during the flying process, investing in a portable charger is definitely not a waste. Never again will you have to fight for a charger against the wall or at those crowded tables, now you can keep a charge at your gate, or even on the plane, As your ticket, entertainment, and way of communication during travel, you should never go without a charge.
3. Important Documents
Obviously, you should keep your passport, wallet, and flight ticket with you at all times of travel, but don't forget about other documents like your travel itinerary, hotel reservations, and even your transportation or car rental reservations. It's always smart to have a backup printed version of all your mobile reservations, just in case you didn't pack your portable charger.
4. Valuables
Keep all things valuable to you in your carry-on. Camera's, laptops, jewelry, and anything of importance should be with you during your trip because while airports are doing much better at preventing airport theft, there are still some incidents in where important items seem to go missing.
5. Extra Clothes
A hoodie and fuzzy socks are a must on longer flights because the cabin of the plane gets pretty chilly once you reach the higher altitudes. It's never a bad idea to also bring an opposite item of clothing to what you are wearing. For example, if you have shorts bring a pair of pants and vice versa.
6. Good Snack
While soda and a bag of pretzels do sound quite luxurious, packing your favorite snack (or snacks), can make your trip so much better. Also, snacking on good food makes time go by so much quicker.
7. Toiletries
Being in a confined space, really close to a bunch of random people, you can't forget to stay fresh! Have a toothbrush, some travel-size toothpaste, a sheet face mask, facial wipes, and most importantly you cant forget lip balm and moisturizer because the high altitude can be extremely dry.
8. HAND SANITIZER
Planes are low-key kind of nasty because you don't know who sat in your seat before you, so don't forget to bring your handy dandy sanitizer. You can use it to sanitize the seats, the trays, even the seat belts.
9. Entertainment
Pick up some magazines, a book, or bring a tablet, because of most flights ofter on-flight wifi and entertainment, so you can watch the most recent blockbusters. If you don't want to deal with a tablet you can use your phone or download lots of movies onto your phone.
If you just have your phone, Netflix allows you to download some TV shows to watch when you don't have wifi. Here's a tip for hand's free entertainment on your phone. Pack a ziplock baggie, and then place your phone inside, and close it into your seat tray.
Here's an example:
10. Do not Disturb
Lastly, don't forget your eyemasks, earbuds, or headphones. Nothing's worse than being on a plane with noisy people, or you get sat next to that person who wants to tell you their whole life story, and all you're trying to do is take a power nap.
