Travel Essentials: A Few of My Favorite Things

Throughout my various travels, I’ve tried a variety of different items. Here are some of my tried and true favorites.

For Packing Everything from a Weeklong Trip to a Month: Tom Bihn Aeronaut 45 bag and packing cubes – I’ve used this bag for week-long trips within the U.S., for my four month study abroad experience in Spain (see this post for my packing list), for a month spent in Thailand and Cambodia, and more. It’s perfect for all of those situations and is the perfect carry on size!

Shower Shoes that you can Wear on the Street: Ipanema Women’s Mayan Thong Sandal* – I’ve walked all over Spain and Thailand in these stylish yet oh-so functional sandals and have had them for years. Did I mention they were only $20? It looks like Ipanema stopped selling this exact pair on Amazon, but similar versions* are available.

A Classic Pair of Tennis Shoes: Converse* – These shoes never go out of style, and Europeans wear them too (in colors like white and grey). They’re perfect for walking for miles each day while traveling. I’ve brought mine on almost every trip!

A Good Daypack That’s Cooler Than Your North Face Backpack: Fjallraven Kanken* – This classic backpack is perfect for carrying a lot and keeping in style with the locals (I saw these all the time in Europe and in Asia!). While smaller than a normal backpack, it can still fit quite a lot and is perfect for carrying extra jackets, cameras, water bottles, souvenirs, you name it. I also like the snap at the top because it makes everything feel a little more secure.

A Good Camera to Document the Trip: Canon Rebel* – I’ve loved my Canon Rebel T3i and have taken on many trips throughout the past 6+ years. The Canon Rebels are great basic DSLR cameras that will do everything you need and more for travel. It looks like the latest version of the camera* even comes with built in WiFi so that you can directly upload photos to your smartphone – perfect for uploading photos during your travels!

Something to Keep your Water Cold: S’well bottle* – You never know when you might find water while your traveling, especially free water. That’s why I always make sure to have a water bottle on hand during my travels. I absolutely love my S’well water bottle! It’s cute and keeps water cold for up to 24 hours. The bottle is slim and fits easily into bags and never leaks. Their bottles come in multiple sizes too, depending on your preference. I’ve had both the 17 ounce and 25 ounce sizes and love the 17 ounce size. It fits a good amount of water and isn’t as big and heavy as the larger size (which apparently can fit a whole bottle of wine).

I have some travel apps that I consider essential too! Check them out here. What are your travel essentials? Let us know in the comments below!

*Disclaimer: I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you real information on domestic and foreign travel.

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