Lauren’s Carry On Must-Haves

We all know traveling can be stressful, especially when traveling by plane. Whether it be a 6-hour flight with a 9-hour layover, three connecting flights, or even just a quick one hour direct flight, it’s going to be the worst part of the trip. One thing to help travel stress and anxiety is to pack a smart carry on. You don’t have much room, so it’s good to plan ahead and really figure out the essentials. Today, I’ll be telling you my go-to carry on essentials that help me get through a flying experience successfully.

The items that I cannot fly without all involve personal hygiene. Airports are disgusting, and being on a plane always makes me feel gross, so I like to pack toiletries in my carry-on to combat these woes. Travel sized deodorant, baby wipes, and hand sanitizer will allow you to stay fresh and combat germs. I’ve been on trips where I’m travelling for roughly 24 hours, and if I didn’t have these items I would be just about a biohazard. In my experience, deodorant and some wet wipes will carry you through till the next time you’ll be able to shower. Another thing I like to put in my carry on is dry shampoo. This is really essential for when I have some place to go as soon as I leave the airport when I get to my destination and don’t have time to shower first. It will leave your hair non-greasy looking and smelling fresh.

In addition to toiletries, I like to pack plenty of snacks and an empty reusable water bottle. All food and beverages are insanely overpriced at airports, so bringing your own will save you some serious cash. Flying can really take the energy out of you, so I like to pack snacks with protein and vitamins to keep my energy and morale up. My standbys are nuts, fruit, and granola bars. In terms of beverages, you’re not allowed to bring open containers through security, so dumping out your reusable water bottle right before going through and then filling it up again will save you from buying two or more waters. There’s always water fountains in airports, so why buy water when you can have as much as you want for free?

The last category of items in my carry-on is entertainment. I once had a nine-hour layover in the Newark, New Jersey airport, and people always ask me: what did you do for that long? After walking around every inch of the airport, I was thankful that I brought necessary items to prevent me from going stir crazy. I like to pack a book and headphones, so when I get tired of watching Netflix I can read, and when I tire of those I can listen to music. Headphone are, in my opinion, the number one most important item to pack. I cannot bear to sit on a plane and not listen to music, especially if there’s a screaming child on the flight. The last item I’ll recommend you to pack is a phone charger. You do not want to be stuck with a dead phone, so always make sure you have a charger nearby. Planes these days will have outlets, so in case you can’t charge in the airport at least you can during your flight.