Make Your Travel Deliciously Easy

Sep 7

I love to travel but don’t love the parts of travel that feel like work.

Airports, long flights, unfamiliar transportation, living out of a suitcase and trying to remember where you put the charger can take some of the shine off even the most wonderful trip. Over time, I’ve learned that a little preparation makes an enormous difference. Just like cooking!

These are the things I do and pack to make international travel feel calmer, easier and a little more luxurious.

Start With the Flight

I think of my personal item as my survival kit. Anything I might want during the flight goes under the seat rather than in the overhead bin. I hate getting up to rummage around in there!

I bring a lightweight wrap, compression socks, a good eye mask, noise-canceling earbuds, lip balm, hand cream, medications and a toothbrush. I also keep a portable charger and charging cord within reach.

Always pack medications and one change of clothes in your carry-on. I learned long ago that hoping your suitcase arrives with you is not a travel strategy.

Before leaving home, I download a book or two (The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley and Theo of Golden by Allen Levi for this trip), podcasts (Amy’s Table, anyone?) and something to watch. Airport Wi-Fi is not where I want to discover that my entertainment isn’t available.

Make Your Phone Work for You

Your phone can eliminate a whole lot of travel clutter.

Before leaving home, I download the airline app, add boarding passes to my Apple Wallet and download Google Maps for the places I’m visiting so I can use them offline.

Google Translate is another essential. Download the appropriate languages ahead of time, and remember the camera feature. Pointing your phone at a menu, sign or label and seeing a translation appear feels like magic.

WhatsApp is worth having for communicating internationally, and I make sure I understand my cellular plan before I leave the country. An international plan is much easier to arrange from your kitchen than from airport arrivals.

I also keep digital copies of important travel documents where I can access them if something goes missing.

A Travel Uniform

I have finally accepted that travel is much easier when most of the things in my suitcase work together.

Choose a color palette and bring pieces you can wear more than once, plus layers for changing temperatures. Scarves and jewelry take up almost no room and make basics on repeat feel different. The goal is to open your suitcase and know that almost everything works together.

And shoes have to earn their place. International travel involves far more walking than everyday life, often over cobblestones and uneven streets. Comfortable walking shoes are non-negotiable.

Pack for Real Life

Packing cubes are the best. I organize mine by category so I can unpack quickly and find things without tearing apart my entire suitcase.

I also bring a packable tote for the unexpected extras that somehow appear during a trip. (Yes, my purchases.)

A small crossbody is my preferred sightseeing bag. I want my hands free and only the essentials with me: phone, sunglasses, tissues, lip balm, portable charger and a little cash.

I keep another small pouch entirely for technology: adapters, cords and chargers. Everything goes back into it when I’m finished. There is nothing luxurious about crawling around a hotel room looking for the charger you swear was beside the bed.

Make Your Room Feel Like Yours

Whether I’m in a hotel or cruise cabin, I unpack.

Clothes go into drawers, still in packing cubes, or onto hangers. Toiletries go into the bathroom. Chargers get plugged in. The suitcase gets put away.

It takes ten minutes and completely changes how I feel in the room.

I also bring a few tiny comforts from home: good hand cream, my usual skincare, a favorite sleep mask and comfy pajamas. Sometimes luxury just means waking up in another country and knowing exactly where your glasses are.

Protect Some Empty Space

This applies to both the suitcase and the itinerary.

Don’t pack your suitcase until you have to sit on it to close it. Leave room for something you find along the way.

More importantly, don’t schedule every hour.

Some of my favorite travel experiences have happened because there was time to linger over coffee or a glass of wine, wander into a shop, sit somewhere beautiful or change the plan entirely.

Seeing more at the expense of enjoying it makes no sense to me. I’d rather come home remembering how a place felt than counting how many attractions I checked off a list.

Worth a Spot: Apple AirTag

If I were going to recommend one small travel purchase, this would be it.

I put an Apple AirTag in my checked suitcase. It takes up virtually no room and allows me to see the location of my bag through the Find My app on my iPhone.

While it can’t make an airline put your suitcase on the correct plane, somehow knowing whether your bag is beneath you, still sitting at your departure airport or somewhere else entirely can remove the stress of uncertainty. For something so small, it earns its spot!

My Best Travel Advice

Prepare for the predictable things so you have more energy, patience and good humor for the unpredictable ones.

Know where your documents are. Charge your devices. Wear comfortable shoes. Give yourself more time than you think you need. Pack fewer clothes and a lot more equanimity.

Then embrace the unexpected. Somewhere between the airport, the wrong turn, the long lunch and the place you never planned to find is usually the part of the trip you’ll still be talking about years later.

Bravery and adventure! That's the ticket! - Garrison Keillor

Worth a Spot

Even though I’m suggesting that it’s important to pare down and not overpack, I still want a special little luxury for the trip.

I’m grabbing a Caudalie Lip & Hand Duo ($12 at Nordstrom) for the flight. Caudalie is a French skincare brand, and this set includes a travel-size hand cream and lip conditioner. They feel far more luxurious than their modest price.

Amy Tobin