5 TRAVEL TIPS FROM A SERIAL MISHAPPER
I have recently become very aware of the fact that I am heading incredibly close to the tender age of thirty when my friends started asking for suitcase sets for Christmas. Yes, I have also shared one or two thoughts about my favourite features in my latest collection of antlers suitcases over the 4th gin and tonic at 4 in the morning with friends, and I AM NOT ASHAMED OF THAT HAHAHHA!!!
I am currently sitting in my garden in the midst of a pandemic, shmeered some tanning oil on myself hoping I can replicate the golden tan one gets on holiday and frankly failing miserably at it. I have my laptop on my lap as I obsessively refresh my web browser on Skyscanner, wondering where will the next destination be, or which border will open up next. So I appreciate the irony of publishing a blogpost featuring traveling hacks. To add some insult to injury, I also have a collection of ridiculous mishaps that have happened to me during traveling: I have lost my passport in the airport once and consequently missed 3 flights with my ever so strong optimism in being able to find it by the next flight. I have travelled with a shoe sticking out of my suitecase, having ran out of packing space. I have also walked out the airport with the wrong suitecase, tried to open it and thought I had forgotten the code, and only realised when I saw a lady screaming down the airport wheeling the same exact suitcase as mine.
But when you have lived through some serious travel ordeals, one gets really good at learning how to avoid them or deal with them.
Lets just say that these travel ordeals have taught me some valuable lessons over the year which I would love to share with you.
- I have found travel boxes to be the best accessory for messy packers. I’m the kind of packer who takes around like honestly no joke 8 hours to pack the eve of my flight. I seriously overpack and then have the worst time trying to find things. The packing cubes from Antler have been the perfect essential that has helped me categorise everything which means you don’t even have to think when you pack and unpack and means you can fit so much more if you are like me and pack your clothes like it’s a washing machine. It also means that once you reach your destination, its also easy to find what you are looking for, rather than battle with the heaps of clothes you have thrown into your bag.
- I hate travelling with perfumes. I am very precious about how I smell and love to have my signature perfume with me wherever I go, but I have found that every time I put my perfumes in my suitcase, they leak, I have tried different bottles, different brands, wrapping them in clingfilm or plastic bags, it just never works, and obviously if you take it in your cabin luggage it has to be in a labelled bottle less than 100 ml which is usually not the case with my perfumes. So I changed tactics and started carrying around scented creams, the particular one that I have is the Alexander McQueen body cream, which stops any unwanted leaks, and if you don’t have enough time to freshen up after your flight you can just decant a dollop into a smaller container and you’ll have perfume with you wherever you go.
- This one has been very popular with beauty blogger, and I must admit I have joined the party quite late on but once my friend told me about this, I’ll never go back. I have found that my skin gets very dehydrated when I fly, and I would try and pop a bit of face cream in my bag to help but actually using a hydrating sheet mask a few hours before you land is the best way to keep you relaxed on the flight, and keep your skin hydrated and happy. I must admit we startled the fellow passenger in my isle when he woke up from their nap looking at two monster faces with sheets on, but I kept it on my face till it dried and I felt fresh as a daisy when we landed from an 8 hour flight to Cancun.
- Identifiable bags. Yes, I have walked out from an airport once with the wrong suitcase and had to profusely apologise when the lady with the matching bag chased after me. Growing up, I had taken it for granted, that my parents had these bands that had our names on them, so after a long flight, it was very easy to identify which one is yours without even the possibility of someone walking off with them or vice versa. I have in the past bought bright suitcases which I must admit helped, but I know there are many brands out there that do large tags and bands that you can customise for yourself.
- Clever packing is key. I like to pack clothes that all fit within a similar colour range. So that I can mix and match outfits easier. If I am going somewhere sunny, I pack lots of pale colours that all work together in terms of tops, skirts dresses. This will also come in handy when it comes to accessories and jumpers, shoes, and handbags, which in turn will as a result save you loads of packing space.
photograph obtained from:https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/55239532915931863/
I hope this helps with your future travels, and please be sure to send me some of your useful travel tips.
Christina x