Travel Hacks

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We love to travel! However, the process of getting to and from where you are going and making sure you have all of the right items can be a beast! Through the years we have learned some great lessons – some the hard way, but I thought I would pass them along to you and hopefully, they will make your next travels smooth sailing!

TSA Pre-Check

TSA Pre-Check has been amazing for my family! Shorter security lines, don’t have to removed your coat or shoes or belts, don’t have to remove your computer or liquids under 3 oz. It was like the old work of travel – simple and easy. Click here for more info.

Disposable Coffee Cup for the Airplane

This is one of my favorite travel hacks. My friend Lainie told me about it while we recently on a trip. So you are traveling with your kids and the beverage cart comes around and your son asks for an apple juice. They pour it in those little plastic glasses and you try to make room on the seat back tray – you move the iPad out of the way, the snacks, the crayons and coloring book. BUT, it never fails, someone bumps the seat or you hit some turbulence and the very full cup spills and splashes. Lainie suggested to pack a few of those paper coffee cups with lids and ask the flight attendant to pour the drinks in those cups instead – genius!

Emergen-C

Airplanes are a breading ground for germs. You get someone on the plane who is sick – coughing and hacking and sneezing and the germs spread throughout the plane. I used to travel for business and every time I would come home with a cold or flu or something awful. So I started taking Emergen-C a few days before I left for a trip, while I was on the trip and for a few days after I get home. Since I started doing this, the travel flu has been few and far between.

Travel Antibacterial Wipes

So I am a total germaphobe. As soon as we get on the plane, I have my kids wipe down the tray tables, armrests, etc with antibacterial wipes. I also wipe down some key things in the hotel room when we get there – doorknobs, light switches, locks, toilet seat and handle, faucets and the remote control. (side note, I beg you, do not use the seat back pocket on the airplane – it is a cesspool of grossness – people put their used kleenex, barf bags, dirty napkins and cups – don’t…. just don’t!)

Plastic Zip Lock Bags

You will be surprised how much you will use these. When we are on a cruise or at a breakfast buffet, I will grab some extra cereal boxes, granola, dried fruit for snacks later in the day. We also put the hotel TV remote in a bag (goes back to my germ problem). They are great for wet bathing suits when you have to leave and your suits are still wet. The uses are endless.

Dryer Sheet in Suitcase

Keep your suitcase and its belonging smelling fresh by placing a dryer sheet in your suitcase.

Pack in X-Large Ziplock Bags

This is one of my favorite packing hacks, especially if we are packing more than one person in a bag or moving locations a lot. We will pack all of the kids in these bags and it is really easy to find everyones stuff when we get there – unpacking is a breeze. Added bonus, you can squeeze the air out of the bags and compact your belongings to fit more in the bag!

Pill Container for Jewelry 

I love this idea! Use a pill container to keep your jewelry organized while traveling! So smart!

source: Troy Bumpas Inn

Power Strip

This is my favorite! With 5 of us, we have a ton of electronics to charge every night. Hotels and cruise ships generally have an outlet on the desk, but that may be it! Bring your own power strip to turn that one outlet into 6 outlets! (Added bonus – when you are at the airport and people are hoarding the charging outlets – ask to plug this in and make some other travelers happy too!)

Wrap Shoes in Shower Cap

Don’t put those dirty shoes on your nice clean clothes, wrap them in a shower cap!

source: Real Simple

Check out Travel Guide from Library

There is a ton of information online about wherever you are going, but it isn’t always very printer friendly. I like to check out the latest travel guides from the Libray and copy just the pages you are interested in. We will highlight place we want to go and things we want to see and take notes of restaurants or tips that we can share with others along the way. I love Rick Steves guides – they are always very helpful and accurate.

Empty Water Bottle

Water in the airport is highway robery. We will bring our own empty water bottles and fill them up once we clear security. We will also refill them in the hotels and carry them around the city. Many airports and cities now even have water bottle filling stations. Better yet, get an infuser water bottle, ask the hotel bar for a couple sliced lemons or grab some fruit off of the morning buffet and have your very own infused water!!

Leftover food from a Restaurant

We aren’t huge eaters and typically have leftovers when we go out. We are likely to eat them in the hotel room, but we like to get them packaged to go and if we see a homelss person on the street on our way back to the hotel, we will offer it to them.

Trip Advisor

Trip Advisor is my absolute GO TO! I will not book a hotel without looking at the reviews. I feel like they are honest, accurate and completely unbiased. We have booked many hotels based on Trip Advisor recommendations and they have all been spot on!

Seat Guru

Seat Guru is one of my favorite tools – you can select your airlines and then your airpland and find out the good or bad seats on that plane, before selecting your seats. They tell you which seats don’t recline, which have extra leg room and which are by the bathroom – genius!

The above post contains some affiliate things for products and services that I absolutely love!

I know there are tons of other travel hacks out there – tell me your best one?!

Looking for some other travel resources – click on the pictures below to read some other of my articles!