Going on vacation or planning a road trip soon? While the destination is fun, the travel experience is often less than stellar. From packing to making the most of your time in the car (especially with kids), a few traveling tips can go a long way toward making your trip more enjoyable.
WE don’t like delays or breaking some security lines in our trip to a new destination, so we need to get everything carefully planned. Here are the best travel tips and tricks and tips that we’ve found. So, start packing!
Traveling Tips and Hacks for Making the Best of Your Trips
1. Best Tip on How-To to Fold a Shirt When Traveling
Sometimes, the clothes in your packing list just challenge you to go out of your comfort zone and learn new ways on how to pack a backpack, a big travel bag, or even a small bag. If you like to pack light, learn how to fold shirts to save space in your luggage. Every little bit of space matters. After all, who wants to drag tons of bags around? To get the biggest bang for your buck when packing, in most cases, we recommend rolling over folding. Believe it or not, folding leaves creases or lines on your shirts, while rolling them provides a much smoother result.
2. Traveling Tips – Keep Small Essentials in a Pillbox
If you’re a small essentials keeper, losing one earring in the airport, cruises, or hostels can be a nuisance. Use a pill compartment to keep track of small items, like jewelry. Have you ever lost your favorite earrings or found your necklace broken, thinking they were in a secure pocket or baggie? This puts a damper on the whole trip and causes undue stress. This little travel tip will help things go much smoother. Plus, pillboxes are easily found at the dollar store. The only downside is you can’t get bigger items, like hoops or big dangles, into the compartments.
3. Pack Shoes in a Shower Cap to Protect Clothes
This is a simple trick, but one you’ll enjoy. Think about it, we walk everywhere and there are tons of germs and bacteria on the soles of our shoes. One of the best traveling tips I’ve learned is to pack your shoes in a shower cap to keep them from touching your clothes. Another idea is to put your shoes in a plastic grocery bag before packing them in your carry-on.
This way you have peace of mind when you wear your clean t-shirt, towel, and outfits on your trip. Yes, you’ll avoid instant dirty clothes and dirty laundry when you pack your shoes this way! If you pack delicate or expensive shoes, you may want to give them some extra protection. Try wrapping them in an extra layer, such as a soft, thick scarf or some comfy jammies. That way both your clothes and your shoes get to their destination unharmed and everybody’s happy.
4. Use a Travel Planner
Never just look at each other and wonder what to do!! The Camping planner includes not only ALL the checklists you could need to make sure you don’t forget the important necessities, but also a GIANT list of roughly 50 memory-making activities for your kids to enjoy while you are camping… and the best thing is it’s only $7!! You’ll never miss anything: from the basic local language that you want to learn to the current exchange rate, to the local food in the local markets you should try!
5. Dryer Sheet Tip – Keep Clothes Fresh While Traveling
Put a dryer sheet in your suitcase to keep clothes smelling fresh and amazing while you travel, no matter how long it takes to reach your destination.
Plus, the TSA may even thank you. Dryer sheets absorb odor as well as moisture, and your clothes will smell like fresh laundry when you unpack. (Here are even more ways to use dryer sheets around the home.)
6. Waterproof Containers for Your Traveling Products
Leaking essentials (such as shampoo and toothpaste) can tone down a fun adventure. There is one of the smart recommendations you can try! This is a great idea for a short overnight trip, for your carry-on, or even for a camping weekend. To make single-use packets of your favorite products using drinking straws, you’ll need:
- straws
- pliers
- a lighter
- a marker
- your products
Cut your straws into 4-inch strips, add some product, then pinch one end of the straw with the pliers and heat with a lighter until the plastic melts and seals together. Add the rest of the product to your straw, seal the other end and label your single-use packet with the marker. Enjoy.
7. Traveling Tip to Protect Clothes from Your Razor
We’ve all had those times when some of our items get damaged because our razor falls out of its “safe place”, and starts flopping around in our bag. Here’s a way to prevent that from happening. Put a binder clip over your razor to protect the blades (and your clothing)! Genius traveling tip! Now, you don’t have to awkwardly ask some locals where you can get a razor in a suburb surroundings. And check out these binder clip hacks for even more clever ideas.
8. A Unique Traveling Tip for Your Beauty Products
This resource is so cool if you want to pack light but don’t want to leave your makeup behind. Do you have extra cases for your contact lens? Look around and see if you have extras because as it turns out, you can put your makeup in contact lens cases for short trips. You can use them to store your cream concealers and your lip glosses too! Who wants to lug all those bottles and containers around?
9. Traveling Tip Earbuds
Do your earbuds have this magical power of knotting themselves the moment you let go of them?
Kind of like a magician has rolled them into a little ball? Mine do all the time! Then, I spend seemingly hours unknotting them. I love this travel tip because contact lens cases are also great for transporting earbuds. Who knew? Why didn’t I ever think of this? This hack is my new friend!
10. Another Great Travel Hack for Your Earbuds
Do you have empty mint containers laying around? Now you can keep your earbuds safe as a little bug tucked in a rug. Mint containers are fantastic earbud holders. They’re small and compact so they won’t take up much room in your luggage. Travel to new places with music on, without getting irritated by knotted earbuds.
11. Keep Track of Those Sippy Cups on Long Trips
Aside from the important documents, credit card, debit card, and a list of the tourist attraction you want to visit, your kiddo’s sippy cup is one important thing you should ALWAYS keep track on.
Always reaching for the kids’ drinks when they drop them? Put those sippy cups on a leash! You can easily attach them to the car seat with a band of elastic. Never lost those cups again.
12. Turn a Potholder into a Curling-Iron Holder
Use a heat-safe potholder to store your curling iron, flat iron, etc. We still recommend letting your tools cool completely before packing them, though! Just run a stitch up the side vertically and across the bottom. Then, poof, you have a cute curling iron holder. How cute is this?
13. DIY Soap Tip for Your Traveling Convenience
Of course, we’d love to be clean after a walking tour on the beaten path. Make one of these handy soap pouches instead of packing a loofah! It makes a great soap saver and so easy to DIY. It sews up quickly and takes about 5-10 minutes, once you gather all the essentials. You can even use an old washcloth for this simple project, and even add a convenient loop if ya like, to hang.
14. Simple Traveling Tip for Your Bobby Pins
I never thought bobby pins would be on my traveling tips list, but this one is too good. It’s never fun to lose your hairpins when you’re on an overnight trip. Store your bobby pins in an empty Tic Tac container. It’s the perfect size to carry them in your luggage, plus it’s cheap and convenient as well. (More uses for Tic-Tac containers here!)
15. Genius Hack While on a Road Trip With the Kids
If your vehicle has third-row seating, it’s hard to reach things to the rear passengers. Create a pulley system to move things back and forth instead! This is an excellent way to pass common things, like snacks or toys back and forth, especially if ya don’t wanna turn around for the hundredth time.
16. Store Money in a Lip Balm Tube While Traveling
This is, for me, one of the top travel tips you should try to do ALWAYS. Stash some cash in an empty Chapstick tube. This is a less likely target for thieves as they usually target wallets, money clips, and items of value, but don’t forget where you put the tube. Of course, it won’t help you much if they nab the entire bag.
17. Traveling With Kids – Phone Number Bracelet Tip
Make phone number bracelets for the kids to wear while you’re traveling. I know from personal experience how difficult it is when a small child runs off. This doesn’t replace supervision but just in case, it’s a good idea to teach children what to do in case they ever do become lost. Knowing how to find a parent’s number is definitely one step in the right direction. Here are even more tips for traveling with kids.
18. Candy Necklaces for Kids When Traveling
It’s pretty simple to make candy necklaces for kids to keep around their necks, for those moments when ya need a spare snack. To DIY, all you need is any candy with a hole, (like gummy lifesavers or sweet tarts), ribbon, and scissors. What a unique idea for a snack when on a long road trip; of course it would come in handy for party favors or even prizes for staying quiet in the car as well. The possibilities are endless.
19. Fun Traveling Tips – Games for the Kids
No road trip is complete without a few fun games for the kids. Playing games in the car is a great way to pass the time, and also create amazing memories with your kids. Bingo is a great game that can be adapted to the car, with things like magnets or stamper markers, so they can stamp the square when they find the objects. Some other great games are:
- I Spy
- Taking turns spotting a red or green car
- or even how many different license plate states they can find
Also, asking the kids for fun traveling tips is always a great idea.
20. Unique Traveling Tip for Your Phone When Flying
Have you ever been bored while traveling on low-cost airlines that have no entertainment? Learn how to fashion airline barf bags into a holder for your smartphone. This only takes a few minutes but will require several bags. But hey, free entertainment!
21. Road Trip Travel Tray
For those trips that include hours and hours in the car, you can turn an old cookie sheet into a travel tray for the kids. This is a great idea for kids, especially if they’re still in a car seat. The pillow at the bottom helps to keep the travel tray steady, while on the road, turning the entire trip into a happier experience.
22. Washcloth Travel Kit Holds Your Stuff
A washcloth travel kit makes it easy to tote your favorite products to the shower. Once emptied, it turns into a soft mitt for washing your face. And it’s really easy to make… no expert sewing skills required.
23. Travel Hack to Prevent Necklaces From Tangling
Use straws to prevent your necklaces from tangling in your luggage. Have you ever gotten to your destination, only to find your necklaces in tight little knots? This travel tip is easy to implement, all you need are straws. Slide the necklace through the straw and fasten it to keep the chain from getting tangled. Easy peasy.
24. Clothespin Toothbrush Holders
Even though most of us have dryers, it’s a great idea to keep some clothespins around the house. They’re good for so much more than hanging clothes to dry, plus they make handy dandy toothbrush holders. Bring along a couple of these contraptions, to keep your toothbrushes propped up off the hotel bathroom counter. (See more clothespin hacks here.)
25. Travel Hack to Keep Products from Leaking
You probably already have everything you need for this travel hack. If you pack full-size bottles of lotion, shampoo, or conditioner, you’ll wanna keep your products safe. Place a small piece of plastic wrap between the bottle and cap to prevent leaking. Unpacking then becomes a much better experience for everyone.
26. Paper Activity Tips to Keep the Kids Busy While Traveling
Make a road trip countdown activity chain to keep the kids entertained during a long car ride. There are so many different activities that can be added to this activity chain, just use your imagination. You can add ‘specific games’ to a paper link, or ‘who can be quiet longest’, maybe even ‘time for a sing-a-long’… This is one of my favorite traveling tips because it’s super simple, and I know the kids will love it!
27. Use a Paperclip as a Luggage Lock
Lose your luggage lock? A paperclip can keep the zippers together in a pinch, so you don’t have to worry about your luggage unzipping.
28. Travel Snacks in Plastic Easter Eggs
Keep those plastic Easter eggs around all year long. They make great snack holders for the kids during road trips. Just put the eggs in an egg carton, and you’re all set with a variety of snacks.
29. Travel Snack Kit
Alternatively, a small tackle box with lots of compartments serves as a great snack organizer, too. This is a great way to turn a simple snack into entertaining fun. Out of the 28 traveling tips, this is probably one of the most creative.
Love These Traveling Tips? Check Out These Other Travel Tricks:
- TONS of Clever Camping Ideas
- 15 Clever Ideas to Organize the Car
- You’re Probably Packing Your Luggage Wrong
- Car Snack Station
Which travel tips and hacks are you going to try on your next family trip?
