Our Favorite Travel Essentials and Fun Items to Pack Along

One of my favorite parts of summer is that it is travel and road trip season! Bring on the days at the lake, weekend trips, and road trips! My bet is that you have something fun planned for the summer—whether it’s a camping trip, a road trip, or a flight somewhere new.

Since travel essentials are fresh in my mind after our trip to Spain, I thought I’d write up a quick post about some of our favorites. While there, we pretty much traveled on every mode of transportation—airplane, metro, train, bus, mini-bus, and taxi! Our kids did an awesome job at rolling with the punches on some long travel days, and I think having a few essentials (and extras) on hand helped our travel days go so much better.

I’m a believer that you don’t need to be fancy when it comes to travel stuff. In fact, I think the more simple you keep it, the far easier it is to manage (especially if you are hauling it from place to place). So, if you are looking for a list all the cool travel gadgets and gizmos—this post is probably not for you ;)

So, here we go:

ps. if i look tired in this photo, it is because i was so so very tired ;) And can you spot my fancy compression socks?—ha!

Quality travel bags/gear. There is nothing worse than having a bag fall apart on you or not hold up to multiple uses (spoken from an experience here). Last year, we invested in a few Walker Family Goods bags, and they have been absolutely worth the price (but we did buy them on sale). They’ve held up to camping trips, road trips, multiple flights, airport days, and many weekend trips. We have this and this duffle, this backpack, the and bay bag. I’ve been gifted a few, and will probably keep adding them to my birthday and Christmas lists—ha! Of course, you can stick with any brand/type you love—but if you travel a lot, it’s worth investing in some higher-quality gear. Ps. You can often find some slick deals for nice travel gear on Facebook marketplace or Poshmark if you are open to buying it gently used :)

If you fly, it’s nice to have a decent pair of headphones. For years, I used the ones the they gave me on the plane, but they hurt my ears. This year, my hubby gifted me these for my birthday. They are high-quality at an affordable price point. And I love the color! Plus, I can wear them at home when I need a little quiet ;) We got these ones for the kids. For the super low price point, I’ve been happy with how they’ve held up.

For the kids, it’s nice to have a few small games and activity books to pull out during layovers or while traveling. On our last trip, we brought along Spot It for my youngest, Monopoly Deal for my oldest, and this cute sticker book for my middle guy. But, they could all share them and play together. That’s all we brought for two weeks—and it worked! These are often our go-to choices for road trips too. We also travel with my kindle, and I’ll load a few books on there for my kids to read too.

For days that you are out and about, a crossover bag is nice for hauling all the gear like water bottles, money, bandaids, toilet paper (don’t ask me how I know…), etc. My hubby likes a small backpack, but I prefer to use my Kavu bag. I’ve had it for years, and it’s held up super well. It actually fits a surprising amount of stuff!

A water bottle that actually keeps things cool and doesn’t leak is also nice, right? I’ve tried a lot, but my Owala bottle is my favorite! I love that it has a spout and a straw—the best of both worlds.

I’ve also enjoyed using this packable lunch bag for keeping food/drinks cool for a few hours while traveling or at the beach. I like that it folds up and fits easily in my bag and has a built-in freezer pack (so no extra hassle with ice or freeze packs). Plus, this one has lots of cute patterns and colors to choose from!

Since we generally travel light, having versatile, cute, and comfortable shoes is a must. I would be absolutely remiss if I didn’t tell you about my favorite travel (and, well, everyday) sandals. My tan marks in the summer prove it ;) I got the Elle Backstap sandals last May, and they are still going strong a year plus later. So comfortable and great support! I walked all day in these in both Italy and Spain—and my feet felt so good even after walking 8+ miles in a day. I also recently got these Allbirds. They had no break-in period and were also super comfy for walking all day.

For our kids, we also like to bring along their Yoto. I wrote up a post all about them here. In Spain, they pulled these out when we needed to relax at our Airbnb, on trains and airplanes, and while riding on buses. They are also great for road trips! If you don’t want to go the Yoto route, a mp3 player could also be a travel-friendly option :)

Of course, you want to be prepared for scrapes or sickness while traveling. I’ve loved these little bags for hauling some meds from home, this cute little bandage kit for my purse, and these little boxes for pills/vitamins. Call me a grandma, but I also got a pair of compression socks for the flight and they helped my ankles not swell up during flight (they usually swell a bit when I fly).

That’s about it! We travel pretty light when we fly (usually just carry-ons, backpacks, or duffles) and try to keep the stuff/clothes at a minimum (having a mix-n-match wardrobe is helpful!). We pack snacks in plastic bags, grab things we forgot at a local store when we arrive, and try to maximize space with compression cubes (I wouldn’t really recommend the ones we have—but they work for now). Of course, this is how our family rolls—and I know every family is different. I bet some of you reading this couldn’t image traveling without allll the things—and that’s okay!

But I think the best travel essentials are a having a flexible attitude and enjoying the experience with people you love. You can get all the snazzy gear, but it’s not what makes the trip memorable. So, even if you have a beat-up backpack, old tennis shoes, and headphones that make your ears hurt—go out and make awesome memories with people you love!

How about you? What will you absolutely not leave behind on a trip?

Ps. Don’t forget to print and enjoy all those photos you took while exploring and traveling!

*Some of these links are affiliate links. That just means that I make a tiny commission if you purchase something through these links. But I am only sharing things I personally have used and loved!