Jen's Holiday Travel Tips & Tricks
With the holiday season upon us, most of us look forward to moments with family, delicious treats, and sentimental traditions. With that, I think we have all experienced the dread and anxiety that can come with traveling. Chaotic airports, living out of a suitcase, and congested roads can all be incredibly stressful. I am here to give you my top tips for an efficient and (almost) effortless travel experience.
I know most of you have heard the standard tips like book an early morning flight, download travel apps, and to keep an eye on the weather for your travel day. Instead, I want to give you my expert opinion on packing for the holidays. I will be sharing with you everything from saving space in your suitcase, keeping your belongings secure, and so much more!
Tip #1
Utilize a packing list. If you have been following me for awhile, you already know I swear by the benefits of writing lists (for literally everything). Whether your medium is the notes app on your phone or pen & paper, take the time to write a packing list. I suggest starting with general categories. Here are some of the ones I use as an example: toiletries, documents, financials, health/medical, essential clothes, casual clothes, formal clothes, shoes, accessories, gifts, and miscellaneous. From here, you can fill in the specific items, like passport under documents, or daily probiotic under health/medical.
I, personally, have a packlist template on my phone that includes a checklist of the essentials I need for every trip. This way, I can just simply add in the specific items I will need that are unique to my holiday trip. This will eliminate any chances of frantically stressing if you forgot anything.
Tip #2
Find the perfect fold for your chunky sweaters. I think we have all experienced unfolded sweaters taking up all the space in your luggage, which also leads to an inevitable wrinkly sweater. Believe me when I say, those days are gone. Folding your sweaters properly will save space and sanity when it comes to packing. If you are a visual learner, I recently did a step-by-step tutorial on reels of how I love to fold my sweaters. Here is a simple summary:
Lay the sweater out flat in front of you with the arms outstretched.
Fold in one side with the sleeve facing out.
Fold the sleeve over and down.
Repeat on the left side.
Visually cut the piece of clothing into thirds and fold starting from the top.
Complete fold
Tip #3
Plan your outfits. I know this step can feel over the top or not necessary, but trust me when I say, once you pre-plan your trips, there’s no going back! If you’re anything like me, a lack of outfit planning means an eclectic assortment of clothes (with nothing that goes together nor makes sense with the weather)!
If you are needing some outfit inspiration, here are some of my favorite looks I will be wearing all holiday season. Once you have all the outfits for each day picked out, pack each of them together as one unit! By doing so, you’ll never forget what top goes with what bottom (added bonus: it’s a suitcase space saver).
Tip #4
Struggling with shampoo spillage in your luggage? This one's for you! Put a bit of plastic wrap between the bottle and top, to prevent any spillage. All you have to do is unscrew the top of any liquid you are packing (shampoo, conditioner, face wash, etc), overlap a piece of plastic over the hole of the container, and finish by screwing the top back on. I haven’t dealt with spillage since doing this trick!
Tip #5
I can’t even begin to count how many times I have packed necklaces for a holiday trip and am left with a small ball of knotted jewelry. If you have experienced the same struggle, try using a plastic straw! Unclasp your necklace, thread it half way through the straw, and then clasp! The days of knotted holiday jewelry will be over for good!
Tip #6
Find the products that help make packing organized and traveling stress-free for you. Here are some of my absolute favorite travel items!
Cord Carrier - $10
Weekly Pill Organizer - $10
Packing Cubes - $23
I hope these tips support you as you travel for the holidays. For more holiday prep tips, take a peek at our IG REELS, PINTEREST, TIK TOK, & NEWSLETTER
XX
Jen