Planning a vacation or business trip? These are the most important travel essentials for men you should always pack ranging from the right clothing to must-have personal items.
Make sure you start packing early enough. It’s easy to forget something that ruins the whole trip. Give yourself at least a week to organize everything you’ll need to carry.
1. The Right Sized Travel Bag
Before you begin packing, figure out where you are going to put your stuff.
If it is an extended trip, a suitcase or a large duffle bag is the best choice. You can fit everything you need for the trip inside.
For a shorter trip, a backpack or a larger rucksack will suffice. Make sure the bag has plenty of compartments (including a cushioned pocket for your laptop or tablet if you are carrying them) to organize your stuff.
Even if you plan to carry a suitcase or duffle bag, it’s a good idea to also carry a smaller daypack inside. After all, you can’t walk around the whole day with your entire luggage.
2. Toiletries and a Toiletry Case
You probably don’t need as many toiletries as your wife or girlfriend but there are some essentials you should always have with you.
- Toothbrush & toothpaste
- Toilet paper
- Anti-bacterial or baby wipes
- Deodorant
- Lip balm (trust me, you’ll need it)
- Shaving gel and razor
- Lotion or moisturiser
- Sunscreen
- Face and body towel
And anything else you feel you can’t do without whether it’s your special shampoo or mouthwash.
3. Comfortable Clothing
Clothes will take up most of the space in your bag. To avoid making the bag too heavy, go lightweight. This is not the time to pack your favourite pair of jeans and hoodies.
Unless the weather where you are going is really chilly, you only need a couple of warm items to last you several days. As for the other clothing items, pack light and compact stuff like short sleeved shirts, t-shirts and chinos.
You can even decide to pack less and buy cheap clothes wherever you’ll be.
Don’t forget to pack comfortable shoes. Have at least two pairs plus some comfy sandals for use in the hotel room.
If you’ll be doing a lot of walking, make sure your shoes won’t torture your feet. If you don’t have a good pair of shoes in your closet, there are plenty of comfortable men’s walking shoes you can buy online.
4. Medical Kit
A must have whether you are going for a business conference or hiking deep in the woods.
Make sure it contains essentials like bandages, pain killers and eye drops. If you are going into the wild, you’ll also need insect bite salve and bug repellent.
If you are currently taking any medications, add them to the kit.
5. Noise Cancelling Headphones
You’ll appreciate these if you are planning to fly or take the train. Look for a nice wireless pair from a trusted brand like Bose.
6. Power Bank
You’ll probably be carrying a few gadgets with you that need to stay charged. Get a power bank with enough capacity to keep your devices juiced throughout the trip.
If you are only carrying your smartphone and tablet/kindle, a small to mid-size power bank will do. If you are also planning to carry your laptop, get something with more capacity.
For longer trips and especially camping or hiking, I highly recommend a portable solar generator. You can keep your devices charged no matter how long your trip is.
Note that some solar generators don’t come with solar panels. You have to buy them separately.
7. Kindle E-reader
If you prefer physical books, make sure you carry a couple. Some magazines too. The internet can get boring or you may be somewhere with no WiFi.
If you are taking a longer trip, a Kindle is the best option. You won’t have to worry about running out of stuff to read.
You can read as many books as you want, keep up with the news through subscriptions to E-newspapers and read magazines like The Economist.
Kindle batteries typically last for weeks or even months. So you don’t have to worry about recharging it. And if the battery gets low, most smartphone power banks can easily recharge a kindle.
