accessories that will make traveling easier and more fun

Traveling the world is evidently the best past time out there, but there are things that make it even more fun than it already is, and easier. Here you go:

Notebook

For all your travel adventures, the miserable moments, the moments that made you shed some tears, the elated moments – for pretty much everything. Writing everything down is gratifying and the best part about it is that you can reread everything weeks, months or years later. Last weekend I found my notebook from Rio which resulted in an hour long read through. My god the things that kept me busy back then, crazy how fast things can change. Another pro of having a notebook is for jotting down names, phone numbers and keeping receipts, tickets and any other paper-thin souvenirs. Which brings me to my next point.

Tape

I always bring along a small pencil case filled with pens, pencils, keys and a roll of tape. It’s useful in so many different situations but I mainly use it to stick the receipts from restaurants I love, postcards from places I want to remember, written letters or other fun things  into my notebook.

Padlock

For anyone staying at hostels this is of the utmost importance. The dorms usually have lockers (and if they don’t, I recommend you find a different hostel), but these lockers don’t have locks. In 99% of the cases you have to take care of one on your own. Hunting down a padlock is annoying and you can probably rent one at the hostel but that will only build up your expenses, so I’d say it’s best you spend a few euros buying one before take off.

Sleeping bag liner

So you’re spending the night in a dorm and of course the hostels have sheets that have been washed and steamed but regardless, they’ll never be as unblemished as you’d like. Plus, you’re sharing a room with probably about 10 other people and take this for example, you’re someone who struggles sleeping horizontally in your own bed (you know, the kind who always have some limb dangling out of their own bed), then you want to do everything to avoid awkward situations. Enter: the sleeping bag liner. It’s a thin type of sleeping bag that’ll have you sleeping underneath the sheets. My dad once bought me one for an extra bit of heat in my sleeping bag and I used to think it was completely ridiculous, but it has now become one of my most cherished travel accessories.

Towel for traveling

I know May-Britt is going to cringe when she reads this, but I would advise you not to bring along a real towel (because those things are heavy and take up a lot of space) but to opt for a towel for traveling. They’re small, they dry quickly and weight close to nothing. I had one in Rio, China, New Zealand and pretty much everywhere else I went I carried along two of them the size of a dish cloth. One to dry my hair, and the other to dry off the rest of me. They are made out of micro fibers, they dry up extremely quickly after being used, you don’t have to continuously wash them and they’re available in practically any travel or outdoor store (you still hanging in there May?)

A bag for your backpack

It still surprises me each time I see a bare backpack on a conveyor belt. Any good traveling backpack has a bunch of extended loose parts that have the possibility of getting stuck somewhere in those dark hidden aisles where baggage gets sorted. In short, a backpack bag is where you insert your backpack into and secure with a lock. Another dandy thing about the bag is that you won’t have to worry about people skimming through your personal things.