Travel Tips: 8 Household Items You Shouldn't Leave Home Without

Have you ever watched the YouTube video in which a guy packs everything he needs for a month-long trip in a tiny backpack? Okay, maybe you're not that travel-obsessed, but I'm sure you've experienced that moment on the road when you wish you hadn't packed so much - or, at least, had packed better, leaving some luxury items behind in favor of a few, more needful things.

When preparing to walk Spain's Camino de Santiago last year, I painstakingly weighed each item destined for my backpack. A few ounces here or there don't matter much when you're flying to Chicago for the weekend or packing for a cross-country road-trip, but even that seemingly insignificant weight bears careful consideration when you're carrying all your worldly goods almost 600 miles across an entire country!

Though something of a pack-rat by nature, I strive to be a light packer, even on shorter trips - there's something freeing about taking to the road with a minimum of goods on your back - so I'm always eagerly collecting handy tips and putting them to use on my travels. I've gathered a few favorites (including some of the more unusual ones!) in this article for you to enjoy. Of course, I'm always on the lookout for more so share 'em if you have 'em!


Check out the 8 Household Items You Shouldn't Leave Home Without, here!