Hi everyone!!!
I hope you enjoyed our guest posts from our buddy, Jessica! I really appreciate her covering me for a portion of my travel time, but I actually have some free time now to throw up some posts of my own. I was surprised at how much I missed the blog during this past week and some change (well, I’m missing a lot of things to be honest), so I’m glad I got the opportunity to get back to business!

Since I do travel quite a bit, and these next 2 months are taking the cake with three different trips lined up back to back, I figured I would bestow some of my most essential travel tips on you all;

1. Make lists; nothing gives me greater joy than starting a trip list. I know this may make me a very strange person but it helps me not forget a single thing. I also have the ability to plan outfits beforehand. This is especially important for longer trips where you will have to wear the same item in different ways in order to maximize space, or for events where you know you will be photographed or will have to attend important functions (for a geeky blogger like me, that’s convention packing). I even make multiple lists for the same trip leading up to departure, such as things I have left to buy or all the last minute items I have to throw in my bag right before I leave. Go ahead. Mock my OCD.

2. Roll, roll, roll your clothes; biggest essential tip I’d say. Want to save some room and save the headache of checking a huge bag (and lugging it around upon arrival)? Roll it up! I roll all my clothing when I’m packing for a trip, and I’ve never suffered the fate of having to get 3 people to sit on my luggage in order for it to close shut. This, of course, may cause your clothes to get more wrinkled than folding them the old fashioned way, but keep reading. I have a solution for that too!

3. Focus less on apparel & more on toiletries; I tend to highlight outfits: what am I going to wear and what am I going to look like. Yeah, experience has taught me that you will only wear half of what you bring, but you will most definitely run out of your deemed necessities. You know, like those Charmin Flushable Wipes you can’t live without (not that this is my current woe or anything). So don’t think twice to buy two instead of one travel-sized toiletry item – it’s much better to be safe than sorry!

4. Nail decals; I don’t know about you, but the only way my nail polish stays on for days is if I get my nails professionally done, and even then they can’t really withstand the stress of prolonged travel, and let’s be honest. No one wants ugly chipped nails when they are on vacation, amiright? That’s why I’m such a big fan of nail decals. I have personally used Sally Hansen & Incoco with great results on my previous trips. They tend to last me approximately 2 weeks, depending on how much luggage I’m hauling around and the activity level of the trip.

5. Downy Wrinkle Releaser solves all; the hubs and I discovered this life saver while perusing the travel bins at our local Target, and now I cannot travel without it. In fact, I’m looking at my bottle as I type this, smiling, because I know I will never look like a hot mess wearing my rolled up clothing. It literally straightens up the most wrinkled articles of clothing you may find in the deepest corner of your suitcase. It was my lifesaver at Comic Con when I had to jam all my outfits in a carry on in an effort to “pack light,” and is working wonders again now on a business trip where I can’t afford to look like a bag lady.

6. Airbnb > Hotels; I stay in hotels only out of necessity (think: conventions). At this point, if I am traveling, the first site I hit up is airbnb. I have never had a bad experience with them yet (knock on wood), and our digs have always been superior to anything I would have booked at a hotel and for far cheaper. I immediately think of our flat in Paris, where we could look out our window and see the Eiffel Tower sparkling in the moonlight, or our flat in London, where we’ve stayed twice so far because our 5 minute walk to the South Bank is incomparable.

7. Take a piece of home with you; this is essential for solo travel especially. Things can get lonely (even if you are having fun), so it’s nice to have a reminder of what is waiting for you back home. What did I take? A picture of the hubs from when he was about 8-9 years old. It’s taken in the cheesiest studio space complete with splattered paint and ladders, but it never fails to make me smile. Take a snapshot of your puppies, a special token or your favorite book. It can be anything you like, as long as it gives you those warm fuzzies that only certain special things can give you. {ridiculous hubs picture available for viewing upon request}

8. Yelp it out; everyone is always asking me how we find such hidden gems when we travel. Guys, it’s as easy as Yelp. I just search the most highly rated restaurants, bars, etc. in the areas we are staying in or will be frequenting and voila! Perfect moments are made. I can honestly say that the site has never led us astray, even when traveling outside the country. Some of my favorite European finds were Polaroid Bar in Barcelona and Mother India in Glasgow.