What to Pack on an International Vacation

Do You Need a Lot of Extra Items for Your International Vacation?

As you pack your suitcases for your upcoming international trip, you may assume that you need a ton of extra stuff that you wouldn’t normally need during a domestic vacation or a road trip.

However, you don’t need to overload your suitcases with extra items, or go out and buy several items that you don’t already own. Just a few targeted purchases are usually enough to ensure that you have everything you need in another country. You might already have these items, too, somewhere in your home.

Let’s discuss a few helpful items that can make your travel easier, especially when you’re halfway around the world from your home and everything that is familiar to you.

(note: some of the links here are to websites with which I am an affiliate, and your purchases help fund my website!)

Solid Shampoo, Conditioner, & Soap

If you’re staying in a hotel or motel during your travels, there’s a good chance you’ll get access to sample size shampoo and conditioner during your trip. These sample sizes are handy, but if you have a lot of hair, you might need to ask for another set. If you’re traveling with someone else, you’ll also probably come up short.

I recommend using travel shampoos and conditioners as a buffer and bringing your own with you on the trip. I also suggest using solid shampoo and conditioner, so you don’t need to worry about any leaks during travel.

You can also carry solid shampoo and conditioner on the plane without having to worry about those infinitesimally small plastic bottle requirements that airlines have. Obviously, this goes for regular soap, too. Carrying solid versions of everything makes travel so much less worrisome.

Further, it’s always a good idea to have some soap around in your carry-on or personal item, so you don’t have to deal with lost luggage issues and a lack of soap at your destination.

Technically, you could apply this advice to domestic travel, too, but only if you’re using jet travel to get to your destination. Sticking with your normal liquid shampoo is just fine if you’re just tossing your bags in the back of your road trip car.

I will say, however, that solid shampoo and conditioner are a pretty awesome option even in your day-to-day life. Not only do you avoid buying plastic bottles over and over again, but the bars actually last much longer than those bottles, which are mostly water anyway.

The solid shampoo and conditioner bars I use are from The Earthling Co., and I like the citrus scent. The solid body soap I get is from a local soap place in nearby South Pasadena, but obviously, you can use any body soap that suits your fancy. Technically, you can even use a solid bar of shampoo as a body soap, which can reduce the number of items you’re carrying onto the plane.

Body Wipes for the Toilet

In many countries around the world, you’ll run into situations where there is no toilet paper, or you need to bring your own toilet paper. You can also get sweaty and dingy while traveling, and you might not have good access to cleaning facilities. Backpacking, hosteling, and visiting rural areas means you might need to bring your own cleansers.

However, you might not even have access to running water, in some cases, which makes it tough to clean yourself after using the bathroom or after you get sweaty. I highly recommend having some body cleaning wipes on hand, wherever you go. Though I wouldn’t flush them.

Even though these sorts of wipes are advertised as flushable, just don’t. In some countries, you’re not supposed to put paper of any kind down the toilet anyway (you’ll see a little toilet paper basket for waste next to the toilet in such instances). They’ll also usually put a sign up, too, that indicates where you should toss the paper.

My partner is a pretty big fan of Dude Wipes, and I’ve even used them in a pinch (they’re pretty unisex friendly, in my opinion). Whatever wipes you get, just remember to toss them in the trash rather than in the toilet. Even if you’re in a country where there aren’t any notices on the toilets regarding waste baskets and flushing, the best option is to use the trash rather than the toilet for these wipes.

The wipes are great, too, when you use a toilet at a busy tourist venue, but they haven’t refilled the toilet paper in a while. As long as you have some wipes on hand, you’re always good to go. And remember, if you decide to use the toilet in the great outdoors, don’t toss your travel toilet paper in the bush. Stuff it away in a Ziplock bag until you get back to civilization!

Ear Plugs for Everywhere

If you’re a solid sleeper who can put your head down anywhere and get a great night’s sleep, I’m jealous. I can hear a mouse fart three blocks away, so it means I’ve always got to have some sort of white noise or ear plugs on hand, just in case it’s loud.

In some places I’ve traveled, the noise has been pretty intense. Even though we were up on the fifth or sixth floor of the hotel we stayed in when we visited Hanoi, Vietnam, I could still hear the street down below. I loved the crush of humanity and all the old buildings, but the noise? Not when I was trying to sleep.

For a long time, I carried a white noise machine with me whenever I traveled. It didn’t matter if it was a road trip, an overnight at a friend’s house, or travel across the country. However, those machines aren’t that light, especially if you’re traveling a great distance, or you’re toting your bags around all sorts of towns on the other side of the planet.

Ear plugs have been a much better option for me, especially when traveling. I used to wear the plastic ones that you stuff in your ears that expand to fill your ear canal, but they weren’t really that comfortable, especially as a side/stomach sleeper. I eventually started using wax ear plugs. Now, I don’t just use them when I travel; I use them all the time!

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