My Backpacking Essentials I Will Never Travel Without

I am dreaming of all things travel related, so I figured I’d share some of my travel necessities that fit in my lovely Osprey Kyte 46 backpack. Her name is Daisy. There are so many things that I’ve learned from traveling via backpack – mainly that I packed too much! I was able to survive for 6 weeks in this thing in Scotland, which even in the summer was cold. On the Spain/Paris/Amsterdam trip I was so hot and still packed too many dresses. Again, I have learned a lot. You never need as much as you think, but I DO need these items.

Osprey Backpack

This is Daisy, my trusty Osprey Kyte 36 backpack. So much fits in here! If you’ve never considered a backpack as your major luggage, I would highly recommend you give it a try. In Europe there are few elevators and escalators so hauling a suitcase up and down stairs and through cobblestone streets is a pain. With a backpack you can up and go in a flash and have everything you need! On many European trains, you have to put your large luggage in a different area. Backpacks you can keep with you the whole time. I could go on and on about the advantages, but with three trips to Europe under my belt in a variety of climates, I am happy to say this backpack holds everything you need and more.

A Carry-All Tote Bag

I used a Longchamp Le Pliage in Scotland, but I used my Kate Spade Francis in Spain. After both trips, I should say I prefer the Longchamp bag over the Kate Spade bag only because the Longchamp is so much more collapsible, packable, and surprisingly roomy. A large carry-all tote is really helpful to put things you need to keep accessible for traveling. I keep my iPad, iPhone, snacks, sweater, etc. in the tote for easy access. I even keep my quart bag of toiletries in my tote when I fly just so I can pull it out easily for traversing the security line nightmare. After the initial travel needs, this bag doubles as a day bag for those quick day trips or shopping. Don’t forget to always have a zip top closure when traveling.

ZipLock Travel Space Bags

These are a life saver! Aaron purchased these for us and they were the best thing about backpacking. They really shrink your clothes down to about 25% of the space they would normally take up. There are two ways to organize these in a file system in your backpack: by outfit or by clothes type. In Scotland I had all my dresses in one bag, then shirts, then jeans/pants in 3 medium bags. I also used two small bags for socks/tights and underwear/bras. I carried a large spare bag for my dirty clothes so they stayed separate. I can’t tell you how amazing these bags are and how easy they make backpack travel.

ChicoBag Travel Set

ChicoBag makes an awesome travel set that includes three bags to meet all your needs. The large one is clear meets the TSA standard for quart size toiletry travel. The other two are great for storing charging cords, makeup, snacks, and any other miscellaneous items. I depend on these bags when I travel, buy two sets!

Chi Travel Sized Hair Appliances

Your favorites, just smaller! I saved the cutest for last. They work incredibly well and come with individualized, heat safe travel bags. I didn’t end up bringing the blow dryer on any of my trips, but the curling iron and straight iron were used almost daily in Scotland, Spain, and Austria. This is a little bougie for me, but they fit in my backpack and my hair looked good while traveling so I call that a win!