Ten small items you should never travel without
A traveller needs to balance usefulness with suitcase weight and space. Here are some top mini-sized items to take with you that provide handy, tried-and-tested benefits.
Four clothes pegs (and some string)
With a few pegs and some string, you can hang washing almost anywhere.Credit: iStock
They’re light, they’re handy and they’ll avoid crease lines in clothes that you’d otherwise drape over hotel chairs and radiators. They take up far less room than the extra clothes you’ll need if you don’t hand-wash. Clothes pegs will even resolve the pesky issue of chinks in hotel curtains letting in light. The string doesn’t need explaining. Clothes will dry quicker outside a damp bathroom, and string can be put to other good uses too.
Ear plugs
Block out that rumble of traffic outside your hotel room with ear plugs.Credit: iStock
Nothing worse than the rattle of trolleys and screech of kids on aeroplanes, or the rumble of traffic outside your hotel room. Sleep is the craving of all travellers, and ear plugs a useful antidote to unwanted noise. Basic sponge versions weigh nothing at all and high-tech noise-cancelling versions are scarcely bulkier, so why not pack ’em in? But please, if you’re going for basic types, bring reusable ones. You really don’t want to keep cheap airline handouts that absorb ear wax.
Zip-lock bags
Don’t let the fruit your hotel provided go to waste.Credit: Getty
No weight, maximum usefulness, plus zip-lock bags take up far less room than plastic containers. Have you been left hotel fruit? In they go. Need a picnic, a snack on a train, or somewhere for leftovers? No worries. You’ll also find them useful for cosmetics and liquids at airport security, or as ice packs to keep drinks cold or sprains under control. And during unexpected downpours, a zip-lock in your pocket becomes handy to waterproof your phone.
Swiss army knife
This is the most useful gadget known to human history despite only being finger sized. You can cut bread, open a beer bottle, corkscrew your wine and tweezer your nose hairs. Heck, you can even get stones from a horse’s hoof, scale a fish, sew a seam, whittle yourself an arrow or sharpen a pencil. Swiss army knife manufacturers claim you can get 80 functions out of a tool no more than 12 centimetres long.
Sarong
The humble sarong: Arguably more useful than a Swiss army knife.Credit: iStock
It’s adaptable enough to use as a short or long skirt, towel, beach mat, headscarf or covering for bare legs or shoulders when visiting a mosque or temple. It guards against air-conditioning chills, serves as a sheet, or can be wrapped around your upper body in lieu of a pashmina shawl. No wonder sarongs are the go-to accessory of the backpacking class, but no reason why all travelling classes won’t find them just as useful.
Memory stick
You can use the cloud or Dropbox, right? Well, yes, providing you have a hefty mobile-data allowance or internet speeds good enough to cope with big photo files. USBs are small, cheap and can store a lot, which makes them a great backup for your pix or blockbuster-in-progress travel book. If you have a traditional camera, bring multiple low-capacity cards – you don’t want a thousand photos on a single card when your camera gets lost or stolen.
Rain poncho
Take a rain poncho with you wherever you go.Credit: iStock
Although you can buy amazing mini-umbrellas for travelling these days, you can still go smaller, lighter and cheaper by using the traditional plastic rain poncho sold at every two-dollar discount store. Don’t leave this one in your suitcase: you’ll need it out and about. Best avoid the cheapest, which are likely to tear or cling to you, and will make you sweat in tropical climes. Go for a slightly sturdier version that you can use multiple times.
Tiny toothpaste
Any time an airline or hotel provides tiny tubes of toothpaste, keep them for future use. It saves you hassle at airport security, where normal-sized toothpaste needs to go in a see-through bag, or might be confiscated. Bustle on through with the mini-version, which you can even keep in a pocket for a spontaneous refresh. Ideally, you’ll have a disposable toothbrush too but, if not, you can still get a blast of mint to brighten your journey.
Dental floss
Dental floss’ usefulness lies in its strength.Credit: iStock
No, dental hygiene doesn’t have to be an obsession. Dental floss, stronger than sewing thread, is useful for myriad other things while you’re on the road. Screw fallen out of a suitcase handle or leg off your glasses? Broken your shoelace or lost a button? Dental floss to the temporary emergency rescue. Doubled over, it’s even strong enough to be a clothes line.
Padlock
If you haven’t packed a padlock since you owned a backpack, maybe it’s time. Use a small one to lock your suitcase zip together to prevent pilfering. Use a bigger one to attach a day bag or suitcase to a train rack in case you fall asleep. A combination lock saves you worrying about the key. And okay, you can even attach one to a Paris bridge and declare your undying love if you must – although it’s actually illegal.
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