Travel Essential Rick Steves Always Carries During European Trips Without Failure
In the realm of travel, every ounce and penny counts - especially when jetting off to Europe. To help you navigate the continent with ease, travel expert Cameron Hewitt, who frequently guides travellers across Europe with Rick Steves, has shared a list of practical packing hacks that focus on lightweight, space-saving, and multi-functional items.
First on the list is a small roll of duct tape and electrical tape. Hewitt highlights the versatility of electrical tape, such as covering annoying hotel room lights, repairing headphone cables, fastening plugs to adapters, and more. Duct tape is especially handy if you plan to ship items home to lighten your load during the trip.
Next, Hewitt suggests bringing a collapsible water bottle, like the Vapur flexible water pouch. This innovative water container rolls up when empty, saving space in your luggage, and helps you stay hydrated on travel days. It's TSA-friendly when empty, which is important since you cannot bring a full water bottle through airport security.
For those with a sweet tooth, carrying instant coffee packets, single-serving sweetener, and powdered creamer packets is a useful caffeine hack, especially when renting accommodations with a way to heat water but no coffee supplies. These convenient coffee essentials can turn any hot water into a warm, invigorating cup of coffee, making mornings on the go a breeze.
Packing snackable dried fruit, such as Trader Joe's Just Mango Slices, is a smart staple for travel. This nutritious snack provides energy during longer journeys without being unhealthy. It's a more practical alternative to junk food.
Another essential item Hewitt recommends bringing is a variety of different sizes of resealable plastic baggies. These versatile items can be used for a variety of purposes, including for sticky snacks, wet swimsuits, edible souvenirs, storing electronics at the beach or pool, and potentially saving travelers some of their daily spending budget.
Plastic baggies are lightweight, take up minimal space, and are inexpensive, making them a useful travel item. They can also serve as an ice pack for sore muscles, for storing charging cords, messy toiletries, and for protecting electronics in rainstorms.
In conclusion, by packing these non-bulky items, such as duct tape, electrical tape, a collapsible water bottle, snackable dried fruit, Starbucks Via Instant coffee packets, and resealable plastic baggies, travellers can enhance their comfort and convenience without adding unnecessary bulk or expense to their travel gear. These practical hacks will help you make the most of your European adventure.
[1] Source: Rick Steves' Europe Travel Centre.
- Travel expert Cameron Hewitt suggests bringing a small roll of duct tape and electrical tape, highlighting their versatility for covering annoying hotel lights, repairing headphone cables, fastening plugs to adapters, and more.
- Hewitt recommends a collapsible water bottle, like the Vapur flexible water pouch, for saving space in luggage, staying hydrated during travel days, and being TSA-friendly when empty.
- For those with a sweet tooth, bringing instant coffee packets, single-serving sweetener, and powdered creamer packets can help create a warm cup of coffee in accommodations without coffee supplies, saving money on daily spending.
- Packing snackable dried fruit, such as Trader Joe's Just Mango Slices, is a smart staple for travel days, providing energy during longer journeys and being a more practical alternative to junk food.
- Resealable plastic baggies, of various sizes, are lightweight, inexpensive, and versatile, serving various purposes such as storing snacks, wet swimsuits, edible souvenirs, and protecting electronics in rainstorms, potentially saving travelers daily spending budget.
- By packing these items, such as smart-home-devices (collapsible water bottle), gadgets (instant coffee packets, resealable plastic baggies), personal-finance-focused items (duct tape, electrical tape, snackable dried fruit, budgeting tools like resealable plastic baggies), travellers can improve their lifestyle (stay hydrated, save money on coffee, have energy for longer journeys) without adding unnecessary bulk or expense to their travel gear.
