10 Items that Help You Travel Stress Free

Do you want to have a great travel experience and one that is stress free from start to finish? The following are 10 essential items that you should carry on your next trip:

1 – An anti-theft cross body bag or backpack is an essential travel item. Anti-theft bags are made with slash proof materials and RFID protected credit card pockets to keep your valuables safe and secure while you travel.

2 – A handbag organizer with several compartments for organizing credit cards, cosmetics, toiletries and other small items you want to carry along .

3 – Bringing your iPad or eReader? You’ll want to buy a padded iPad case to keep your device safe and protected. Your electronics are a big investment so it pays to invest in a quality case.

4 – A cosmetic bag or beauty case to organize your toiletries and makeup essentials; an essential travel accessory for every trip.

5 – A waterproof pouch. Whether is your iPad, eReader or phone, you’ll want to protect your electronics from water, sand or dirt while having fun outdoors.

6 – Bring a jewelry organizer case. This will allow you to separate your jewelry, keep it organized and together, and will prevent your items from getting broken and tangled.

7 – Antibacterial hand sanitizer and wipes. For your own safety, it is better to bring your own antibacterial hand sanitizer and wipes to make sure that you can protect yourself from germs while you travel.

8 – Laundry soap and a stain stick. There are travel size laundry soap packages you can pack in your luggage as well as stain sticks that will come in handy while you travel.

9 – Multi plug adapter. Be prepared to charge your electronic devices anywhere with the appropriate adapter. Make sure you are bringing a “worldwide” or “universal” plug so that you won’t have any problems charging up.

10 – Use packing cubes to organize your clothes and small items. Packing cubes are available in different sizes to accommodate larger clothing items as well as small items like socks and underwear. They save tons of space in your luggage because everything is contained and the cubes can be easily stacked and arranged in your case.

Top 10 Travel Essentials For the Holidays

Holiday travel is coming!  Here are our Top Ten Essentials to have in your luggage when you head out to the airport or on the road.  We cover a wide array of items from RFID blocking accessories to TSA approved laptop bags.  Are you prepared?

• Packing cubes are essential whenever I travel.  They are versatile in organizing/compressing clothes, functioning as a travel kit, consolidating souvenirs, and so many more applications.  They also act as a 2^nd barrier if something spills in your bag, adding just that extra level of protection and peace of mind as well.  Eagle Creek offers packing cubes that are just perfect to fit in luggage and hold your belongings.

 

 

 

 

 

• A speedthru laptop bag/case will make getting through TSA easier.  No fumbling around with your netbook in your carry on or messenger bag, a speedthru laptop makes accessing your electronics so much easier.  And it frees your hands up from holding your laptop while in line; easy in, easy out, easy through, and you can get to your shoes, belt, spare change, etc. a lot easier.

 

 

 

 

• TSA approved travel bottles allow you to bring some of the comforts from home with you, without risk that TSA might toss your amenities.  Travelon makes travel bottles sized to TSA security specifications; these bottles hold your shampoo, body wash, or any other liquids you may need from your home bathroom.

 

 

 

 

•  An expandable lightweight luggage carry-on, such as the Lucas Vortex Lite, is easier to carry than most other bags due to its lighter frame, but it can also save you on checked baggage fees!  4 Wheel Spinner luggage is easier to maneuver than other wheeled luggage, making the entire piece high on mobility, low on overall cost to you.  Carry more, spend less, and an even lower risk of your checked bag getting separated from you!

 

 

 

 

 

•  A luggage scale is another way to combat luggage fees, by addressing any weight limits for your airline.  The Victorinox Digital Luggage Scale is a good option to use when you want to avoid overweight luggage fees.  You can save yourself a few dollars and especially some time by testing your luggage before you leave for the airport, and meeting the necessary guidelines.

 

 

 

 

 

• A great anti-theft bag (especially the anti-theft bags made by Travelon) can be invaluable in this day and age.  Thieves employ more and more sophisticated methods to take your information or possessions, and you have to travel smart to be prepared for such instances.  Gain peace of mind that your personal electronics and items such as wallet and passport are kept safe in a slash-proof, RFID-protected, and securely fastened cross body bag or something similar.

For more information on RFID/Anti-Theft, see Travelon’s video on this anti-theft bag here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGehipX9hF4&feature=share

 

 

•  An RFID wallet is less visible than an anti-theft bag, but no less important to your safety.  It will keep your ID and personal information protected from IR scanners and other devices intended to pick up your info while you are unaware.  Definitely a great purchase if you don’t own one yet.  It would also make a great gift for someone else!

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Sometimes an electric wall outlet just is not available while you’re out and about, or you have to recharge while on the move and cannot afford to sit still for 2 hours waiting for your device to charge.  A mobile charger/battery pack is an invaluable item to carry with you, to get your electronic device charged when you might need it the most.  In a pinch, you could reach who you need when you need, and that’s one less worry for you in an emergency! Irv’s Luggage offers a wide variety of tech accessories.

 

 

•   A waterproof bag for your iPad, cell phone, or any other electronics can handle inclement weather, accidents, spills, nature, the oceans, life and adds one more protective layer for devices necessary to you when you travel.  You wouldn’t have to be mindful of what’s in your pockets when caught in a downpour or dropping your phone in the snow, it would all be tucked away and secure in a sealed waterproof container.  There are a lot of preventable accidents that can disable one’s electronics while abroad, be ready for some of them and ultimately save yourself the expense and trouble of a replacement.

 

 

 

 

•  Personal organizers work much like the packing cubes, only a more proportionate size for what you need in it. A jewelry organizer would keep your earrings, necklaces, rings, and other assorted accessories together and matched up in one place without risking losing them in a baggie, dropping them somewhere, or breaking while sitting in your suitcase.  Toiletry kits are a necessity for keeping your bathroom amenities in one place and packed together tightly, rather than have your shaving kit or hand mirror sliding all over the inside of your luggage and at risk to spilling or breakage.  Everything is so much easier to find, keep track of, and travel with peace of mind regardless of how your luggage may shift.

 

 

 

 

These 10 items are our top picks for what to take on vacation.  They’ll make traveling more organized, efficient, smoother, less worrisome, and add to the overall experience for veteran and rookie travelers.  You can worry less about certain details and definitely enjoy and focus on where you are, what you’re doing, and the family you’re spending time with.  While you can’t always predict what will happen on a trip, these accessories will make sure you’re more prepared and organized for whatever may happen.

Favorite Travel Accessories

As I continue with “staff picks”, I decided to address another important part of Irv’s Luggage’ business, travel accessories; I interviewed our chief accessory buyer, Andrea, who has been in the luggage business for over 39 years. Andrea talked about her four most popular and favorite travel accessories:  Luggage Tags, Luggage Locks, Money Belts, Luggage Straps and Adaptor Plugs / Converter Kits.

Luggage Tags: Andrea’s favorite luggage tags are En Route.  Not only are En Route tags easy to use, they also work very well and don’t break easily with their stretchy straps. En Route luggage tags are also very bright and colorful, just what travelers need to help identify and distinguish their luggage from the rest of the pack.

Luggage Locks: Regarding luggage locks, Andrea recommends combination locks and feels the three dial locks are the easiest to use.  Her favorite brand LCI, Lewis N Clark, have been a mainstay for Irv’s Luggage over the years.  Lewis N Clark locks are TSA approved, very rugged and dependable just like the company who makes them.

Travel Security Wallet: Andrea’s favorite brand of money belts and other travel security wallets is Eagle Creek Luggage. The Eagle Creek travel wallets are very durable, have great attention to detail, wonderful locking mechanisms and in addition, Andrea says Eagle Creek is now trying to go more “green” with their products, another great reason to buy Eagle Creek.  Best of all, Eagle Creek is a good solid company you can depend on!!!!

Adaptor Plus & Converter Kits:  Once again, Andrea has to go with LCI, Lewis N Clark, for the best adaptor plugs and converter kits.  LCI has been on the market for many years,  they are very dependable and know the business of converting and adapting energy!!!!

Check out these and all the great luggage accessories at Irv’s Luggage today!