Jabra Elite Active 75t True Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds

If you’re looking for wireless earbuds, I highly recommend Jabra. I looked them up on Wirecutter, a great reviews site for pretty much everything in the world.  Wow, they’re great. The earbuds feature noise-canceling technology but with a click of the left earpiece, you can activate “hear through” which turns off the noise canceling so you can hear what’s around you. Use the Jabra phone app to customize your experience by adjusting to your unique hearing.   

Bose SoundLink Micro: Small Portable Bluetooth Speaker (Waterproof), Bright Orange

When you want great sound at your fingertips the Bose SoundLink Micro (about the size of a pack and a half of cards) is a great choice. On Amazon, nearly 32K reviews and an average of five stars. It’s rugged, extremely portable, waterproof, and has a wide strap on the back you can use to attach it to a bag or backpack. You connect it to your source via bluetooth. Pair up two Soundlinks for stereo.    

Anker PowerCore 10000

In addition to my MyCharge, I also pack my Anker power bank. It’s smaller, which is great, but not as fast as the MyCharge nor can you connect a device when it’s in an outlet. That said, it’s super light, and I can charge my iPhone 8 + nearly three times. 

UPWADE Outlet Travel Power Strip 

I won’t be without a mini power strip. It’s probably the one thing other than my phone I always have with me when I travel. I like this model by Upwade because it has two widely spaced international outlets which provide ample room for those pesky wide plugs that come with cameras and other devices, as well as four USB ports. The cord is a little longer than I need at 5 ft but I’d rather have it longer than too short. At 6 inches in length, it fits in any purse or carry-on bag.

Ceptics International Worldwide Travel Plug Adapters

A lot of people like universal cubes that contain every adapter known to man deployed by a series of sliders, and while I appreciate the concept, I’ve never found one that doesn’t break almost immediately or size-wise didn’t annoy me. Too clunky. This 5-piece set is great because I can cherry-pick what I need and plop it into my Think Tank case (see below) which I pack into my carry-on. I use the case that comes with it to keep all the adapters together at home; I rarely take the whole shebang with me.

Apple Tag

My camera equipment is too expensive not to take certain precautions when it comes to traveling and the possibility of having my kit stolen or lost. Tags are just part of my strategy. I hide a tag in my camera bags and I also have a carbines holder for tags for things I take on the fly. 

I’m one of those… an Apple product nut. Always have been. When I learned about Apple Tags, I replaced my Tiles. Not because they didn’t work, but since I do own an iPhone, the syncing is just easier. For those who have other smartphones, Tiles are great, which is the reason I’ve kept them on this list.  

UltraFire Mini Cree Led Flashlight 

I use this tiny flashlight all the time. The beam is powerful and can be adjusted and it’s maybe 3″ long. I keep it in my carry-on bag in case I need to find something in my bag on a dark plane and I use a lanyard to wear it around my neck when I’m on Safari.

The Roost

If you travel with your computer and suffer from neck and shoulder pain, it’s probably because you’re looking down and hunching. The Roost is collapsible, adjustable, and packable, that lifts your laptop to eye level. As soon as I started using it, my pain went away. 

Dingbats Notebook – Red Kangaroo

Even when I wasn’t writing about my travels, I always had a notebook with me to jot down thoughts, take notes about places I went and liked, animals I saw, restaurants I wanted to recommend. It’s a good habit to jot things like this down. That lie we tell ourselves that we’ll remember is a load of dog doodie. We just need to admit it.

Peak Design Tech Pouch  

Well, I love the Wash Pouch so I had to try the Tech Pouch. Yeah, it’s pretty great. It’s smaller than the Wash Pouch at 2L but bigger than I want when I’m on the road. I use it as my home tech hub, where I keep all the techie cables, adapters etc. in one place. The interior origami design holds different shapes and sizes easily and the clamshell design keeps it standing where other brands fall on their side.    

Peak Design: Field Pouch V2 

Lightweight, balanced and durable, this field pouch has stretch internal pockets I use, depending on what I am doing, anything from lip balm to memory cards. The roll top and velcro closure enables me to put a lot more inside than I imagined, which is one of the reasons I’ve been using it a lot. There are belt loops on the back if I want to use it as a fanny pack. 

BAGAIL 4 Set Packing Cubes Travel Expandable Packing Organizers

Speak to almost any ardent traveler and I bet you they’re using packing cubes. They’re ideal for keeping your clothes sorted, organized, and streamlined. I use three cubes to separate my undies, tops, and bottoms. I especially love them when I’m faced with a multi-stop itinerary–packing and unpacking is infinitely easier. Eagle Creek is the brand many travel “experts” rave about but I really love these Bagail cubes. They look great, work well, come in a variety of colors and prints, and more affordable. 

Gil Dry Duffle 

When I went to Antarctica and the South Georgia Islands, we had to take zodiacs to the beaches where we’d photograph the penguins. The water was often choppy sending salt sprays into the air. Nothing is worse for a camera that salt water as it will corrode the inner workings. Hence the need for a good dry bag. Most dry bags load vertically from the top, which just doesn’t work well with a camera bag. This duffle. however, was just the ticket. It kept my bag protected on the water as well as the beach when curious elephant seals and penguins wanted to check out my kit. 

L.L. Bean Adventure Duffle, Medium

If you’re looking for a simple and less expensive duffle, L.L. Bean’s Adventure duffle is one of my favorites. I’ve used it a lot of time. It also comes with a storage pouch.

Foldable Packable Travel Backpack – 35L

It’s always a good idea to have an extra bag in your luggage if you need it. Souvenirs anyone? I’ve used this foldable large backpack to carry towels and sunscreen in the summer and extra layers and gloves in the cold. It’s not for serious hiking but for a few miles carrying a little wine, bread, and cheese. It works. Did I mention it’s also waterproof? 

Wallaroo Hats 

If there is sun, I’m wearing a hat. I’m big on sun protection, always have been. Wallaroo has a collection of hats with SPF50+ and those recommended by the Skin Cancer Foundation. I have multiple hats from Wallaroo. I’m not an easy fit. My head is a little alienesque and my face shape is long and so few hats look good on me. My favorite Wallaroo hat is this Hannah cowboy style––That’s yours truly in the pic to the left.

The company sent me my first hat but I left it at an airport security check running to a plane and when I arrived home it was the first thing I ordered. Since then, I’ve ordered three. Obviously, I have a loss issue I need to address. 

Sawyer Blist-O-Ban Blister Protection

Feel a blister coming on? These blister adhesives are similar to a bandaid but with an extra cushy bubble center that keeps friction from further irritation. I was skeptical but they really work. 

15 Pieces Travel Size Refillable Empty Squeeze Pouch, TSA Approved 

These squeeze pouches come in three sizes and are my go to containers for shampoo, conditioner, hand cream, even my foundation. The pouches stand on their own or lay flat and you’ll be amazed how much they hold while taking up a fraction of the space of conventional bottles.  

Dream Essentials Sleep Mask

I’m pretty lucky, I can fall asleep almost anywhere but I have a more restful sleep when I can make my space nice and dark. (I especially love these on trains where you can’t shut the window shades.) Another great touch, the eyes are molded so the mask doesn’t rest on your eyelids. When delivered it comes with a small pouch and earplugs.

Peak Design Wash Pouch 

I was in the market for a new Dopp kit. I loved my Tumi but it was expensive ($90), and I wanted to find something better but also more affordable to recommend. I was at a retailer show and saw this 2.5L Peak Design Wash Pouch and fell in love. The pouch sits up on its own and has a zippered clamshell opening. It carries everything I need without being bulky and internal zippers and stretchy mesh pockets keep things in their place.  The video below I made before my trip to Kenya October 2021. 

Dimensions: 26cm x 15cm x 26 cm

Collapsible & Lightweight Roller for Trigger Point Massage 

I’m sure it will come as no surprise that after years of carrying around a heavy camera bag or days waking miles in a new city, result in some achy muscles. On a fluke, I ordered this collapsible roller, thinking I’d end up returning it. Three years later, I still use it, at home and away. The fact that it lies flat is genius for packing and it’s very lightweight. 

Travel Toilet Paper

If you’ve ever been in a foreign country in a questionable bathroom stall without any TP, you know why I love travel toilet paper. It’s compact, self-contained (no unrolling in your bag) ready when you are, and there are about 1200 sheets to a roll. Ok, that’s exaggerating but there’s a lot. It really comes in handy when you’re dealing with allergies or a never-ending runny nose.

Don’t be caught with your pants down and nothing but your smile….. you’ll thank me later.

Contigo Autospout Ashland Water Bottle

I love this water bottle, it’s lightweight, has a straw (I hurt my neck a while back so I try not to kink my neck to drink from bottles when I can), a handle I clip to my bag so it doesn’t fall out, and an autospout lid with a press to release button. BPA Free. 

Tip: If you use this on a plane make sure to release the pressure caused by the pressurized cabin by turning the lid a bit. If you don’t when you flip the drinking spout water will come shooting out. I learned this, as did my seat companion, the hard way. 

Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 Lotion, by Olita 

Completely organic, reef safe, great protection. It’s awesome. Enough said.  

BugX 30 Towelettes

I discovered the BugX 30 online while researching repellents for a trip to Costa Rica—mosquito central depending on where you’re staying. Since that adventure, I’ve since taken it to Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Botswana, Tanzania, and Kenya. I don’t use anything else. The individual packets make it easy to squeeze into luggage crevices when packing and the towelette makes it easy to control where the BugX is applied.  

Klorane Eye Patches

We’ve all been there right?

You wake up after a long day of travel and your eyes look tiny pillows were glued to your face while you slept. You may feel wide awake but your eyes say, “I’m overworked and I am swelling in protest.”

Or heaven forbid you broke up with someone on vacation (that happened to me, it sucked), and you cried all night. If you’re like me, my eyes react so violently to tears that afterward, I look like I’ve been beaten up by Rocky Balboa.

In these circumstances, I pull out the big guns. My Klorane Smoothing and Relaxing Patches. In short: They work.