Travel Tips for Ladies
She’s got a lot of baggage – I won’t go through packing tips for checked bags, but the golden rule of packing is this; your carry on is NOT the place for items that will not fit in your checked luggage. Never, ever, ever. You don’t need your blow dryer or those cute tops you decided to bring at the last minute cluttering up your bag and annoying everyone in the security line.
Speak softly and carry a large hand bag - Your carry-on luggage should either be a large handbag or a backpack. I always see women bring a small suitcase, a laptop bag, a medium sized purse, and an assortment of plastic bags holding various post-security sundries. Are you joking? Who wants to be walking around a terminal for hours looking like a bell hop?
Pulling a rabbit out of a hat – If I get randomly chosen in the security line to have my bag searched, I don’t get too bothered. When the security personnel try to repack my previously perfectly packed bag for me, that is when I get annoyed. Part of my solution to this persistent problem is the “hidden bag”. I keep large reusable grocery bag in my carry-on that I do not pull out until after security. If I have a security check I can fill it quickly so I can repack on my terms and not annoy other passengers waiting in line. Otherwise I fill it with magazines, snacks, waters, souvenirs or use it to shift the load in my carry-on and make things more accessible. So maybe I do have more than one carry-on but it is never questioned and by the time I land, it gets emptied and everything in my perfectly packed carry-on goes back to pre-security perfection. My bag is a canvas bag that says Whole Foods on it and I just look environmentally conscious. I guess it is so..
Lady looks like a Dude – You know when you have been out all night and maybe had a few too many drinks and well.. that face you are left with when you wake up? Consider your hangover face, your landing face. As we all know, no amount of make up will be able to hide this. The key here is to stay hydrated. After you have gone through security, buy 1 bottle of water, or juice for every 2 hours that you will be flying. Avoid drinking alcohol or too much caffeine before and during a flight. If you follow this rule, you will land looking vibrant with soft and supple skin rather than wrinkled and patchy makeup with circles under bloodshot eyes.
The extras - Everyone has there own creature comforts for when they fly and I love to hear them so please share below. In the meantime here are a few more odds and ends that I bring for comfort, sanity or cleanliness and which fit easily in to any carry-on:
Baby wipes: These can clean everything from, face to arm pits to toilet seats. So versatile and sanitary.
Deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrush - Things that don’t make you stink for 200, Alex.
Ear buds and ipod – Earbuds work on most aircraft for their In-flight-Entertainment system, if there is no IFE, then I have my ipod.
Ear plugs – These are great on any trip. Sleeping on planes to sleeping in the hotel you didn’t realise was going to be directly above a pub.