Teddy bears and travel go hand in hand. Stuffed animals travel companions are the best! See some of our favs (plus - are teddy bears allowed on airplanes? We investigate!) Updated in 2022!  Traveling with teddy bears: These stuffed animals were hanging out at a teddy bear boutique and repair shop in Zurich. What is a girl who obsesses over ultra-light packing doing with stuffed animals in her travel pack? Unnecessary waste? Space stealer? Not in the least! I’ve never been one of those too-cool-for-school travelers. I’m still goofy me, happy to bring along my best friends as I travel. After all, stuffed animal travel companions are the best! So what if they’re made of cotton and polyfill? I’m thrilled to have my pals along for the ride and, as you'll see, I’m not alone! Traveling with teddy bears is the best. Read on for a look at what fuzzy companions other travelers bring along for the adventure, starting with me and my two bunny buddies! Plus - we're answering a critical question from readers: Are teddy bears allowed on airplanes? First, meet my own two travel buddies!  Stuffed animal travel companions are the best! “Purple Bunny” (the small one) is actually a key chain, and I’ve attached a flashlight, nail file, and bottle opener to him – all of life’s necessities. Originally, the little white bag he holds between his paws contained lavender scented beads that have long gone flat. Before a big trip, I douse him with some lavender oil – I think he appreciates being spruced up a bit. Originally from the gift shop at the International Study Centre in Herstmonceux, East Sussex, Purple Bunny was procured just before my first solo trip through Europe has been with me for every single trip I take, from weekend camping to 4 months in Africa.
“Big Bunny” (who - confusingly - is also purple) has a slightly more limited travel life. I only bring him out for the big trips! Incredibly soft and stuffable, he’s a bit too small and flat to be a pillow but has proven infinitely useful for absorbing tears and making hostel beds, guest houses, and hotel rooms feel more like home! Big Bunny is originally from a gift shop on Cape Clear Island, the southern-most part of Ireland, and was a rare impulse purchase, along with a few other choice items that and together they help me remember my months traveling through Ireland. I am addicted to notebooks and stationary - even when I travel!
I love traveling with nice pens and notebooks - how about you?
I believe anyone can travel with nothing but carry-on luggage. Really! Find out why I love it so much.
One carry on bag, endless trips.
There's a fun television ad in Canada. It shows a woman shopping at Ikea and, when she looks at her receipt after paying for everything, she thinks that something is wrong. The prices are too low. They must have made a mistake. So she starts rapidly walking away while trying not to call attention to herself. And when she gets outside, she yells "START THE CAR" to her partner. Of course, it's all a clever shtick for Ikea. The message is that their prices are so low that it feels like you're getting away with something. But what does this have to do with traveling with carry-on luggage? Absolutely nothing - except that traveling with carry-on luggage is so awesome you feel like you're getting away with something. I kind of feel like that woman every time I scurry past the baggage claim carousel and hightail it to the shuttle buses ahead of everyone else. START THE BUS!
I can't travel without these 3 packing essentialsI've heard so many people pose the question "What are the three things you can't live without when you travel?" And inevitably, the answers are always almost the same: passport, smart phone, money. Sometimes clean clothing or a good guidebook makes the list. I've been thinking about my own past travels lately and I've been remembering that there was once a time, not that long ago, when you didn't need all that much money, there were no such thing as smart phones, and you didn't even need a passport for certain trips. Here are the three things that have really been with me since the beginning - they come along every trip.  Three of my favourite things! Updated in 2022! Struggling with liquids in your 3-1-1 kit? Try those travel toiletries!  Hanging out with all my travel gear, including TSA friendly toiletries. By now you know I'm crazy about carry-on only luggage and that my idea of a good Friday night is reorganizing my 3-1-1 kit! A 3-1-1 kit, for those visiting for the first time, refers to the toiletry bag regulations for your carry on liquids. Each traveler is allowed to have 1 transparent bag , it must be no bigger than 1 quart in size, and the liquids must be in containers of 3 ounces or less.
I've written in the past about how easy it is to get by without a huge toiletry bag and go 3-1-1 all the way. I really believe any toiletry hoarder and product hoarder can do it. Here are three key tips for taking your 3-1-1 kit to the max, along with 10 dry products that can go in any kind of luggage. Is your carry-on luggage about to be checked? Here's how to protect your bags, even if you think they're within airline carry-on regulations. Updated for 2021!  How many people really read the regulations for carry-on lugguage? In my last post, I discussed the search for a carry on bag that worked. Finding the perfect travel bag is easier said than done! But once you have the ideal bag, you still have to do all that you can to keep it safe. This time, I am offering the following 10 tips for carry-on luggage so that you can make sure your trip is a successful one.
1.) Know the carry-on rules for every airline of your trip and read them carefully. Many allow a carry-on bag AND a personal item (like laptop case, purse, camera bag). But some allow only one bag. And some are more strict about having your laptop case just filled with a computer and accessories, not magazines and shampoo. (Here's a comprehensive list of the major airlines to get you started.) Would you be ready to have your carry-on bag weighed and measured at the airport?  How does your carrry-on bag measure up? A probable disaster...Do you think you're an organized and prepared traveler? Consider the following scenario and imagine how you would fare.
It's late at night and you’re in Belgium. In just a few hours, you'll be flying to Bangkok via Istanbul, where you’ll have a 12 hour layover to go enjoy the city. You'll be in Bangkok for just under 24 hours before hoping on a cheap regional flight to Myanmar, where you'll be spending the week, travelling to 3 different cities via train and ferry. It's adventurous, it's a bit crazy, and it's the kind of thing a lot of people are doing these days – making the most of a short amount of travel time, grasping every opportunity to enjoy a city. (And we happened to follow this exact itinerary!) Updated for 2022! Rules, Regulations, and Travel: Everything you need to know about mastering travel toiletry 3-1-1 kits.
My travel toiletry 3-1-1 kit sits on top of my regular toiletry kit.
 Example image from Amazon.com
I've been thinking a lot lately about the role of travel toiletry 3-1-1 toiletry kits – you know, the small, see-through kits we all must present to the airport security staff to prove we have limited liquids. They're a key component of travel toiletry kits (or travel dopp kits or travel shaving bags, depending on your preferred vocabulary!)
So much has been made of travel toiletry 3-1-1 kit restrictions and regulations that many travelers believe it poses a huge problem. Some people will even pay to check their luggage because they cannot fit all their liquid toiletries in the regulation size bag. And if the delays at security are any indication, there are many people who still don’t understand the regulations or are trying to get around them. But if you pack smart, and choose the right products, a 3-1-1 kit will never be a hindrance. Let me try to convince you! Here's our original carry-on packing list!There is a Spanish proverb that, on a long journey, even a single straw weighs heavy. And like any travel blogger, I have developed my own packing list to defeat the heavy straws, to make travel simple, fun, and light, and to wear “carry on” only with ease. Save your precious travel dollars for food and fun and never check your luggage again.
 While the actual list may contain several variations depending on the climate and focus of the trip, the basics remain the same. Of course, if you are planing a more unusual focus for your trip – hiking in Nepal, for instance – the unique nature of your voyage may dictate an entirely different packing agenda altogether.
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