14 Travel Products We Stopped Buying (DON'T PACK!)

In today's video, I'm going to be sharing 14 travel products that we stopped by. Not only will this video give you a list of things that you should not be wasting your money on, it might just solve some of your packing struggles. Make sure you stick around as I'm going to give you a secret on how to utilize every single thing that you pack in your suitcase, therefore eliminating overpacking entirely. Let's get this video started. The first item is a passport cover. Now, personally, Meg and I used to travel with these as well, and in theory, these are a great idea. They protect your passport. They're easy to find. You can maybe store some other stuff inside, but the functionality of how you use these when you travel just became too much of an annoyance for us. If you've ever traveled with a passport cover, you'll know that most of the time people are just trying to take this thing off, whether it's through security or when you're boarding a plane, and we found ourselves so many times just fumbling with this thing, and eventually, we just kind of weaned it out of our packing routine, being that it just got to be super annoying taking our passport in and out. We do still use these at home for when we're not traveling to protect our passport, but as far as traveling with these, we no longer use these. They just became too much of an annoyance. The second item is a neck pillow. Now, I know some of you are pretty passionate about neck pillows, and you have one that you really like, and that's totally great, but for us personally, we stopped buying neck pillows, being that we err on the side of minimalistic travel, and whenever we were carrying a neck pillow, we just never knew where to put it. We didn't have a good place for it in our backpack. It kind of took up a lot of space, even so much so when we took one of our first international trips to Italy, we didn't have a place to put it, so we just carried it on the outside of our backpack, and we got rained on, and then it got all stinky, and overall, for us, the pros do not outweigh the cons. Fortunately enough, I have a decently easy time sleeping on planes, so a neck pillow doesn't really change that experience for me, but I would totally understand if it does. I do know they have some good inflatable options, and I will also say that I have tried out recently this turtle neck pillow on my latest international flight, and it's starting to rub off on me a little bit, being that it takes up a little less space than your traditional neck pillow. Item number three, and that is a travel blanket. Similar to that of a neck pillow, a travel blanket just takes up a ton of space in your backpack and carry-on. What we like to do instead of a blanket is to just make sure that we dress in layers. That way, we can effectively regulate our temperature on a travel day. We have also found that on most long international flights, airlines will provide you with a blanket. Now, I know some of you might be saying that those blankets are gross, then I would just plan to dress in layers. That way, you don't have to take up a ton of space in your carry-on and backpack with a blanket. Next, for item four, we have a eye mask. Now, there's nothing necessarily wrong with an eye mask, but what we try to do whenever we're packing for a trip is we want all of our items that we're packing to be multi-function, multi-use. For us, an eye mask just got to be a little too one-dimensional, as well as it's just kind of a hard thing to keep track of when it gets kind of shoved in the bottom of your bag. So instead, what we like to do, instead of bringing a eye mask, we will bring something like a buff, which I've talked about a buff in a lot of my other videos, but the reason I love a buff so much is there's so many different functions, right? You can wear it as a neck guard to keep warm. You can use it as a mask to keep dirt and dust out of your nose if you're hiking or something like that. And then last but not least, you can actually use it as a makeshift eye mask, which is great because not only does it solve the problem of an eye mask, it has many other functions. So for us, we've gotten rid of the eye masks and switched to a buff. Item number five, and that is big, bulky water bottles. I have this Stanley that I use here at home. I don't know if you know, they're kind of trendy, or at least that's what I've heard. Anyway, I try to steer away from water bottles like this when I'm traveling, being that they're so heavy. I think a lot of times people forget that weight matters when you travel, and these insulated water bottles or mugs are super heavy, as well as they're really hard to pack because they're so hard. Though the insulation is super nice, in our opinion, we try to avoid the big, bulky nature, even if it's going to keep your water super, super cold. Instead, what we've been packing is something like this. This is a collapsible water bottle, which obviously doesn't keep your water quite as cold, but look at how this packs down. It's super lightweight, it's really easy to fill up, and it's just overall way easier to travel with. Another great option if you want something with a little bit more structure could be something like a Nalgene. Now, these are still a little bit bigger in size, but what I like about these is that they're super lightweight still. You're not going to weigh yourself down with some big insulated bottle. Item number six, and that is books. We have stopped packing books, being that they just take up so much space. It's unfortunate because I know a lot of people out there really like to read on vacation or holiday, but the good news is is there's other options. A Kindle can be a great option to still get that reading fix in, but also not take up a ton of space in your suitcase. People will oftentimes like to bring guidebooks as well, which seems like a great idea, but just a reminder, most of that information is online. What I would recommend doing instead of necessarily bringing in a guidebook, if you want something to make notes, bring a small journal. That can be a great way to not take up quite as much space, but still have some place to make notes as well as document your travels. Number seven, and that is checked luggage. I know I might get quite a bit of heat from this one in the comments, and I know some of you might be thinking, it is not possible for me to pack in a carry-on size luggage no matter how long I'm going or how far, and if that's the case, I would first of all recommend watching some of our other packing videos on how you can pack less, but second of all, Meg and I have never bought a checked luggage piece. In our opinion, it's way easier to travel in a carry-on size. It forces you to pack less stuff, which then leads to less stress, as well as it decreases the risk of you losing your things, but in general, we never buy checked luggage. It is something we avoid at all costs. All right, we are halfway through, but I want to hear from you. Let me know down in the comments things that you no longer spend your money on when it comes to travel products. I'm always curious to learn the different perspectives and different priorities people have when it comes to their travel products. I actually do encourage when people disagree with me because it gives me a different perspective. I get to learn how other people travel. That way, I can make these videos a little bit better. Let me know down in the comments things that you no longer pack or no longer spend your money on when it comes to travel products. Item number eight, and that is travel-sized toiletries. Now, this one may be a little confusing for you, especially if you're somebody that does this. It's very common for people to go to their local store, whether it be Target, Walmart, and kind of stock up on their favorite travel-sized shampoo or conditioner for their next trip. It seems like a great idea, but we have found that you are actually wasting a ton of money if you do that. A way better investment is to buy something like this, your classic liquids container, so that way you can utilize the shampoo and conditioner that you already have at your house. Also, what's really nice about this is nothing goes to waste. If you don't use all of it on your trip, you just bring it home and use it when you get home. We have found that most people don't utilize the whole container of those travel-sized toiletries, and they just go to waste. Also, they're quite expensive for the amount of liquid that you actually receive. Remember, another great thing to keep in mind is try to utilize the toiletries and liquids that are given to you at your accommodation, especially if you're not super picky with that stuff. Whether you're staying in a hotel or an Airbnb, you're going to be saving a lot of money by using those toiletries versus packing yourself, as well as you might save a lot of trouble when it comes to getting through security with all of those liquid rules. We nowadays just use these versus going and buying those travel-sized toiletries. Item number nine, and that is spending your money on an oversized toiletry bag. This is a great way to take up a ton of space in your suitcase, as well as bring more things than you actually need. This is my toiletry bag, and this, I know, is a bit extreme. It's from REI. I really like it. It's the perfect size for me. I can fit my toothbrush, my hair gel, my razor, everything in here perfectly, but in general, you want to be thinking small when it comes to your toiletry bag. Now, I know I am a guy, and usually males don't need quite as much toiletries as females, but with that being said, this is Meg's toiletry bag, which is just about the same size as mine. Now, I know she's also very impressive when it comes to packing minimally when it comes to toiletries, but in general, try to downsize your toiletry bag if you can. It's going to save you a lot of money, and that's just something we don't buy anymore is a big toiletry bag. Item number 10, and that is expensive sunglasses. This one hits home hard. Let me tell you, I have lost hundreds of dollars from investing in expensive sunglasses, and finally one day, a light bulb clicked, and I was like, why am I spending so much money on sunglasses when I either just lose them or break them on almost every single trip? I got these on my last trip to Bali, nine bucks, nine bucks, and I could not be happier. I think they look pretty good in my opinion, and they were nine bucks. For some reason, when I was younger, I thought that if I bought $150 sunglasses, I would look cool and be cool, but to be honest with you, it's not worth it. Get a cheap pair so that way you don't have to be stressed about losing or breaking them, and that's just something we don't invest our money in anymore. A brand that we really like is a brand called Gooder, being that they are still pretty dang high quality as well as they're way more affordable than some of your higher end brands. I would recommend these, but I could not tell you what brand these are, but they've done the job and they're still intact, so we don't really invest our money in expensive sunglasses anymore. Item number 11, and that is bulky jackets or sweatshirts. We stopped investing our money in things that take up space, and jackets can be really, really bulky, especially if you don't have travel in mind. We personally use these Nano Puff jackets from Patagonia. I've talked about this jacket specifically in my last three videos. I love them. They pack down really small, as you can see. They're super warm, super comfortable, but being from Minnesota here, it can be super easy to just head to the airport in your big winter jacket, and then you realize when you get to your destination, you're like, I have no place to put this thing. I would recommend if you're investing in a jacket for travel, try to not put your money into something big and bulky. Spend a little bit more money to get something that is lightweight and a little bit smaller, so that way you can travel a little bit more efficiently. Item number 12, and that is single use clothing items. This is going to be your secret to not over packing and utilizing every single thing that you put in your suitcase, but let me explain here. What do I mean by single use clothing items? This would be investing in travel clothing products that you really can only use for one occasion. Ideally, when you're packing for travel, you want to pack clothing items that can be used in multiple situations, meaning you can wear that t-shirt with a pair of pants, a pair of shorts, any pair of shoes. You want things that you can wear multiple times and you can basically wear with any combination of clothes. You're going to be wasting a lot of space in your suitcase if you pack those one-off items, and for most people to accomplish this, including ourselves, we try to pack in really neutral tones, so blacks, whites, tans, greens, browns. This way, all of our stuff matches. Now, keep in mind, I am no fashionista or style expert, and feel free to pack and wear whatever you want. This is just what we have found to be really efficient when it comes to spending our money on travel clothes as well as packing, so try to avoid investing in those single use clothing items. Number 13 is buying large souvenirs. Meg and I have done this before, and we have found it to be super stressful. They oftentimes take up a lot of space in your suitcase, they're super heavy, they're hard to keep from getting damaged, so nowadays, we try to invest in small, less fragile souvenirs. Things like magnets, postcards, and bracelets can be great options for souvenirs to remember your trip by, but also not be super stressful to bring home. I would recommend if you do plan to buy a large souvenir, have a game plan predetermined before you go on your trip. Say maybe you're going to Italy and you want to buy a few bottles of wine, plan to maybe ship those items back versus carrying them in your luggage. Item number 14, and this one is a little bit more broad and a little less descriptive, but we stopped investing in heavy travel products. Traveling heavy just makes everything more difficult and a heck of a lot more stressful. Whether it be your suitcase is heavy or your backpack is heavy, you're put at risk of getting unnecessary charges for going over on luggage weight, we are always trying to find the lightest option. I can promise you, you will travel much more comfortably and much more efficiently the lighter you pack. Hopefully after watching this video, you maybe found a few travel products that you might be wasting your money on, as well as maybe some adjustments that you can make to your packing routine, so that way you can be a little bit more efficient. If you enjoyed this video, I would highly recommend going and watching the video that we made about must have travel products. So it's basically the opposite of this video, and we also made it into kind of our gift guide for 2023, so that way you can get some good ideas for travel products, for gifts for your friends and family, being that the holidays are right around the corner. If you enjoyed this video though, please, please, please give it a thumbs up, as well as subscribe to our channel for more content like this. We will see you in the next video.