After years on the road, we’ve tried lots of different travel gear and accessories. Whether it’s a long backpacking trip or a short weekend getaway, there is some travel gear that we just can’t live without. In this article, we’re going to tell you about our favourite travel gear and accessories.
Check out our favourite camera gear and hiking gear
Table of Contents
Our Travel Essentials
With the right gear, you can travel so much better – with more comfort and ease. Sure, knowing what to pack can be difficult at the best of times. So, hopefully, by scoping out our favourite travel accessories and essentials, you’ll know what gear to pack on your next adventure.
Bear in mind, that this is not an exhaustive list of everything to pack on a trip. If you’re after a more thorough travel packing list, read our Travel Packing List For Backpacking and Hiking Trips.
FYI – we buy most of our travel gear on Amazon as it’s usually cheaper than buying directly from suppliers. Plus, Amazon provides a great service. For instance, returning and getting a refund for an item is super easy. Best of all, Amazon is reliable, trustworthy and transparent.
Backpacking Backpack: Osprey
To get the ball rolling, let’s talk about the backpacking backpack that you’ll use to store all of your travel gear! Osprey is one of the best at making comfortable and durable backpacking backpacks. For years, Beck and I have both used Osprey backpacks for both backpacking and hiking. Currently, the most popular Osprey backpacking backpack is the Osprey Rook for men and the Osprey Renn for women.
Day Bag: Osprey Skarab 30
When you’re on the road, you’ll also want a smaller backpack to use during the day when you’re exploring. And, for those shorter trips, a smaller bag will suffice. The Osprey Skarab 30 is our go-to backpack for day trips, short trips abroad and day hiking. This well-designed backpack is comfortable and spacious, so you’ll have plenty of space to pack all of your travel gear without feeling the strain on your upper back or neck.
Earth Pak Waterproof Dry Bag
On some occasions, you may actually need a waterproof dry bag to protect your travel gear. If you’re chasing waterfalls, on a boat trip or a snorkelling or diving tour, it’s best to use a dry bag rather than a regular backpack. And, the best dry bag is the Earth Pak Waterproof Dry Bag.
Packing Cubes: Osprey UL Packing Cube Set
Using packing cubes will help you to stay organised with your travel gear. Before we knew about the Osprey UL Packing Cube Set, our backpacks used to be a right old mess. If you’re organised with your gear, you’re less likely to lose things, especially if you’re bouncing from place to place. Personally, Beck and I usually use packing cubes to store our clothes in an organised way.
Admittedly, most packing cubes you’ll find online are cheap and nasty, which means they’ll easily tear. Thankfully, the Osprey Ultralight Packing Cube Set is made of high-quality material, so they should last the entirety of your trip!
Travel Wallet: Amazon Basics
Yes, it’s all about being organised! By using a travel wallet, you’re less likely to lose important documents such as your passport. Using a travel wallet will also help keep your cards and documents stored safely and securely, reducing the chances of theft.
We use the Amazon Basics Travel Wallet, which is a budget-friendly yet high-quality travel gear product. This wallet also has RFID anti-theft technology to help protect you against fraudsters!
Money Belt: Pacsafe Coversafe X100
Depending on where you’re travelling, using a hidden money belt may be a good idea. Undoubtedly, the best money belt is the Pacsafe Coversafe X100. Certainly, this money belt will help you safely store your money and cards, so it’s definitely important travel gear.
Wise Multi-Currency Card
We use the Wise Multi-Currency Card when we travel abroad. It’s really easy to use and a lot cheaper than using bank cards as you’ll avoid hidden fees and exchange rate markups. To order a free card, click the button below.
Electronics Cable Bag: FYY Electronic Organiser
When you’re on the road, where will you store all of your small electronic items and cables? You certainly won’t want your cables and cords getting tangled and misplaced all the time. The FYY Electronic Organiser is one of the most highly-rated organisers for all your electronics, whether it’s cables, hard drives, memory cards, spare batteries, a spare phone, etc. This electronic bag can also fit an e-reader like an Amazon Kindle.
Laptop: Dell New Inspiron 15
Of course, you may want to take a laptop on your trip. Both Beck and I travel with the Dell New Inspiron 15 Laptop. It’s a powerful laptop that allows us to upload all of our photos, do all of our photo and video editing as well as blogging.
But, we understand that you may not need such a powerful laptop – just something to help you upload images, book flights and accommodation and search the web whilst travelling. In this case, the Dell Inspiron 15 is a highly-rated and popular laptop, that’s a more budget-friendly solution.
WD External Hard Drive
If you’re taking lots of photos and videos, you’ll definitely want to back them up. We all know that sometimes things go wrong when we’re travelling. If you’re camera breaks or gets stolen, you don’t want to lose all of your photos! Beck and I always travel with a couple of WD External Hard Drives (1TB or 2TB).
Travel Insurance
Don’t leave for your trip without booking travel insurance. We all know accidents can happen and having Heymondo travel insurance could save you thousands of dollars if something goes wrong. Click the button below to receive a 5% discount!
Anker Portable Power Bank
Keep all your electronic travel accessories charged while you’re on the go with the Anker Portable Power Bank. We wouldn’t travel anywhere without this high-quality portable charger. Certainly, when it comes to travel gear, the Anker Portable Power Bank is one of the first accessories that we pack!
Universal Travel Adapter
A Universal Travel Adapter is an important piece of travel gear, especially if you’re travelling to multiple continents during your trip. After all, it’s annoying to have to pack several power adapters. An all-in-one universal travel adapter is the solution!
Noise Cancelling Headphones: Anker Soundcore
If you’re looking for the most budget-friendly yet high-quality noise-cancelling headphones for travel, then look no further than the Anker Soundcore Space Q45. I absolutely love using these headphones!
eReader: Amazon Kindle
Taking an e-reader travelling is really a no-brainer if you like to read and don’t want to pack books. I mean, books take up a lot of space in your bag! The Amazon Kindle is a popular e-reader and has served us well on our travels.
eReader Case: Amazon Kindle Cover
To protect your Amazon Kindle on the road, we suggest using an Amazon Kindle Cover. Absolutely, the Amazon Kindle Cover has stopped my Amazon Kindle from getting scratched and damaged.
Water Filter Bottle: GRAYL Reusable Water Bottle
The GRAYL GeoPress is a wonderful water filter bottle that allows you to purify 710mL (12 ounces) of water. This bottle will make water safe to drink wherever you’re adventuring, so it’s definitely important travel gear.
Sea to Summit DryLite Towel
The Sea to Summit DryLite Towel is the best quick-dry microfibre towel. This compact, lightweight and super-absorbent towel is perfect for travel.
Travel Pillow: Trtl Neck Pillow
Hands down, the best travel pillow is the Trtl Neck Pillow. The unique design helps support the weight of your head whilst sleeping in a seated position without any recline. By using this travel pillow, you won’t have a sore neck after waking from those awkward seated sleeping positions on a bus or plane. Definitely, add the Trtl Neck Pillow to your travel gear list.
Headlamp: Petzl ACTIK CORE
If you’re camping, exploring underground or going on a multi-day hike, you’ll need a good headlamp. The Petzl ACTIK CORE Headlamp is a reliable, lightweight and high-rated headlamp.
Aqua Shoes: WateLves
There have been so many times when Beck and I have benefitted from wearing aqua shoes. If you’re exploring gorges, waterfalls or pebbly beaches, using the WateLves Aqua Shoes will help protect your feet.
Better yet, these aqua shoes are very compact and flexible, so they’re easy to store in your backpack and whip out whenever you need them. Of course, using these shoes in water will save you from using your regular shoes, which may be easily damaged or unpleasant to wear in the water.
Not planning to travel anytime soon? No problem, bookmark this travel gear page for future reference.
Hey Dan and Beck,
I enjoyed reading the must-have travel items and found a lot of it very useful for my own camping trips. I was wondering perhaps you could post about packing as a couple. What are some things that you share to prevent overpacking? For instance, my partner prefers if we shared toiletries (excluding toothbrush) and some cooking utensils etc to save space. But sometimes I struggle with deciding which items are sharable and which are better to bring your own. Thanks and keep the articles coming 🙂
Hey Elizabeth,
We’re glad to hear that you found our post useful.
Information specific to packing as a couple is a great idea. That’s certainly on our to do list for content.
We’re aiming to publish more camping and hiking specific checklists for couples. Watch this space.
Thanks for the feedback 🙂
Cheers, Dan & Beck