Carry-On Packing Essentials for Airline Travel — Journey With Jess

Aug 3

Aug 3 Carry-On Packing Essentials for Airline Travel

This past weekend I was in Nashville for my friends' Bachlorette party. I took an extra day off work for travel so I had a hard time getting back into the swing of things, which is the reason for my lack of posts. I had an absolute blast in Nashville and can't wait to go back. Besides all the fun I had, it was a bit of a fiasco getting there. Me and 2 other people decided to save time and fly there thinking it would be quicker than driving 8 hours there and back. I'm usually pretty good about packing essentials and a change of clothes in my carry-on (I grew up flying standby so this is something we always did), but this time I was over-confident [note: lazy] and since the flight was only an hour I decided to throw everything in my checked bag. Fate decided to teach me a very valuable lesson.

First, our flight was delayed for 4 hours because of a mechanical issue. We did a lot of waiting with many unhappy passengers, unsure if we would be going anywhere. The airline thankfully found us a spare plane and we took off a little after 6:30pm. Once we got to Nashville, I found out the airline lost my luggage and had no clue where it was and when it would get to me. This left me with literally nothing. Nothing to wear, no makeup, no toiletries - nothing. This was the first time an airline has completely lost my luggage and didn't know where it was. There is nothing worse than not knowing where your bag is and if it will even be found. Needless to say, the airline found my bag and delivered it to where we were staying the very next day - but those 12 hours without knowing were completely nerve-racking.

Which brings us to the topic of today's post; carry-on packing essentials. After realizing the airline lost my luggage, I had to go shopping to replace the things I needed for the weekend just in case they couldn't find it in time. I've created a comprehensive list of the things I will always pack in my carry-on as well as some of the essentials I ended up buying that night.

A Change of Clothes

• 2 pairs of shirts
• Sweatshirt
• Pants/shorts
• Bra
• 2 pairs of underwear
• Pajamas
• Shoes/sandals
• Socks

Toiletries

I suggest buying travel sized items – remember to follow the 1 Quart maximum airline liquid rule
• Toothbrush/tooth paste
• Deodorant
• For contact wearers: Eyedrops, contact solution & glasses
• Face wipes
• Moisturizer

Other Essentials

• Makeup
• Lipbalm
• Medications & vitamins
• Hairtie & brush
• Snacks

Entertainment

• Headphones
• Tablet
• Book/E-reader

I learned a very valuable lesson this weekend about the unpredictability of airline travel so it is important to always be prepared. If you travel a lot or you're going on a trip, I HIGHLY suggest packing some of the above items in your carry-on. Air travel can sometimes be a stressful experience, no sense on making it anymore stressful than it needs to be. From this point forward, I will always pack important items in my carry-on just in case I find myself in this situation in the future.