1. An Apple AirTag to help prevent all kinds of "oh my god where is that thing that I desperately need" disasters (read: missing luggage, wallets, PASSPORTS). You can attach this ridiculously lightweight device onto the object you need to keep an eye on and easily find it from your phone if need be — it even has a built-in speaker to make little noises so it's easier to find.
Check out a TikTok of the Apple AirTag in action.
Promising review: "Took a pair of these with me on my trip to Europe, and absolutely loved them. What a smart idea! I am one of those people that is unable to utilize carry-on luggage due to physical limitations, so this was terrific, and kept track of my checked luggage. And like somebody else’s great idea, I also used it to find my way back to my hotel room while in Europe! Find your luggage, find your hotel room!" —Writing Rider
Both BuzzFeeder Elizabeth Lilly and Chelsea Stuart swear by these for traveling as well! Chelsea writes, "I'm generally a carry-on-only traveler, but even those have been getting gate-checked more frequently and as my recent trip involved SIX flights, I felt better having this slipped inside. Using the "Find My" app I can see exactly where my bag was last located so when I land, I'll know if it made the flight with me."
Get it from Amazon for $24.
Psst — you can get an Apple AirTag-compatible keychain or collar clip-on, and you can even snag an Apple AirTag-compatible wallet!
2. A slim profile phone power bank for an easy, highly portable way to get a quick charge on your phone — especially great on trips where you have zero time to go back to the hotel, or you were too distracted to get a full charge. This bb may be small, but can fully charge an iPhone up to *three* times.
Promising review: "I like the solid and sleek construction. Fits easily in my pocket. Most importantly it works! Fast charging, enough capacity to charge my phone many times over several days, and withstands plenty of me dropping it and yanking the cord out awkwardly and accidentally." —Joe Hull
Get it from Amazon for $16.19+ (available in two colors).
3. An easy adhesive phone card holder to keep all your credit cards and cash on your person, because if there's ONE thing you know you'll never lose, it's your phone. (Listen, it's your sworn civic duty to the public to Instagram story every hour on vacation!!)
Wallaroo Wallets is a small business that specializes in uniquely-designed minimalist wallets.
I've used these wallets for four years now, and they are worth every penny! Mine last about six months at a time before they get dingy enough to replace, and easily hold three cards and a five dollar bill. I've never had any issues with them un-sticking off the phone case, and they're super easy to pull off. It makes my life so much easier not to carry a wallet around, plus I never lose my ID!
Promising review: "The Wallaroo phone wallet is a must have for any cell phone owner. The quality of the leather and design of the wallet is superb. I recently went on vacation and purchased my Walleroo before my trip. It was so convenient to carry my ID, credit card and hotel key and not have to carry my actual wallet. This is a great product that I highly recommend." —Todd Smithson
Get it from Amazon $14.95 (available in 12 colors).
4. A durable bag strap gripper that not only keeps you hands-free when you've got extra shopping bags, jackets, and other accessories to cart around, but prevents you from forgetfully LEAVING said items in places where you will simply never see them again. (RIP to that one lost water bottle we're all still mourning.)
5. A handy RFID-blocking travel wallet complete with *deep breath* a passport pocket, boarding pass compartment, three credit card slots, an ID slot, a slim card pouch, slim pocket, a ticket slot, a cellphone pouch, a coin zippered pocket, key holder, and a pen holder, all in one itty-bitty place so you're never scrambling to find anything when you're on the move.
Promising review: "I bought this wallet right before a business trip. I wanted something that was small, but still had room to carry necessities. This wallet did that and more. Besides my ID and credit cards, I carried my passport and organized my receipts. It held a lot but didn’t take up much room in my purse. It was also cute to carry alone as a small clutch. I’m actually planning to buy more as gifts." —Sherlethia
Get it from Amazon for $13.99 (available in 40 colors).
6. And a waterproof family travel document holder for anyone who is traveling in a group — this keeps all your passports, boarding passes, and IDs in one easy place so you don't have to do a whole backpack opening circus every time you get in line at the airport.
Promising review: "I took my kids on their first international trip, and this thing was a total lifesaver. It fits easily in a fanny pack or small purse for easy access, and it fit my whole family's passports, vaccine cards, boarding passes, and a pen with plenty of room for cash and cards if you decide to use it as a wallet for your trip. It made getting checked in a breeze and helped my family keep everything organized." —Kevin Garcia
Get it from Amazon for $8.49+ (available in six colors).
7. An internet-beloved time-marked water bottle so you know *precisely* how much you've consumed in an orderly, encouraging fashion before dehydration sneaks up on you in the middle of your busiest trip days.
Promising review: "The flip up straw is awesome! I travel a lot for work and it's so easy to be driving along, flip the top, and drink without taking my eyes off the road! Easily hitting my intake levels, too — it's really that easy to use! The carry strap is great when I have my laptop, tablet and files to carry into the office. I've recommended to several friends and coworkers — one of my best purchases on the road to a healthier lifestyle!" —Cindi Wheeler
Get it on Amazon for $20.99 (available in 17 colors).
8. A sunglasses strap that is a travel must-have for anyone who is prone to misplacing them — we cannot lose the squint-y battle against our vacation arch nemesis: the sun. Bonus: these straps float, so if you lose your glasses in the water, these will make them pop up to the surface!
Promising review: "Family and friends did a three-day rafting trip this summer. I bought these Uke straps as a safety measure. Day three, raft flipped over on Class 4 rapids, my prescription Maui Jim sunglasses were gone! They were my only pair and I was so upset about it. Ten minutes after as we all got back into raft and headed back down river, someone in our party found my sunglasses floating in river, all because of these awesome straps!!!! Everyone in our party was so impressed that they all wanted to purchase Ukes when we got home. Thank you so much for making these!" —Amazon Customer
Get it from Amazon for $9.99 (available in 27 styles).
9. And a popular woven DSLR camera strap for the ultimate in travel ease — reviewers are obsessed with how comfy it is on their necks, even on long travel days and in humid conditions. This is especially important for humans who might be tempted to take off an uncomfy strap and, say, leave a VERY expensive camera unattended 👀.
You can wear it in three ways: crossbody, shoulder, and around your neck.
Art Tribute is a small business that specializes in guitar straps, camera straps, and purse straps.
Promising review: "Big trip and it did not fail! Roman ruins? Strap is wide and soft enough that you can go all day! Hiking and crawling through weeds to get wildlife pics, it's a little long, but wide enough when it gets caught you don't get strap burn! The lining makes it. Honestly so much better than the original strap it came with! I can't review others 'cause I'm not switching!" —Amazon Customer
Get it from Amazon for $16.95 (available in ten styles, including personalized ones).
10. An editable travel packing list printable so you can make sure you arrive and leave your destination with *precisely* the same amount of items (give or take a souvenir or 12).
Planner Gate is an Australia-based Etsy shop established in 2020 that specializes in personalizable organizational tools and planners.
Promising review: "This was so helpful. It made packing for a trip much less stressful! Thank you!" —Erin
Get it from Planner Gate on Etsy for $1.58.
11. A weekly pill organizer designed with push-through silicone lids to easily organize your pills at the beginning of the week, and magnetic bases so you can take a day or a few days worth of pills in their capsules when you're on the move and leave the rest behind.
Sagely is a family-owned small business founded by husband-and-wife team Ellie Glazer and Ivor Miskulin, who spent three years designing the ideal, stress-free pill storage solution. The silicone lids are super secure, but also designed for gentle and easy opening and closing to account for users with dexterity issues.
Promising review: "Love this thing!!! The little slots to push in pills is fantastic and the containers are very large. It keeps my huge vitamin pills on either side and could fit over 10 large ones if needed. Love this thing. Worth the price and looks like it'll last forever. I do wish the magnets were stronger. They just keep them in place but will slide off if bumped. I assume this is helpful for people with arthritis. It's an easy fix. I take down one days worth of pills, set it on my counter and now I'm not too lazy to take my pills!" —Chicken McNugget
Get it from Amazon for $34.99.
12. *PLUS* a teensy pocket pharmacy case so you don't have to worry about scrambling through all your luggage to see if you remembered to bring certain pills — now they are all neatly consolidated and labeled in this cute gizmo. It even comes with a sticker sheet full of most popular over-the-counter pill brands, and the link to a Google Drive folder to print out others!
Pocket Pharmacy Case is a New Jersey-based Etsy shop that specializes in travel-friendly personal care products.
Promising review: "I love this medication organizer! It’s the perfect size to carry in your purse and shuts securely so pills don’t spill out. The labels are well made and so many to choose from! I definitely recommend ordering one or more to give as gifts!" —Kate P.
Get it from Pocket Pharmacy Case on Etsy for $19.99 (available in eight colors).
13. And a roll-top dry bag to protect any wet suits, towels, or shoes from getting anything else in your suitcase damp — a very, VERY nifty thing to have in your arsenal if you didn't quite strategize on the whole, "How long will this take to get dry before I have to leave for the airport?" game.
Promising review: "I bought this bag for a summer trip, and it exceeded my expectations. I had this with me when I was poolside, in the pool, on a catamaran, during water-based excursions, and all items inside remained dry! This bag also works well for non-water-based activities." —Deja C.
Get it from Dagne Dover for $25 (available in two colors).
14. A water-resistant tricked out travel backpack complete with *deep breath* two laptop sleeves, a shoe compartment, a secret anti-theft pocket, a USB charging port, and a "wet bag" to keep sweaty clothes or liquids away from your tech. Oh, and it's cute as a BUTTON to boot. Who gave this backpack the right to flex on other backpacks this hard???
Promising review: "I recently took a cross-country flight with my three kids. I really didn't want to worry about checked bags getting lost so maximizing our carry-ons was a priority. This backpack fit an unfathomable amount of stuff! Lots of zippers and compartments for everything from shoes to laptops/iPads, easy access compartments for cell phones and boarding passes, I fit tons of neatly folded clothes. The best part was that fully loaded it easily slid under the seat." —Kindle Customer
Get it from Amazon for $36.99+ (available in three sizes and 30 styles).
15. And an oh-so-chic adjustable mini belted pack (aka ~fanny pack~) you can wear around your waist or shoulder for a lightweight bag alternative that you won't lose, since it is literally attached to you. A lot of reviewers mention how genuinely *stunned* they are by how much this little bag can secretly carry.
Promising review: "TikTok told me this compared to Lululemon, and it’s true, it is. Love this little bag! And the price — you can’t beat it." —Jolie
BuzzFeeder Elizabeth Lilly also owns this — she packed it as her only bag for a trip to busy trip to Iceland, and not only did it hold a ton and keep her hands free, it easily fit around her waist over her outerwear.
Get it from Amazon for $13.98 (available in 31 colors).
16. A set of packing cubes to not only save space, but keep everything nice and organized, so you can just plop your "pants cube" or your "socks and underwear cube" directly into the drawers when you reach your destination.
Promising review: "I found out about the packing cubes on TikTok from a woman that travels all over. She mentioned these travel cubes and knew I had to get them. I travel and usually stay in one spot for more than a month so packing gets tricky. I can now pack more neatly and have more room for all the clothes I travel with." —Magen Vaughn
Get a six-piece set from Amazon for $19.99+ (available in 12 colors).
17. Plus a set of rainbow day-of-the-week packing cubes for mitigating some of the inevitable chaos of packing with kids, and help prevent any of their teensy wardrobe pieces from falling through the cracks on either end of the trip. (Psst — adults also use the larger size for their own outfits!)
Promising review: "This is the coolest organizer for kids. The size is perfect for a standard carryon luggage. Helps kids put their outfits together, day by day, for travel. Super fun colors, great quality, easy flow zippers, and lightweight fabric. This makes it really easy for parents and starts the kids getting organized, at a young age. Get these, the kids will love it!" —Skylar James
Get it from Amazon for $24.99 (available in two sizes).
18. An Airplane Pocket tray cover that slides seamlessly over an airplane tray to create an instant, deeply convenient hub — this comes with a number of pockets so you can keep track of all your devices, snacks, and other odds and ends without rooting around for them in the gross back pocket or your carry-on the whole flight. Bonus: this bb is an excellent way to prevent touching a germ-y tray, and it's fully machine washable.
Check out a TikTok of the Airplane Pockets tray table cover in action.
Airplane Pockets is a small business that specializes in sanitary, portable travel organization products.
I used this on a roundtrip from NYC to Tokyo, both with connecting flights in Canada, and cannot sing its praises enough. It fit all four of the different tray tables I used it on and was so ridiculously handy for keeping track of all my littler odds and ends like AirPods, the plane's headphones, earplugs, a sleep mask, a book, gum, a scrunchie, and little snacks. The hanging end of it easily tucked into the built-in sleeve of the seat in front of me for takeoff and when other passengers needed to scoot past me in my aisle seat. Usually, I feel like a hot mess and get frustrated rooting around in the grimy sleeve for my stuff, and this was such a refreshing solution! Several flight attendants even asked where I got it to buy one for themselves!
Get it from Amazon for $29.99.
19. A water-resistant insulated water bottle carrier to support your Hot Girl Vacation Walks — not only does this give you an easy way to free up your hands from your emotional support water bottle, but it comes with all kinds of handy zippered pockets and so you won't lose your phone, keys, and emergency snacks.
Promising review: "Very handy when traveling or at the gym! I got this one after getting a different brand that is smaller. I love the extra pockets on this and the roomie section for ANY water bottle or a smaller water bottle and other stuff. The zipped pocket holds my iPhone Max just fine. Just took this on a cruise and several people commented wishing they had one. So much easier than a backpack or something for your water bottle." —Judy
Get it from Amazon for $17.99+ (available in 11 colors).
20. A set of leakproof, color-coded TSA-friendly toiletry containers complete with LABELS you can put on them, lest you end up trying to moisturize with a big ole glom of shampoo because you forgot which bottle was which.
Here's what BuzzFeeder Elizabeth Lilly has to say about it: "I own and love this set! It includes the zippered bag, four soft silicone bottles with leakproof caps, three compact jars, an two toothbrush caps. I've used this set on more than five trips, and for trips when I don't require body wash or shampoo (like to visit my parents), I use the extra room in the bag to shove in all my beauty products and daily contacts. Plus! It comes with labels that stay on the containers really well despite my thoroughly washing these containers between trips. I bought this set in spring 2019 and have, admittedly, lost a container or two. But the ones that I've held on to over dozens of trips have all held up well!"
Get it from Amazon for $8.99+ (available in 12 variations).
21. A purse organizer insert you can easily slide into any bag for instant pockets to organize yourself when you're on a trip and keep small items like keys and hotel cards from getting lost in the shuffle. Another perk? If you're switching out your purse, all you have to do is slide the organizer out and pop it in with all your stuff raring to go.
Bonus: this also stops the inside liner of your purse from getting dirty if anything happens to explode (been there, cleaned the Panera butter packet out of that).
Promising review: "Every time I travel miscellaneous items seem to gather at the bottom of my tote bag, but no longer with this device. It fit perfectly in the bottom of my tote and it also fits in some of my larger purses (that were like black holes!). Being organized makes life so much easier — grab one or two of these to organize your life too!" —Michelle W. Gibson
Get it from Amazon for $8.99+ (available in five sizes and 16 colors).
22. A hanging cosmetic bag whose motto is "No beauty product left behind!!" This clear-pocketed compact bag fans out so you have all your beloved makeup and skincare at your disposal, converting any hotel bathroom into home sweet home.
I will scream this thing's virtues on every corner of this earth. I used this on an eight-day international trip. It fit a veritable arsenal of products — all of my skincare, makeup, hair supplies, toothbrush, toothpaste, and deodorant were wedged in the different pockets, and still compacted easily and went right into my carryon backpack. It made setting up at the hotel a two-second process of hanging it up and having all my products instantly accessible to me and easy to put away. I cannot imagine traveling without it, especially now that I've used it on a multi-city trip where it was so handy to fold back up and take through several hotels. At one point, I forgot to properly close a lotion, and it exploded a bit, and the bag was super easy to clean from the inside!
Get it from Amazon for $22.99+ (available in two sizes and 12 colors).
23. A foldable jewelry organizer made with a soft quilted cotton to keep all your baubles safe and untangled while you're on the move — this has special spaces for earrings, bracelets, and necklaces, plus two zippered pockets for watches and other accessories.
Promising review: "Absolutely love this! I purchased it for a week-long vacation and it kept my jewelry safe and untangled. I had stopped traveling with necklaces because they always wound up a tangled mess. No more! Bonus is that the soft pink case is beautiful. It is also very slim so it’s easy to pack or carry in your purse. Highly recommend this product! My favorite purchase in a long time!" —Petite and Pampered Boutique
Get it from Amazon for $16.99+ (available in two sizes and 11 colors).
24. A portable hanging luggage organizer for the ultimate lazy unpacker hack — all you have to do is pack your clothes in this, fold it into your suitcase, and then magically unfurl it in a hotel closet for access to all your stuff. Now you're *that* much less likely to leave your beloved pajama top in a random hotel drawer.
Bonus: This works with your existing suitcase, unlike versions of this that come pre-built into more expensive versions!
Promising review: "I was able to pack seven outfits and have way more space in this organizer. I just packed the clothes in the organizer, closed it up, and placed it in my carry on. Once I got to the hotel, I just hung it in my closet. It would be perfect for cruises since their is never any drawer space and very little room to move around." —jess
Get it from Amazon for $27.39+ (available in four colors and several sets).
25. A compact travel cable organizer with two different pocketed compartments to keep your cords, earbuds, and chargers organized and safe — this is waterproof, so even if *you* get waterlogged on a trip, your gadgets and gizmos won't.
Promising review: "This case has been amazing for storing my earbuds, various loose cable connectors, chargers, etc. I am using it right now on a trip and it has been fantastic for keeping these items in one convenient, organized place. It is lightweight and fits easily into my one carry on item when boarding the many flights I am taking. I’m pretty sure I will still be using it to keep all these items together and more easy to locate when I return home! I am so glad I bought this!" —V. Elia
Get it from Amazon for $9.84+ (available in 21 styles).
26. A hybrid travel planner and journal, so not only can you organize all your plans for the trip in advance, but chronicle them in the same space for safekeeping. Extremely love to see it, especially because the planning and anticipating of the trip is every bit as fun as the trip itself!
The Lamare is a Florida-based small business that specializes in planners and journals.
Promising review: "I loved this travel planner. I got it to plan my road trip and it is working wonderfully. It has a monthly overview so you can plan the month leading up to the trip. Also, you get a whole page for what and where you want to go and where you want to eat. And a whole page for a packeting list with blank labels for categories." —Sydney Smith
Get it from Amazon for $13.95.
27. Plus the TripIt app, which is basically a personalized travel babysitter disguised as an app — you can give it all the email reservations for your hotel, flights, and itinerary, and it will put them into a chronological timeline for you. It even captures all the reservation info so you don't have to scramble to find confirmations in your inbox when you're standing outside of a theater or fancy restaurant trying to play it cool.
Reviews have been edited for length and/or clarity.