I Spend a Stupid Amount of Time on the Road — Here’s What I Actually Pack

I spend a stupid amount of time on the road.

Sometimes I’m heading to the airport. Sometimes I’m visiting friends. Sometimes I’m travelling for fun, and increasingly, sometimes I’m hauling myself (and an alarming amount of camera gear) across Alberta to film documentaries.

The point is: I’m in the car a lot.

And after enough long drives, overnight trips and why the hell did I not pack that? moments, I’ve gotten pretty good at knowing what’s actually worth bringing with me.

I originally wrote this road trip essentials list back in 2021, and a lot has changed since then. Some of the things I recommended back then I still swear by. Others haven’t come on a trip with me in years.

So instead of giving you another giant packing list filled with things that sound vaguely useful, I’m sharing the stuff I actually pack when I hit the road — whether I’m driving a few hours or disappearing for a couple of weeks.

Here’s what actually makes the cut:

Tech + Electronics

I’m not exactly a light tech packer. Even when I’m not travelling for work, I’ve usually got my phone, iPad, headphones and enough charging cables to keep a small electronics store running.

If I am travelling for work, things get considerably more ridiculous.

A flashlight

Yes, your phone has a flashlight. No, I don’t think that means you should rely on it for everything.

I keep a small flashlight around because sometimes you need to see what you’re doing without sacrificing your phone battery in the process. It’s particularly handy if you’re traveling at night, camping or digging through the car trying to figure out where the hell something disappeared to.

You don’t need anything fancy here. Small, bright and easy to throw into your bag is perfectly fine.

A magnetic power bank

A portable charger is one of those things that comes with me basically everywhere, road trip or otherwise.

Right now, I have a tiny Anker A1610 5K magnetic power bank that attaches directly to the back of my phone. I love it because it’s small enough that I’ll actually carry it around, but 5,000 mAh isn’t a ton of power.

For a proper road trip, I’d probably go with a magnetic power bank in the 10,000 to 15,000 mAh range instead. That gives you enough extra power to be genuinely useful when you’re away from an outlet for hours without carrying around an enormous battery brick.

A car charger

This is one recommendation from the original version of this post that hasn’t really changed: I like Anker car chargers.

If you’re using your phone for directions, music, podcasts and approximately everything else while you drive, keeping it plugged in makes life considerably easier. Get one with multiple ports if you’re travelling with other people—you do not want four adults negotiating custody of the only USB port six hours into a drive.

An Anker Soundcore Bluetooth speaker

Apparently I am still a person who brings a Bluetooth speaker everywhere.

My old road trip list recommended a Sony speaker because that was what I used at the time. These days, I bring an Soundcore Select 4 Go bluetooth speaker instead.

Obviously, I’m not blasting music from it while we’re driving—the car has speakers for that. But once you get wherever you’re going, having a small Bluetooth speaker is great for hotel rooms, Airbnbs, camping, hanging out outside or wherever else the trip takes you.

My AirPods Pro

My AirPods Pro 3 are always in my bag, mostly because of the noise cancellation.

If I’m trying to work, concentrate or just need everything around me to be considerably quieter for a while, being able to turn on noise cancellation is a godsend. I use them for music and audiobooks too, but honestly, sometimes I’m wearing them because I would simply like the world to shut up for a minute.

Obviously, do not drive while wearing noise-cancelling headphones. I use mine when I’m the passenger, when I’m working or once we’ve actually arrived somewhere.

They’re particularly useful on trips with other people because you can create your own little bubble without actually having to escape the people you’re travelling with.

My iPad Pro

My iPad Pro has been one of my travel staples for years, and that hasn’t changed.

It’s my e-reader, entertainment system, notebook and backup computer all rolled into one. I download books from the library, watch movies and shows—including a frankly stupid amount of content I own through Apple—and use my Apple Pencil for notes, outlines and whatever else I happen to be working on.

I also used to travel with a Magic Keyboard, which essentially turned my iPad into a tiny laptop. Mine has since met an unfortunate end, but I liked it enough that replacing it is on my list.

I used to recommend buying an Amazon Fire tablet as a cheaper alternative here. I owned one for years, so this wasn’t a completely random recommendation, but I wouldn’t personally buy another one. If you’re already happy with another tablet, though, bring that. The point isn’t that everyone needs an iPad Pro; it’s that a tablet is incredibly useful when you’ve got hours to kill.

My laptop — sometimes

Whether my laptop comes with me depends entirely on what kind of road trip we’re talking about.

If I’m going away for a couple of days purely for fun, I can usually get away with my iPad. If I’m travelling for work—especially if I’m filming—my MacBook Pro is absolutely coming with me.

You definitely do not need to bring a laptop simply because you’re going on a road trip. But if you expect to get any real work done while you’re away, I’d rather have mine and not need it than spend three hours trying to make my iPad do something annoying.

A tech organizer

I have enough tiny electronic crap that it now gets its own bag.

My tech organizer holds charging cables, adapters, bricks and whatever other little accessories I need for the devices I’ve brought with me. It also means I know exactly where my charging stuff is instead of digging through three bags at midnight looking for the USB-C cable I know I packed.

If you travel with more than a phone and a single charger, get some kind of cable organizer. It does not need to be elaborate. It just needs to prevent the bottom of your bag from becoming a cable graveyard.

Clothes + Comfort

I am firmly of the opinion that a road trip is not the time to suffer for fashion.

Add to that, I have a notoriously minimalistic wardrobe. I want clothes I can sit in for hours, shoes I can kick off easily and a couple of things that make being trapped in a car considerably more comfortable.

What exactly comes with me changes depending on the season and where I’m going, but these are the things I reach for most often.

Comfortable leggings

If I’m going to spend hours sitting in a car, there is a very good chance I’m wearing leggings.

I’ve been wearing Old Navy PowerSoft leggings for years. I love them so much they even make the cute in my minimalist AF wardrobe.

They’re comfortable, stretchy and actually fit me properly. Most importantly, I can sit in them for an absurd amount of time without reaching the point where I desperately want to take my pants off.

Could you road trip in jeans? Absolutely.

Would I? Absolutely not.

A flannel or light layer

Car temperatures are unpredictable at the best of times, and they’re even worse when you’re travelling with other people who apparently have completely different internal thermostats.

I almost always bring something I can throw on when I get cold. Right now, that’s usually a checkered flannel. Depending on the season, I might bring a sweater or something warmer instead.

The important thing is having a layer that’s easy to pull on and off without having to unpack half your suitcase every time someone gets aggressive with the air conditioning.

Comfortable shoes

My road trip shoes need to be comfortable and, preferably, very easy to take off.

For flip-flops, I love the Skechers On-the-GO 600 Sunny sandals. I have wide feet, which can make finding comfortable sandals an absolute pain in the ass, and these actually work for me.

If I need actual walking shoes, I’m also a longtime Skechers GO WALK person. And depending on what I’m doing when I arrive, I sometimes bring my Dream Pairs flats instead.

Basically, bring shoes you can comfortably spend the day in once you get out of the car. A road trip is already capable of making your entire body feel weird after eight hours. Your shoes don’t need to contribute.

An oversized Turkish towel

This is technically a towel. I rarely use it exclusively as a towel.

I like travelling with one of those enormous, lightweight Turkish-style beach towels—the kind you can get from brands like Sand Cloud. I’ve used mine as a towel, blanket, something to sit on and probably several other things it was never technically designed for.

They fold down considerably smaller than a traditional fluffy beach towel, which makes them ridiculously useful when you’re trying not to bring your entire house with you.

A blanket and pillow — sometimes

I used to recommend bringing a dedicated travel pillow. I don’t actually travel with one anymore.

What I bring really depends on the trip. If I’m driving a few hours to the airport, I’m probably not hauling a pillow around with me. If we’re going on a long road trip and there’s a reasonable chance I’m going to sleep in the passenger seat, I might just throw an actual pillow and blanket in the car.

That’s one of the nice things about road trips: you have a car. Everything does not need to be a miniature, collapsible, travel-specific version of something you already own.

A packing cube with the important stuff

Most of my clothes can stay packed away until I get where I’m going, but I like having the things I might actually need somewhere easy to reach.

For me, that usually means at least underwear and a change of clothes in a packing cube rather than buried somewhere at the bottom of my luggage.

You don’t need to unpack your entire suitcase on the side of the road because somebody spilled something on you. That’s an unnecessarily shitty way to spend 20 minutes.

I’ve used Bagil packing cubes for years.

Personal Care

I am a pretty basic bitch when it comes to personal care, especially when I travel.

I don’t really wear makeup, so you won’t find a carefully organized travel makeup kit in my bag. I have a handful of products I use all the time, some basic toiletries and a few things that make me feel considerably less gross after spending all day in a car.

Sunscreen

Sunscreen is one of those things I try to have with me basically everywhere, and right now my favourite face sunscreen is TOCOBO Bio Watery Sun Cream.

I like lightweight sunscreen that doesn’t feel like I’ve coated my face in something, especially when I’m already going to be sitting in a car for hours.

And yes, you still need sunscreen in the car. Windows are not a magical force field against the sun.

Burt’s Bees lip balm

This recommendation has survived every version of this post.

I’ve been using Burt’s Bees Original Beeswax Lip Balm since I was a teenager, and there is almost always one somewhere in my bag. In fact, there’s usually more than one floating around because apparently losing a lip balm for three days and then finding it again is part of the experience.

Long drives, air conditioning and bouncing between different climates can all leave my lips feeling dry, so this is one of the very few personal-care products I genuinely do not like travelling without.

Body wipes + face wipes

Sometimes you spend the entire day traveling and would simply like to feel like a clean person again.

I usually have some kind of body wipes with me for exactly that reason. They’re handy after a long drive, when you’re camping, after being outside all day or anytime a shower isn’t immediately available.

I also carry face wipes, despite the fact that I don’t really wear makeup. I use them to clean my face when I’m travelling, not necessarily to remove anything.

If you’re looking for an elaborate travel makeup routine, you have absolutely come to the wrong woman. My everyday makeup routine is aggressively minimal, which is a whole other post.

Travel tissues

This one isn’t exciting. You should still have them.

I usually throw a small pack of tissues into my bag rather than carrying around some special car tissue dispenser. They’re tiny, they weigh practically nothing and the first time you desperately need a tissue, you’ll be very pleased that you packed them.

Scrunchies + claw clips

The original version of this post recommended Invisibobbles, which I used religiously for years. I don’t anymore.

I have curly hair, and these days I’m much more careful about how tightly I tie it up. I usually travel with soft silk or satin scrunchies and claw clips, which let me get my hair out of my face without yanking it into an extremely tight ponytail.

They’re also useful when you’ve been sitting in a car all day and your hair has officially stopped cooperating with whatever plan you had for it that morning.

Hand cream + moisturizer

My skin gets extremely dry when I travel, so lotion is not optional for me.

For my hands, I really like AHAVA Dead Sea Mineral Hand Cream. It’s one of those products I’ve gone back to repeatedly because it’s rich without making me want to immediately wash my hands after putting it on.

I also bring a heavier body moisturizer or cream with me. What I’m using changes occasionally, so I’d worry less about buying my exact product and more about packing whatever you already know works well for your skin.

A curl refresher

I don’t really use dry shampoo anymore, despite recommending it in the old version of this post.

What I will bring is some kind of curl refresher or restyling spray. After sleeping somewhere unfamiliar, spending hours against a headrest or throwing my hair up repeatedly, my curls occasionally need some assistance returning to civilization.

Deodorant

Again: groundbreaking packing advice.

I use Native deodorant when I’m in Canada or the U.S. I’m currently trying a Mexican deodorant that I really like, but it’s not particularly helpful to recommend something most readers can’t easily buy.

Whatever brand you use, put deodorant somewhere accessible. Nobody needs to discover theirs is buried underneath four packing cubes after spending eight hours in a car.

Toothbrush + toothpaste

I am including this largely because I am exceptionally good at forgetting my toothbrush.

It is perhaps the most basic thing you can pack and yet somehow one of the easiest things to leave sitting in your bathroom.

So learn from my continued inability to remember an object I use every single day: pack the damn toothbrush.

Period underwear

My period kit is incredibly simple because I primarily use period underwear.

They’re easy to pack, don’t take up much space and mean I don’t need to carry a bunch of separate period products around with me. Knix is my go-to brand, seriously I don’t wear anything else currently.

Obviously, pack whatever products actually work for you—the important part is not discovering halfway through a road trip that the nearest place selling them is 45 minutes away.

A clear toiletry bag

I use one of those clear TSA-style toiletry bags even when I’m not getting anywhere near an airport.

They’re just really fucking convenient.

I use mine for the small bottles and personal-care products I travel with because I can immediately see what’s inside, liquids stay contained if something leaks, and I don’t have to dig through an opaque bag trying to remember where I put something.

You absolutely do not need to be flying for airport-style organization to be useful.

Laundry soap

This is more of a long-trip essential than something I’m packing for a weekend away, but I sometimes travel with a bar of laundry soap.

I lived in Mexico without a washing machine for a long time, so I got very accustomed to washing clothes by hand in the sink. A laundry soap bar is small, lasts forever and makes it easy to wash underwear, shirts or whatever else you need without hauling a bottle of detergent around.

And yes, I have pictures of myself doing this because apparently Past Me fully intended to write an entire post about how to hand wash clothes in a sink and then just… didn’t.

We’ll get there.

Bags + Packing

I have opinions about bags.

Probably too many opinions, actually. But after travelling as much as I have—and currently owning so little shit that almost everything I own fits into luggage—I have gotten pretty particular about what I pack my stuff in and how I organize it.

My Monos backpack

If I need more room than my little Travelon gives me, I have my Monos Metro Backpack.

I’ve travelled with this thing enough that I’ve already written an entire review about it. It’s considerably bigger than my Travelon and makes more sense when I need to carry my laptop, iPad, tech organizer and other things I want with me rather than buried in my luggage.

I don’t necessarily bring both backpacks on every trip. Which one comes with me depends on what I’m doing and how much shit I need accessible.

My Travelon anti-theft backpack

My current everyday travel bag is the Travelon Anti-Theft Signature Slim Backpack, and I use the absolute shit out of this thing.

It’s small enough that I don’t end up carrying half my worldly possessions around all day, but it has enough room for the things I actually want accessible while I’m travelling. It also has the anti-theft features I like in a travel bag, which gives me a little extra peace of mind when I’m somewhere unfamiliar.

I previously had the Travelon Classic Small Convertible Backpack, which is actually the bag I recommended in the original version of this post. I really liked that one too, but the Signature Slim is what I use now.

At some point I need to write an entire review of this bag because I have thoughts. Many, many thoughts.

A secret wallet

I don’t necessarily use a secret wallet on every single trip, but I still think they’re handy when I’m travelling somewhere unfamiliar.

The idea is basically to keep some backup money or a card somewhere separate from your regular wallet. If your wallet gets lost—or something else happens to it—you haven’t simultaneously lost every possible way of paying for something.

I used to recommend a Pacsafe bra wallet, which clips inside your clothes. You don’t necessarily need that exact setup, but I do like having a backup card and some cash stored separately from whatever I’m carrying day-to-day.

Packing cubes

I f*cking love packing cubes.

This is another recommendation from the original post that has survived completely intact. I’ve been using packing cubes for years, and I genuinely don’t understand how I travelled without them.

They keep my clothes organized, make it easier to find one specific thing without exploding my entire suitcase across a hotel room and let me separate things however makes sense for the trip.

I usually have smaller cubes for things like underwear and larger ones for my actual clothes. I also work with both regular cubes and compression cubes. There is no elaborate colour-coded packing system happening here. I just want to know approximately where my shit is.

Hard-shell luggage

I am still firmly on team hard-shell suitcase and I primarily try to work with just a carry-on sized bag.

Right now, I travel with Armored Travel luggage. I like having a hard shell because I’m generally happier knowing everything inside has a little more protection—and considering I currently spend an unreasonable amount of my life hauling my belongings from one place to another, my luggage gets used.

For a short road trip, though, you may not need a suitcase at all. Pack for the trip you’re actually taking, not for the imaginary possibility that you suddenly need fourteen outfits.

A foldable reusable tote

I almost always have some kind of reusable shopping bag tucked into my luggage or backpack.

Mine fold down into themselves, so they take up practically no room until I need one. Then they’re useful for groceries, carrying random shit back to the hotel, separating things or dealing with the inevitable moment when I’ve somehow acquired more stuff than I started the trip with.

A wet bag

If there’s swimming, a beach, a hot tub or anything else involving water on the agenda, I’ll usually bring a wet bag.

It’s considerably nicer than throwing a wet swimsuit in with the rest of your clothes and hoping for the best. They’re also useful for anything else damp or dirty that you don’t particularly want touching everything in your suitcase.

Other Road Trip Essentials

Then there’s all the random practical shit that doesn’t fit neatly into another category but somehow ends up being some of the most useful stuff in the car.

None of it is particularly glamorous. Most of it is there because at some point I’ve been hungry, thirsty, dirty, mildly injured or otherwise inconvenienced while travelling and thought, well, this would have been useful.

My WaterH water bottle

My WaterH water bottle goes basically everywhere with me at this point.

I just took it on a trip that involved driving to the airport, spending most of a day travelling to Mérida, approximately one actual day in Mexico, another entire day in airports and then a four-hour drive home. It came with me for all of it.

I like having a big reusable bottle because I actually drink the water when it’s sitting beside me. On a road trip, it’s also considerably easier than continually buying plastic bottles every time you stop.

Snacks

I am not going on a long drive without snacks.

What I bring changes depending on the trip and whatever I’m currently into eating, but I want at least a few things in the car that don’t require stopping somewhere.

Road-trip food stops are part of the fun. Being forced to stop at the nearest gas station because you’re suddenly fucking starving is less fun.

Bring snacks.

Hand sanitizer + antibacterial wipes

I still travel with hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes, although unlike the original 2021 version of this post, I’m no longer going to give you a pandemic-era speech about them.

They’re just useful.

Gas stations are gross. Rest stops are occasionally grosser. Food gets spilled. Hands get sticky. Things happen.

I keep both somewhere I can reach them without unpacking the car.

A small first-aid kit

I don’t build my first-aid kit entirely from scratch. I usually buy a small pre-made kit and then replace or add things as I use them.

That gives me the basics without requiring me to individually shop for every Band-Aid and piece of gauze known to man.

The important thing is to actually check it occasionally. A first-aid kit containing three empty wrappers, one Band-Aid that’s been there since 2019 and some expired ointment is not quite as helpful as having an actual first-aid kit.

A tiny sewing kit

I also travel with a small sewing kit, which takes up almost no room and has saved me from stupid clothing problems more than once.

You don’t need enough supplies to construct a new wardrobe on the side of the Trans-Canada Highway. A needle, a couple of colours of thread and a few basic repair supplies are plenty.

Hopefully you’ll never touch it. But the day a button falls off or something rips, you’ll feel incredibly smug about having packed it.

Offline maps

This technically isn’t something I physically pack, but it belongs on the list anyway.

If I’m going somewhere where cell service might be questionable, I like having the area downloaded for offline use before I leave.

Do this before you lose service.

There are few things more irritating than discovering you need directions at precisely the same moment your phone decides you live in a cellular dead zone.

A little backup money

Even if I’m primarily paying by card, I like having another way to pay for something if my usual option isn’t working.

That might mean some cash, a second card or both—and preferably not stored in exactly the same place as my primary wallet.

You probably won’t need it. That’s sort of the point. It’s there for the annoying little travel disaster where your card gets declined, a machine isn’t working or you’ve lost access to whatever you normally use to pay.

Whatever makes your road trip easier

This is probably the most important thing I’ve learned after spending so much time travelling: you do not need to pack something just because somebody put it on a road-trip essentials list.

I don’t bring paper towels. I don’t carry a dedicated travel pillow. I don’t have a carefully stocked box of car-specific products waiting for every conceivable emergency.

I bring the shit I actually use.

Start with the basics, think about where you’re going and how long you’ll be gone, and then pack for the trip you’re actually taking. Your four-hour drive to visit a friend does not require the same amount of stuff as two weeks on the road—and thank God for that.

What Do You Actually Need for a Road Trip?

The answer is probably less than you think.

I originally wrote this list years ago, and updating it has been a funny reminder that the way I travel has changed—a lot. There are things I used to swear by that I don’t even own anymore, while other things have somehow survived years of trips and are still coming with me every single time.

These days, I spend a stupid amount of time on the road. Sometimes I’m travelling for fun, sometimes I’m heading to an airport, sometimes I’m visiting people and sometimes I’m hauling camera gear across the province to film something.

And I don’t pack exactly the same way for any of those trips.

That’s really the point.

You don’t need to buy 40 new things before you get in the car. Bring the stuff that keeps you comfortable, keeps your devices charged, gives you something to eat and drink, and makes whatever you’re doing when you arrive a little easier.

Everything else?

If you’ve gone on three road trips without touching it, maybe it doesn’t need to come on the fourth.

Looking for more travel essentials? Here are my faves:

• I ADORE my Monos backpack, but I can’t take it on airport trips with my dogs
• This Sherpa carrier has carted all three of my dogs through international airports
• I can’t remember to hydrate so I bought a WaterH bottle to remind me