Planning an upcoming vacation, or traveling for a move?
Traveling is exciting and fun, but preparing for your trip and packing your bags is an overwhelming headache. To make your next vacation or road trip perfectly stress-free, check out these simple and helpful travel hacks and tricks!
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1. Wrap your shoes in a shower cap. Keep dirt from your shoes' soles off of your clean, folded clothes by covering each pair with a shower cap before packing them in your suitcase.
2. Store chargers in an eyeglass case. Sick of tangled wire jumbles in your luggage? Keep your phone, laptop, tablet, mp3 player, camera chargers and USB cords neat and organized inside eyeglass or sunglass cases.
3. Roll your clothes. Save space and avoid wrinkles by rolling your clothes rather than folding them. You will prevent creases and free up extra room in your suitcase.
4. Pack jewelry in a pill container. Small earring and rings can become easily lost when traveling. Keep pieces separate and organized in a pill or vitamin case. If you love being extra organized, you can even fill each labeled compartment with the jewelry you plan to wear each day!
5. Use straws to pack necklaces. Long necklaces knot and tangle during travel. To keep chains tangle-free, insert one end of the necklace through a straw until it emerges out the other end. Clasp the necklace, and place into a zip-lock bag.
6. Protect your phone on the beach. Planning to soak up the sun on your vacation? You can still play with your favorite device and protect it from sun, sand, and moisture. Place your phone, tablet, or mp3 player inside a plastic bag--the touch screen will still work!
7. Cover toiletries with plastic wrap. Leaky shampoo, conditioner, or lotion bottles can cause a drippy mess in your luggage. Protect your bottles from leaking by unscrewing the cap and stretching a small piece of plastic wrap over the bottle's opening. Replace the cap and you're good to go.
8. Carry makeup or lotion in a contact case. Don't have the room to pack your entire skin care collection for vacation? Use an old contact case to carry small amounts of lotion, facial moisturizer, concealer, liquid foundation, and anti-aging serums.
9. Hide valuables in empty lotion bottles. Worried about theft on your trip? Conceal valuables like cash, jewelry, credit cards, ID or electronics in an empty lotion bottle. Cut off the top third portion of the bottom, and thoroughly rinse out any lotion remnants. Stow your belongings inside and place the top back on. This hack works particularly well for hiding valuables on the beach in a sunscreen bottle. You can also use lip balm tubes for cash and small items.
10. Protect razors with a binder clip. When packing your razor, protect the blade by placing a binder clip over the razor's head. This will prevent cut fingers when reaching into your toiletry bag.
11. Use a potholder as a carrying case for heat-styling tools. Don't want to wait for your flat iron to cool off before you pack it? Bring a pot holder to wrap around your heat styling tools. It will prevent them from singing other items if you pack them while they're still warm.
12. Protect your compacts with cotton balls. The slightest rattle can shatter your delicate pressed powders and eye shadows when hauling your cosmetics in your carry-on. To keep them intact, place a cotton ball on top of the powder and close the compact tightly. The fluffy cotton will protect your makeup and keep it from breaking.
13. Enable private browsing when booking flights or hotels. Did you know travel websites track your internet use and adjust their prices based on your search history? Open a private browsing window when comparing costs to find the best price on your travel accommodations -- whether it's for your vacation or a long distance move.