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Toiletries - how do you pack them and how much do you bring?


lbjen
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We are about to take our first 2 week vacation - 1 week cruise and then a week in FL. Luckily we are driving so I don't have to worry about liquid limits but I don't want to lug a big bag of toiletries into each hotel room. On shorter vacations in the past we've made do with 2 in 1 shampoo/conditioner and a basic shower gel, but that isn't going to work for us anymore.

 

Do you travel with full sizes? Buy smaller sizes of your usual products? Decant? What if your usual brand doesn't come in a smaller size?

 

I'm curious about what everyone else does!

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I did a B2B last October and the only thing I ran out of was body cream. I've always been able to get away with the travel size/3 oz or less limits. I use small containers to transfer products that don't come in travel size.

 

 

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I buy GoTubes at Bed, Bath & Beyond (sometimes Target). The kids never leak & the tube is easy to squeeze even with arthritis. They're 3oz containers & I put my favored shampoo, conditioner, bath gel & lotion in them. One tube lasts 3 weeks of once a day use. I also use them in my gym bag. So much easier than lugging big containers

 

 

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DH and I both have travel organizers that we purchased from LLbean. Love them because they hold all of the toiletries we need and they have a hook that hangs off the shower curtain bar or towel bar. We carry first aid items in a zip loc bag and our meds in zip loc bags also.

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I bring the small sizes of shampoo and conditioner hotels provide, the travel size toothpaste the dentist gives us.

As make up items get clise to being used up, I set them aside for travel. On a trip, I toss containers as products get used up.

 

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Why isn't what you did in the past going to work? Could simply double up.

At home we've measured (or weighed) how much product we've used over a certain amount of time. Example- I know that I can get 10 uses of hair gel out of one side of a contact lens case. For longer trips, I'll bring an extra case. A small tube of toothpaste lasts 14 uses. Longer trips I'll bring either another small tube or one slightly larger tube if we're not flying.

 

We decant whenever possible. ladylighttravel.com has a good tutorial for decanting makeup and toiletries. From her I learnt to use a recycled eyedrop bottle for my hail oil.

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Go small...unless you are traveling to a third World country you can always buy more..

 

x2

 

I decant -- I don't travel with full sizes. I look through travel size items to find the larger size shampoo bottles -- if I don't like the shampoo I just empty it out and fill it with my favored brand. I use a very concentrated conditioner, so only need a small bottle for that.

 

I don't really use anything else that would require a large container -- don't use shower gel; and only a little bit of hair product.

 

I don't usually sit in the sun, but will take a small-ish bottle of sunscreen to wear if I'm going to be on shore walking around in the hot sun for long periods (e.g., at an archaeological site). It's never been too difficult to find things like sunscreen wherever I've traveled (though sometimes not as strong as I'd ideally like).

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I tried measuring how many 'uses' I could get into a 3oz travel bottle for my shampoo and conditioner and it was about 10, so I think that will work. I'm just going to pick up some more of the ones I have (they're from Ikea, 4 for $1!) and do that.

 

The biggest problem we had before was that the 2 in 1s destroy my hair and my daughter's hair, last time we were on vacation it took months for our hair to get back into decent shape. The shower gel isn't really a problem except we have two cabins so I will need to bring two. I'll probably just bring the travel bottles of that too.

 

Thanks for the help everyone!

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I have to fly nearly everywhere to take a cruise - and because I infinitely prefer to carry-on my luggage (on both plane and ship) I must be mindful of both liquids and weight/size.

 

For shampoo, I generally use what is provided in the cabin/hotel. My hair is pretty easygoing and can tolerate a lot. I have only stayed in a small number of AirBnBs that don't normally provide shampoo, and many hosts are willing to accommodate me when I explain that I don't travel with it. One hostess even did a drugstore run for me knowing I would be arriving fairly late in the evening, for which I reimbursed her and gave her an Amazon gift card (she was an awesome host in many ways!) If soap or body wash isn't provided, I use shampoo in its place.

 

Conditioner I bring my own, usually a bottle from the "travel sizes" area of the drugstore. Hotels are hit or miss and it's rare to find conditioner on a ship. I don't need much, so a little goes a long way for me. I also use it for shaving so it pulls double duty as well.

 

For facial cleansing I travel with Olay Daily Facials cloths. I can just throw a bunch in a Ziploc and there's no liquids to deal with at all. I also recently started using a stick cleanser which is really cool but I haven't packed it anywhere yet - it's a bit on the large side so I'd need to see how much room it leaves me in my toiletries bag.

 

For moisturizer I travel with a product that works for face, hands and body so a GoToob of that covers me (literally?) for all my needs.

 

I used to carry a liquid foundation but I've moved to a stick formula for travel so once again I can leave that out of my TSA-approved liquids bag. In fact so many of my makeup products are sticks now (blush, highlighter, contour, plus the usual suspects like lipstick) that the only "liquid" makeup I still use is mascara and gloss.

 

I also used to carry my own hand sanitizer gel when I traveled (and still do have a large dispenser in the car) but I've started using a multipurpose individually-packaged wipe for travel - it not only sanitizes both hands and hard surfaces (like airplane tray tables and armrests!) but also will actually clean up minor messes unlike sanitizer gel.

 

When I travel tropically I also carry insect repellant wipes that are individually wrapped. One wipe will generally cover the exposed skin of both me and my husband so we don't need too many.

 

The one area that trips me up is sunscreen. I have tried several stick-format sunscreens and haven't found a favorite yet so it's lotion for me. I generally bring one or two tubes that are 3.4 oz or less in my TSA bag and if possible, plan to buy more at my destination.

 

I will say I have had some great luck with shipping sunscreen to hotels - although I've only done it twice. Once was a pre-cruise stay in FLL and with a late arrival I knew getting to a drugstore would be a problem with no rental car. The other time was at a Walt Disney World resort, again with no rental car, and not wanting to pay the on-property premium at the resort gift shop. Both times I just used Amazon Prime to ship our preferred products to ourselves, c/o the hotel, making sure to note GUEST and our arrival date on the address and in "special instructions." I just carried the tubes on board in a packable reusable shopping bag, since cruise lines don't care about a max number of carry-on items. (We use a LOT of sunscreen.)

 

For toothbrush and toothpaste, I use the freebies from my dentist and toss out after using on the last day before boarding the plane. I use a sonic brush at home so it's a good use of those items. For "emergencies" I also have a couple of Colgate Wisps (awesome for most refreshment during long flights!)

 

For most everything else, I just get travel sizes - things like antiperspirant, hair styling spray, whatnot, are readily available in the drugstore. I will say that part of the adventure, particularly in foreign cities, is finding a pharmacy and figuring out how to ask for the stuff you're about to run out of or that you forgot at home!

 

 

 

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You can take smaller sizes /decant if you want. The only place you really NEED large amounts is sunscreen...1 OZ (a shot glass full) per adult every 2 hours....yep, even if it says WATERPROOF, it's not towel proof! Reapply often and liberally!

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I normally use the shampoo and body wash provided in our shower, but make sure to bring my own conditioner and body lotion in travel sizes. The salt water and sun do a real number on my fine hair and I NEED that conditioner! I can use that conditioner when I shave my legs, too. I also use the Olay (or generic equivalent) disposable face cloths, which saves me room in my 3-1-1 bag if I'm flying.

 

Like others have posted, I use the toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, etc. from the dentist, and travel sizes of deodorant, etc.

 

I never scrimp on sunscreen. If I'm flying I'll have a 3 oz bottle/spray in my 3-1-1 along with a face stick (DH and DS do the same) to get us through if luggage is delayed/lost en route to the port, but always also check full-sized bottles. If I have to pay an inordinate amount to replace/restock it on board or in a port I'll grumble (a lot), but I'll do it. Spending your much anticipated cruise in pain from a bad sunburn is horrible!

 

As for make-up, I'm pretty minimalist, so a small amount of foundation decanted into a small plastic jar (found in travel toiletries section at WalMart or similar retailers), the same amount of facial moisturizer into the same size jar, some blush, eyeliner, and a tinted lip balm (love the Burts Bees ones!) get me through.

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One quart zippy bag apiece; items are either travel-size or decanted to Go-Toobs (mostly 2-oz, no one said you HAD to take 3oz of everything!). Non-liquid items usually go in a gallon zippy -- not packed full -- easy to see what you need to reach out. First aid and medications have their own roll-up hanging bag. We do pretty much the same thing even if not flying, routines are good (they keep you from forgetting things!).

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I do a combination of travel size and decant from big bottles at home. I stock up on travel sized tubes of toothpaste, mouthwash, body lotions and deodorant when they're on sale at Target(they'll do a 10 for $10 special from time to time), and I decant my facial cleanser, body wash and face moisturizers(with SPF) and treatments from my bottles at home. I also use natural products(aloe vera gel, apple cider vinegar, etc) for hair and skincare, so I'll decant those from home too, and thank goodness Wen now makes sealed travel packs of their cleansing conditioner, so I can throw three of them in and be good for washing my hair. I haven't had to fly to many ports to embark, but I don't like lugging a giant toiletry bag either. When I have flown, the only thing I don't pack is sunscreen, as I will go to a pharmacy and buy full size bottles of it before I get on the ship.

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Don't laugh but my DH uses a lot of electrical tape at work and around the house. That said after my first ever vacation as an adult i learned the hard way what happens when something leaks in your luggage 😣 now i wrap the tops in electrical tape. It does not leave sticky residue like masking tape. When I'm comming home they're empty so no big deal😉9517ed68a7e88f91f26824cc867b318f.jpgc7731d44ba34dbad8e0673a6cbbfc3b8.jpg

 

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I bring travel sized and samples of the products I use every day (micellar water, cleanser, moisturizer, serums). I put my night cream into a silicone pot. I do bring a full-size version of my facial and eye sunscreens, since they are small enough to conform to the 311 rule. My eye cream is also small, as is my evening eye serum. I decant my shower gel into a silicone bottle. I bring my regular anti-perspirant, which is small. I do bring s full-sized (three ounces) sunscreen for my body. I don't need to burn.

 

Prior to a cruise, Iget a very good blow-out, and bring along some dry shampoo and conditioner. I then get a blow-out sometime during the cruise. No need for shampoo and conditioner, given my long, thick, curly hair, which I have blown out straight. Also prior to the cruise, I get a good mani and pedi. The pedi lasts 3-4 weeks. I get another mani during the cruise. It's a relaxing break for me, the spa time, and I don't pack polish.

 

So I guess it's about choosing what to bring, what stays home, and what to do differently.

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now i wrap the tops in electrical tape. It does not leave sticky residue like masking tape.

Hmm, not true. Maybe the electrical tape you use doesn't leave residue, but ours does (perhaps it's also the combo of the material you attach to... We used electrical tape on a bird feeder and I've had to use oil to remove the adhesive...) Squeezing extra air out of the top of a bottle/tube can help prevent air-related leakage, as can a little piece of saran wrap under the lid. When we pack wine, beer, sunscreen for checking from home - my husband "industrial wraps" with heavy duty plastic and his heat sealer from his shop....

 

I use small bottles (travel size items, refilled travel bottles, muji travel bottles - I like go toobs but they're too bulky for a quart size ziploc bag) For some trips, I'll check full size sunscreen (anything longer than a week, basically - because I'm not typically traveling in the US where I could easily & affordably buy a bottle upon arrival at my destination). I'm also a fan of wipes for anything and everything when I travel:hearteyes:

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Hmm, not true. Maybe the electrical tape you use doesn't leave residue, but ours does (perhaps it's also the combo of the material you attach to... We used electrical tape on a bird feeder and I've had to use oil to remove the adhesive...)

 

I use small bottles (travel size items, refilled travel bottles, muji travel bottles - I like go toobs but they're too bulky for a quart size ziploc bag) For some trips, I'll check full size sunscreen (anything longer than a week, basically - because I'm not typically traveling in the US where I could easily & affordably buy a bottle upon arrival at my destination). I'm also a fan of wipes for anything and everything when I travel[emoji813]eyes:

That's weird. We use it for everything lol . Hubby has it in every color. We use it to tie up wires , bundle things, we use it like others use string...lol. I even use it on the blow dryer in the cabin to keep the button pushed in ( I use to use a hair tie but the tape is eaier).But what ever works for ya. Lol. I never had it leave a residue even after lengths of time. But thats just what works for us.[emoji4]

 

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Toiletries and shoes are the hardest things for me when packing especially since I usually don't check in luggage.

 

When cruising:

- 3.4 ounce purple shampoo (my blondes will know what I'm talking about lol)

- 3.4 ounce conditioner

- 3.4 ounce shampoo

- tea tree oil soap/shave bar

- razor

- exfoliating powder

- sensitive facial skin bar soap (I'll use a piece that is really broken up when traveling)

- electric toothbrush

-3.4 ounce mouthwash

- toothpaste

- floss

- deodorant

- foundation

- eye liner

- mascara

-2 eyeshadows

-eyelash curler

-1 blush

- chapstick

-3.4 ounce lotion

-3.4 ounce perfume spray

- straightener

-curling iron

-Neosporin

-bandaids

-sunscreen for face

- suncreen for body

-3.4 ounce face lotion

 

I think I got everything LOL.

 

I pack everything in the clear zip lock bags. I usually need 4 of them lol...

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I only travel with travel sized containers. Occasionally I bring 2 of something but I can generally get 2 weeks out of 1 travel sized container of whatever It does help that I don't have a complicated skin care routine.... just a face wash and moisturizer, and I use the same ones day and night. I use an eye cream at home but don't bother with it when traveling. I'm also not super picky and don't mind using the hotel shampoo/hair conditioner/lotion for a week or two. If you are spending 2 full weeks at the beach or on a cruise where you'll be at the pool every day, I'd just buy a full sized sunscreen after your flight lands. Same with hair conditioner if you have really long/thick hair and have to use a ton of it, or anything else you need a huge amount of for some reason.

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I bring mostly travel sizes of products; they are usually enough to last me two weeks; shampoo (usually can use the ship's unless it is a 2/1 product) conditioner, toothpaste, deodorant, hand/body lotion, etc. I use the ship's soap or body wash. My face products aren't that big anyway so I usually just bring the regular size.

 

Most of these products will fit in my 3-1 bag and if necessary I can put some in my husband's, as he doesn't use all the space in his.

 

Sunscreen is the one thing I don't bring in small sizes. Sometimes I buy it before we board, sometimes I pack it in our checked luggage in zip lock bags. I also take a zip bag of basic first-aid items.

 

I have one of those fold-out toiletry bags that can hang up. it holds all my items, plus some other things. Make-up goes in a small pouch of it's own; I pare down to the essentials for this.

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We're tending towards back-to-backs these days, and this is what I pack:

 

- Smallish shampoo & conditioner (not travel sized), 1/2 used at home before the trip ... I'm not super-picky, but I tend to stick to the same 3-4 brands, and I don't want to experiment with whatever they offer in the room. I tend to use lots of shampoo for a beach /cruise vacation.

- Travel-sized hairspray ... I don't use so much of this

- Deodorant that/s been 1/2 used up at home ... I don't like deodorant in those teeny containers

- A "fun sized" shower gel from Bath & Body Works

- Bar of eczema-friendly soap & moisturizer for my face ... again, 1/2 used up at home

- Hand lotion ... I tend to use a lot of this, so a full-sized Bath & Body Works squirt tube ... or two of what they call "fun sized", which is bigger than a typical travel size

- Loads of sunscreen ... in a variety of strengths, including a couple travel-sized bottles for excursions

- Toothbrush & 2 tubes of travel-sized toothpaste (somehow I always seem to have lots of those)

 

I pack these items into a ziplock bag instead of my nice travel bag. Departure morning on a cruise is always rather frenzied, so I just abandon all the toiletries in the bathroom (except un-used sunscreen, which is pretty expensive).

 

As for make-up, I don't pack all that much for a cruise: Just a touch of foundation in a small sample sized jar (you can get these from the Clinique counter, or they're the same size as contact lens containers). Plus eye make-up and a lipstick. Since eye make-up needs replacing fairly often, I bring my oldest and abandon it along with the toiletries.

 

I do not spend money on any special tubes or spend time decanting.

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We very rarely cruise for less than three weeks, so travel sizes just won't cut it for me.

I bring what I need for face & hair (I have fairly long, very thick, very curly hair and it's very particular about what I put on it!) ... for just about everything else, I just bring what I need for one or two days. Travel sizes, mostly-used-up-stuff, whatever I have (I don't decant, either, Mrs. P!)

We always go down a day or two early, and we find a store to stock up on whatever toiletries we need, for as long as we need them. Wal-Mart, Target, CVS ... wherever ... we have gotten pretty good at knowing how much to buy. We've also learned over the years what ports have good places to replenish supplies. We leave most of the used toiletries behind when we disembark, except for my hair & face products.

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