Welcome to SELF Checkout, a series in which we share the wellness-boosting products currently in our carts. In each installment, you can expect to find our staffers’ essentials as well as genuinely useful splurges and group-chat-worthy finds.
We can’t promise your flight will be on time—nor can we guarantee you won’t hit traffic on your road trip. What we can say is the right travel essentials will help you forget about these (and so many other) headaches that arise when you’re trying to get away from it all (at least for a little bit).
When SELF staffers travel, our top priorities are comfort and ease—you won’t find any finicky baggage or stiff clothes here. Instead, we opt for luggage that won’t break our backs, comfy matching sets, and breezy sneakers. Oh, and we always pack a good phone charger.
If you’re preparing for a trip, you’ve come to the right place. Check out SELF editors’ hand-picked travel essentials below, then look forward to a (hopefully) relaxing journey.
We’ve got what you need…
To hold everything together
Is your old duffel looking a little worse for wear? Upgrade to some new bags that hold a sneaky amount of stuff and look great doing it. Jessica Cruel, SELF’s editor in chief, calls Dagne Dover’s best-selling Dakota backpack “the GOAT of travel,” and it’s easy to see why: It has 10(!) pockets to keep all your stuff organized, a trolley sleeve, and a bag for your shoes.
If you tend to overpack, try Calpack’s Hue Front Pocket Carry-On—it’s the one bag that Sarah Felbin, SELF’s senior commerce editor, trusts with all her must-haves (and nice-to-haves). “It fits a ton of stuff and has convenient pockets inside that help me keep my smaller essentials separate from my clothes and shoes,” she says. “Plus, it’s tough—I’ve lugged it around on multiple trips over the last year, and it’s barely scuffed at all.”
For longer vacations, few things will make you feel more pulled-together than matching luggage. Cruel loves her monochrome set from Béis. The brand has several luggage bundles you can choose from, but we like the two-piece Starter Set for its simplicity and sheer usefulness. The Carry-On Roller has a padded handle and durable hard shell, while the Weekender has a handy bottom compartment to keep clunkier items separate.
To make packing less painful
These accessories will help you make the most of your luggage. First, packing cubes are absolutely worth the investment—especially if you’re splurging on a set from Aerotrunk, according to Shanna Shipin, SELF’s shopping director. “They’re weighty and structured,” she says, with a compressive design that saves space.
No one wants to get stuck with an overweight carry-on. Save yourself some hassle at the gate and weigh your bags before you leave with Luxebell’s Digital Scale. Shipin swears by it for cross-country trips where she’d rather not check her suitcase.
And whether you’re traveling near or far, Angela Trakoshis, SELF’s shopping market editor, points out that it’s never a bad idea to throw an AirTag in your bag. (Then, attach one to your keys, slide one in your wallet, and maybe stick one to yourself, just to be safe).
To keep your devices alive
I don’t know about you, but the last thing I want to deal with on a flight (besides a chatty seat neighbor) is a phone with a drained battery. Luckily, our tech-savvy staff have gadgets that’ll prevent just that (we can’t help you with the yappy stranger, though). Dana Leigh Smith, the vice president and content lead of Condé Nast Health, recommends Belkin’s super slim power bank. It’s MagSafe-compatible and it comes with a USB-C cable.
