The COVID-19 pandemic significantly changed how we see our world. We’ve woken up to the extra precautions we need to keep ourselves safe from environmental factors like bacteria, viruses, or even pollution. Our changing world needs changing safety guidelines to keep everyone safe, healthy, and happy. So without further ado, let’s check out some unexpected travel essentials you’ll need when traveling with family on your upcoming holiday!
Table of Contents
Masks
Masks have become part and parcel of everyone’s life. We have a huge range of them now, from cloth masks to n95, surgical masks, and more. When you travel, you should ensure that you take enough masks and spare masks for everyone in your family.
Besides medical masks, you also need to carry masks to guard against air pollution. Depending on where you are traveling with family, air pollution or air quality can be a hit or a miss.
You can monitor the air quality worldwide and see the difference between your home and where you spend your holidays. This should give you enough reason to carry a mask that protects against excessive air pollution too!
Sanitizer
Sanitizer has become one of the most common sights in public. Wherever you go, you’ll see a bottle positioned near the door. You are likely carrying multiple bottles of sanitizer in all your bags and purses too! So what extra will you need while traveling with family?
People should carry or buy different kinds of sanitizer when going on holiday. Your hand sanitizer will likely be the most commonly used one. Along with this, you should take at least a surface sanitizer and sanitizing wipes. If you’re feeling extra cautious, you can also carry an air sanitizer and a toilet sanitizer.
Button Pushers
One of the most important things we learned from the pandemic is that most surfaces are covered in germs. Thus, even with vaccination drives working overtime, you must take as many precautions as possible to keep your family safe. This is where the button pusher comes in!
While this seems like a minor tip, button-pusher tools are incredibly effective. These little tools are multipurpose. You can push elevator buttons with it and use it to push and pull open doors using the handles. This means you can arm your kids with these and let them explore the resort on their own with a small measure of safety.
Solar Power Banks
Most holidays with family involve pictures and videos on the road and at various tourist destinations, draining your phone battery. Since phones are so important to us now, this is one of the most helpful travel tips around. Most people carry power banks with them. However, when you share one power bank among many family members, you can drain it pretty quickly.
This is where solar-powered power banks come in handy. These nifty devices are a huge boon when you travel as you don’t need to search for chargers or plug points anymore.
Simply leave your device out in the sun, and it’ll refill on its own. Plus, this saves you the hassle of figuring out the correct plug type for different countries, and you can also save yourself the hassle of carrying multiple plug converters.
Sunscreen
Did you know that skin cancer is one of the most common types of cancer? With climate change depleting our ozone layer, more and more of the sun’s harmful UV rays are reaching the entire world. If you want to protect your family and loved ones against this terrifying disease, you need to carry enough sunscreen.
You should wear at least SPF 50, and remember to reapply this every 3 hours at least. There is sunscreen available to suit all skin types, so you can buy a few different ones if you have a big family.
For kids, there are spray-on sunscreens they can apply themselves with minimal supervision. Doing this also inculcates the habit of using sunscreen in your kids, which they’ll thank you for once they’re adults!
Final Thoughts
The face of travel has forever been changed thanks to recent events. We are more aware of our world and our surroundings and can protect ourselves because of it. While writing travel tips, most experienced travelers talk about how to pack, what things to keep your eye out for, and hidden gems tucked away on unsuspecting streets.
However, traveling with family needs some unique considerations, especially when you have kids. Whether you travel within the U.S or to an exotic destination across the world, these travel tips are sure to make your journey easier and safer.
So next time you gather the family to take off to your vacation destination, remember to pack these unconventional travel essentials for a smooth ride there and back.
Featured Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay
