Essential Items: 10 Ways to Bring the Comforts of Your Home with you on Your Travels

We all love to travel, but after a while we start to miss our homes. We may ask ourselves, why is that? Our homes have comforts that make us feel good, items that invoke memories. These can be something as simple as a scent that you use to make your home smell good or a certain pillow that you like to snuggle up with when reading a good book. Here are 10 essential items that you can take along with you when you travel to make your cruise cabin or hotel room feel more like home.

1.  A small scenting machine – Scents bring back memories — good feelings — and there are many companies today that have made traveling with a scent easy with essential-oil diffusers or scenting machines small enough to fit into a backpack capable of providing more than enough scent to make your entire cruise cabin or hotel room smell good. 

2. Your favorite blanket – A favorite blanket is something that many of us have had from our childhood to adulthood. It has the power to make us feel cozy and secure anywhere, so take one along on your trip. 

3. A book – We buy it and don’t read it. We all do this because our daily lives at home are busy with work and family. There’s no better time to read that book that has been sitting on the nightstand than when we’re on vacation. It’s perfect for the plane, train, beach, or relaxing in your cruise cabin or hotel room. 

4. Your favorite tea or coffee – Yes, cruise ships and hotels have tea and coffee … but a lot of us have a favorite brand of coffee or flavor of tea that your cruise ship or hotel may not carry. If you’re not sure, pack some for a little relaxing break to feel right at home.

5. Your own slippers or house shoes – We get out of bed and put them on every day while at home. Why not bring them along? They usually slide on and off easily and make getting around the room comfortable and safe.

6. Your favorite pillow – This isn’t necessarily a bed pillow! Many of us have a pillow that we snuggle up to when watching TV or reading. These pillows are easy to travel with because they can fit into your suitcase or carry-on bag.

7. A small speaker – We all love music, and a lot of times we want to share our favorite tunes with someone we are traveling with. Like a scenting machine, many companies have made speakers small enough to fit in your backpack or purse. Now, you can play your favorite music while hanging out on the beach or in your cruise cabin or hotel room.

8. A craft – If you like to needlepoint, draw, write, or paint, bring some supplies so that you can do this in your relaxing time.

9. A photo – Take one of your favorite photos off your nightstand and put it in your bag. Once you arrive to your cruise cabin or hotel room, place it somewhere convenient for you to see. It’s one of the most personal ways to bring your home with you on your travels.

10. Your favorite snacks – Be it healthy or not, protein bars have been something of a go-to for many fitness enthusiasts. They’re easy to carry and offer a great healthy snack while touring around a city or sitting on the beach.

By William P. Jordan III