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10 Travel Essentials We Actually Used Travelling for a Year
When you’re travelling for months at a time, you quickly learn the difference between things you think you’ll need and the things you actually use.
After travelling through the US, Central and South America, we became pretty good at figuring out what was genuinely worth carrying around in our backpacks. These are the travel essentials that earned their place in our bags and that we’d recommend to anyone planning a long trip.
1. Packing Cubes
Used: All the time
Packing cubes were one of our most-used travel essentials. When you’re constantly moving between destinations, keeping everything organised makes life so much easier.
They made it much quicker to find things in our backpacks and helped keep our clothes separated and organised, particularly when we were packing and unpacking regularly.
Our verdict: Definitely worth packing. We’d recommend them for any long-term trip.
2. A Power Bank
Used: Essential
A power bank quickly became one of those things we didn’t want to leave the accommodation without.
Whether we were spending a long day exploring, travelling between destinations or sitting on a bus for hours, having a reliable way to charge our phones was essential.
Our verdict: An absolute travel essential, particularly for long journeys and travel days.
3. An International Travel Adapter
Used: Regularly
An international travel adapter is one of those things that’s easy to forget until you arrive somewhere and realise your usual charger won’t fit the socket.
Travelling across multiple countries meant dealing with different plug types, so having one adapter that worked across different destinations was incredibly useful.
Our verdict: Take one with you from the start. It’s a small item that can save a lot of hassle.
4. AirTags
Used: One in each backpack
We had an AirTag in each of our backpacks throughout our travels.
Knowing that we could check where our bags were gave us extra peace of mind, particularly when travelling on flights or when our bags weren’t always right beside us.
Our verdict: A small investment that gave us a lot of reassurance while travelling long-term.
5. A Travel Pillow
Used: Barely
This one is on the list because it’s a good example of something we thought we’d use more than we actually did.
We took a travel pillow with us, but honestly, it barely got used. Depending on how much long-haul travel you’re doing, it might be worth it for you, but for us, it ended up taking up valuable space without getting much use.
Our verdict: Probably not essential for us. We’d think twice about packing one again.
6. A Kindle
Used: All the time on buses
Our Kindle was a brilliant companion for long travel days.
We used it loads when travelling by bus, particularly on longer journeys where we had hours to fill. It was much easier than carrying multiple physical books and meant we always had something to read without adding much weight to our backpacks.
Our verdict: Highly recommended if you enjoy reading, especially if you’re planning lots of long journeys.
7. Our Osprey Backpacks
Used: Throughout the trip
Our Osprey backpacks were one of the most important things we took with us. We lived out of them for a long time, so having backpacks that were comfortable, practical and reliable made a huge difference.
When you’re carrying everything you own between destinations, your backpack is something you really don’t want to get wrong.
Our verdict: We’d definitely recommend Osprey for long-term travel. The right backpack is worth investing in.
8. Camera
Used: Constantly
Our camera came everywhere with us, and it's easily one of the items that earned its place the most across the whole year.
Phone photos are fine for quick snaps, but for the bigger moments, the salt flats, the road trips, the landscapes we knew we'd want to properly look back on, having a proper camera made a real difference. It became second nature to just grab it before heading out for the day.
Our verdict: One of the best investments we made for the trip. If you want photos you'll actually be glad you took in ten years, it's worth the extra weight.
9. A Small Medical Kit
Used: Regularly
Having a small medical kit with us was really useful while travelling.
We kept a few basic essentials together so we didn’t have to search for a pharmacy every time we needed something minor. It was particularly helpful when travelling between destinations or arriving somewhere late at night.
The key is to keep it small and practical rather than taking an entire pharmacy with you.
Our verdict: Definitely worth having. A small, well-organised medical kit can save a lot of hassle when you’re on the road.
10. A Laundry Bag
Used: All the time
A laundry bag might not sound exciting, but it became surprisingly useful.
When you’re living out of a backpack, having somewhere separate to put your dirty clothes makes keeping everything organised much easier. It meant we could keep worn clothes away from the clean ones and take everything straight to the laundry when we needed to wash.
It’s lightweight, takes up very little room and is one of those things you don’t realise you need until you have one.
Our verdict: A simple, inexpensive item that we’d definitely pack again.
The Things We’d Pack Again
If we were heading off on another long-term trip tomorrow, the things we’d definitely pack again would be:
Packing cubes
A reliable power bank
An international travel adapter
AirTags
A Kindle
A good-quality backpack
Flip flops
A small medical kit
A laundry bag
The travel pillow? We’d probably leave that one behind.
The biggest lesson we learnt is that you don’t need to pack everything you think you might possibly need. When you’re travelling for a long time, every item has to earn its place in your backpack.
The best travel essentials are the things you reach for again and again
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