Planning and managing your trip’s a breeze with KAYAK, but packing’s always going to be a nightmare. Luggage allowances and quibbles about carry-on bags usually mean if you’re away for a few weeks you could easily exceed some sort of restriction, and nobody wants to get stung with extra fees. Whether you rate your own packing skills or not, inevitably there will be some home comforts you choose to leave behind in the hope of saving weight.
Fear the check-in scales no more. We’ve pulled together a shortlist of the latest and greatest packing-friendly gadgets you can easily slip in your suitcase – so you no longer have to choose between taking an extra pair of flip-flops and that must-have gadget that’ll make your holiday just a little bit better.
#1 – A Smartphone battery charger discreetly hidden in a wallet
Battery life is the biggest problem today’s smartphones have. Sure, they can be filled with photos, they’re great for music and there are countless apps to snoop on other people’s social lives, but their batteries are usually dead in the time it takes to cross the Atlantic in a plane. That’s why the Nomad Wallet is a godsend.
As if having a beautifully thin, minimalist leather wallet wasn’t social capital enough, the Nomad Wallet hides a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery in its spine, containing enough charge to power up your smartphone from nothing to 100% in about two hours. There’s a Lightning adaptor built-in, so whether you’re on a transatlantic flight or in the back of a rickshaw in Delhi, you can make sure you’re doing what you always do: staring at your smartphone.
#2 – The ultimate Wireless Travel Router
Whether you’re subject to a dodgy hostel’s Wi-Fi or are unwilling to pay £5 for the airport’s patchy internet, there’s always a good reason for owning a plug-in travel router, and HooToo’s TripMate has enough features to satisfy all your nerdy needs.
It can turn an ethernet connection into a personal Wi-Fi hotspot and bridge a network connection, so you can connect all your devices to it without paying for multiple ones. It can also act as your own personal cloud to store information, and, using the accompanying app, it lets you endlessly stream your movies and music. In other words, it turns you into a digital conquistador, bracing new frontiers and unknown lands with the unshakeable confidence of someone who knows they’ll always have Wi-Fi.
#3 – Solar-Powered Inflatable Lights
For a more haptic and organic connection to the outside world, leave your computer stuff at home and go camping. When you do, however, it’s worth taking along Luminaid’s Packlite 16.
Made out of a TPU plastic material and weighing in at 80 grams, it’s basically a waterproof, inflatable bag that recharges in the sun and provides 30 hours of LED light after one day’s charge. Perfect for illuminating your tent after a day’s hiking in the sun; this is a lifeline that won’t take up any space in your luggage.
#4 – Portable Bluetooth Speakers
It’s all very well having speakers on your smartphone, but let’s face it, they make for a tinny and quiet audio experience, and are no good for, say, impromptu hotel room parties, lounging by the pool or chilling on the beach. An alternative to, frankly, not hearing music properly, is the JBL Charge 2+ bluetooth speaker. Not only does it have a pretty fantastic line in sound reproduction, with lots of bass and easy-to-operate controls, but it’s also splash proof. The wireless speaker is powered by a 6000mAh battery that provides a pretty ridiculous 12 full hours of power and can charge all your devices via USB.
The Charge 2+ also works as a noise and echo cancelling speakerphone so you make calls on it too when you sync it with your phone, but arguably the cleverest feature is the social mode, which lets you connect up to three music sources to the speaker so you and pals can take turns Djing. A lot of fun.
#5 – Washing machine and an iron that’ll fit in your backpack
Some of you out there are used to travelling without washing, let alone ironing your clothes. Granted this behaviour was acceptable when you were an inter-railing scallywag, returning to your parents’ arms after three weeks only to be pushed away and thrown into the nearest shower, but it’s time to grow up and look like a fully functioning adult.
That’s where the Scrubba Wash Bag and Hammacher Travel Steam Iron come in. The former is an ingenious contraption that – with some water, a squirt of laundry liquid and a bit of elbow grease – allows you to wash a shirt in 2 minutes. The Travel Steam Iron, meanwhile, heats up in one minute, using 240-watts of steam power to banish any wrinkles to the wardrobe of history.
So there we have it, a solid collection of miniature travel gadgets that’ll make most trips away as comfortable as home. Of course, there’s no point getting hold of these lil’ gems if you’re not going anywhere, so if you’re planning your next trip be sure to try KAYAK and find the best flight, hotel or rental car offer for you from hundreds of other travel sites.
KAYAK is not affiliated with or sponsored by any of the brands mentioned and any third party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
