It can cost time and money to hunt down a bottle of medicine or some laundry soap while traveling. Save yourself both by making your own mini-travel kits.
You may not need all of these kits, but it’s good to have the ones you’ll use on hand when you are traveling far from home. Each kit should fit inside of a plastic gallon-sized sandwich bag (choose the kind that has a zipper or slide closure). You may also find it handy to use plastic quart-sized sandwich bags to separate some items within the kits.
- A Mini-First Aid Kit. Inside this kit goes ten various sized bandages, 2-3 antiseptic wipes, a small tube of first aid cream (Neosporin, etc.), a few q-tips, and a small pill box with a couple each of headache/pain medicine, antihistamines and stomach/diarrhea medicine. You’ll appreciate not having to search for these things when you’re feeling like crap. You can even add a few condoms, if you think you might have a use for them.
- A Mini-Hygiene Kit. In this kit goes a few baby wipes or facial cleanser wipes, a small tube of lotion, some dental floss picks, a travel-sized deodorant and a small tin of strong mints. I also recommend adding a travel-sized roll of toilet paper (either buy in the travel-sized toiletry section of a discount or drug store or make your own by taking a roll at home with about 1 inch of paper left and squishing it flat) or a mini-pack of tissues. This kit is indispensable for when you just need to freshen up while traveling.
- A Mini-Feminine Hygiene Kit. This one’s for the ladies. For this kit, you’ll need two or three days worth of your chosen protection (pads or tampons), some extra pain/cramp medicine in another pill case and some plastic disposable gloves for the mess while changing (you can find these at the dollar store in the kitchen area) and to wrap tampons in before disposing
- A Mini-Snack Kit. Just for when the hunger pangs hit and the kitchen’s not available. Grab another plastic bag and add a couple of energy or granola bars, some hard candy or mints, something with chocolate and a small bag of peanuts/almonds or other salty snack. If you can find them, a small tin of energy mints does double duty as a breath freshener and a pick-you-up in the morning before you can find some coffee. If there's still room in the bag, add a few tea bags or water-flavoring powder sticks (like Crystal Light).
- A Mini-Laundry Kit. Grab one more bag and put some laundry detergent in it (only about halfway), press down to try to get all the air out, seal and then put that bag inside another. Why double-bag? Because it’s easier to clean a leaked detergent bag out of another than cleaning it off everything you own in the suitcase. Also throw in a few scented dryer sheets and a Tide-to-Go pen for stains. This kit is great for those using hostels or home stays, but you can also use this kit to wash a few things in a hotel sink.
- A Mini-Battery Kit. You’ve got your electronics with you from flashlights to alarm clocks to mp3 players to digital cameras – and they all use batteries. Grab an extra pack of each kind you’ll need and put it in this kit. Also recommended is one of those Energizer cell phone chargers, if you can find one for your phone model. They’re great for a quick charge in emergencies. Then when you need a fresh set of batteries, they’re all in one place.
Do you put together your own mini-kits? If so, what do you put in them? Leave us a message in our discussion forums.
The copyright of the article Mini-Kits for Budget Travelers in Budget Travel is owned by Michelle Snow. Permission to republish Mini-Kits for Budget Travelers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
