Inside My Hand Luggage

As a nervous flyer I think my hand luggage is one of the most important aspects of travelling to me. It's always at the forefront of my mind and it's a priority to me that I feel comfortable, calm and occupied on a flight. I definitely can't risk being left alone with any 'what if' thinking that's for sure! 

We're off to Santorini this weekend so a lot of this week has been spent prepping, planning & packing for going away (*as well as organising our upcoming house move in a heat wave!). To say things have been busy would be an understatement! Anyway, as I was getting my hand luggage bag ready I thought it may make for an interesting blog post to share what's inside this bag and all the things which help to reduce my travel anxiety.

My Phone

My phone is always on me so there's no surprise that it's also in my hand luggage. Whilst wifi on budget airlines ceases to exist there isn't a huge amount I can do on my phone that i'd like to but it still has its uses. I often like to download travel books beforehand which I can browse to get some inspiration for the destination we're travelling to. There is of course the option of also listening to music or podcasts from my phone. I sometimes find that meditation podcasts really help to distract my mind and keep me calm. If I ever get really bored up in the air I also like to flick through my photo album.

Headphones

If I do want to listen to music, podcasts or watch a movie on my laptop then headphones are a must! I absolutely love my new(ish) ones by Satechi which are faux leather and vegan friendly. They're so comfortable to wear and the sound quality is excellent. I much prefer headband headphones like these to earbud ones which I find really uncomfortable and difficult to stay put inside my ear.    

Vlogging Camera

So you may have seen that I've started a new series of weekly vlogs on my YouTube channel which means I shall be vlogging my way around Santorini too! Travel vlogs are probably my all time favourite videos to make and they always capture so many fun memories. Vlogging whilst travelling also takes my mind off other things which helps to alleviate any anxiety. I am currently using my Canon G5X to vlog with as it's such a great quality camera and pretty lightweight to carry around with me in my bag. 

Books

I think it would be fair to say that I am absolutely rubbish at reading books when I am at home and I always seem to be distracted by other things. I therefore tend to save up any new books for upcoming trips away. I've had We're All Mad Here for quite a while now and still haven't even opened the first page so I'm looking forward to hopefully finally making a start on this. I also recently bought Ice Cream For Breakfast as it sounds like a really fun book and exactly like the kind of book I love to read when on holiday. Not only do I plan to enjoy these on the flight but also when we're by the pool relaxing too.

Zip Coin Purse

I always take a little zip coin purse away with me opposed to my entire handbag just to carry the minimal essentials that I need like my bank card, ID and a few coins. I'll also pop my travel money in here once we get it at the airport. I never usually take away my daily purse and handbag with me because they contain too many unnecessary things which I know I won't need on holiday with me.  

Sunglasses

Sunglasses are an absolute necessity for any summer holiday and I like to have mine to hand on a flight just in case I want to have a snooze and the cabin is too bright. Plus they help to hide tired eyes on those super early morning flights! 

Flight / Lap Bag

This is the little bag that I like to keep on my lap when the air steward tells you to put your bags in the overhead lockers. It really makes me feel on edge if I can't access my bag, especially when flying, so within this bag I tend to keep all of the things I may need during take off/landing. I saw this pouch bag by Elizabeth Scarlett online recently and I loved the design of it and knew it would make the perfect little in flight bag for me. Inside this pouch I have some little hand wipes from Superdrug (v + cf), a packet of Kleenex, Tropical Fresh hand cream by Human + Kind (v + cf), Crazy Rumours Bubblegum lip balm (v + cf), pain killers and a pocket mirror. My little pill tin contains Diazepam (Valium) which really is invaluable to me if I suddenly become panicky. Thankfully this hasn't happened to me on a flight for a couple of years now but it's comforting knowing it's there if I need to use it.

Passport & Tickets

My passport and tickets are probably the most important thing in my bag as without them I wouldn't be going anywhere!

I think I have everything I need but i'd love to know what your essential on board items are and also what helps you to cope with travel anxiety so comment below and let me know! And don't forget to keep an eye out for a review and vlog of Santorini in a couple of weeks time. Until then....