Skip to Content

Plenty of Roads to Try

Plenty of Roads to Try

Click a theme to see related posts

Architecture 41
Art 53
Food 53
History 63
Nature 23
People 54
Technology 4
Theater 26
Walks 59

Search for a city or keyword

Quick Stop in Austin

Maria Wilson 1/5/25 Maria Wilson 1/5/25

Quick Stop in Austin

Some nomad tasks and family time

Read More

Personal Care

I could streamline my personal care products to lighten my load, but for now I’m carrying small amounts of my favorite things.

I carry 90-days’ worth of prescription meds and get refills as needed along the way. I transfer the pills to smaller bottles and attach the original adhesive labels. I also use a 7-day travel case to help me keep track.

I carry a few over-the-counter medications - pain relievers, motion sickness tablets, and antihistamines - in small resealable pouches.
I have a rainbow-colored Quip Sonic toothbrush that I love. I carry an extra brush head and replace it every three months. Sure, it’s heavier than a plastic toothbrush, and I have to bring the charging cord as well, but I use less plastic and am a better brusher. Worth it!
The nifty Culo Clean is awesome! It’s a small plastic cap that fits almost any plastic bottle, thanks to rubber rings and smart design. Just tilt the bottle and squeeze for an angled stream of water. Voilà! You’ll feel clean and fresh and use less toilet paper. A proper bidet or toilet attachment would be better of course, but for nomads, this ingenious little gadget is the next best thing.
I refill 50ml plastic travel bottles with my favorite haircare products. Face cream goes in a similar plastic jar.
My favorite deodorant and sunscreen are travel-sized and last for many months. I’m less choosy about toothpaste and body lotion and buy them wherever we are. All my toiletries go in a clear zipper case.
My hairbrush is full-sized but very light. I also have a razor with a travel case, replacement blades, a nail clipper, a glass nail file, and a pair of tweezers.
We buy bar soap in each destination and place it on this Soap Saver in the shower to make it last longer. They come in multi-packs, so keep one and give the rest to your friends.

Household Items

Steve and I are in the no-checked-bags camp, so each of us has one carry-on and one personal item. I use the packing skills I learned from decades of work travel. I try to put everything in the same place each time, as it helps ensure nothing gets left behind.

I carry two of these compact night lights with folding prongs and adjustable brightness. They keep us safe when using the bathroom in the middle of the night.
These HeySunday laundry detergent sheets are unscented and dissolve in cold water. Thirty sheets take up very little space and will last us 3+ months. For hand-washing in the bathroom sink, I just tear off a portion of a sheet.
I have two small bags (one with sections) for underwear, and a larger one to hold dirty clothes.
I dislike smelly kitchen sponges. I prefer to have a fresh Swedish dishcloth each time we move to a new place (usually once a month). These can also be used as cleaning cloths in lieu of paper towels.
Airbnbs never seem to have these, but they are very handy for keeping food fresh. We carry 4-5 of these coated metal clips. They can double as clothespins in a pinch.
Cotton or linen napkins may sound like an indulgence, but they are eco-friendly and so much nicer to use than paper. We carry six.
We have two foldable totes that squish down small and fit easily in Steve’s pocket. Our favorite bag is no longer available, so when we lost one we replaced it with this Nanobag.
I carry this 0.5L City Bottle with the Tampa skyline. It’s made from sugar cane, and there are designs for many cities around the world. For every bottle purchased, 100L of drinking water are donated.