What are your MUST HAVE travel accessories?
 

Mine...
My new money belt
My new cable lock for securing my suitcase to overhead racks on trains or elsewhere when needed.
My neck pillow
My Walkman
My travel alarm clock
My travel binoculars
My travel mini Maglite.

corkscrew and Swiss Army knife

earplugs - for noisy hotel rooms or noisy seatmates on the airplane or train when you need to sleep.

washcloth

- First-aid kit, and my collection of tensors and joint braces - we're a pair of klutzes!
- money belt
- folding duffel
- miniflashlight
- travel clock
- Swiss army knife
- sewing kit, duct tape, safety pins, small bungee cords
- drying line for laundry.
- "throwaway" facecloths and pillowcases

-Deoderizer for hotel rooms
-Clotheswashing kit from AAA shop
-Sunblock
-Good UV sunglasses
-Bug repellant
-Mini umbrella
-Packable sun hat
-Travel guides
-Kway
-Pad & pen
-email addresses
-comfortable shoes
-***** most important of all- compatible mate******

Paid-off credit card
Sence of humor
List of attractions with maps and public tranport
Alarm clock and a prayer I won't need it
List of emergency phones (credit card, embassy, relatives)
Medicine - more then I need (ran out twice... couldn't learn first time??)
Pocket dictionary if needed

e-mail addresses so I can dash off short notes to loved ones
lipstick & powder because if I feel pretty I can take on the world
comfortable shoes, even if they don't match
binoculars to see everything up close and personal
a good canvas sachel to stuff lots of tourist info into
And best of all, one darling husband to enjoy the travel with!

Swiss Army knife with corkscrew. With some of those lists do you have room for any clothing in your luggage?

Please tell me about the disposable pillow cases--I'm all ears!

Hi Everyone:

Most of the above and ZIPLOCK BAGS in various sizes.

I will trade someone my new money belt for a darling husband to travel with. :)

I'll trade you my husband for a new money belt (just kidding, don't have either). My camera is the one must take item; all else varies with the location.

I don't take a disposable pillowcase, just a regular one, to put over a couple of those much-used airplane pillows. Holds them together for comfort, and if it helps me avoid getting sick, so much the better.

OK, starting an auction. My offer: one darling husband for 2 weeks, unlimited use. Wanted: everything listed above in all posts OBO :)

I'm not letting my DH crack a eye at this post. Might give the man ideas...

We found the little squirt bottle of Febreze to come in really handy when we were in Paris...clothes got a little more wear before washing.

My 2 cents worth -
- for my news fix, my shortwave radio & a listing of the local Radio-Canada International frequencies/times (as only an hour a day) & local BBC International frequencies (at least its all day/all night)
- power adaptor
- camera
- facecloths
- toiletpaper

Plastic wineglasses-the villa never seems to have wineglasses

Someone on this board recommended individually packaged wet-naps and Shout wipes. Both came in really handy! Also travel-size bottles of hand disinfectant and body wash (good substitute for hand soap when there isn't any in a public washroom).

My new iPod so I can listen to music on the flight to and from Europe and never hear the same song twice.
((H))

Wow, maitaitom, how much memory does that thing have???

So far I haven't read a thing I could live without! Except earplugs for the plane..

a thing I couldn't live without!!

"how much memory does that thing have???"

The 30GB iPod has enough memory to store 7,500 songs. It weighs less than two cds and fits in your shirt pocket. It can go eight hours without recharging, so I'll have a couple of cocktails, a bite to eat and then I'll be rocking out on my way to Europe in September.
((H))

English teabags

mobile phone

hand cleanser gel

sun lotion spf 30+

I feel quite lucky since I not only have most of these essentials but also the darling husband too!
Now I want an IPOD!!
maitaitom, where did you get yours?
Adding to this list though:
a scented candle or sachets, sometimes musty cupboards need scenting , I have also, much to some posters dismay, burned the candles in my room!
As long as I have those things specific to my needs, I can forget the others, clocks, pillows and just manage with what is there..or buy it where I go..that is sometimes more fun.

A 6 or 8 foot extension cord for those rooms where the mirror (for blowdrying your hair) is on that wall and the electrical outlet is waaaay over there!

"Now I want an IPOD!!
maitaitom, where did you get yours? "

You can go to Apple Website or in magazines like Mac Connection or MacMall. They come in 10GB ($299), 15GB ($399) and 30GB ($499) and, if I am not mistaken, an iPod will work with a PC, too. I am waiting for delivery and then I will download all my music from my AppleTunes Library (about 2,000 songs. Still room for another 5,500) to the iPod. It is pretty neat.

The movies on planes are invariably terrible, and I get so sick of hearing the same looping music stations. And if, God forbid, a Kenny G. song comes on, I feel like jumping out of the plane. My iPod is 100% Kenny G. free.
((H))

Maitaitom, we like you better already.

I take the same stuff but with different uses. Duct tape for the mouth of the noisy plane passengers mouth and earplugs for their nostrils.

That way I do not need an IPOD to relax.

"Duct tape for the mouth of the noisy plane passengers mouth and earplugs for their nostrils."

Don't forget the deodorant for those passengers who have failed to shower for the past week (usually the person I sit near).
((H))

I never leave without my Chanel n.5..

Alarm clock -easy to change time zones !!

Swiss Army knife, or better a Leatherman.

Pen and notepad - small 3x4"

Penlight.

Glasses cleaning tissues.

Instruction book for camera. No matter how old it is or how simple.

Batteries for camera.

Get battery in watch replaced at home.

Two containers of ALL medications.

Spare glasses if possible.@-)

My list is:

A miner's light - better and brighter than a flashlight and it frees up one hand!

neck pillow

Ziploc baggies in all sizes

VERY small bottle of environmentally friendly laundry detergent which lasted me a whole month (got that at REI)

VERY comfortable walking shoes (Merrells)

Viamichelin downloads for the different segments of my driving trip, ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL, along with good country maps

Cadogan, Rough, and Lonely Planet guides (LP had the best city maps by far)

Prescription sun glasses

A day pack (smaller back pack) which carried a light rainjacket doubling as a sweater, extra film, etc. (but not moneybelt or passport!)

My old nondigital camera which I've managed to drop at least once per trip, but it's still goes on ticking...

Wash cloth
duct tape or duck tape if you prefer
a sharp knife (to cut the tape)
small flashlight + new batteries
hand washing towelettes
maps of where I am going

Old, extra pair of prescription glasses (I'm blinder than a bat)

Like JandaO, one of those auto-retractable cable locks

Woolite packs

Sack jack (hooded jacket that self-collapses into a little sack)

Coolmax briefs, tees and socks (dries real quick after handwashing and towel roll)

Used Bounce sheets to keep packed clothes smelling fresh

A good compass...which I believe is a necessity for any new destination...not those tiny ones you attach to a key chain

One accessory I wish someone would invent: nose plugs that allow you to breathe easily but filters foul smells

Don't forget
- small can of Wrinkle free
- something to read
- snacks!!

Maitaitom: You should be selling these iPods. I'm going to get one for my husband (who can't travel without a backpack full of CDs). But, how do you transfer 200 CDs to your iPod?

Books - plenty of them
An address of a good bookshop that sells either English or German books
Notebook and about 10 pens (because I ALWAYS lose them)
An inflatable pillow
Lipstick, powder and mascara (because like a previous poster, I can take on the world when I feel pretty)
A small spray bottle of cheap-ish perfume (either use it for myself, or to get rid of a musty smell in a hotel room, and I won't be too bothered if it goes missing)
Savlon or Sudocreme
A small FM radio (I don't mind listening to foreign language stations, provided I can get some music! I have a great one that has a plug for earphones so it can be used like a walkman)
1 camera (and 1 disposable camera for those days I really don't want to take my camera out, but want to have a record of the day - usually these are nights out!)
... and the most important thing ...
an off-button on my mobile phone!