I once explained how Jason refers to me as his “Meow” Maintenance girlfriend/fiance, which basically is a hybrid of “medium” to “low” maintenance.  In general, this term is spot on, but this past year has revealed a little different side to me that I never knew I had.

Traveling in different parts of Asia has made us realize that I’m a bit more high maintenance as a traveler than I am back at home.  There are a handful of items that I always had in my backpack that I would never go on a trip without- things that perhaps the rugged, outdoorsy people wouldn’t necessarily even think of.

Here are a list of five travel gifts that you can give to the “high” maintenance female traveler in your life…

1. A miniature straightening iron. Although I probably only used this a handful of times throughout the year, this is a must for the hair-conscious traveler.  The way I see it, if you care about having smooth hair it’s either a hair dryer or a straightener, and in the spirit of saving space in your backpack, a flat iron makes more sense.  They’re inexpensive (this one is about $15) and really small, and this one even comes with its own travel pouch (although you can easily find your own bag to store it in) so you can always look your best when you’re trekking through the jungles.

2. The best toiletry bag ever made. Not only does this Eagle Creek travel bag have space to hold ALL of your toiletries, it also comes with a mirror that is most helpful when your bag is hanging!  There are zippered compartments and pouches that have easily housed the following: full sized deodorant, all of my makeup items including mascara, eyeliner, shadows, brushes, etc, two large sized shampoo travel bottles, two moisturizer bottles, AND facial sunscreen.  Beat THAT non-travel-company-bag!

3. Bra strap concealer magic! Don’t let the ridiculousness of this item trick you- this was probably the most used item in my bag.  When you’re traveling in areas where ungodly heat is the norm, you’re going to be wearing tank tops.  Those tank tops are likely to be racer-back tops, which means that either you can have your bra straps showing like a teenager, or you can take action and hide them.  Enter bra strap concealer.  The only downside is that you’ll probably always need someone to put the concealer on for you, unless you think of some way to put it on and then turn your bra around…  Good luck.

4. V-neck shelf bra camisole. When you’re traveling, you often experience intense weather changes that leads you to a city with 100 degree weather in the morning and another city with 10 degree weather at night.  I’ve found that easily-layered clothing is a must-have in your backpack in order to easily adjust.  I absolutely love v-neck camisoles like this one that you can wear underneath any shirt.  The extra shelf support also doesn’t hurt.  I personally prefer the v-neck to the scoop neck because it is easier to conceal underneath another shirt when needed.  Plus, for some reason, scoop neck camis just remind me of middle school.  Added bonus: you can usually find these in awesome colors to spice up your plain t-shirt!

5. A pashmina. This is the most versatile travel item ever!  In the heat, you can wear this around your bathing suit as a sarong.  In the snow, you can wear this around your neck as a scarf.  Not only are pashminas always in style (they are definitely a wardrobe must-have) you can buy them in practically any color in the world.  There are expensive ones and cheap ones, so you always have the option of getting something nicer for fancier occasions or something less than $10 that you’re ok with ruining while on a trip.

BONUS item for all travelers: TIGER BALM.  When traveling through places where mosquitoes are plentiful, nothing worked better for us than this.  It gives your skin that almost burning tingling sensation that diverts your attention from the itching to the tingling.

Full Disclosure – All of the above links to Amazon are affiliate links. By using these links you financially support Jason and my travel habit. You’re awesome!

Filed under: Travel Tips