No matter what airline you fly, you’ll be permitted to bring a “personal item” – a piece of luggage small enough to fit under the seat in front of you. There are two reasons thoughtfully packing your personal item is important:

• Your personal item will be with you and accessible at all times. This is where the most important and urgently-needed items should go (covered in this blog).
• With more and more airlines charging for bags, getting creative with packing your personal item can save you a lot of money.

During one fateful trip, I decided to forgo everything I’ve ever learned about traveling and pack all my things in my checked bag. “It will be so nice to not have to keep up with anything in the airport! How luxurious!” Fast forward to the return flight when everything I needed to function was stuck in the cargo hold when our flight was cancelled. No meds, no clothes, no toothbrush, no deodorant, no phone charger. I’ll spare you the miserable details, but the lesson to be learned is to never ever ever pack important things in a bag you don’t have access to.

Here are the top things your should ALWAYS pack in your personal item.

Identification

This is the single most important thing to keep safe and accessible when traveling. Your passport and/or ID should be as close to you as possible in a secure spot.

Water Bottle

It’s never fun to pay $4+ for a bottle of water in the airport, which is why one of the first things I pack in my personal item is an empty water bottle. I opt for something small, reusable and distinguishable (for when it slips out of the side pocket and rolls loudly down the aisle of the plane…). I like these bottles from Walmart because they’re colorful and only cost $1! Always make sure you board with a full bottle of water in the event of a sneak cough attack or the urgent need for Gas-X. See “medication” below.

Chargers

Speaking from experience, you don’t want to be the one caught during a delay begging other passengers for a phone charger… it’s not something many people want to share and airport chargers cost >$30. Always keep chargers for phones and important electronics in your personal item, and include back-ups when you can.

Medication

This is the one area I always recommend over-preparing. Especially during long flights, the altitude can do weird things to your body. Having basic meds in an easy-to-reach area can be a lifesaver when you need relief fast. I keep a stocked medicine case in my Travel Go Bag filled with Tylenol, Advil, Tums, Gas-X (trust me) Zyrtec and Unisom. Always keep your prescriptions with you as well.

Valuables

If you’re bringing cash, fine jewelry, a nice watch or the only copy of your favorite baby photo, it needs to be in your personal item. Even if your carry-on is zipped tight and stored right above you, some things deserve to be in your line of sight at all times.

Entertainment

While many airlines are now offering in-flight entertainment, it’s tough to guarantee your plane will have the latest technology. I always pack my Kindle Fire filled with my latest binge and a few episodes of The Office. A piece of advice, try to avoid downloading shows/movies with uncomfy scenes. If you wouldn’t want to watch it at home with your grandma, you wouldn’t want to watch it with a stranger’s child sitting beside you. I try to keep a Disney movie downloaded for situations like these 🙂

A PEN

I cannot stress this enough, pack. a. pen. in. your. personal. item. From doing in-flight magazine crosswords to filling out customs forms for international travel, tracking down a passenger to share a pen is not easy with the seatbelt sign on or when everyone is running to be the first through customs. Instead, be the hero of your aisle and pack a pen or two.

Sanitizer

Make sure your personal item is stocked with extra masks and an easy-to-reach sanitizer.

Your “Go Bag”

My Travel Go Bag is my lifesaver for packing quickly, easily and successfully, and includes a lot of the items I’ve covered in this blog. Read all about what I keep in mine here.

See something I’ve missed that you always keep in your personal item? Share it in the comments below!