As we enter the last month of summer (sad face), now is the time where many people will be jetting off on holiday to relax and bask in the hot weather. But if you haven’t packed properly or remembered to bring your important travel essentials, your restorative trip could quickly turn into a vacation nightmare.
Okay, maybe I’m being a little dramatic but hear me out. Whether you’re heading off to a sunsoaked destination or staying local for a camping trip, having the best suitcase or the best carry-on for the job is essential. But even if you’ve chosen the crème de la crème of the luggage world, it’s still important to make sure you’ve got the right gadgets to make your trip easier.
Long gone are the days where you chuck things into your bag and hope for the best before catching a flight or driving out to a campsite. Now, we need tangle-free cord systems, a constant source for Wi-Fi, hands-free plane entertainment and much more.
Below, I’ve rounded up the best travel gadgets to take with you on your next flight, beach holiday or camping trip to protect your belongings, keep you connected and make your holiday fun and safe.
Travel Gadgets For Flights
The best power banks keep your smartphone, tablet, laptop and everything charged and ready to use, wherever you are in the world. Having portable power on hand while you’re on a long haul flight is a necessity at this point, and the Anker PowerCore is more than up for the task. Equipped with PowerIQ and VoltageBoost technology, this power bank from Anker delivers 26800mAh high speed charging and has three USB ports so it can charge three devices at a time. Measuring at 7.1 x 3.2 inches, the Anker PowerCore is compact and can easily fit into your hand luggage or pocket while you’re on the go.
Regardless of the amount of chargers you’re bringing with you, they’re bound to get tangled in one with or another, which is why you need a cable organiser. The best one I’ve found and the most cost effective is the WWW Electronics Accessories Organiser Bag. Made from durable waterproof materials to protect your electronics, this organiser has seven mesh pockets of different sizes and two layers of compartments, so you can fit all your chargers inside. It has tons of space, is super lightweight and can fit inside your laptop bag or the best backpacks.
It’s everyone’s worst nightmare to lose their luggage or have it end up in a completely different country. To give you better peace of mind, keep track of your belongings with a Tile Pro. Compatible with iOS, Android and Windows platforms, the Tile Pro can be attached to your bag, purse, keys or anything you want to keep track of, and the free app will show you where your things are.
As someone who brought five books with her on holiday this year, I really wished I’d had a Kindle Paperwhite with me instead. Regarded as the best Kindle you can buy today, the Kindle Paperwhite is a petite and convenient way to take your library with you on your travels, and it’s the perfect flight and beach companion. It has 32GB of storage, which you can fill with books, audiobooks, magazines and more. For more details, check out our Kindle Paperwhite review.
Having a portable monitor on a plane is incredibly useful, especially if you’re on a work trip or the flight you’re on doesn’t have a TV. For this guide, I chose the ViewSonic VG1655 Portable Monitor which measures 16 inches and weighs less than 1kg. For those who need an extra screen, this monitor can be set up as a pivot display for gaming, reviewing, editing, programming and streaming.
If you don’t need a huge screen but you also don’t want to hold your phone for a 3+ hour flight, you need a Perilogics Phone Mount. Designed to clip to the tray table, this phone mount has a strong clamp and is compatible with multiple phones and different device sizes. It has a 360-degree rotation so you can move it around vertically or horizontally to find the best viewing angles.
Travel Gadgets For Beach Holidays / Camping Trips
Having the best Bluetooth speaker around the campsite or while you chill out on the beach is a must-have. But when picking a speaker like this, it’s important to choose one that’s outdoor-ready like the Sonos Roam. This portable waterproof speaker lets you stream audio directly from your phone, tablet or laptop using Bluetooth and delivers incredible clarity and depth in a petite and attractive gadget. See our Sonos Roam review for all our thoughts.
To capture your favourite holiday moments, you need the best action camera at your disposal. Can you bring a disposable or polaroid camera with you on your trips? Yes, of course, but if you want something that can stand up to the elements and even go in the water, then you need to invest in the best GoPro which happens to be the GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini. With exceptional video quality and fuss-free operation, this action cam is ideal for any activity you’re trying. Take a look at our GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini review for more.
Even if you’re only spending a night camping or a few hours at the beach, the sad truth is that no one can go without Wi-Fi for too long. And with the TP-Link 4G LTE MiFi, you don’t have to! This high speed mobile hotspot can reach up to 150Mbps download and 50Mbps upload speeds, and can deliver Wi-Fi to up to 10 devices at a time. Its battery is long lasting and to get it working, all you have to do is insert a SIM card and turn it on for instant Wi-Fi wherever you are.
While at the beach or campsite, fresh water can sometimes be hard to come by. To solve this problem, the LARQ Bottle PureVis is a self-cleaning stainless steel water bottle that purifies water in 60 seconds using LED technology. Not only does it give you fresh water but it also cleans your bottle by eliminating bacteria, and it has double wall vacuum insulation to keep water cold or hot for several hours.
Perfect for the campsite, the Weber Traveler is one of the best gas barbecues that folds up like a deckchair. Forget about cooking over a flimsy stove in the grass: the Weber Traveler is portable, easy to wheel around and can pop up almost anywhere. It has a generous cooking area, makes delicious food and looks good while doing it. We gave it 5 stars in our Weber Traveler review so T3 couldn’t recommend it more.
To keep your food and drink cool while camping or at the beach, you need a portable cooling box like the EcoFlow Glacier Portable Refrigerator. One of the best cooling devices you can buy today, it has a large 38-litre capacity and powerful 120W compressor that brings you solid ice cubes in minutes. It can refrigerate and freeze from 10°C to -25°C and has dual zones and controls that, once powered up, can last for up to 40 hours without wires.
