Cheap Travel Essentials

Given that no matter how carefully you plan your trip inadvance by checking out cheaptravel options, such as cheap airplane tickets, discount hotel rooms, discounttravel deals, and cheap vacation packages,unfortunate travel surprises sometimes occur, there are several easy cheapsteps that you can take to be ready for such surprises.

The following are travel essentials that cost under $10that can help you beat airline fees, pack better, and look your best on theroad, according to Caroline Costello:

• Asmall $10 luggage scale can help you avoid paying hundreds of dollars inoverweight baggage fees. Americancharges $100 per checked bag that weighs over 50 pounds on domesticflights. Room permitting, pack aportable scale and bring it on your trip to ensure that you bag is notoverweight before your return flight.

  Historically airport luggage scales havebeen shown to be faulty. By having ascale on hand, you could have leverage and avoid a hefty fee if the airportscale is wrong.

• Downywrinkle releaser is particularly useful when you are packing cotton, silk,linen, or other wrinkle prone fabrics.

• Dryshampoo can come in handy on long flights where there is no way to wash and dryyour hair. This product absorbs excessoil between washings and is great for long flights, camping trips, or vacationsthat afford little time for hair care.

• Placea colorful or unique baggage strap which makes it less likely that anothertraveler will mistakenly grab your bag as it comes off the baggage carousel.

• Vapuranti-bottles are squishy; come with BPA free plastic walls that can easily beflattened and placed in your pocket or bag, taking up almost no space. It will save you money by making it possibleto not purchase pricey bottled water at expensive airport shops.

• Sunblocksticks are a must if you want to carry sunscreen in your carry-on. An additional bonus of this product is thatit will not leak all over your clothes when packed.

• Duct tapecan cover all types of unexpected problems, including repairing luggage,covering foot blisters, hiding valuables by taping them under your bed,covering tent or sleeping bag holes, adjusting skirt hems, and removing lintfrom clothes to name just a few problems. Colored duct tape can also be used as a makeshift luggage strap.

• Luggageties are a better and cheaper option that luggage locks. Locks and zipper pulls often get broken offas they go through the conveyor belts at airport security gates. Plastic zip ties significantly discouragetampering and unlike locks, are cheap to replace.

• Tidestain sticks can clean a splotch on your shirt and are a lot cheaper thanexpensive hotel laundry service. Ittends to work quite well, particularly if you attack the stain as soon aspossible.

• Handsanitizers are great for fending off viruses and germs. While hand washing is more effective,sanitizer is an excellent alternative where a sink and soap is notavailable.