Europe Will Humble You If You Don’t Pack These Things

You know what nobody tells North Americans before their first Europe trip? Europe is incredible, but it also comes with a lot of tiny differences. We're not going to call them inconveniences, just little differences, but there's some things that you might not think about until you're there. A lot of hotel rooms are smaller, air conditioning can be weaker or non-existent, elevators can barely fit one person with luggage if there is an elevator at all, bathrooms sometimes cost money. So in this video I wanted to share some of the travel essentials that I packed for my last few trips to Europe because there are a few small things that you might not realize you need until you're actually there. Also, most items on this list are under $20. First, let's talk about the tiny European hotel room experience. European hotels are often charming, historic, and beautiful. They're also occasionally the size of a walk-in closet. Many hotels across Europe do not provide washcloths. It's just how it is. You'll get bath towels, hand towels, but in most hotels washcloths are just not a thing. So if you use them, I would pack some from home or you can also get something like these little compressed mini towels that expand and activate with a little bit of water. I also find these useful if you're staying in airbnbs as most of the airbnbs I've stayed in across Europe don't provide paper towel and only give you one or two small kitchen towels. So for extra little messes these were really helpful especially since they're so small. Next are these foldable hangers. Many European hotel rooms can be on the smaller side especially if you're staying in the more historic parts of the city that you'll be visiting and sometimes that can mean either not enough hangers or the type of hangers that can't leave the closet. So if you want to air things out or dry some clothes around your hotel room especially if you're planning to do a little laundry it's nice to have a few extra hangers. These ones are lightweight and you just fold them up. They're flat so you can just stick a few of these in your luggage in the spaces once everything is packed. A couple other things are a toiletry bag that hangs because sometimes more often than not counter space in the bathroom is less than ideal. And I always throw in one or two suction cups because sometimes there's not a good natural hanging spot for your toiletry bag. A portable fan is a good idea if you tend to run hot because one thing that North Americans don't often realize or aren't prepared for is that air conditioning in Europe can be very different from what we're used to back home. Some hotels have weaker AC and some older historic hotels might not even have air conditioning at all. And honestly it's not even just hotels. Sometimes trains and restaurants cafes and many shops can feel pretty warm too especially during the heat waves in the summer. Now let's talk about charging your devices and using electronics in Europe because there are a couple of important differences to know before your trip. First you're going to need a good quality travel adapter. I always recommend getting yourself a universal travel adapter because you might be traveling to a few European countries in the same trip that have different power outlets. For example if you're going to be visiting England and maybe France in the same trip you're going to need different adapters for each country. So getting a universal one covers them all. Now you might also need a voltage converter. Those are two different things but honestly those are heavier, bulky, and more expensive. And depending on what you need for power you can probably get away without needing a voltage converter. For instance I've never needed to use a voltage converter on any trip to Europe. Just the adapter. Because most electronics nowadays they're already dual voltage like your phone, laptops, tablets, smart watches, and even a lot of the newer CPAP machines. Now speaking of dual voltage let's talk hair tools. Thinking about the last 20 hotels I've stayed at in Europe I think they all had hair dryers available. But if you have a specific hair dryer that you like to use or if you have a hair straightener or a curling iron make sure they're already dual voltage. You can usually find that information on the fine print of your tool. Otherwise if it's not dual voltage you're going to fry it the first time you use it. And I also find that even with voltage converters I have also heard horror stories of hair tools not converting properly and frying anyways. In recent videos I've talked about the hair dryer brush and the mini flat iron that I like to use so you can find those linked in the video description below. And while we're on the topic of protecting your electronics a phone lanyard is really helpful when traveling. In fact it's really helpful when you're traveling anywhere not just in Europe. What you do is you wear it cross-body so that it's safe and no one can snatch your phone out of your hands when you're taking photos. But it's also helpful so that you don't accidentally set your phone down somewhere and forget it or accidentally leave it in your purse that may be easily unopened when you don't notice. But I found it's also useful for taking photos so that you don't drop your phone since you're likely going to be maybe up on a castle wall or looking out from a viewpoint or out on the water on a boat. I also recommend bringing a power bank for your phone as well. Even if you feel like your phone battery lasts a long time while you're at home doing everyday normal stuff you might be surprised how quickly your battery drains when you're on vacation. And this is for a few reasons. The obvious one is that you're going to be taking way more photos. But if you're traveling in the summer the heat of the day can make your phone really hot and start to overheat and that's going to drain your battery. And another thing I never thought of before this last trip is that if you're on a group tour and maybe you have a group chat going that can also drain your battery a lot faster if you're always checking messages and sharing pics with the group chat. Your phone basically becomes like your camera, your map, your train ticket, your translator, and your communication device all day long. So having backup power is essential. Now let's talk about the physical experience of traveling around Europe because you're probably going to walk significantly more than you do at home. So comfortable walking shoes are an absolute must. You're likely going to be doing a lot of walking but also in Europe there's lots of cobblestones and different kinds of cobblestones and sizes and uneven walkways and stairs you name it. So try to find a nice pair of neutral sneakers or trainers that you can walk all day long in. And since it's summer a comfortable sandal is also a must and new for this season are these Crocs strappy sandals. I just found these and they are so cute. They're so dainty and they're so lightweight and being Crocs they are so comfortable. And so you can wear them all day long and then you can also wear them out at night too because they're dainty and strappy and super cute. So truly versatile meaning you could get by with just these as your vacation sandal. I just bought them off of Amazon. I'll leave a link below. I would size down because I find that they do run a little big. And speaking of staying comfortable while traveling through Europe especially in the summer heat, if you have thighs that touch I have to tell you anti-chafing balm is a lifesaver. If you're wearing shorts or a dress or a skirt this makes walking so much more comfortable. It's kind of like a deodorant stick that you apply and you just rub it on the areas that you might want to prevent chafing and you're good all day long. Now let's talk about a few more little day-to-day things that you'll be happy to have. You're going to want to use either a clipa or a HeroClip and these are super useful when traveling to hold your bag off the ground. I have found that a lot of bathroom stalls have not had hooks on the inside and Chris uses his HeroClip to keep his camera bag off of the ground. You might find that a lot of the outdoor patio chairs and bistro sets the chairs are on the smaller side and you don't want to drape your bag over the back of the chair behind you. So get a bag that you can either wrap the strap or unclip and then clip the strap around the table leg and then just hang your bag from the table. This is just for safety reasons. You don't ever want to make it available for anyone to quickly walk by and grab your bag if it's hanging off of your clipa but as long as you wrap a strap around the leg or part of the chair you'll be fine. A lightweight scarf or shawl is another item you'll be glad you packed. Lately I prefer my cape scarf which is even more versatile but you'll be happy to have something like this for when the trains or the flights get cold or drafty. They're useful for windy evenings out on the patios or on ferries. Churches and cathedrals sometimes they require you to cover your shoulders or even your head and then it can also double as a pillow or a blanket in a pinch. I would also make sure you have a little coin purse or pouch and plan to keep a few coins available on you at all times. Many public bathrooms in Europe are paid bathrooms and not all of them take cards so you'll often need either one euro or 50 cent coins. And finally yes we have to talk about pickpockets. You're going to need to be aware of this when you're in busy areas like subways and metros and in crowded areas at popular tourist sites and in city centers. If an anti-theft bag makes you feel the most comfortable please use one of those. Otherwise wear a crossbody bag that you can keep in the front of you on your chest close to you or down on your side where you can keep your arm covering it. And then I also recommend you get a few of these S clips that you can then connect the main zippers together so that they can't be quickly or secretly undone by a potential pickpocket. That's going to be all for this video. I feel like everyone has at least one oddly specific Europe travel item they now swear by so let us know in the comments below what yours is. Thank you so much for watching and we'll see you in the next one. Did you notice Miley was behind me the entire time? Miley you want to say hi? Can you see her? Yes thank you so much. Thanks for watching!