I recently joined Instagram, which is a terrible time-waster   great source of travel inspiration. I love the wanderlust-inducing travel shots, but also the small insights into people’s worlds, halfway around the globe. A morning coffee here, a pet photo there. And I love the little details about travel most of all.

I’ve been meaning to write a post on my travel essentials for a while. This is not a packing list post, more a few little things that make my trips easier. I’d love to hear yours too!

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on a slash-proof day bag – this was £8 in a sale years ago and has served me really well!

(Just to clear this up for any new visitors – I don’t use affiliate links – these are genuine recommendations :)

1. A lightweight scarf – works perfectly as a blanket on chilly planes, a wrap on the beach (and as a scarf).
2. This lip balm – Korres lip butter in Quince. In tropical countries all I wear is a tinted moisturiser with SPF and some coloured lip balm. This one is perfect.
3. An MP3 player for those long South American bus journeys. Always try and download one or two things from the country I’m travelling to beforehand.
4. Aloe vera gel – I like this one from Dutch store De Tuinen.
5. I used to think people who took their favourite food away with them were a little bit crazy. Now I take tea bags to Brazil (cha preto is really bitter) and a few Nature Valley bars.

So those are my travel essentials. Let me know yours in the comments!