We just finished up a long haul flight to Zurich, and we are currently still in Switzerland, so I thought this might be a good time to talk about long haul flight essentials for your carry-on bag. These are the things that were important to have within reach, inside my tote bag.

What to Wear

Ok, so this doesn’t go in your tote, but it IS essential. If you are on a long haul flight, you are talking about 6+ hours of sitting in a seat. No matter what class you are seated in, comfort is always going to be a top priority. While I haven’t yet found what I believe to be the perfect travel outfit for SUMMER travel, I do believe that I’ve cracked the code on the perfect WINTER TRAVEL attire.

Chic, cashmere travel pants like these from Allude (all on MAJOR sale- click to see the sale price) coupled with a cashmere sweater and comfortable shoes will hands down give you the most comfort you can get in a flight outfit. You can travel through the airports in style as well as sleep comfortably through the night.

I’ve written about how I pack my carry on here and I still firmly stand behind this packing method 100%. I can carry SO much more on the plane, and the OTG247 bag system has made our complicated trip this time, so much easier.

The essentials that I find the most useful to have handy in my tote bag and within easy reach are below:

The Liquids

Inside an OTG247 #2 bag, I carry my liquids:

Amazing Sleep oil by Beauty Pie, Vitamin C oil, Eye drops, toothbrush/toothpaste,(and/or Colgate Wisps), Cerave’ cleanser (I reused a Philosophy bottle). I rely on oils when traveling, rather than serums, as this saves me a “moisturizing” step….and a little space. In hind site I should have just packed a few Clinique facial cleansing wipes and skipped the Cerave for the plane all together.

I recently discovered Caudalie Beauty Elixer spray and I highly recommend traveling with this! It is full of moisturizers and essential oils and when you’ve been flying for 7 hours or more, a quick spray when you are getting yourself ready to deplane is nothing short of total luxury. From the smell to the fresh glow that it imparts this has been moved to a Holy Grail travel product for me.

Other Essentials

I have an OTG247 bag that contains, my deodorant, hairbrush, cleansing cloths, hair ties, eye mask, earplugs and facial tissues. I have my eye on a complete cashmere travel set that includes socks, eye mask and blanket. It usually gets cold on the plane so I prefer to just let cashmere do it’s thing!

Cosmetics

Another OTG247 bag contains all of my non-liquid makeup. In the US, TSA doesn’t consider most “lotion”-type foundations as liquid. So, I carry a tube of IT cosmetics CC cream, all of my shadows, my brushes, mascara, concealer, bronzer, etc. Everything that I need for full face makeup, so that I can grab that and hit a restroom or an arrival lounge upon deplaning and get myself pulled together for the next leg of travel.

Tech

In my tech bag, I find it essential to carry my ear-phones and charging chords and I always carry this charger.

It’s slim and has come in handy on every.single.trip. You never know when you will have the time to charge your devices and when traveling internationally, you may also have difficulty finding the correct adapter for your needs. I highly recommend picking one of these up before your next trip. These are the other gadgets that I find indispensable for travel overseas:

Laptop

I always use my laptop when waiting for departure, as well as while I’m flying so that is a must-have for me as well.

Things I DIDN’T Need

A few things that I carried with me on this trip that I found I DID NOT need on the plane and wish that I’d stashed in my checked luggage instead: My extra long computer cord, my big work notebook, and my small stand-up mirror.

Airport Arrival Lounges

If you are flying business or first class, you can take even less with you on the plane if you aren’t too worried about lost luggage. Throw on some sunnies, get your luggage from the carousel and head straight to your airline’s arrival lounge. They will typically have shower rooms where you can change, freshen up, get some coffee and just generally collect yourself before heading out into the world with your jet lagged self!

I hope that this post was helpful to you! If it was, would you consider pinning it to Pinterest? I appreciate it so much!

You may also enjoy these posts:

“How to Backpack Across the Swiss Alps”.

The Winter Outfit to get you through the Rest of Winter.

Makeup for Mature Eyes

How To Pack for Europe

We are still traveling in Switzerland and while it’s been very busy- it’s been great! Everything is going off without a hitch so far and with planes, trains, buses, automobiles and quite a bit of luggage, you KNOW that takes some synchronization! Follow along on my Instagram stories if you want to see what we are getting up to!

Let me know if you have any great travel tips! I’m always looking for better ways to do things!

Until next time!

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