Before I embarked on my recent trip overseas, I upgraded some of my travel gear, and I was really happy I did. Since I know a lot of people will be traveling over the holidays, here are some of the travel essentials that made my trip a little more smooth.

1. Scarf – This is the one thing on my list that I didn’t actually have, but wished the whole time that I did. A nice big scarf can help keep you warm outside, but in a pinch it’s also great as a blanket or pillow on a plane or train.
2. Lipault Paris Carry On Suitcase – I bought this very suitcase (in purple) before we left, and I highly recommend it. For a 2 and 1/2 week trip, I was able to stuff it full and still carry it onto every flight, even the European ones with smaller baggage requirements. It has 4 wheels that rotate it any direction, so it’s easy to pull or push without toppling over. It was definitely worth the investment.
3. Parisienne French: Chic Phrases, Slang and Style – I carried this cute little book around Paris, and consulted it for neighborhood notes and simple sentences. You’d probably get more out of it if you have at least some French language background (I have none!) or more time to study up, because I couldn’t tackle anything more than a very simple exchange. Nevertheless, I was glad to have it so that I could say the basics.
4. Cozy slippers – A lightweight pair of slipper socks I could change into on long flights made me so much more comfortable.
5. Urbanears Headphones – Everybody hates a crying baby on a plane, and I’ve had especially bad luck with them lately. Headphones are definitely required travel gear as far as I’m concerned. (A couple of pairs of earplugs also can’t hurt.)
6. Cosmetics train case – On past trips I got really tired of digging through my makeup pouch, searching for the pencil at the very bottom of the bag. A small train case that can be zipped open helped eliminate this problem.
7. Eagle Creek Large Packing Cube, Eagle Creek Tube Packing Cube – Part of the reason I was able to avoid checking any luggage is that I rolled everything and compacted it in packing cubes. They’re great for organizing your stuff and helping it take up less room.

So now that you’ve seen mine, what are your travel essentials?