Mar 05.19

Little Tips for Hardcore Travel

Two things about this business: you learn a lot and you travel a lot. And, in my case, I’ve learned a lot about traveling. After years of schlepping my rollaboard to every hotel and convention center between St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Santa Monica Pier, I’m pleased to finally share my Little Tips for Hardcore Travel™. Follow them at your own risk.

Getting There, Being There:

Main Cabin Soundtrack: When I’m stuck in airplane-mode, Spotify playlists downloaded to my iPhone keep me pumped at 30,000 feet. Bonus: if you crank the volume during the safety announcements, the flight attendants look like they’re dancing!
World’s Most Boring Selfie: I always snap a shot of my parking space and room number. They’re no good for the ‘Gram but they’re awesome when I need to find my Nissan Rogue (or equivalent) to make my 5am call time or locate my suite after a 16-hour day. Now, where did I put that keycard…?
Hydrate, Fool: Gotta love that hotel lobby water. It’s cold. It’s clean. And it’s included. I always grab a bottle or two before heading up. Plus, it means that this lucky lady won’t have to drink from the glassware in the room.
Extra-long Charger Cable: Outlets, people. Outlets. New hotels have outlets aplenty, but older hotels only have one and its way over there behind the ugly dresser. Solution: long cable. Boom. I pack a 6-footer so my phone is always close and fully charged.
Solid Shampoo is Best Shampoo: TSA and I are buds, but they’ve got their rules and I’ve got mine. And one of my rules is this: replenish toiletries as rarely as possible. The 3.4-ounce liquid maximum allowed by our sultans of the safety check doesn’t last worth a damn, so I’ve gone all in on bars of shampoo and conditioner. You heard me. Bars of it. Bonus: Lush cosmetics offers some great options with awesome names like Honey, I Washed My Hair.
Electrical Tape: It drives me crazy when I close the blackout curtains and turn off all the lights…only to discover a major constellation of the world’s brightest LEDs gleaming from every corner the room, spoiling my sweet, sweet darkness. But a couple squares of electrical tape show those little buggers who’s boss. Yes, I actually do this.
Bombs Away: A bath bomb is a bit of a luxury item, but I’m a grown woman and I can do what I want. Mind your business. If the room comes with a nice-sized tub, I take a relaxing, fizzy soak at the end of the day. And housekeeping handles the fizzy residue in the morning.

Now a Little Something for the Germophobes:

Bedbug Bites Bite: Call me crazy, but I like to keep my contact with bedbugs to a minimum. When I first get to my room, I always untuck the sheets and check the mattress’s nooks and crannies. That way, I can sound the alarm before I become bug breakfast. Bonus crazy: I don’t let my luggage or belongings touch anything upholstered!
Wrap that Rascal: I’ve spent the night in, oh, about four million hotel rooms. And the one thing I’d say is NEVER truly cleaned is the TV remote. Yuck. I like to steal… er… borrow those super thin plastic baggies from the produce department of my grocery store at home and use them to wrap the remote before I ever touch it. And if you tell my Whole Foods that I’ve been swiping their produce bags then you and I are no longer friends.