The Complete Carry-On Packing List for Long Vacations

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I’m going to start my new vlog series off in a chronological fashion (because I’m Type A and things have to be IN ORDER, but I digress). It seems logical that the first post should be about “what to even pack for a 2-week trip to the desert in summer?!” (Still not sure what ~~we were~~ I was thinking on that one.) This packing list can be customized to a different climate (or for a male), but honestly, not much would change. I will also let you know what I used and if it wasn’t worth taking.

Carry On Bags — The bags I used for my 2-week trip to Egypt!

First things first, we decided to go carry-on only. For a 2 week trip. Yes, my friends, it is COMPLETELY doable, if you want to wash your clothes in the bathroom sink of your hotel room. Which we did. More than once. But I’m glad we chose this route because we moved around every few days and it makes traveling much easier. In the past, I’ve done the big 2 week trip, changing hotels every 2-4 days, with a large suitcase. It’s a nightmare. For this trip, my husband and I both had eBags Mother Lode Travel Backpack plus a personal item. I used the PacSafe CitySafe Anti-Theft purse as my personal item. My husband used a small drawstring backpack. Everything fit with room to spare (for souvenirs of course!). I highly recommend this backpack; I’ve used it on many trips, and I don’t have any complaints – in fact, they have improved it since I bought mine and the water bottle pocket is more stable. Win!

Important:
(These are literally the most important things for you to bring and therefore should all be in your carry-on!)
Passport
RFID Passport protector – This is the one we use because it has room for multiple passports and boarding passes, etc.
Wallet (you need $25 cash in USD for your VISA if you are a US citizen)
Cash for tipping (small bills, you will tip EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE)
Travel Insurance (Often times, a credit card benefit is travel insurance – look into it.)
Phone & Charger
Camera (and memory cards, batteries, etc)
Pen (to fill our immigration forms on the airplane. No one ever has a pen and the flight attendants do not provide one.)

Clothes:
(I wish I would have taken more capris & shirts as I tended to wear them during the day, then shower and change into a dress for dinner.)
Packing cubes – I love how they compress your clothing, but also keep everything organized. These are the ones I use.
4 pairs of pants/capris – I took linen palazzo pants and capris. Light colors are best, especially in the summer.
4 shirts
3 dresses
2 spandex shorts (worn under my dresses to prevent chafing, they worked like a dream)
2 sets of pajamas
7 pairs of underwear
2 bras
4 pairs of socks
1 swimsuit
1 kimono (used for a swimsuit cover up or to dress up my black dress)
(Plus 1 pair of leggings and 1 comfy t-shirt for our 14 hour flights.)

Accessories:
Scarf – To cover your shoulders if you are going into a mosque or from the sun!
Travel scarf – I use this one EVERY SINGLE FLIGHT I take because it has a little pocket in it that makes it super convenient to put in my headphones, chapstick, things I will need for the flight, etc. Everything is super accessible. The pocket is actually big enough to fit your passport or money as well (which keeps it hidden when walking around town!)
Sunglasses
Hat – I purchased a packable fedora hat to protect my scalp and hair from the sun. I wore it quite a bit.

Shoes:
Sanuk sandals – I love Sanuk sandals for walking in all day
Sneakers

Toiletries:
(I am switching to more solids for my toiletries to make it easier for carry-on only.)
Clear travel toiletry bag – for liquids
Travel toiletry bag – for all other toiletries
Bar shampoo/conditioner (from Lush – not an affiliate link)
Bar soap
Razor
Face wash (Treatment Enzyme Cleansing Powder from AmorePacific – not an affiliate link)
Moisturizer
Pink makeup remover cloths – seriously, these are amazing and eliminate the need for liquid makeup remover
Facial wipes – I did use these despite my other face washing options, because they were great to remove sweat off my face in the middle of the day
Makeup
Deodorant
Lume body deodorant – I also LOOOVE this. I’m a sweaty girl so I use this year round. (Not an affiliate link.)
Lume deodorant wipes – Not an affiliate link.
Toothbrush/Toothpaste/Floss
Lotion
Hair brush
Pony tail holders
Styling products for hair – 3.4oz or smaller!
Dry Shampoo
Bobby pins/Hair donut
Chapstick
Perfume
Magnifying compact mirror – because you will find you need one when you don’t have it

Medications
Prescriptions – I also had my doctor write a letter saying why I was on my meds just in case. I did not need it. ALSO PLEASE KEEP ALL PRESCRIPTIONS IN YOUR CARRY-ON.
Vitamins
First Aid kit – ibuprofen, Imodium, Tums, eye drops, EmergenC, hand sanitizer, tissues, band aids, Neosporin
Antibiotics – We went to a travel clinic and got these just in case (for traveler’s diarrhea). We did not need these either. Yay!
Bug Bite Thing – I swear by this thing ALL SUMMER LONG
Motion Sickness medication – I use Meclizine (also known as Bonine)

Misc:
Sunscreen – We found small 3oz tubes on Amazon and we did use this everyday.
Aloe
Bug spray/cream – We took a cream with deet (that was recommended by our travel clinic) but we ended up using it only 1 time.
Anti-chafing gel – I ended up not really using this because I took the spandex shorts.
Collapsible water bottle – I love this one because even as you drink from it, it will still stand on it’s own.
Cooling towels – I did use these a few times!
Flight Flap – This is awesome because it can be folded in many ways to hold your phone (in case there is no in flight entertainment)
Camera lens for phone – I used this on my Samsung S9, but now that I have the S21, I no longer need it. I thought it was awesome when I used it on my previous phone, so I brought it with me on this trip and that’s when I discovered I no longer needed it. Whomp whomp.
Bag for dirty clothes
Detergent for hand washing clothes – I bought these sheets because I was trying to avoid extra liquids.
Drain stopper
Clothes line – Remember I said we washed our clothes in the bathroom sink? We needed a place to dry them! This one worked very well for us.
Anker External battery – I swear by the Anker brand. I’ve had this since 2017 and it still works great! It is optimized for fast charging and can charge my phone about 4 times before it needs to be recharged.
International outlet adapter – I purchased this before my trip the Ireland/UK a few years ago. It’s great because it has 3 plugs, 4 USB ports, and adapters so I can take it anywhere in the world.
Headphones – These are the ones I use with my Samsung. They are on the expensive side, but I use them for running and needed something better suited for that. They are also noise cancelling.
All the chargers!! Phone, camera, tablet/laptop, smartwatch, etc
Travel toilet paper – We DID use this! It’s normal for public toilets to not have toilet paper and you either have to pay for it or bring your own.
Toilet seat covers – We did not use these at all.
Feminine hygiene products – If there is ANY chance you will need these, take them with you because it’s very difficult to find any in Egypt
Snacks – I always take snacks
Travel fan – Great for hot weather (like the desert) but also I used it at night because I like to sleep with a fan
Travel pillow – for the flight
Sleep Mask – for the flight
Nail file
Nail clippers – Yes, you can carry these on. You can also carry Tweezers on.

Things I did NOT bring, but WISH I did:
Waterproof cell phone case – I wish I brought this for when we were snorkeling, but also, it just would have been convenient to wear it around my neck/I wouldn’t have worried about dropping it when we were up higher. You know, like when climbing pyramids or other rock formations. I do have this one and used it in the Bahamas and I thought it worked very well.