I’m a little bit of a control freak, so for me to know that all of my important documentation is in one place, in my bag, gives me peace of mind when I’m travelling. The real leather has survived four years of not-so-gentle treatment and still looks as good as new. It’s stylish (Tiffany blue is always a good idea), practical and honestly, the most important thing I pack for any trip!

image source: amazon.co.uk

A quick Google search for a similar travel document holder resulted in this colourful leather wallet for £29.99 on amazon.co.uk - it even comes with extra credit card pockets, which could prove to be very handy.

If you’re an organisation freak like I am, a travel document holder is a must for you!

Do you keep all of your travel documents together?

See the rest of my packing checklist here.

Skyscanner is a flight search and comparison site whose goal is “to become the first website in the world to be able to show you the cheapest way to travel from A to B – wherever you are and wherever you want to go.”

My two favourite features are the ‘Everywhere’ option in the destination field and the ‘Flexible?’ options in the date field. This essentially allows you to find cheap flights to anywhere on a given day, or the best flights to your preferred destination within a month or even a year. Or you could just look for any destination over the whole year and see all of the places that you could go without spending a fortune.

Playing with this tool is incredibly addictive…and incredibly useful! I can’t recommend it highly enough for your travel planning. The website also offers searches for hotels, car hire, holidays and insurance which I haven’t yet tried but if those features are anywhere near as good as their flight search tool, they will be well worth a look.

Have you used these search options on Skyscanner? Where did your searching take you? Please share in the comments below.

image source: smythson.com

For the same price as this luxury leather beauty, you could purchase two return flights from London to Amman, Jordan on skyscanner.net.

Jordan is in my top five destinations, so the choice between these two is pretty easy for me…which would you prefer? Let me know in the comments below!

See the rest of my Lavish Traveller series here.

Yes, that’s right. 46p!

image source: amazon.co.uk

I wrote recently about the difference a good set of headphones makes to a long flight and recommended the Sennheiser HD 201 model (read about it here) but I forgot to mention this important little adaptor, without which you will only be able to hear through one ear (still better than using the airline’s headphones in my opinion!).

After reading the reviews on Amazon, I would recommend that you buy two of these, as some people have reported receiving faulty adaptors (although with an overall rating of 4 stars it seems to be a small minority who were not satisfied)…and at 46p each it won’t break the bank to ensure a comfortable flight.

See the other items on my packing checklist here.

Chances are, as one of the world’s most famous sites, Stonehenge is on a lot of people’s bucket lists, as it was mine. I was 16 when I saw it for the first time and was, quite frankly, bored out of my mind. I then saw it numerous times over the following few years when driving past it on the highway that is, pardon the pun, just a stone’s throw away, and was equally unimpressed on these occasions.

However, having moved back to the UK determined to appreciate things I never did previously (such as castles, cathedrals and beautiful countryside) I hoped that seeing Stonehenge again would change my mind about it. Last weekend a group of us rented a car and drove the 80 miles from London to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, which was freezing cold and being rained upon during our visit. We parked the car, paid our £8pp entry and collected the ‘free’ audio guide, which I quickly bored of (dramatic voices and cheesy sound effects are not my thing).

Although the site is beautiful and photogenic it left me just as disappointed as the first time I visited. The audio guide might be some people’s ideal way to learn about a historic site but I’d much prefer some written information to look at as I am walking around. Not that I was able to walk far, as most of the path was closed. I write this not as a complaint but rather to warn potential visitors that Stonehenge is really more of a stop-off on the way to a destination (such as Bath) than a destination in itself.

Some people I have spoken to say that when they visited Stonehenge they could feel some sort of energy, and that they were in awe of the monument, and I’m glad that some people have such an experience but I have never felt anything other than cold on my visits. It’s great to have seen Stonehenge with my own eyes but at the end of the day, to me, it’s simply a cluster of rocks on the side of a highway in the middle of nowhere…

Have you been to Stonehenge? Do you agree with my conclusion?

I came across these paperclips in one of my favourite online stores, Modcloth and have added them to my long stationery wishlist (self-confessed stationery nerd here!). With these little planes on my desk at least filing would be slightly less mundane…

image source: modcloth.com

On the Wings of Organization Paperclips, $7.99

So what’s so good about this bag? Well, to start with it’s ridiculously sturdy…it’s obviously very well made and will hopefully last for many years. The wheels are like that of a skateboard so they’re almost silent and roll SO smoothly. The handle slides up and down like a dream; I don’t know how many bags I’ve had to wrestle with to get the handle up but this one just cooperates which is a lovely change. There are all sorts of great compartments, including a padded one for a laptop and a waterproof shoe compartment. This clever bag is the perfect size for a weekend away (or a week if you are obsessed with packing light like me) and meets the specifications for most airlines’ carry-on, with the exception of dodgy airlines such as WizzAir whose carry-on allowance is so small a regular handbag would barely fit. But that’s a whole other blog post!

The cost of this fantastic Salomon bag is around £100 (depending where you buy it) but it really is worth the cost; I’m sure anyone who has travelled with a cheap, badly made bag will agree with me on that point!

For more packing checklist essentials, click here.

Are you willing to spend a bit extra on good-quality luggage? Share in the comments below.

1. I am not as well travelled as I once thought

When Brendan and I set out on our big adventure four years ago, I thought I was the sage, well-travelled one between the two of us. I took pride in lording my travel expertise over him and anyone else who would care to listen. Until I realised that really, compared to many people, I’ve barely seen anything. Sure, compared to some others I’ve seen lots but travel has humbled me and made me realise that really, I don’t know as much as I thought. I’m just an amateur traveller compared to so many!

2. Some things transcend even the toughest language & culture barriers

When you’ve had to step behind the bar of a cafe in Spain to make the espresso you just couldn’t muster the linguistic skill to order, or been forced to talk on the phone to a Frenchman who couldn’t speak a word of English to explain that you’re late to check-in to your hotel but will be there soon, you realise that tone of voice, hand gestures and a bit of kindness go a long way. You don’t need to be a linguist to travel; communication is so much more than language.

3. Money can buy experiences, but having no money creates funnier memories

We’ve travelled on a ridiculously tight budget before and on some days we had to make the choice between eating a proper meal or seeing a world-famous sight. We missed out on doing a lot of things we would have liked to do if we’d had the money in our bank account, but our tight budget was also the cause for some rather hilarious memories. I think all of my friends have laughed at the story of Brendan and I cooking pasta in the lukewarm water of the bathroom sink in our B&B in Venice…it was a horrific meal, but it certainly was memorable…

4. Sometimes I hate travelling

This may seem like a strange statement coming from a travel blogger, but travel is not always glamorous, comfortable or even fun. Over the years I’ve had arguments with friends, thrown tantrums over getting lost, come close to having heart attacks over various airport-related disasters, yelled at incompetent car rental staff, stressed about our budget, sat in hospital chairs being thankful for travel insurance, cried at having to pack up and leave again and slept in some of the most uncomfortable beds, chairs, floors, windowsills and car boots (see pic below) imaginable. In those moments, I hate travelling. It doesn’t stop me from going on my next trip though, which I guess is the most important thing!

 5. Some of my closest friendships have been formed on the road

I have to admit that I’m not the most social traveller; being shy around people I don’t know hasn’t really helped my cause, and yet some of the closest friends I have now are people I’ve met when I’ve been travelling or living abroad. Perhaps it’s the common ground of travel, or maybe I’ve just been incredibly lucky to meet some amazing people over the past four years, but in any case I wouldn’t have met them without having travelled.

6. Good company and good food are the secret to an amazing trip

All of my favourite trips have involved amazing company and mouth-watering food. No exceptions. Even when Brendan and I were backpacking on a tight budget, some of my best memories revolve around food (not, of course, the aforementioned bathroom sink pasta disaster). Incredible tiramisu in Venice, refreshing granita in Rome, clam chowder in Seattle, boeuf bourguignon in France, goulash in Prague, reindeer in Finland, goat’s cheese in Riga…I could go on but I’m too hungry to torture myself with these food flashbacks. I’d say the most important ingredient to successful travel is who you’re with, but good food is a very close second for me!

7. Trying new things is (almost always) awesome

Sometimes trying new things is not awesome. Like sleeping in a car on a French mountain. Or eating cassoulet. But most of the new things I’ve tried, either out of choice or coercion, have been some major highlights along my travel timeline. Scuba diving was something I was adamantly against but now I adore it. Paragliding off a mountain didn’t really appeal to my fear of heights but I loved it. Although sometimes I’m terrified, I know that when I do take the plunge, experiencing new things is almost always awesome!

8. No matter how many new things I see, my list keeps growing

Seriously, my list is scarily long and it just keeps growing. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to do everything I’d like to, and I’m kinda glad about that because if I ran out of new places to go and new things to try, that would be boring, right?

9. Not everyone shares my love for travelling

As much as I can’t imagine life without travel, I have learned that there are people who just don’t want to see the world. And that’s totally OK. I used to judge these people, probably because I just didn’t understand them. I still don’t, but I understand that we’re all different and whilst travel is a major priority in my life it’s not for everyone. I have to say, I’m glad I have reached the point where I don’t think it’s a fatal flaw for people not to want to hop on the next plane to anywhere…!

10. It is always, always worth it

For me, travel is always worthwhile. Not only has it opened my eyes to other cultures and ideas, but it’s taught me a great number of things about myself and the things that make me tick. Whether I’m flying to the other side of the world or driving a couple of hours away from my home, I see each of these journeys as invaluable and I never regret going. Even after a not-so-successful trip away, I wouldn’t take it back for anything…for me, there is nothing more valuable than new experiences and seeing things for the first time.

What has travel taught you? Tell me in the comments below!

That is unless you decide to go all haute couture with your electrical adaptation, as some are apparently wont to do. For just £74 you can purchase a travel adaptor in a chic faux-leather case designed by none other than Diane von Furstenberg:

image source: cntraveller.com

Although it’s described as a ‘travel essential’ on the matchesfashion.com website I have to admit that I can think of other, slightly more essential, uses for the same amount of money.

As an example, for just £3.33 more, you could insure yourself against all kinds of unseen problems with four whole weeks of worldwide travel insurance from World Nomads. Sorry Ms. von Furstenberg, I’m going to go with the not-so-chic, but ever-so-practical option out of these two!

Do you own any designer travel goods? Let me know in the comments below…

Click here to read other lavish traveller posts!

 image source: kiehls.co.uk

At £14 for 75ml it’s not the cheapest hand cream out there, but I honestly wouldn’t (and don’t) use anything else when I’m travelling. The thick and non-greasy consistency means that almost as soon as you apply it, you can use your hands again without getting oily stains on everything you touch. You don’t need much to have an effect, it moisturises for hours and has a herbal scent which makes it perfect for ladies or gents…so it has the added benefit of being shareable. My husband and I both swear by it; I won’t leave home without packing this handy little tube in my hand luggage!

Do you get dry skin when you travel? What do you use to remedy it? Answer in the comments below…

See what else I won’t leave home without here!