Essential Travel Items You Never Thought Of
A battery pack. Compression socks. An eye mask. These are some items no intrepid traveller leaves home without.
However, for your next getaway, you might want to consider packing a rather unexpected item into your hand luggage: a pair of rubber gloves.
No, not so you can help out your hotel’s kitchen staff and wash up some dishes — but this everyday essential can actually solve some classic problems many of us come up against while we’re away.
A user on Reddit asked travellers for the most ‘random’ object they take on holiday with them.
‘I always bring a pair of rubber gloves,’ wrote one Redditor. ‘If I stay in an Airbnb with a kitchen I use them when I’m cleaning, and sometimes for hand-washing items.’
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The suggestion was met with agreement from others, too, with one saying they use gloves to check ‘the seams of the mattress and upholstered chairs for bed bugs.’
Another traveller offered up an alternative use: ‘Rubber gloves also double as a lint roller.’
Metro asked travel expert and content creator, Liv Brown, for her thoughts, and she agreed that a pair of rubber gloves are an often overlooked travelling hack.
In particular, Liv explained that they’re a good place to store wet, leaking or dirty items.
‘They can cover dirty shoes if you need to pack them and have no time for cleaning, or for somewhere to put your wet bikinis,’ says Liv, 33.
‘I often find myself needing solutions for leaking toiletries, as that happens a lot with altitude changes, so you can use rubber gloves for that too.’
Liv, who has been travelling full-time since 2022, also suggests a list of other uses for the humble rubber glove.
‘They can be used as a make shift ice pack to fill up and freeze if you hurt yourself, or to cool yourself down when it’s hot outside.
‘You could use them as temporary food storage, or to wrap fruit and vegetables ends that aren’t finished yet, or even for rain cover and water protection for your electronics (you can cut a hole in a finger for a charging cable too if needed).’
Luckily, this travel essential won’t eat into your travelling budget either, with a pair of Marigolds from Sainsbury’s costing just £3.10.
This isn’t the first slightly left-field piece of travel advice we’ve seen recently.
Registered osteopath and qualified sleep therapist Tracy Hannigan, recently told Metro that she recommends packing a tennis ball, as it can help in avoiding stiffness or aches while on a flight.
She said: ‘A great tip is to find a hand towel, put the ball in the middle of it and roll it like a sausage. When you then apply pressure using the ball, it’s easier to position and will prevent it from f’
