I have always loved “What’s in My Bag” posts and videos either out of plain curiosity or in the hopes of learning about a must have item. Those who carry around a purse or a bag know that the amount of random crap, for lack of a better word, that can be found in a woman’s purse is endless. I personally don’t like to carry around too much in my bag mostly because I am constantly switching bags out and don’t want to deal with the entire transfer process each time.

Today’s edition of What’s in My Bag has to do with what I carry around with me when I am traveling. Not what I bring with me to another city or country but what is in my actual purse that is on me at all times when I’m walking around and exploring a new (or well known to me) city. My New York trip (for my bachelorette party) is what inspired this post and I could not be more excited about it. So since I will be walking around and exploring the city on foot, there are a lot of things I like to have with me in my bag just in case. So let’s get into it….

The bag: my bag of choice for traveling is a Steve Madden fold over cross body that I scored at TjMaxx for an amazing price ( #maxxinista for life) years ago. It has now traveled to New York, Chicago, Miami, all over Italy and Canada. The reason I love this bag is because it’s super convenient since it basically just hangs off me, it faces forward so I don’t have to worry about people getting into my bag (like you do with backpacks) and it’s fits a lot more than you would ever expect. Since my bag is no longer available, I looked for other great options and found this gorgeous cognac fold over cross body from Nordstrom, this Frye messenger bag and this really affordable version.

Body Wipes: When I was planning for my Italy trip 2 years ago, I was looking into body wipes as I knew that the temps would be scorching and that we would be walking around all day in the sun. Reviews took me to the Playtex Sport Body Wipes but these are either discontinued or just on really short supply so I would recommend checking these out instead. Body wipes are amazing when you are walking around all day and just want to cool off. In the summer, most of your body is exposed anyway so using these wipes on your arms and legs just helps cool you off in the middle of the day when a shower isn’t an option (yet). If you stumble upon the Playtex ones somewhere, I would recommend those but if not, any brand of body wipes will be handy to have in these situations.

Band Aids: If you are planning on an active vacation or just walking around and exploring, you need to have these in your bag. You don’t want to have to hunt for a drug store (been there) in a city you don’t know because you’ve developed blisters and can no longer walk around and be as active as you’d like. So always pack ahead.

Camera: Sure, your iPhone or Android camera probably takes great pictures but nothing can quite compare to having actual camera quality pictures. I personally own the Sony SLT-A37 which I use for all my travels and all my blog pictures as well.

Make Up Bag: the only things I actually carry around in my make up bag are lip balms, lip sticks and a mirror. I don’t have eye make up, foundation or anything else on me because I know that realistically, I’m not going to be reapplying or fixing that when I’m walking around or exploring. Touching up lipstick is different as it only takes a few seconds to reapply and most of it comes off when you’re eating anyways. I personally don’t buy make up bags because I’ve been subscribed to Ipsy for so long so I just re-use my Ipsy bags as my makeup bags (as well as my toiletry bags that stay in my suitcase).

Portable Phone Charger: I have a back up iPhone case that comes with a charger. I don’t actually have my phone in it as it’s a pretty bulky case but I do carry it around in my bag so that I can pop my phone into it when needed and re-charge on the go. These types of cases are super convenient and I highly recommend them for traveling unless you want to be that person in a café or restaurant that is sitting by a plug with their phone charger. Amazon sells this one that will get the job done and these are available on Groupon as well. If you don’t know how these work, you simply charge the case the night before and when your phone battery is almost dead you “power” the case on and it charges your phone on the go.

I usually also have some snacks thrown into my bag as well as my wallet (for obvious reasons) but for the most part, that’s all I have with me in my bag when I’m walking around. Hopefully, this was helpful and will prevent some troubles on a future trip for you.

As always, thanks for reading! 😊