Best Travel Essentials for 2026 (What I Actually Use Every Trip)

I’m heading to New York and South Korea over the next few months.

After years of travelling, I feel like I’ve finally nailed down the gear that actually makes a difference. Not the stuff that looks good in a flat lay. The stuff that genuinely makes the experience easier.

I’m not saying you need all of this. Most of it I’ve built up over time. But if you travel regularly and want to know what I actually use, here it is.

The Suitcase

I’ve been using my RIMOWA carry-on for a while now. Love the look of it, love the feel of it.

But I recently came across one from a company called MVST that’s worth knowing about. The RIMOWA is around $1,500. The MVST is $400. It has a similar aluminium look and a lot of the same functionality.

Honestly, it’s pretty close. If you’ve had your eye on the RIMOWA but can’t justify the price, the MVST is a solid alternative.

The Backpack

This is probably my favourite travel item right now.

The Grams 28 Transit backpack. It’s easily the best backpack I’ve ever used. Built like a tank, primarily made from leather, and it actually looks good — which is rare for a backpack.

Most backpacks are just ugly. Grams 28 managed to make one that looks stylish and travels well.

What I like most about it is that it opens like a suitcase. Flat access to everything inside instead of having to dig around from the top. It also has a proper padded laptop compartment, a suitcase pass-through, a sunglasses compartment, and a dedicated passport slot. That last one matters more than you’d think.

It’s not cheap. Around $1,000. But the quality is there.

If that’s too much, I did find an alternative that works similarly for around $200–$250. It’s the Bellroy Lite Travel Pack. It’s nylon, not leather, and the look is more utilitarian, but it opens the same way and fits a 16-inch MacBook no problem. It’s 30L, they also do a 38L. For the price, it’s actually really good.

The Laptop and iPad

I won’t go too deep on the MacBook since I’ve already reviewed it on the channel. It’s the M4 Max 14-inch MacBook Pro. Small but powerful. I always go for the smaller size.

For the iPad, I’m currently on the 11-inch iPad Pro and I think it’s genuinely the best iPad Apple makes right now.

I used to love the iPad Mini. Still do. But Apple haven’t really done it justice — the screen isn’t great and the battery is limited because of the size. The 11-inch is a different story. The display is one of the best I own. Better than any external OLED monitor or TV I have at home, which is a strange thing to say about an iPad.

It’s also absurdly thin and light. Almost too thin. But it holds up fine.

I have it in an Otterbox case that has a slot for the Apple Pencil and a fold-out stand for flights. It’s not the most beautiful case, but the functionality is why I use it.

12 South Air Pro 2

This one deserves its own mention because it genuinely solves a specific problem.

If you want to use AirPods or any Bluetooth headphones with in-flight entertainment — anything with a headphone jack — this is how you do it. It connects to the headphone jack and pairs with your wireless headphones. Works on planes, Steam Deck, gym treadmills, whatever.

You can even connect two Bluetooth devices at the same time. It supports aptX via Bluetooth 5.3 so audio quality is good. 25-hour battery life, charges via USB-C. The whole thing comes in a tiny pouch.

Simple product. Solves the problem completely.

Apple AirPods Pro 3

I’ve stopped using pretty much every other pair of earbuds, because the AirPods Pro 3 are genuinely that good.

The noise cancellation is the main reason. Some of the best I’ve ever used. Get the right ear tip fit, the seal does a lot of the work on its own, and then the active noise cancellation takes care of the rest. On a flight, I genuinely almost forget how loud the environment is until I take them out.

The sound quality is good too. Not everyone will agree, but given the size and form factor, I think it’s impressive.

If you’re already in the Apple ecosystem, switching between iPhone, iPad, and MacBook is seamless. I can’t really recommend these enough.

The Tech Pouch

This one stays in my suitcase.

It never gets unpacked when I’m home. It lives in the suitcase permanently. That’s the whole point — it’s my travel charging kit and it’s always ready.

Everything fits in the Bellroy Desk Caddy.

Inside I keep:

A dual-head USB-C cable — one USB-C goes into the charging brick, and the other end splits into two USB-C connectors. Two devices from one port. Does over 140W.

A USB-A to USB-C cable — some rental cars still don’t have USB-C, so this is for Apple CarPlay on the road.

An AirTag — obvious reasons.

A travel charging brick — all adapters built in so it works anywhere. One USB-A port and three USB-C ports. Does 120W. One of the most powerful I’ve found in this size.

A 12 South charging puck — this one stays in my bag and comes out at the hotel. Has MagSafe wireless charging for iPhone and a fold-out Apple Watch charger. The fold-out part matters. A lot of Apple Watch chargers don’t fold, and my watch strap doesn’t lay flat — so it has to charge at an angle. This one handles that.

Battery Bank

I’ve recommended this battery bank on the channel multiple times now and I keep coming back to it because nothing else has beaten it.

It has two built-in USB-C cables — one on the strap, one on the body. Plus a separate USB-C port and USB-A port. So four devices charging at once. 25,000mAh capacity and 165W total output.

I get asked constantly if it’s okay to take on flights. Yes, no issues. Security has never questioned it.

For something this compact, the output is genuinely impressive.

The Sling Bag

When I land somewhere, I usually pull this out of my suitcase too.

The Grams 28 sling. Battery pack, AirPods, whatever I need quickly but don’t want in my pockets.

The main thing that goes in here though is the Fujifilm X100VI.

I love this camera. The design, the build quality, the image quality. It feels expensive because it is — around $2,000. But it’s become my primary travel camera because of how compact it is for what it produces.

A lot of people ask about the film recipes. Honestly, I don’t use them much. I mostly shoot RAW and edit in Lightroom. I just prefer working on the photos myself — I actually enjoy the editing process. But if you’re someone who doesn’t want to edit at all, the recipes are there and they’re great straight out of camera.

My only complaint is that I don’t travel enough to use it as much as I’d like.

That’s everything I travel with right now.

It’s taken a while to figure out what actually matters and what’s just extra stuff to carry. Most of it I’ve had for a while. Some of it is newer. All of it earns its place in the bag.

If you want to see what tech I think is genuinely worth investing in, check out that video too.