Travel Essentials: 2022 DFC Reader Favorites

Take a peek at the DFC Reader Favorites for 2022.


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We love to hear from our readers. Whether you’re a casual explorer or an avid traveler, you all know a good travel product when you see one. Each week in our Navigator newsletter, we share our hand-picked travel essentials with you and we’ve taken the time to look back at your favorite picks of the year. 

Take a peek at the DFC Reader Favorites for 2022.

Solgaard Carry-on Closet

We’d like to think that this carry-on by Solgaard is a dream piece of luggage for any traveler. It unfolds to be a shelf and keeps all your clothes organized while on the road.

Calpak Duffel Bag

This Calpak Duffel Bag is the perfect weekend bag and even has a convenient compartment for your shoes. See more of our other luggage favorites here.

Fanny Packs

It turns out that just like Arijana on our team, many of you fancy fanny packs just as much as she does. The top two reader picks this year were the Metro Sling Bag by Monos and the Bellroy Lite Sling.

LuluLemon Card Case

Though LuluLemon is an athletics brand, it’s become a fan favorite for avid travelers. Their simple design and high quality materials make it an easy pick for a lot of travel essentials. Many of you were excited about this slim design card case with water resistant features that Libby on our team recommended.

Born Inlet Sandal

A good pair of travel sandals is hard to come by. Born shoes are a favorite of many travelers and the Inlet sandal was a hit with many of you. Simple, comfy, and stylish, they are a perfect sandal to walk around in all day. See more of our favorite travel shoes here.

Travel pants

We didn’t know so many of you had trouble finding the perfect travel pant. It’s no wonder that two of our most popular travel recommendation were pants. You all loved the Eileen Fisher ankle pants and the Vuori dreamknit joggers (Men’s style here).

Airfly wireless headphone adapter

There’s nothing worse than having to pay for those crummy wired headphones that you’ll never use again. The AirFly adapter lets you connect your BlueTooth headphones to the airplane seat entertainment.

Compression Packing Cubes

There are so many packing cubes out there and we’ve certainly shared our fair share of picks with you, but the runaway favorite of our readers were these compression packing cubes recommended by our writer, Kaylen. Now you can stay organized while saving space.

Inverted Travel Umbrella

This certainly wasn’t our sexiest travel recommendation but according to our DFC readers, it’s been a lifesaver. This inverted umbrella is a must have in wetter climates–it dries upside down so it won’t get any of your other belongings wet.

Shower Steamers

Even we were a bit surprised at how much you all loved shower steamers–it was certainly a dark horse travel essential. Truthfully, this isn’t completely essential for a getaway, but these shower steamers do help make a long day of traveling more bearable. I always pack one on every trip for when I’m having a hard travel day and need to unwind.

Timeshifter App

Jet lag be gone with the Timeshifter app. This app helps you figure out exactly when to stay awake and when to stay asleep to avoid jet lag as you cross time zones.

Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone. This post contains references to products from one or more of our partners and we may receive compensation when you click on links to those products.

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