33 Travel Essentials for Women: The Last Packing List You’ll Need
Are you packing for your next trip? I’ve put together the ultimate list of travel essentials for women. You'll be prepared for anything your trip throws at you.
I love checking out travel blogs as sources of inspiration and escape from the everyday world.
When I was working in New York at an office, I read a lot of these blogs religiously—fantasizing about escaping my dull office in favor of an international adventure.
Just writing those few sentences already has me wishing for the day that I get to take off on a plane again.
I have a feeling that a lot of us have been daydreaming of the next great escape after all the isolating we’ve done in 2020.
Until then, I’ll be drawing lots of inspiration from some of my favorite travel bloggers. Who knows, they may even inspire you to start your own travel blog one day.
These are the best travel bloggers that you need to know about.
1. Where’s Mollie
I’ve been following Mollie for years before beginning my own journey as a travel blogger. It was actually the very first travel blog that I started reading.
Mollie writes about her adventures around the globe and more recently, her spiritual journey into health and wellness.
Lately, she’s been posting about her journeys around the U.K. in her newly renovated van.
Honestly, van life has never looked more appealing. Plus, her little dog Monkey makes lots of appearances—so cute!
Where’s Mollie always has interesting and original content that inspires a ton of wanderlust and self-reflection.
I really love how Mollie always writes from the heart. She has such a genuine vibe that she’ll feel like your new best friend in no time!
Mollie, thank you so much for being so authentic, you’ve really inspired me.
2. Alison’s Adventures
I’ve only recently discovered Alison Teal’s blog and all I can say is I’m obsessed! Time Magazine even dubbed her the Female Indiana Jones—how cool is that?
Alison’s been touring the world from birth, as both her parents are adventure photographers. She’s based off the grid in Hawaii and lives in an epic treehouse. She’s fearless, always up for an adventure, and is working to save the planet one plastic bottle at a time.
She always travels with her pink surfboard and matching bikini, both made from recycled trash. Her journeys bring her around the world raising awareness around water pollution.
Check out her Alison’s Adventures film series on YouTube, you’ll be just as obsessed when you hear the passion in her voice. She’s a major role model who I hope more people discover.
Seriously, Alison, if you ever want to go on an adventure together, let me know!
3. Anna Kloots
Anna Kloots is one of those girls who travels the world writing about her experiences and always looks fashionable doing it.
I love following her on Instagram, she always has the most beautiful pictures.
She’s down to earth and talks about her divorce, finding herself again as a woman who’s taking back her life, occasional cooking, flower arranging, and her adventures moving to France.
Her Instagram features a French word or phrase each day, which makes it a fun way to learn more French (I dream of being fluent).
Anna reminds me of a very modern Carrie Bradshaw, especially in her writing. She’s also a total theater nerd like me, which makes me love her even more!
4. The Blonde Abroad
Run by Californian native, Kiki, The Blonde Abroad is another blog I’ve been reading for ages.
She’s journeyed all over the globe, gives lots of advice, and has some of the most beautiful photographs of her journeys.
I love that she offers photography tips and even has her own Lightroom presets—I’ve learned so much about travel photography through her blog.
She also offers valuable tips for people starting their blogs—in case you haven’t guessed this is another blog that really inspired me to start Ally Travels.
5. The Blog Abroad
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the wanderlust of travel, but Gloria from The Blog Abroad keeps it real.
Besides advice, Gloria writes about real-world issues like business issues she’s encountered while building her brand, Black Lives Matter, and many more important topics.
I love her joyful and down to earth writing style—You can tell that no matter where she is, she’s always having fun and bringing joy to those around her.
6. World of Wanderlust
Brooke is an Australian that’s been trekking around the world solo and writing about all her adventures.
She created World of Wanderlust, hoping to inspire women to travel far and travel often. Brooke’s definitely inspired me to hop on a plane more and to start my blog, and I’m sure she’ll inspire you.
I adore her style, and her photos are always beautiful especially considering she shoots a lot alone.
Seriously, she’s the queen of taking solo travel photos—check out her YouTube guide on how she does it. She also has a great video about the realities of Instagram photos, and how they aren’t actual life.
I love how real Brooke keeps everything with her audience.
7. Follow Me Away
Created by Terrance and Victoria, Follow Me Away, boasts travel photos that appear to be out of a fairytale.
Their blog features a ton of travel photography advice, and advice on shooting in the destinations they’ve shot in.
You’ll get lost checking out all their dreamy photos and get inspired to up your own vacation photography game.
8. Dan Flying Solo
Dan is a guy who explores the world, meeting new people, and inspires others to do the same.
I love that he spotlights things like aboriginal art along with travel advice.
He also has a killer YouTube channel that I’ve been watching a lot recently. It’s filled with videos from all around the world that are informative and beautifully produced.
Do yourself a favor and check it out ASAP for a mini-break from reality.
9. Anywhere We Roam
Run by two guys named Mark and Paul, Anywhere We Roam is a beautifully designed blog that I just can’t get enough of.
I really enjoy that each locale’s page starts off with a brief paragraph highlighting all the reasons they love the location and a bit of history on it. Their photographs of the areas also add to the overall wanderlust of their site.
10. Against The Compass
This “alternative” travel blog covers places off the beaten path. Joan Torres started his blog to bring awareness to places that most bloggers weren’t covering, like places in the Middle East where lack of information and safety concerns kept tourists from exploring.
He visits Syrian refugee camps, backpacks in Saudi Arabia, explores the Kibera slums in Kenya, and shows that just because these places aren’t typical tourist spots, it doesn’t mean they aren’t worth visiting.
11. Be My Travel Muse
Kristin is a woman who bought a one-way ticket to Bangkok and never looked back. Seven years later, her blog is still growing with stories of recent adventures.
This girl is a total badass—she’s hitchhiked solo across China, got a tattoo from a monk, published two books, and even completed a ten-day silent retreat.
She inspires me to take chances on the unknown and always say yes to adventure that comes my way.
Check out her visit to Slab City in California, it’s the most interesting place that you’ve never heard of.
12. Atlas & Boots
Kia and Peter run a blog that’s focused on the great outdoors. They write about their adventures around the world, and hiking—including making the trek to Everest’s base camp.
Every location they journey to showcases local outdoor adventures. Trust me, their site will inspire a ton of wanderlust.
I’ve put so many activities on my bucket list after checking this blog out. Namibia is a recent addition to my list after hearing about their visit to Etosha National Park. It’s one of my dreams to encounter elephants, zebras, and giraffes in Africa.
13. Along Dusty Roads
Andrew and Emily left the UK to have an adventure and ended up having so much fun that they created Along Dusty Roads to pass along their travel advice and experience to others.
I like how personal all of their content is, while still being informative. They base all of their content on personal experiences, and the photographs are all shot only by them.
I also enjoy that they talk about responsible and sustainable travel. I think it’s something a lot of us need to become more aware of.
14. Bucketlistly
Peter is a solo backpacker who has trekked to over 65 countries in the past 7 years. On Bucketlistly, he writes of his travels to places like Ukraine, Cambodia, and Pakistan. I really enjoy his writing style, it’s poetic the way he paints you a picture of the place he’s writing about.
I was hooked after reading his post regarding the 7 Life Lessons From Seven Years of Traveling he’s discovered. I related to him from the very first lesson where he describes how it’s better to travel without a detailed plan—a philosophy that I love.
He also writes about how there’s room for improvising and room for routine. The routine part is something I’ve really been working on this year with a lot of help from my boyfriend and travel partner, Dean.
I could go on and on talking about how wise this guy is, but really you should just check him out for yourself.
15. Nomadic Matt
Nomadic Matt is all about helping people travel for less. He even wrote a book telling you everything you need to know called How to Travel the World on $50 a Day.
Matt’s website has a ton of useful information on practical things like which travel credit card to pick, how to buy travel insurance, and how to find cheap flights.
If you want to feel confident about booking affordable travel, his website should be your go-to.
16. Oneika the Traveller
Oneika Raymond is such a boss—she runs the blog Oneika The Traveller, is the host of Travel Channel’s One Bag and You’re Out, and Big City, Little Budget, and works as an on-air TV personality for NBC New York and CTV Canada.
I love getting lost on Oneika’s website, it’s so beautifully designed. She writes about life and style, travel tips, and isn’t afraid to give her opinions on things like traveling as a black woman, romance abroad, and even travel selfies.
If you haven’t checked her out yet, do yourself a favor and get over to her website ASAP.
A Final Note
I can’t imagine what my life would have been like if I had stayed stagnant in life and not begun my journey with Ally Travels. The last 6 months have been a whirlwind—I can’t even imagine what the next 6 months will bring.
These bloggers all have constantly inspired me to travel often. I want to thank them for always posting their adventures, recommendations, and advice. They’ve all opened my eyes to some outstanding destinations and bucket list items over the years.
I hope they inspire you as much as they’ve inspired me. Let me in the comments below if there’s an outstanding travel blog that I’ve missed on my list of best travel bloggers. I’m always looking for new inspiration!
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