I'm traveling today. I have the travel thing down because I love to travel, and I am lucky to travel a lot. So, practice makes perfect. But I love to share tips with friends who I travel with or colleagues that I see on the road who seem to be lugging so much stuff with them.

No matter how many materials I need to bring with me, or how cold the destination I only take a carry-on. I can't bear waiting for luggage because I'm lazy AND impatient.

So, here are my Top Ten Lazy Woman Travel Tips to help give you a lazy break when you travel:

1. Pack all one color. You can pack a couple little (light weight) accent pieces if you want some color (scarf, tshirt, camisole), but packing one color makes everything more interchangable and easy.
2. Roll your clothes. Use tissue paper when rolling pants and blouses that can wrinkle. I literally never have to iron any piece of clothing. When I arrive, I unpack and hang things up, but sometimes I pack a whole day before I even leave on my trip, so I can attest that rolling really works. It also saves TONS of space and you'll fit a lot more in your bag. I promise!
3. Take an extra outfit. If I have two days of meetings, I take three outfits, because there is nothing more stressful than spilling, ripping, ruining something just before you leave the hotel. An extra couple items gives you peace of mind....priceless.
4. Make-Up - I have a miniature set of just the minimum make up that I need that is only for travel. I take ONE make-up remover cloth in a baggie, not the whole package. It stays moist in the baggie but can be re-wet with just a little water, if needed. That baggie I brought came in really handy today. I turned it inside out and put my leftover breakfast in it when I couldn't finish breakfast and realized I hadn't quite scheduled in lunch!
5. iPod -- I always bring mine for workouts or a little entertainment, but the cool thing about your iPod is that the headphones work on airplane audio jacks and fitness equipment audio jacks as well. So, you are set for all your travel audio needs!
6. Light Books/Kindle -- I'm not ready to move from paper to Kindle, but the Kindle is the ultimate Lazy Woman tool if you are a big reader. You can take tons of books in one lightweight device! I love books and I just keep the more lightweight ones for my travel reading, and leave the heavy hardbacks bedside.
7. Swimsuit - I only book hotels that have pools because for me taking a swim to start my day and end my day is the ultimate refresher/relaxer. I don't have a pool at home so it's a little travel treat that I book in. Plus swimsuits are super light. Lot of bang for your travel pound! If swimming isn't your thing, figure out what you can build in to your travel that is a treat that will make you feel taken care of when away from home.
8. Bubble Bath/Shower Gel -- All hotels give you soap and shampoo, but not everyone gives you really great bubble bath, so I always pack a little bit of my favorite shower gel which works as bubble bath, and can also be used as soap if the soap they give you isn't wonderful enough for your taste.
9. Phone Chargers -- I hear about people leaving their chargers in hotels all the time. Since most of us have bluetooth chargers as well now, you need two plugs. To get the two plugs and avoid accidentally leaving them behind, plug your chargers into the bathroom outlet near your toiletries, so when you pack up, it's all right in front of you, instead of blending into the carpet or desk top.
10. GPS/Directions -- My GPS device (Tom-Tom) is so lightweight and the charger for it matches my phone's car charger, that it's a no brainer to bring it on my trips. BUT, sometimes, it takes a while to kick in, or if overcast, it takes even longer sometimes. So, before I leave on trips, I print out directions for everywhere that I know I'm going just in case, and for me, it's the peace of mind factor -- having it just has me know I won't be ever completely lost. The coolest thing is that my GPS, like most of them, have the ability to let you search for restaurants, shops, gas, etc. in the area, on your route, etc. So, you don't have to stop and ask where the nearest Starbucks is...for instance...(the coffeeholic says)....


Happy Lazy Day to You!