Top 5 Travel Essentials for Dads
(I received a complimentary hoodie from Tommy Jon to try out before including in this post. The thoughts and opinions expressed are entirely my own. You can view my full disclosure here.)
(I received a complimentary hoodie from 
Those your list of what to bring may change from trip to trip there are still a few Travel Essentials that every Dad needs to have.
Traveling is fun, inspiring and exciting. Yet when you throw miniature people (aka kids) into the mix travel becomes more complicated. This is especially true when it comes to luggage. With the added gear that just comes with traveling with kids, parents have to be even more careful with what they do and don't pack for themselves. As a Dad you want to be prepared for planned and unplanned events while still traveling as light as possible.
While your list of travel musts haves may change from trip to trip there are a few travel essentials for dads that don't. Here are my top 5:
Dark/Black athletic shoes
When traveling comfort is a must. This is especially true with shoes. You don't want to get blisters as you are exploring. However, you also don't often have room for multiple pairs of shoes. So Dark/Black shoes are the best for they can be paired with very casual clothes and nicer clothes.
Layerable Clothes
Whether you are planning on going somewhere with warmer weather or cooler weather it is always a good idea to pack thinner clothes that can easily layer. One of my husband's favorite tops is his Go Anywhere Quick Dry Hoddie from TommyJohn that he recently got. He loved it because when the weather is warm he can wear it on its own. If it is cooler he can layer with a t-shirt under and a jacket over. That and it just looks great on him.
A Good Camera
Yes most smartphones come with decent cameras (some better than others) and we do take advantage of them (especially for social media pictures.) However, if you really want to capture consistent quality photos of your travels it's time to invest in a good DSLR (preferably one with a special Zoom lens to get that HD close up photos. On Amazon, they have some great DSLR camera bundle deals where you can get your camera, case, battery charger and extra lenses for a great price. That's what we did when we got our Canon Camera which has worked great for us.
A Smart Phone
Seriously, I don't know how people used to function without smartphones while traveling. A good quality smartphone (Android or IOS) will allow you to make and receive calls and test as well as give you access to a search engine to look up needed information (like phone numbers, addresses, hours of operation for locations etc), Most smartphones have decent cameras for those times you don't want to pull out your nice cameras to get that quick picture to post online. Most importantly there are some really helpful travel apps you can use which can save you money and time while traveling. (Check out my top travel ap recommendations here)
Multi-Purpose Tool
You never know what can happen when traveling and having a compact multipurpose tool on hand can come in quite handy in many a situation. Whether you need to cut, tighten a screw, cut or even grip something these tools are amazing. I can't tell you how grateful I am that my husband always carries one of these tools on him for we have used it countless times in our travels.
