After the course of the past few years, I’ve been traveling a lot and after many trials and tribulations, I feel as if I’ve nailed down the perfect travel skincare routine—well at least for myself. Besides bringing along certain products that I can’t live without when it comes to my skincare, I also have specific products meant to combat the negative symptoms of traveling, as well as some travel skincare packing/usage hacks as well!
My skin is relatively temperamental regularly, so when traveling, I try to give it some extra attention. One of my steadfast rules is to never ever fly with any makeup on my face. I’ve yet to have to hop off of a plane and jump straight into a meeting so this rule has worked in my favour so far, but I’ll probably be eating my words in the near future after admitting that out loud and jinxing myself. Of course if I was to have to go straight into a work meeting upon immediately leaving the airport, I always make sure to carry some makeup essentials for a quick touch up in my carry-on bag. But besides that, my skin is always cleaned and prepped for a flight.
Whether it’s a short (around 1 hour) or long (over 3 hours) flight, I always make a point to wash my skin and to go through my regular skincare routine before leaving my home for the airport. I’ve I’m going to be flying through the day, I’ll be sure to apply my daytime skincare routine. And if I’m flying through the night, I’ll apply its respective skincare routine. Once I land, if I’ve been flying for longer than 5 hours, I always beeline it to the bathroom as soon as I’ve picked up my check-in luggage to wash my face and redo my skincare. There’s nothing grosser than the feeling of dry cabin air messing up your pores. Actually I lied, waking up in the morning to the previous day’s makeup which hasn’t been washed off trumps the feeling of your skin after a long flight. So when packing my skincare for travel, I always ensure to pack products that will help restore my skin post-flight as well as maintaining moisture and hydration throughout the duration of my trip.
Besides maintenance targeted products, I also strategically pack specific ones that come in certain formats and containers to facilitate the potential of carrying them through with me on my carry-on. Most of the time I have a checked luggage which simplifies the whole process since I don’t have to worry about being limited by liquids, but there have been the off-times where I’m only traveling for 2-3 days or I’m not traveling for the purpose of work (I don’t need to pack much and take too many pictures) and I try to fit my life into a carry-on. For those moments, it’s essential that I am able to pack my entire skincare routine into my carry-on without taking up too much space so that I have room for my clothes, while at the same time not pack bottles that are large enough to get confiscated by security.
Trust me, it happened to me once while I was in the airport in Montreal and I learned my lesson. When you’re forced to throw out $60 containers of moisturizer, you learn how to travel with liquids pretty quickly. Having to decide between what to leave behind (a non-essential product, or a product that costs less to repurchase) is definitely now how you want to start your day while traveling).
So without further ado, here are all of the travel skincare essentials that I absolutely can’t live without when I’m on the road (or in the air)!
CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser Bar
When it comes to traveling with only a carry-on, I try my best to minimize the quantity of liquids that are necessary. One of my favourite travel hacks is to pack a facial soap bar. Not only can you circumvent the liquid limitations, but you’ll also never have to worry about a large bottle of facial cleanser leaking in your luggage. The CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser Bar has been a travel favourite of mine and has frequently doubled as a body bar as well when I’m too lazy to also pack something separate for my body.
This Works – Morning Expert Multi-Acid Pads
My skin loves to freak out on me when I travel so it’s essential that I pack peel pads with me to keep breakouts at bay. Not only do these ones from This Works help to retexturize my skin and to cleanse it from pollutants in the air, but the citrus scent also does a fantastic job at waking me up first thing in the morning.
SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Solution
Frequent traveling stresses out my skin, so I never go anywhere without my Skinceuticals toner. Not only does this toner help to rebalance my skin’s pH, but it also preps the skin for all of the serums that I apply next. While this bottle is quite large for travel, I don’t currently own any smaller spray bottles yet so I only pack this one along with me when there isn’t much left inside in order to not risk it being confiscated. Skinceuticals is definitely not a cheap line of skincare, so I do whatever I can to prevent it from being confiscated.
Olay Mist Ultimate Hydration Essence Energizing With Vitamin C & Bergamot
Similar to the peel pads, this Olay Mist has citrus scents in it which really helps to wake me up first thing in the morning when I’m going through my skincare routine. It also has vitamin C in it which aids in the skincell turnover rate so that’s a plus.
I love spraying this all over my face immediately after applying my toner so that it moistens and preps my skin for the remainder of the products that I apply afterwards. I also like to keep this mist around to use as a setting spray after applying a full face of makeup as I’ve found that it does a decent job of melting the makeup into my skin—instead of looking cakey.
Skinceuticals Prevent C E Ferulic
I only just began using vitamin C this past year and have noticed a world of a difference when it comes to the quality of my skin. Not only do my acne scars lighten up faster but I feel that my skin is overall plumper and softer in general. I recently tried Skinceuticals’ other vitamin C serum, Phloretin CF, and also absolutely love it, and have been alternating between the two to determine which one my skin responds better to. Keep an eye out for an update on that and a deep dive into other vitamin C products that I’ve been loving as of lately!
Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex II
There’s nothing quite like Estee Lauder’ ANR serum. I’ve been using this one for years and have gone through so many bottles that I’ve lost count. Every so often I finish up a bottle and stop using it for a bit so that I can try out some other ones and instantly notice a difference. Although yes, the product is specifically designed for nighttime use, and I definitely notice that my skin feels significantly smoother when I wake up in the morning after using it, but I also love to use it during the day as well. One days when I don’t apply this serum, I tend to notice flakey and dry areas on my face by the end of the day. And because of that, this serum has become a staple in my daily skincare routine for both day and night.
Skinceuticals Correct A.g.e. Eye Complex
You could argue that this eye cream technically isn’t a liquid and you could get away with it. Once again leaning into my obsession of decreasing the quantity of liquids that I pack into my carry-on, this little pot is often overlooked by security when I’m scanning through and allows me to bring other skincare products in liquid form if necessary.
I also absolutely love how easily this eye cream absorbs into my skin, and leaves it feeling extra hydrated so I never have to leave my hotel room looking like a zombie.
L’Oreal Paris Lash Serum Solution With Lash Caring Pro Vitamin B5 & Hyaluronic Acid
This product isn’t an absolute must to bring with me on my travels, but because it’s so compact, I figure why not? I recently received this lash serum in the mail from L’Oreal’s PR team and have been testing it out for the past 2 weeks just to see how it’ll improve my lashes, so I don’t have concrete feedback on the product itself just yet but wanted to mention that it’s size is super travel friendly and has joined me on all of my recent adventures.
I also often find myself taking extra good care of my skin when I’m away so I like to bring as many pampering products along with me on my travels as possible—this one has been making the cut so far!
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream Moisturizer
I love traveling with the mini pot of this moisturizer because it minimizes the quantity of liquids that I have to pack with me (and it takes up less space as well). There’s something about the this moisturizer that keeps me totally moisturized all day long without feeling greasy, and that’s precisely what I search for when it comes to travel skincare. I often find myself out and about for extended hours throughout the day with minimal chances for touch-ups, so it’s important that my skincare products have long lasting power and slowly turn me into a grease ball throughout the day.
Clarins Face Treatment Oil Lotus
I hate the smell of the spa—said no one ever. But seriously though, there’s something extremely satisfying and soothing about the scent of Clarins’ Face Treatment Oils. Upon application, I immediately feel relaxed and at ease. Face oils frequently get a bad rep for clogging up your pores and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. As someone who has quite oily skin, the products that I use frequently dry out my skin, and it reacts by over-producing sebum, which in turn does block my pores and creates breakouts. It’s nature’s twisted circle, but there is one way to break the cycle—by keeping my skin hydrated and moisturized. Not only do facial oils accomplish this, but I’ve found that the Face Treatment Oils from Clarins also due double duty and relax me as well. Who wouldn’t want to feel like they just stepped out of a spa every morning?
When applying this in the morning, this is the second last step that I put on my face. I like to apply this before my sunscreen so that It can really soak into my skin. For the night, because I don’t need sunscreen, the Face Treatment Oil is the very last step in my skincare routine.
Alumier MD Moisture Matte Broad Spectrum Sunscreen SPF 40 Sand
Whether I’m traveling or just relaxing at home, I never go a day without applying sunscreen. Nothing ages you faster than UV exposure and it’s imperative to keep yourself protected from those harmful rays. I’ve searched high and low for my perfect sunscreen and this one from Alumier seems to check of all of the boxes for me. Not only does it not have the classic sunscreen smell, it also doesn’t burn my eyes when I accidentally rub them and smear sunscreen in them, it’s also tinted! Ah the magic of tinted sunscreen. Remember when I said that I absolutely despise flying with makeup on my face? Well here comes the magic that makes that possible.
Alumier’s tinted sunscreen adds ever the slightest touch of coverage while at the same time providing the skincare that you need without filling up your pores. I love how the tint just evens out my skintone without me ever having to apply any sort of foundation or concealer. Granted it doesn’t necessarily dry down to a matte finish like it claims to, but that can be very easily soft with a quick dusting of powder. The only time I’ll ever travel with make up on is if I’m setting my sunscreen so that I don’t look like I just dipped my face into a deep fryer prior to boarding. But otherwise I usually go without the powder.
Olay Pore Detox Black Charcoal Clay Face Mask Stick
Getting a breakout in the middle of your travel sucks. Trust me, I know. This has happened to me one too many times. And because of that, I always make sure to pack a clay mask with me in order to help combat and finnicky breakouts that decide to surface. In order to stay on the safe side of the liquid restrictions, I’ve grown fond of Olay’s face mask sticks. Not only are they ridiculously easy to apply (your fingers don’t need to get dirty!), but they aren’t considered liquids either! I’ve yet to apply a clay mask while in transit on the plane, but the ease of these ones seriously tempt me every single time. I’ll probably give it a go on my next long haul flight.
