8 Useful Travel Gadgets and Accessories for your next trip

Here at PlansChange, we love sharing amazing city breaks, ways to save money on hotel room bookings and the best beach destinations in our weekly blog posts. But, we’re also here to ensure your staycations and holidays abroad go as smoothly as possible! So, this week we’re discussing eight useful travel gadgets and accessories to help you travel safer, smarter and in style. Let’s get started…

The Smart Suitcase

Are you one of those people that panics over the weight of their suitcase and ends up weighing it on the bathroom scales, only to arrive at the airport and find you've got it all wrong? Panic no more and avoid expensive baggage charges with the 'Plevo The Runner Smart Suitcase.'

Built with integrated weight sensors, the carry-on suitcase tells you how much your luggage weighs and even syncs it with your flight information to ensure you're not over the limit! What's more, it comes with a smart locking system, enabling you to open the suitcase with face ID, touch ID or Morse Code, and a removable battery pack that you can charge your devices from.

The Super Charger

Is there anything more stressful than your phone saying it only has 10% battery life left when you’re travelling? Not only is there the safety factor to consider, but also all of those amazing photos you will want to capture!

Worry not because, with the Anker PowerCore III 10K Wireless charger, you’ll never go without battery again. Featuring a full-sized USB port, a USB-C port and a wireless charging pad, it can charge up to 3 devices simultaneously. Plus, with its 10,000mAh capacity, you can keep your devices charged for at least a full day. Impressive!

The Language Barrier Breaker

While it’s always nice to learn a little of the language of any country you visit on holiday, we know it’s easier said than done. So, if you’re an avid traveller who would rather avoid the embarrassment and difficulties of language barriers, why not pick up a Pocketalk S Voice Translator?

This handy pocket-sized device can translate 82 languages bi-directionally with just a touch of the button. Moreover, it has a text-to-translate camera that can recognise and translate written words, making exploring and navigating new destinations even easier.

And the best part? It won’t use all of your mobile data! The Pocketalk comes with an embedded SIM and a two-year mobile data plan for convenience. So simply slip it into your pocket and have the peace of mind that you can easily ask for directions, order dinner and make friends in new countries.

The Luggage Locator

Are you worried about losing your luggage in transit? We get it. Spending hours deciding on the perfect holiday outfits, only to end up with the clothes on your back, can put a real downer on your trip.

The good news is that tracking your suitcase is easier than ever before, thanks to useful travel gadgets like the Apple AirTag Bluetooth Tracker. This handy little tracker is easy to hide in your luggage and lets you find its location with Precision Finding on the iPhone 11 & 12, showing you its direction and distance.

And if your luggage gets very lost, the AirTag will call upon the millions of Apple devices worldwide and the Find My network to help you track it down. All of the info is encrypted, so only you will be able to see the exact location of your AirTag.

The In-Flight Child Entertainer

Whether you’ve got a long drive or flight, travelling with children can be challenging, especially when it comes to keeping them entertained. But, with child-friendly tablets, like the Amazon Fire HD 8” Kids Edition, your little ones will have a wide range of apps, books, audiobooks, games and videos at their fingertips, all suitable for ages three and up.

And what makes the Amazon Fire tablet even better is its full parental controls, configurable through the Amazon Dashboard. So you can decide the content your children can access, and you don’t have to worry about them accidentally buying apps or viewing something inappropriate. It also comes with a handy kid-proof case and a 2-year-worry-free guarantee!

The Insta-Traveller’s Must-Have

Visiting one of the top Instagrammable locations in the UK? Capture high-quality videos for your social media with the DJI Osmo Mobile 2. This handheld smartphone gimbal is the ultimate selfie stick because it holds your phone and has built-in rotation controls to capture footage smoothly, without shaky hands.

The Crease-Free Way to Travel

Are you someone that struggles to pack your suitcase neatly or make the most of the available space? You need packing cubes! They’re great for organising your bag and help ensure you arrive at your hotel room with crease-free clothing. A quick Google search will bring up lots of different packing cubes, but one of the best out there are the Eagle Creek packing cubes, which are lightweight and thin so that they won’t add any extra weight to your suitcase.

The Easy Unpacker

Don’t want to waste time unpacking all of your clothing and accessories when you arrive at your hotel? With practical packable hanging shelves, like the Grand Fusion Housewares Portable Luggage System, there’s no need to! Simply pack your items straight into the hanging shelves (which double up as packing cubes), pop them in your suitcase, and then when you arrive at your hotel, you can unfold them and hang them straight in the wardrobe! It’s the perfect solution for busy business travellers and those on short breaks.

What’s your go-to travel gadget?

We hope you’ve enjoyed our recommendations for some of the top travel gadgets and accessories. Let us know if you have tried any of these and whether there are any other travel accessories you recommend. Join us on social media to start a conversation, and scroll to the bottom of this page to subscribe to our emails and have our weekly blog posts and money-saving deals delivered straight to your inbox.