There’s nothing worse than surviving a long day of overpriced airport food, fighting off jet lag, and six hours of a crying baby behind you, only to arrive at your hotel and realize that your sunscreen exploded across your entire wardrobe. Between airport baggage handlers who don’t exactly have a reputation for being gentle, and the way plane cabin pressure can push bottles to their breaking point mid-flight, packing toiletries in a checked bag always feels like a gamble.
To avoid a potential mess, some travelers have started getting crafty and are heading to Dollar Tree to pick up an everyday item that adds a layer of protection that no toiletry bottle can compete with. It’s cheap, weighs next to nothing, and keeps even the messiest liquids in line, read on to see why deflated latex balloons might just become your new favorite travel buddy, and for a travel hack that you’ll wish you knew about sooner.
Forget the Travel-Sized Bottles
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Ironically, Dollar Tree is a great place to grab a set of travel-sized toiletry bottles, but if you’ve ever used them, you’ve probably found that they just add to the mess. Instead of heading to the cosmetics aisle, head to the party decor aisle, where you’ll have your pick of different sizes and colors of balloons that often come in packs of 12 or more.
All you have to do is cut the rolled-up open end of the balloon off. Suddenly, you have the perfect flexible, clingy cover to throw over all of your shampoos, sunscreens, foundations, and sprays, the latex material stays in place against the plastic bottles.
It not only catches leaks, but also helps prevent the bottles from opening in the first place. And whether you’re trying to cover large or small bottles, the balloons stretch to fit nearly every type of toiletry you’d consider packing for your trip.
Why Frequent Flyers Swear By This Fix
The travel industry is full of expensive gimmicks and pricey accessories that promise to make your life easier while you’re on the road. The truth is, sometimes the easiest, most simple solution works best, a rolled up sweatshirt instead of having to carry a neckpillow, a beanie pulled halfway down your face instead of an overpriced sleep mask, and in this case, a cheap $1 pack of balloons instead of wasting time pouring your toiletries into small sample-sized bottles that might accidentally open anyway.
That’s why so frequent flyers swear by this hack. It doesn’t require repacking your entire toiletry bag or buying a second set of travel-sized everything, it just adds an easy layer of insurance that works surprisingly well.
A balloon takes up no space, slips over the top of each bottle in seconds, and will save you from the hassle of mopping up hand lotion off the one and only dress you packed for that destination wedding you’re heading to.
Perfect for Carry-Ons, Too
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While you might not have the added risk of cabin pressure changes for toiletries in your carry-on, anything you stuff into your backpack or purse is still bound to get jostled around as you move through the airport. Bottles shift during security checks, get squeezed under seats, and are bumped around when bags are stuffed into overhead bins, all easy ways for a cap to loosen or a bit of liquid to leak out.
A balloon works as a simple protective seal, and best yet, if TSA pulls your bag out of the security line for a more thorough search, they are easily removable, so you won’t have to deal with delays, questions, or having to scramble to repack your entire toiletry bag in public.
A Lifesaver for Beach Vacations
If you are traveling to a tropical destination in the middle of winter, the chances of a toiletry explosion become even greater. Heat makes liquids expand, so traveling to a warm destination from a chilly departure city means your bottles might not hold up once they suddenly arrive at the beach.
And it’s not just shampoo that tends to leak in transit, liquid foundations, serums, and gels are some of the worst offenders, as many of them come in with easy open caps or with uncloseable pumps. While you may think the reason for a spill was your suitcase getting squeezed or knocked around, the real culprit might have just been the change in temperature and air pressure. That’s why even the most precise of packers could still benefit from this balloon cover trick.
Bottom Line:
If you’re still not convinced that this hack will change the way you pack for trips forever, at least just give it a try, it’s a tiny purchase and an even shorter time investment to potentially save your clothes from needing to spend the first night of your vacation at the laundromat. Worst case, you’re out a dollar. Best case, your suitcase never sees another spill.