Brice's Travel Essentials

In the eyes of 10Best CEO Brice Bay, the iPhone is his single most important travel companion. It serves as both phone and iPod, and he uses it to download and listen to white noise during long flights. He also rents movies through iTunes to pass the time. In addition, the iPhone has camera functionality, grants Internet access so he can check weather and flight alerts, and its many applications include Brice’s favorite: language phrase guides that translate and pronounce short sentences in different languages for easy communication help.

When Brice can’t use electronic devices on a plane, he immediately reaches for his sponge ear plugs and (sometimes) his eye covers.  They fit easily into any bag and can be used during lengthy travel episodes or in a noisy hotel. Although Brice depends on them to help him get plenty of sleep while traveling, thereby keeping his body and mind healthy, the plugs and covers also have the added benefit of serving as a deterrent for overly chatty seatmates.

Although he always has his iPhone handy, Brice never travels without his Nikon DSLR camera (200mm lens). With its ease of use and unparalleled picture quality, the camera lets Brice snap professional-grade photos during his travels all over the world. It’s perfect for capturing the flavor of a destination more than just documenting glimpses of a quick trip.

If you’ve ever traveled to Europe, you know that temperatures can change quickly and that a warm autumn day can turn chilly while you’ve stepped inside for a meeting. Instead of dragging along a heavy, space-stealing jacket, Brice always packs a wool scarf and a good pair of unlined leather gloves. Slipping them on instantly warms him up, and they’re easy transitional items when the weather fluctuates.

It goes without saying that you need to be prepared electrically, especially when you’re traveling abroad. Being without requisite connections just once will prove the point. Pack the correct adapters to use for phone chargers, hair dryers, electric shavers, hand-held devices, and any other gadget that needs to be plugged into an outlet, or else you may be going without necessary items during your trip. Not only could you be looking at a grooming disaster but a work-related one too.

No matter where you’re heading, it’s important to remember your sunglasses and a telescoping umbrella. This might sound obvious, but many people forget to pack them, and then they have to squint uncomfortably all day or they get caught in unexpected rain showers. Grab both items from the car before you leave or – better yet – invest in a set that you can keep inside your carry-on if you’re a frequent traveler.

Passports are a traveling must and not just because we say so – you won’t be able to enter or leave a country without one. Although a new and easier frontier in passports is just around the corner (all you'll need is a passport ID that doesn’t need to be stamped), for now you must have yours manually checked, and you have to carry it with you everywhere you go. Keep it in an inside, front pocket to be safe, or consider using a money belt beneath your clothes to secure it further. With identity theft on the rise, you can’t be too vigilant.

Sure, you know that you need these, but Brice is adamant in his belief that travelers should use resealable plastic bags to organize everything, including toiletries. He separates all of his wet and dry items into these bags for easy access and easy travel. Being able to pull out everything quickly takes away the hassle of making your way through airport security. Practicing the TSA’s 3-1-1 rule (put liquids in 3-oz. bottles in a 1-qt. plastic bag, 1 bag per person) also helps speed the process.

Have you ever thought about what you’d do if you were back packing in a foreign country and got an ear infection? You can’t call your doctor and have him fax over a prescription, and language barriers are never fun anyway – much less when you’re sick and needing medical attention – so plan ahead. Brice always carries a supply of vitamins to keep him in tip-top shape, and he makes sure he has basic over-the-counter medicines and backup prescriptions for health ailments that might arise. Forewarned is forearmed, after all.