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A few days ago, I returned from a 5-night trip to Washington, DC with my 8th grade daughter (and about 195 of her friends.) We spent about 8 hours in the hotel each day, leaving at 7:00 am and returning around 10:30 pm. Sometimes I was able to take a quick shower before heading to bed, and each morning I woke at 5:00 to have a shower and cup of coffee before knocking on doors in the girls’ hall. Thanks to strategic packing, I was able to have a little bit of Me Time in those quiet moments! If you’re wondering what to pack for an overnight school trip, camping trip, or some other outing, consider these tips.
Organize toiletries
It helped that I had a vinyl case to hold my toiletries. Sharing a hotel room means that my “stuff” needed to be kept separate. On this trip, the students were 4 to a room, so it was essential for my daughter’s belongings to be easily accessible and contained. I found a couple of wipe-down makeup pouches at yard sales before we left. This one, purchased gently used for $3, was the perfect size for a hotel bathroom vanity. You can find a similar toiletry organizer on Amazon. Having the essentials organized made it so simple to get ready in the morning, even when I was bleary-eyed and sleep deprived!
Use up samples
Though the hotel provides soap and shampoo, I always like to take my own. I wanted my daughter to have enough to use, too, so I sent her with some samples from my stash. These are small enough to use in a couple of days, but would last longer if she is the only one using them. I told her to throw them away when she was ready to come home. That way, she didn’t have to worry about trying to re-pack everything!
Yardley soaps
Like I said, it was a busy week. A hot shower felt like bliss at the end of the busy days! Nothing soothes like a steamy shower with the gentle scent of lavender. Thankfully, Yardley sent me some lovely soaps before my trip. These soaps made Me Time feel like vacation.
On Wednesday alone, we walked 14 miles — much of it in the rain. The bliss of a scented soap was a tiny pleasure at the end of a tired day. You can find Yardley soaps at DollarTree and other national stores. For an overnight school trip, you don’t have to spend a fortune on specialty soaps! I prefer bar soap when we travel, since I can’t control what happens with our bags. This way, nothing spills or makes a mess.
All in all, our trip was fantastic. The students were so well-behaved and we got to see many of DC’s landmark attractions. Packing for an overnight field trip doesn’t have to cost a fortune, but careful planning can make a big difference.
I love the idea of using yardley soap on a trip. I feel like I would need a soap carrying case, but sometimes hotel soaps can be…. drying? It’s good to bring a soap with more moisturizing properties.
A very much informative article, thank you for sharing with us.
Good to know. I’ve had to pack for trips many times. I think that this is good to think over