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Simple Skin Care Tips For When You’re Traveling

You still have to care for your skin when you’re on vacation, but you can’t fit your whole bathroom worth of products in your carry on. So simplify that with these Skin Care Tips For When You’re Traveling.

For more help with your trip, check out all of our travel posts.

A blue travel bag with make up products scattered around and the words "Simple Skin Care Tips For When You're Traveling" digitally written on top.

When I’m going on a trip, I usually overpack. I’m never really sure what the weather will be and I would rather be overprepared than needing to run into the closest souvenir shop for a sweatshirt. I’ll make sure to pack the obvious — cute dresses, fun shoes — and then I’ll pack shorts, sweatshirts, and every item for every weather situation in-between.

But, since I’m also frugal, I only take a carry on when I fly. So that means, even with rolling my clothes to save space, they take up quite a bit of room.

So, I’m left to fit my toiletries and skin care items into a large, but maybe not large enough, cosmetics bag. Having limited room means having to really condense my skin care needs when I’m on vacation.

And you might be in the same situation. So, to help, I put together this list of Simple Skin Care Tips For When You’re Traveling. Check it out before you head out on your next adventure so your skin is ready to go.

Three women in blue robes with the words "4 Step At Home Weekend Skincare Detox Routine" digitally written above them.

So, there’s a phenomenon called travel-related dehydration where you end up with dry skin after a long flight because of the low humidity levels in airplane cabins. To combat that, you can drink fluids on the plane and wear glasses rather than contacts.

That’s on the flight, though. Before the flight, many people will do an a At Home Skin Detox Routine to make sure their skin is extra hydrated, just in case.

Simple Skin Care Tips For When You’re Traveling

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Three travel-sized lotions that say REV on them in front of a cosmetics bag on the counter in a hotel.

Use Travel-Sized Bottles.

When you’re going on vacation, you still want to use your regular products. But those products are usually too large to pack in your carry-on bag. So, the best way to bring them is to purchase reusable travel-sized containers, then fill them with your favorite products. That way, you have your products on the go.

If you’re really frugal and you don’t want to purchase bottles, request free samples before your trip. Those are, almost always, travel sizes. Then, you can either use those products instead of packing your own or you can fill those bottles with your own products.

Sunscreen on the sand at a water park.

Pack Sunscreen.

Sunscreen is so important to pack if you’re going on vacation and plan on doing outdoor sightseeing.

If I’m only going away for a weekend and don’t expect any beach time, I pack a mini travel sunscreen. It’s an “emergencies only” size that I reserve for my face, neck, and hands. A small amount goes a long way and the bottle makes it through the whole short trip. Then, I just throw away the empty bottle before I go home.

And don’t forget to use your sunscreen, even on cloudy days. Yes, you can get sunburn on cloudy days, so you want to make sure you’re using sunscreen no matter what the weather.

A hand holding two packs of Maybelline Baby Lips lip balm.

Don’t Forget Lip Balm.

Everyone thinks about their face when they’re getting ready to go out into the sun, but people forget about their lips. And then, after a long day outside, you head back to the hotel room with chapped lips.

No late night smooching for you … unless you remember to pack and apply your lip balm. Keep it in your purse when you’re exploring and reapply it a few times during the day. Your lips will thank you.

A box of Olay face wipes.

Bring Your Face Wash.

It’s so important to wash your face. The dirt that can build up on your face and get into your pores is just gross. I don’t recommend washing your face with hotel soap (or using whatever cheap body lotion that’s in the hotel bathroom).

Bring your regular face wash from home. You don’t want to try out new products when you’re on vacation because you run the risk of having a reaction and acne breakouts — and no one wants those in their vacation photos.

If you can’t find a travel-sized face wash, you could pack face wipes instead. They’re not the most frugal or sustainable option, but they are convenient.

Various makeup on a black background.

Limit Your Makeup.

When you’re on vacation, you want to make sure you’re camera ready at all times so you can get the perfect snap for Instagram. But, that doesn’t mean you need to take all of your makeup on vacation with you. Be a little choosy.

Take face cream (I love BB Cream because it pulls triple duty: it hydrates, contains sunscreen to block UV rays, and is a tinted moisturizer so you get color and protection). Then, pack just one of every makeup product you need.

A few quick tips: If you pack cream makeup, you can limit the number of brushes you need to pack too. And, multi-use products, like lip and cheek multi-sticks, are a great way to get more use of of the products you’re packing — saving you space for other items.

Light makeup is good because a natural face looks great in vacation photos, especially if you get a little tan. But, also, not packing on your makeup so your face can breath when you’re out sightseeing is good for your skin. And not needing to stop and refresh your look is good for your travel companions.

A round container of night cream on a ceramic Japanese holder.

Keep Your Daily Routine

Whatever your regular skincare routine is at home, replicate that on your trip. So if you use serum and night cream at home, use that on your trip. Your skin doesn’t stop needing hydration just because you’re in a different city.

Stopping your routine could actually be bad for your skin. Yes, there’s a trend of skin fasting, which means using nothing on your skin so instead, your skin can hydrate itself from its natural oils. You can try that. I just wouldn’t suggest trying it on vacation. It can result in excess oil on your skin, breakouts, and other unwanted skin issues. So, maybe stick to your routine when you’re in paradise taking lots of photos and try a skin fast when you’re back home.

If you're going to Las Vegas, find out what to pack -- and what to leave at home -- with this Las Vegas Packing List.

Hydrate

You can pack all the hydrating serum you want, but you want to hydrate your skin from the inside … by drinking enough water.

Drinking plenty of water improves your skin tone, but it also speeds up healing sunburn. So if you get burned when you’re tanning on the beach, drinking water can help. Sure, using the right amount of sunscreen and applying aloe after will help too, but it’s a good idea to drink water too.

A woman sitting on the side of a pool with the words "Tips To Take Care Of Your Skin This Summer" digitally written on top.

More Skin Care Tips:

You really should take care of your skin, even if you’re not on vacation.

For more help, check out our Tips To Take Care Of Your Skin This Summer, with ideas like wearing sun-protective clothing, and our Simple Winter Skincare Routine, which include fun self-care items like scrubs.

Which of these travel skin care tips was most helpful to you? Let us know in the comments.

Jan Wild

Monday 4th of September 2017

Great advice, I agree that skin care and cosmetics are the hardest things to cut down on and they weigh heaps too.

Sandra L Garth

Wednesday 30th of August 2017

My mature skin (LOL!) could really benefit from these products and I will look for them. Thank you for sharing with us this week at Celebrate Your Story and we hope you will join us again next week.

Desiree Lopez

Monday 28th of August 2017

I love to use BB cream to simplify my routine. I'm not a huge makeup person anyway so the more simple the routine the happier I am. I've never tried the Simple line from Walgreens before but the 50% off deal sounds awesome!

Brandy

Monday 28th of August 2017

Oh gosh these are super great travel skin care tips for anyone. I love that you simplified it with these products, I am going to give them a try!

Diane Hoffmaster

Monday 28th of August 2017

I am a huge Walgreens fan and love their rewards program. I don't think I have seen this product there yet but with a buy one get one at 50% off plan I will have to check it out!