Luggage:
We use the AWAY Bigger Carry on Bags.
Darlene has the Cream White and Gene has the Espresso Brown
We decided to go with the AWAY Bigger carry on, non-expandable. We considered the expandable but after a lot of thought on how much we wanted to pack; we decided the expandable would potentially make it too heavy and too wide to fit in the overhead bins.
We did choose the bigger carry on and decided to take the risk that on occasion our bag could possibly be checked. The space size is not that much difference however that extra inch all the way around on height and width could make a huge difference when that is all the space you have to carry everything you need.
The dimensions on the AWAY bigger carry-on vs the AWAY standard carry-on are as follows
Bigger Carry-On: 22.7 x 15.4x 9.6 vs Standard Carry-On: 21.7 x 14.4 x 9
We also decided to purchase the AWAY packing cubes; we went back and forth on whether or not we would use packing cubes but felt like we would try them out as we will need complete organization as we travel. We took them on our first two-month leg of our journey while we wait for our house to sell, and the packing cubes are fabulous. I would highly recommend them and will not travel without them. They kept everything organized and easy to access. With the mesh tops we could see our things and it made it easy to view exactly what we needed without having to unpack our bags. This was a great purchase for us.
Another purchase I made for myself was the AWAY Everywhere bag. Again, I went back and forth on whether or not I would carry a backpack or a bag, and then after I decided on using a bag, I wasn’t sure which bag to go with so after doing research and watching other reviews, I decided to go ahead and stick with the AWAY everything bag. I had really been eyeing the BEIS Mini weekender as it had a zip off shoe compartment on the bottom, but I think less is more when having to carry everything and so again I stuck with the AWAY brand. Boy am I ever happy I did. This bag slid right onto my trolly handle and traveled so nicely. It fits perfectly under the seat on the plane and it carried my essentials including laptop, electronics bag and many personal items. Again, I highly recommend this purchase.
Gene decided to purchase a backpack and chose the Osprey Farpoint 55L Men’s Travel Backpack, Muted Space Blue. He liked how it zipped all the way open and had a smaller day bag attached which we used every single day leaving the larger backpack at either our AirBNB or Hotel. His only negative comment was that he wished it would have a slide on panel that would attach to the trolley of his roller bag. Other than that he is very happy with his bag and we both really like the attached day pack. We used the day pack every day and that really comes in quite handy for all the day trips we do.
We spent a lot of time looking at carry-on luggage and did a lot of research before deciding on these particular pieces of luggage. We are very happy with all of our purchases and really look forward to our house selling so we can get going full time.
We are not affiliated with AWAY or Osprey nor do we get paid for promotions or advertising. We simply like the products and use these particular carry-on bags in our travels.
Favorite Phone Apps
We both have Iphones. I use an IPhone 16 Pro Max and Gene uses an Iphone 16
We us several apps when we travel that help us a lot. Recently I was having lunch with several friends and they began to ask me a lot of questions about travel and I started sharing the Apps I use, especially with language barriers and currency. As well as the challenges of public transportation. So I’d like to share some of our favorite Apps and I hope they help you in your travels.
My first favorite is Google Translate.
You can type in Google translate in your App search link here: Google Translate on the App Store or if you are on a desktop or laptop here is the link. Google Translate
We find this app to be amazing. We can use it to speak with and communicate with others, ask questions, get directions, order off of menus in restaurants and it even has a photo translate so you can open the photos icon and aim it at anything in writing and it will show up on your phone in your native language. This is a must have App for international travel.
My next favorite App is Rome2Rio.
How it works:
Rome2Rio searches any city, town, landmark, attraction or address across the globe with thousands of multi-modal routes to easily get you from point A to B.
Rome2Rio is not 100% accurate, however it is a great tool to help you with route planning determining which train or bus you should take, if it is a combo of transportation options, it also gives you different route options wether you drive, take a train, if you need bullet trains or local city trains, ferry system, walking eetc…it is an extremely helpful tool and we have only come across a couple of incidents that it did not give the best option. However I believe the accuracy rate is extremely high and this is an app we use almost every day while we travel. Below is a link to Rome2Rio desktop and you can also find this on your phone in Apps.
Rome2Rio: discover how to get anywhere
My Next Favorite App is Currency Converter Calculator App
This App is easy to use, you choose your country and whichever country you are in, you type in the amount IE: Japanese Yen to U.S. Dollar so if you put 1000Y that equals $6.97
The currency exchange rates are kept up to date and are pretty accurate.
We find this calculator easy to use and with instant results we could calculate things on the fly while shopping, dining, purchasing train tickets etc…
There is also a premium version that has no ads. We do not use the premium version and found the free version did just fine. We only had ad interruptions a couple of times making it slightly inconvenient, however the two or so times an ad popped up it only took a few seconds and then cleard itself out so we will continue to use the free version unless the interruptions get to be too often.
Here is further information on this App, download is only available on the App store.
Currency converter calculator! on the App Store
We are not being paid or affiliated with any of these Apps. these are just Apps that we find helpful while traveling the world. We hope these help you as you navigate the globe.
Electronics Travel Bags:
EVERGOODS Civic Access Pouch 1L slim profile and EVERGOODS Civic Access Pouch 2L are our must have electronics carry bags for travel.
Each bag is uniquely different and serves its own purpose. We use the Civic Access pouch 1L as our bag we can easily pull out of our backpack/carry on and slip it into the seat pack pocket on the airplane or train as we travel. This bag keeps our smaller items such as headphones, phone charger, ear plugs, eye masks, sani-wipes, lens cleaners for our glasses, ink pens for custom forms etc…, and a small note tablet. It’s just an all-around handy little bag to keep your small personal item in without having to dig for things and to not lose or leave them on the plane.
Then we have the Civic Access Pouch 2L which is a larger bag. This bag is essential for us as we each carry different items in our individual bags. In my bag I carry a stabilizer selfie stick, a firestick and jack for tv viewing in other countries, the power bank charger, extra ipad/phone chargers, Disk drive, microphones etc…
Gene carries camera gear, external SSD, Extra Phone Charger, Bose Speaker, Camera Bug Detector, flash drive etc…
We absolutely love these bags and wouldn’t go on any travel without them. They help to keep us organized when we travel and keep our items protected from damage. I am including a direct link to their website. https://evergoods.us/collections/pouches
We are not being paid or affiliated with EVERGOODS or any of their products, we use these items, and we find them helpful while traveling the world. We hope these help you as you navigate the globe.
Happy Travels…
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