Over the last month, my mother has traveled even more than I have. She was in at least 7 states, plus Canada, in a three week period. Since there was a combination of driving and flying, she had “issues” with packing her toiletries.

She was driving the entire trip except for a one-night trip in Chicago.  Because she had been driving for days, when she got to the Northwest Arkansas airport and was about to go through security, she realized that she had all of her toiletries in a case and not in a plastic bag. She frantically dug through her suitcase, breathed a sigh of relief when she found an extra Ziploc, and quickly separated the liquids out. If she hadn’t had that extra bag, not only would she have had to pay $25 each way, she would have wasted time (she thought) she didn’t have waiting for her bag once she arrived in Chicago. Of course, once she got through security she found out her flight was canceled, but that’s a story for another day.

For your normal liquids bag, I like this one from Flybags. It is sturdy, priced well, and has gotten good reviews. However, a Ziploc will always do in a pinch. So make sure to have a few extra in a suitcase pocket, just in case! Because you never know if you (or someone you’re traveling) with will unexpectedly need one.