Helpful Packing Items You Can Find At Dollar Tree For Organized Traveling
Maybe your dream vacay involves relaxing poolside with a tropical frozen delight in your hand, or perhaps you love exploring the hidden treasures of someplace new. Whatever strikes your fancy, few things in life are as rewarding as travel. But as much fun as it is to take off on a new adventure, it can also be just as much of a headache to make sure you've got everything you need for your trip. With baggage limits and extra fees, it can be even more of a headache when you can't fit everything you need in your suitcase.
The good news is that Dollar Tree has everything you need to maximize your packing potential. From TikTok packing pros to travel YouTubers, the internet is full of handy packing tips and hacks from everyone's favorite discount store. Get ready to become one with that little green cart because we've combed the web for the very best Dollar Tree packing tips to use on your next vacation.
Plastic baggies are an infinitely useful travel tool
If you buy nothing else from the Dollar Tree, be sure to pick up quart-sized and extra large plastic baggies. Not only can you use these to organize all sorts of items for packing in your suitcase, but you can also use them for a few different things on your trip. Unlike hard-sided containers, plastic baggies can conform to just about any shape, smooshing neatly into your suitcase to maximize your space.
YouTuber Megan of Portable Professional suggests gathering your liquids in a quart-sized bag to simplify your security check-in at the airport. While other passengers in line are scrambling to fit their items in a bag, you'll be ready to go with yours. Larger bags are also great for turning board games into travel versions. Throw in a handful of Trivial Pursuit or Pictionary cards — and voilà!
Smaller baggies are great for dividing up a pack of sanitizer wipes or portioning snacks among your family members for the trip. They're also good for toys, crayons, and electronic cords. And always be sure to throw a couple of extra baggies in — they make a great phone protector when you're at the pool and are useful when you've got something small and wet to pack for the way home.
Travel-sized bottles are perfect for your toiletries
If you're planning to bring your own shampoo and body wash, you'll need some travel-sized bottles to get past airport security. And Dollar Tree is objectively the best place to pick them up. Depending on which store you visit, there's a good chance you'll find more than a couple of options to choose from. You can even pick up a mini spray bottle so that you don't have to leave your favorite hair conditioning spray or spritz.
But the one viral Dollar Tree travel hack folks can't stop talking about is using squeezable travel dressing containers for your lotions or moisturizers. These adorable little containers are perfect for TSA requirements, and unlike many of the more rigid travel-sized containers, these guys can be squeezed so that you get every last drop of moisturizer. You can pick them up in the Dollar Tree's kitchen aisle.
A silicone hot pad and oven mitt make travel with a curling iron possible
If you use hot hair tools when you're traveling, you can most likely relate to the Spielbergian drama of finishing up your 'do moments before heading out to the airport and then realizing you've got a piping hot iron that probably shouldn't be packed up until it's fully cooled. Suddenly, you're faced with a dilemma: Do you carry your ceramic flat iron and try to stash it later, or do you cram it into your suitcase and pray nothing gets melted or scorched?
Thanks to the hive mind of travel YouTube, this is no longer a problem. Simply stroll your gorgeous hair over to the Dollar Tree kitchen aisle and grab a silicone hot pad and one of the store's adorable oven mitts. When it's time to pack, fold the silicone pad in half and insert it into your mitt to create a liner. Slide your hair tool into the oven mitt and you're good to go. If the iron is completely cool when you're packing, you can also fit the cord into the mitt. As a bonus, that silicone pad also makes a safe surface for resting your curling or flat iron while you're getting ready in the hotel bathroom on your trip.
Sweater storage bags are useful for packing boots
If you're the type of traveler who is willing to sacrifice precious luggage space for a favorite pair of boots, we get it. Some of us just feel naked without our favorite UGGs or Frye boots. But packing them poses a very special set of luggage organization problems. Simply cramming a quality pair of boots into your luggage risks damaging the precious leather or denting the boots. And you don't really want those dirty soles touching your other clothing.
Once again, Dollar Tree has you covered. Their collapsible sweater storage bags are the perfect size for packing boots. To help your boots maintain their shape and avoid creases, singer/songwriter Jeremiah Craig recommends filling them with clothing you're packing. If the idea of your clean clothes touching the inside of your boots makes you cringe, you can use those handy dandy Dollar Tree shopping bags to maintain boot-clothing separation. Simply slide your socks into the bag and slip it as deep as you can into your boot toes, then fill the leg section with t-shirts or other small clothing items. Pack into your sweater bag and you're good to go.
Small packing cubes make good luggage dividers
Anyone who travels often has a favorite method for keeping things organized on the go. And some regular travelers insist that creating luggage dividers is a travel must. Their go-to divider method? Small packing cubes from Dollar Tree. These soft-sided packing cubes are available in several sizes, perfect for a variety of needs. They also collapse so that they lay completely flat. According to YouTube channel Beating the Budget, size B is exactly the right size to sit neatly inside of most standard luggage. But it's probably not a bad idea to measure your suitcase before hitting Dollar Tree if you're not sure.
After placing the cubes inside your luggage, pack your folded or rolled-up clothing inside. Once you arrive at your hotel room, these cubes can easily transfer to your hotel room's closet or drawers. It's a great way to keep your clothing organized and make things easier on yourself later on.
Dollar stores are the source for cheap-but-cute pouches
When you're packing, it seems like you can never have too many smallish pouches to store and organize little belongings like contact lens supplies or electronic and cable storage. They're also great for storing things like makeup, menstrual products, and medications.
Between all of their makeup pouches, pencil pouches, and various other small bags, Dollar Tree is replete with these useful little bags. Although quart-sized plastic baggies and sandwich bags will do in a pinch, storage pouches are generally more durable and — let's face it — a whole lot cuter. And the best part is that there are so many fun options to choose from that you'll want to stock up while you're there. Check in the makeup and toiletry aisle, office supplies section, and near the front registers where all of the fun teen-targeted goodies are kept.
Cute ear bud holders are also good for cable storage
No one wants to get caught without a working phone or laptop charger cable while away from home. To protect your cables from getting bent irreparably during the airport shuffle to your vacation destination, consider packing them in a small hard-sided container. While some folks swear by toothbrush holders for this, earbud storage containers work just as well, and Dollar Tree has tons of options to choose from.
Making them available in the electronics aisle, Dollar Tree has a fair selection of round and square zip-up earbud cases with plenty of room to neatly tuck away a spare cable. You can find them in a wide range of colors and prints. And be sure to pick one up for your earbuds as well. To keep your cords and cables neat and tangle-free when storing them, try wrapping them in a circular pattern.
Mesh bags are a dirty laundry necessity
A mesh laundry bag is a must whether you're planning to visit the laundromat on your trip or not. If you're going to be gone for more than a few days, planning to do a load of laundry can dramatically reduce the amount of luggage you'll need to pack. But even if you don't plan to wash clothing while you're gone, using your suitcase as a dirty laundry hamper while you're on the road is a bad idea.
Mesh bags hardly take up any space in your suitcase and give you a place to stash your dirty laundry throughout your trip. If you decide to wash your clothes while you're there, they're perfect for transporting your items to the laundromat. Or if you would prefer to save the laundry for when you get home, a mesh bag makes it much easier to keep track of what's clean or dirty once you're back in town. You can find these in the laundry and storage section of Dollar Tree.
Dollar Tree offers plenty of cute luggage tags
Even if you're not traveling through an airport, having updated luggage tags on your suitcases is a good way to ensure you're keeping track of your stuff as it gets mixed in with the baggage of other travelers. And in the sea of identical luggage strewn across the airport luggage carousel, it's good to have a vivid identifier so that you can easily pick out your bags from the rest. YouTuber Beating the Budget cited her frustration at the conveyor belt as a good reason to pick up a distinctive luggage tag, noting, "Although my luggage is a little bit distinct in the way that it's black with white polka dots, there were other black with white polka dot luggages last time."
A standout luggage tag quickly resolves any confusion, so you can get on with your trip. For a wide selection of genuinely charming — and affordable — luggage tags, you can't beat the Dollar Tree. If you've got a large family you're traveling with, you can pick up a different set of luggage tags for everyone in your party. Or you might prefer picking up identical luggage tags for your group so that it's easy for everyone to spot each other's bags.
Shower caps are a must-have for shoe packing
No matter where you're headed on your trip or what you've got planned, chances are good you're not planning to wear the same pair of shoes the whole time. But the last thing you want to do is stash a spare pair of sneakers next to your nice clothing without some kind of barrier protecting your clothes from your dirty shoes. Many pro packers suggest tucking your shoes into shower caps to prevent sole-fabric contamination. These items come in plain colors as well as patterns if you want to jazz up your packing.
And although you can pick up a multi-pack of cheap shower caps at Dollar Tree, they've also recently started selling non-medical grade shoe covers that work well for this purpose. According to TikTokker @easyrecipesandtips, these come 12 to a pack, which means one should be enough to cover everyone in your travel party.
Organize kids' outfits with doll clothes storage bags
If you're traveling with young children, you know how much goes into getting everyone dressed and ready to go each day. You also know how wild things can get when young kids are left to pick out their own outfits for the day. Fortunately, TikToker Lucky Little Penny Crafts has come up with a travel hack for this very situation that's nothing short of genius.
Navigate to the kids' section of Dollar Tree and pick up a handful of doll clothing storage bags. They're transparent on one side and have just enough room for one toddler or preschool outfit "down to the bow," according to Lucky Little Penny. These vinyl bags can easily be labeled with days of the week or kids' names using a Cricut vinyl cutter, making it easier than ever to keep everyone on track while you're on holiday.
Pick up smaller versions of necessities
If you're flying, you're already traveling with smaller-sized shampoo, conditioner, and other liquids. But there are plenty of other travel-sized containers for everyday items you can pick up at Dollar Tree to save space in your luggage. Rather than packing an entire tube of full-sized toothpaste, you can grab a travel-sized or mid-sized tube at the dollar store. If you're not picky about the type of mascara you use, you can nab a mini-sized mascara tube that does the job just fine for travel purposes. You can even pick up a mini hairbrush as well, saving even more precious space in your bag.
Dollar Tree is also a great place to stock your travel pharmacy with smaller sizes of over-the-counter pain relievers, antacids, and nausea meds. While you're there, be sure to pick up a travel sewing kit if you think you might need one.
Satin pillowcases are good for storing intimates
When you're traveling with more delicate fabrics, it's important to separate them from the rest of your clothing to keep them in good condition. Tossing your lingerie and other delicates in with your jeans and pullovers runs the risk that they'll get caught on a button or zipper and become damaged. Dollar Tree has the perfect solution: simple satin pillowcases.
Just as these silky pillowcases help protect hair against frizz and breakage, they can also help prevent damage to your most delicate intimates. Dollar Tree always carries a selection of different colors to choose from, including a few pretty patterns. And they're surprisingly good — after a month-long quality test of daily use and regular washing, YouTuber Chrissy T found the pillowcase held up pretty well. After your trip, be sure to change it out with your regular pillowcase for that extra pampering your hair deserves.
Use a plastic organizer to make a travel snack pack
Anyone who has ever loaded up on Dollar Tree goodies before heading to the movies knows it's the best place to pick up a variety of snacks on the cheap. But if the idea of filling your carry-on bag with half-eaten chip bags makes you shudder, Dollar Tree can help.
One of the handiest things you can pick up at Dollar Tree is a toy storage container that's just about the right size for storing things like Hot Wheels cars. But they also make a perfect DIY snack container for travelers. Andrea of TikTok's Plus Size and Bossy recommends sorting all of your favorite snacks into these plastic containers ahead of your flight. Praising the Dollar Tree container's "nine small yet deep compartments," Andrea shared how she fills hers with both sweet and savory snacks to satisfy all her mid-flight cravings.
Make and pack airplane travel kits for kids
Whether you're traveling by train, plane, or automobile, a long travel time with young children in tow can mean fussy kids and frustrated parents. When all of you are stressed, having to fumble through your luggage for crayons and toys doesn't make things any easier. That's why TikToker Sierra Honeycutt recommends organizing your kids' things into children's travel packs before you head out.
Every time she travels, Sierra says, "I headed to Dollar Tree to make a little airplane kit because I needed a bunch of activities my kids have literally never seen that will keep them busy while they're on the flight and in the airport." Stocking up on new, inexpensive toys right before vacation is a great idea, as the newness factor will likely keep kids distracted. Dollar Tree is a great place for small toys and art supplies that fit neatly in the adorable mini backpacks you can pick up right there in the store.
Pill organizers can keep your small jewelry straight
Even if you're only carrying a few things with you on your trip, packing all of the jewelry you want to take with you without worrying about it getting lost or tangled can prove tricky, particularly when it comes to smaller pieces like earrings, rings, or small bracelets. But you don't need to invest in any kind of fancy jewelry pouch or organizer to keep your favorite accessories straight — a pill organizer from Dollar Tree is perfect for the job.
The hard-sided containers are sturdy enough to protect your jewelry from getting scratched, tangled, or otherwise damaged. Dollar Tree even has small round organizers that are a convenient size to fit neatly in your carry-on bag so that you can easily switch up your look without having to rummage through your luggage every time you want to change out your accessories.