Business Travel Essentials: Your Complete Packing Checklist

Could your business travel packing list use some improvement? We’re here to help with corporate travel planning. The items you bring along can drastically elevate your overall quality of life while you’re on the move, so don’t overlook the importance of packing smart.

Did you know that Americans make over 405 million long-distance trips for business each year? That’s almost 16% of all of the travel done by Americans!

With so many people traveling for business, there has to be a way to make the trip comfortable and satisfying—even if it is for work. So what should you really have in your carry-on and checked bags?

Keep reading to learn more about the complete checklist of business travel essentials for your next business trip!

Packing Cubes

When you travel for business, it doesn’t mean that all of your travel is strictly business.

You may have your work clothes, but you may also want to pack some workout clothes for the gym in the morning or an outfit for after-work happy hour.

With so many different types of clothes that you want to pack, you’ll want to use packing cubes to keep it organized (and easier if you want to unpack in an organized way).

Shoe Bags

Odds are you are packing nice shoes for a business trip—that’s business travel essentials 101. But just because you’re wearing nice shoes doesn’t mean that they won’t get dirty while you are out and about. That’s why you should add shoe bags to your business travel packing list.

Bringing shoe bags to put your shoes in will not only help to protect your shoes from getting scuffed up in your bag, but they’ll also protect your clothes and other belongings from dirt and mud that may be on the shoes.

Underseat Carry-on 

There are so many carry-on options to choose from.

Make sure you have one that can hold all of your immediate business travel essentials while also fitting under the seat in front of you.

In the carry-on, you should have room for your laptop (usually a separate compartment to keep it safe), room for notebooks and pens, chargers, a water bottle, and other miscellaneous items you may want in your bag.

Portable Phone Charger

If you’re constantly on the go for your business travels, you may not have time to sit down and plug in your phone. But that doesn’t mean the calls stop!

To make sure that you’re ready for a call at any time of the day—whether you’re at the airport or driving to your hotel—you should include a portable phone charger on your list of business travel essentials.

You won’t ever have to worry about your phone dying when traveling for business again!

Travel Adaptors

When traveling for business, you may not always stay in the country. If you’re going on an international trip, you have to be prepared. Part of that preparation involves adding travel adaptors for the country you’re visiting to your business travel packing list.

If you don’t have the right adaptor, you won’t be able to charge any of your devices!

The best kind of travel adaptor to get is a universal one that can change based on the country you’re in. This is one of the most versatile business travel essentials if you’re traveling to multiple countries at once or are constantly in different countries. As long as you don’t lose it, you’ll only need one.

Noise-Canceling Headphones

Traveling while listening to meetings or having phone calls isn’t the easiest thing to do. However, with headphones, it doesn’t have to be that difficult.

But even better? Noise-canceling headphones.

They make sure that they drown out the noise around you (like a busy airport) so that you can focus on your call. That means you can say goodbye to not hearing your boss’s important instructions this time!

Portable Monitor

If your work involves frequent computer use, consider adding a portable monitor to your list of business travel essentials. Have you ever tried to work off of Excel while also entering numbers into a computer program and simultaneously trying to stay up to date with your messages from your boss?

It’s nearly impossible. That’s why having a monitor with you can make life so much easier.

Obviously, you’re not going to bring your entire desk monitor with you on your trips, but you can bring a portable monitor! 

On the same page, you might want to add a portable keyboard and a mouse to your business travel packing list so you can turn your laptop into a comfortable workstation at the hotel. 

Of course, these business travel essentials do occupy luggage space, so it’s up to you to determine if they’re worth bringing or if you can get by with your laptop.

Reusable Water Bottle

It’s not always easy to save the world and travel for business all the time. However, you can take small steps to do both! If you use a reusable water bottle, you’ll be reducing your plastic waste everywhere you go. 

You can simply fill up your water bottle at the airport, in stores, and at the hotel. Additionally, this way, you’re not constantly looking for water—you always have your bottle with you!

Wrinkle Releaser

If you need to look sharp for your appointments, add a wrinkle releaser to your list of business travel essentials. Business travel attire tends to wrinkle pretty easily—it’s also a nicer material that you want to keep looking nice, even after a long day of travel.

Packing a wrinkle releaser can help reduce your stress about what you look like on your business trip. Even if your clothes become wrinkled on your flight, you can just spritz the clothes the night before and leave them on a hanger to reduce the wrinkles! 

You’ll look as though you pulled the clothes out of your own closet for work the next day!

Get These Business Travel Essentials

With these items on your business travel packing list, you’ll have a much more pleasant trip overall. While traveling for business is different from traveling for leisure, it doesn’t have to be annoying or hard! You can use these business travel essentials to make your trip comfortable and enjoyable.

If you’re constantly traveling for business, it can be hard to keep up. If you feel that way, we here at Telios Travel want to help streamline the process and make your life easier!

With over 50 years of experience, we know the world of corporate travel. Contact us to speak with a dedicated agent, or  schedule a demo to learn how we can help with your travels.