6 overlooked and underrated road trip essentials

Road trips offer a great, comparatively affordable getaway from your everyday routine. Even so, you don’t want to feel like you’re holidaying on a budget. A relaxing trip can quickly become much less relaxing when you find yourself hampered by flat tyres, cold coffee, and drained phone batteries. Thoughtful packing can make all the difference on a road trip, with the right gadgets helping to make those long hours on the highway feel refreshingly meditative rather than tedious and dull.

In no particular order, here are six overlooked and underrated road trip essentials.

1. Denvix Smart Tire Inflator

Credit: Denvix

Nothing brings a road trip to a grinding halt like a flat tyre. Precious vacation time which should be spent relaxing can quickly be lost to the search for a service station, anxiously hoping that the next one isn’t too far away. 

Portable air compressors like the Denvix Smart Tire Inflator can greatly alleviate this inconvenience, allowing you to top up your tyres no matter where you are. Easily operated with a single button, this compact gadget can pump up a car tyre from 0 to 36 psi in mere minutes, quickly getting your trip back on track. It doesn’t just inflate tyres either. In addition to having preset modes for cars, motorbikes, regular bikes, and balls, the Smart Tire Inflator’s touch screen buttons allow you to set a custom psi for anything else you need to pump full of air.

Of course, if you don’t end up needing it, a tyre inflator may feel as though it’s simply taking up precious car space which could better be utilised for road trip snacks. Fortunately, the Denvix Smart Tire Inflator also serves as a giant power bank, holding a substantial 15,000 mAH of power. That’s enough to charge your phone several times over — or keep all your travelling companions’ devices topped up. It has a bright light attached as well, allowing you to cycle between white, yellow, and red lights to illuminate your nighttime activities.

2. Ember Travel Mug 2+

Credit: Ember

Forgetting your hot drink until long after it has cooled is the bane of coffee and tea fiends the world over. A morning brew is notably less enjoyable once it has drifted away from its thermal sweet spot, and while vacuum flasks are great for slowing temperature changes, they can’t ensure your drink stays at its ideal temperature.

The Ember Travel Mug 2+ lets you keep up to 12oz (355mL) of liquid steady at any temperature ranging from 120°F to 145°F (50°C to 62.5°C), averaging around three hours of battery life at 135°F (57°C) (or longer if you rest it on the included charging coaster). The temperature is manually adjustable by touch controls as well via Ember’s app, which also sends notifications when your drink has reached the set temperature or when the Mug is about to run out of battery. This means slow sippers are less likely to forget their drink and end up downing its disappointingly cold dregs hours later.

The Travel Mug 2+ can be connected to Apple Find My, helping you to track your mug down if you inadvertently leave it behind, and comes with three interchangeable regional power plugs — handy if you plan to sample coffee on different continents. Unlike a vacuum flask, it also isn’t completely insulated, meaning it can still give you the delightful experience of wrapping your hands around a warm mug on a cold day.

3. Belkin’s Boostcharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand 

Credit: Belkin

Most mobile phones have fairly decent batteries that can last you from morning until night — provided it’s a regular day. Being on vacation means you’re more likely to rapidly chew up your battery by snapping photos, filming videos, and feverishly consulting Google Maps to ensure you don’t get lost. It’s never fun when your phone dies, but one of the worst, most stressful times for it to happen is while you’re travelling in a foreign country.

Belkin’s Boostcharge Magnetic Wireless Power Bank 5K + Stand magnetically attaches to the back of your phone in order to charge it, so you don’t have to worry about leaving a wire trailing out of your pocket or dangling from your hands. You’ll have to invest in a MagSafe adapter if you’re using an Android or an older iPhone, but it’s still much less hassle than wired options. Belkin’s power bank is also small enough that it doesn’t obscure your phone’s camera while attached, letting you keep taking snaps while charging.

This device only holds around enough juice to fully recharge an iPhone once, so you will have to plug it in once you get back to your hotel room for the night. Even so, that should be more than enough to keep you going.

4. July’s Carry All Tote

Credit: July

A good day bag is vital when travelling, so it’s important to carefully consider your options. While backpacks offer even weight distribution, they can be annoying to access and are carried out of sight — a boon to any light-fingered opportunists you might encounter. A messenger bag can work, but flap closures aren’t the most secure option, and said flap can be irritating when you want to quickly grab something.

July’s Carry All Tote has a slew of features that make it an excellent bag for travelling, allowing you to easily access your belongings without taking it off. These include a zip close for security, a luggage passthrough band for securing it atop a suitcase, an internal pocket to keep your water bottle upright, and a detachable shoulder strap in addition to its two handles, offering extra security and allowing users to go hands free. 

It’s difficult enough to find all of these features in one tote bag. But the Carry All Tote goes one better, boasting a lightweight unisex design made of robust nylon fabric. It’s even attractive enough that it won’t mark you as a tourist while you’re wandering around an unfamiliar city. 

If you’d prefer leather and can live without a luggage passthrough, Madewell’s Zip-Top Transport Carryall is another more stylish but less functional option you might consider. Just check its weight before you commit, as you’ll want something fairly lightweight if you’re planning a lot of exploring.

5. Sonos’ Roam

Credit: Sonos

Though travelling is by nature packed with new experiences, it can be comforting to return to something familiar at the end of a day of exploring. That could be anything from a drink, to a skincare routine, to a favourite playlist.

The Sonos Roam is a light, portable Bluetooth speaker that is waterproof, drop resistant, and small enough to fit in a handbag if needed. It also offers sound quality that belies its size. With 10 hours of battery life, the Sonos Roam uses inbuilt microphones to automatically tune itself, delivering the best sound according to its environment no matter where it’s moved. This makes it ideal for travel, whether you’re moving between hotel rooms, headed to the beach, or even going camping. 

In addition to enabling travellers to listen to their tunes while settling in for the night, the Sonos Roam may be particularly useful to anyone who sleeps with white noise — or who travels with children who sleep with white noise. Putting an infant to bed is tough enough, but it’s an extra challenge when you’re in an unfamiliar place and don’t have your usual tools on hand. Just remember to keep your soothing audio at a reasonable volume so you don’t disturb your fellow campers or hotel patrons.

This pick does come with a caveat. Multiple users have encountered an issue when using a free Spotify account with the Roam, finding that it will stop playing audio and refuse to progress when it reaches an ad. Sonos is aware of the problem and is apparently working on a solution, but until then Spotify users are best off either upgrading to a Premium account or playing audio already saved to their phone.

6. Dr Martens’ Voss II Sandals

Credit: Dr Martens

Travel sandals need to be able to withstand a lot, whether that’s exploring cobblestoned streets, playing on sandy beaches, or getting tossed around in a suitcase. Dr Martens may be most popularly known for its iconic boots, but that doesn’t mean you should overlook its equally sturdy sandals.

Dr Martens’ Voss II is a stylishly chunky sandal, with adjustable buckled straps at the ankle and across the top of the foot to keep it securely in place while walking. The thick soles elevate the feet, keeping your toes dryer in wet terrain, while the PU-coated Hydro leather means you don’t have to waterproof the sandals before wearing them. They also look really good.

Dr Martens’ shoes do have a reputation for being painful to break in, owing to the same stiff, thick leather that enables its boots to last. Fortunately the Voss II eschews this, using a leather that feels comfortable enough to wear out of the box without giving you blisters on your heels. Dr Martens also offers the original Voss in a synthetic substitute if you prefer a vegan option. 

Of course, you should still wear your sandals on several shorter outings close to home before you pack them in your suitcase. Taking any new shoes on a trip without first breaking them in is just asking for trouble. But breaking in these Dr Martens sandals won’t be anywhere near as difficult as dealing with their boots, and the best travel shoes should also work for everyday wear anyway.