Building the perfect beauty regimen is hard. Working out how to adapt that for travel? Seemingly impossible.
With limited space in your beauty bag (don’t even get us started on the liquid restrictions), there is an art to choosing which products will be your in-flight companions.
For inspiration ahead of your next trip, scroll on for travel skincare tips and the beauty products four Cosmopolitan Australia editors cant travel without.
Related: A Beginner’s Guide to Building a Skincare Routine That Actually Works
travel skincare essentials
Tessa Ogle, Editor-in-Chief...
For me it’s about being economical with just a few travel-sized heavy hitters that go the distance. I will always have rich moisturiser within reach, like Emma Lewisham’s Supernatural Face Crème. I have it in miniature form from the brand’s essentials collection. I like to refill the little essentials container before a flight from the full sized product so I don’t have to lug around the larger container.
I tend not to wear makeup on long flights, so I reapply as required. I also love Kiehls’ ‘Creamy Eye Cream’, which doubles a great lip balm and brow tamer. And just before I land, I’ll take a tinted lip balm like Sunday Fridays’ Lip Butter Balm and apply it to my lips the top of my cheek bone and on my eye lids to make me feel a bit more glowy and put together.
Katarina Kroslakova, Publisher...
I’m the mini queen—I have a huge JULY luggage toiletries bag filled with mini sizes of everything I need to feel fresh and hydrated.
Mecca Cosmetica’s Bright Eyed Eye Mask is a no brainer—my skin doesn’t handle full masks on planes as it goes all greasy and weird and clogged up, but an eye mask is essential.
Batiste Mini Dry Shampoo adds texture and a light scent and keeps my blow-dry chic, even after a long-haul nap.
If you don’t have this lip saviour in your kit, you’re missing out. Cult favourite Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask is in my handbag, in my luggage, on my desk, on my bedside.
Ella Sangster, Digital Editor...
I wish I was a low-maintenance traveller but unfortunately, I am so prone to breakouts when flying so have always had to be strict on my travel skincare and in-flight regimen.
Alpha H is a staple. I swear by their Hi-tide Water Cream for day-to-day use anyway, and it is such a good option for air travel. The formula is so hydrating but incredibly light, which keeps your skin feeling fresh on the plane. The brand’s cleansing balm is also a go-to. I am a makeup wipe hater for the most part, so you best believe I’ll be cleansing properly in that pokey aeroplane bathroom.
Pimple patches are a must for breakouts—my newfound favourite is TBH Skincare’s microdart patches—as well as a really good lip balm, like this one from Bangn Body. I always pack my regular serums, too, which includes The Ordinary’s hyaluronic acid for hydration.
My top tip would to be to get a pack of reusable travel containers from K-Mart. The little round tubs are perfect for storing creams and balms, and take up virtually no space in your bag. This means you can get your whole 10-step skincare routine on board with you, which is a win in my eyes.
Hollie Wornes, Social and Digital Manager...
I’m not boarding the plane without my Glossier Strawberry Balm Dotcom to keep my lips hydrated and plump while being blasted with aircon.
I’m also packing my Augustinus Bader The Cream for a touch of luxury and indulgence even when crammed into an economy seat.
