Review: Travelon Waterproof Pouch

With the promise of warmer weather coming soon – or I assume, since we have one day of nice weather and three days of cold rainy ones here – plenty of travelers are thinking about trips to the beach, destinations with pools and cruises. I, myself, will be spending a few days in Virginia Beach on our trip to Williamsburg and Washington, DC. When I go, I always wonder if I should leave my phone in the room or bring it with me and keep it in my bag, or what. On one hand, I don’t like to leave it in the room, but on the other, I don’t want to risk someone stealing it out of my bag when I’m not right next to it. I can’t take it in the water with me, though. Or can I?

Travelon has solved my problem. The Waterproof Pouch is made specifically for cell phones – all sizes! – and enables you to carry your phone around where it might get drenched, while completely protecting it and still allowing you to use your phone and its camera. Even better, if you happen to lose your pouch in the water, it actually floats, so you aren’t immediately disappointed by it sinking all the way to the bottom.

The Waterproof Pouch is totally easy to use. Put your phone in upside down, with the camera pointed towards the clear back, squeeze out as much air as possible with your hands and then roll up the top and hold it in place with the Velcro tab. Now you can check email, play music, go swimming or anything else you want and have your phone along for the ride and absolutely protected. When you’re at the beach, it’s not just water that is a problem for your electronics, but sand and salt, too. You don’t have to worry about that either.

The Waterproof Pouch has a removable strap, so if you do end up doing something active, you can easily hang it around your neck. This is especially great for those that do a lot of water activities, like snorkeling (you can even put your regular point-and-shoot camera inside to take underwater photos), jet skiing or fishing. In fact, my dad has lost his phone in the lake when fishing before, because his phone fell out of his pocket and over the side of the boat. Worst. Day. Ever. Next time he goes, he won’t have a problem, but even if he does, he won’t have to buy another phone, because he’ll be able to scoop up the pouch as it bobs on the top of the water. Brilliant!

Don’t want to bring your phone with you, but want to protect some other items? Who doesn’t need to bring their I.D., some cash and their car keys with them when they hit the beach? Keep it all with you and safe from thieves. Going somewhere with high humidity or a very rainy season like the Amazon? Stuff your small electronic inside and your passport and you don’t have to worry about them getting damaged.

With a retail price of $13, there’s no reason to not buy one for everyone who is traveling with you. It’s so much cheaper than hundreds of dollars for a new phone, right? You don’t have to worry about the size either, because it will fit even the largest smart phone, while not taking up much room in your travel bag. If you’re traveling this summer or do a lot of water sports/activities, this pouch is a must. Even if you’re just spending the day at a theme park where there are water rides, this little pouch is a smart investment!

More information:

How big is it? 4.25” x 6.25” 

Where can you buy it? Travelon Website

How much is it? $13.00

Colors it comes in: The float comes in blue (shown) | pink | white | lime | yellow

Like the coolness of the Travelon Waterproof pouch? It also comes for non-electronics, with an audio jack (soon), for an e-reader and for an iPad.

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Disclosure: I was provided with the Waterproof Pouch for the purpose of this review, but all opinions are 100% my own.

Review: Icepops Bag by Cool-it Caddy

When I travel, I always bring my own snacks. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to keep things like fruit or cheese cold so you can actually take it with you? I know it would be useful when traveling with kids, too. As much as I like chips and crackers and homemade granola bars, fresh foods would be lovely.

I was able to meet up with Cool-it Caddy at the Travel Goods Show in Phoenix and picked up a sample of one of their great Icepops bags. Not only do they come in snappy colors, but the bags have built-in freezable coolants packs in the sides. You pop the bag in the freezer and a few hours later you have a bag that you can take with you on the plane, to the beach, to amusement parks and anywhere else you want to keep things cool.

A small water bottle can fit in the Icepops, which is great when you’re out and about and don’t want to spend money on drinks or have no way to keep a drink cold for longer than 10 minutes. We go to a lot of theme parks. Imagine how much better Disney would be if the water you brought in DIDN’T have to be frozen before you left your hotel and you didn’t have to wait for it to unfreeze to drink it, or you an unfrozen one stayed cool longer than the time it takes to actually get into the park? Cold water is just more refreshing and tastier.

Going to the beach? Many of us don’t just head down to the sand and then go straight home. Use your Icepops bag to store your sunscreen, lip balm, deodorant and anything else that can help you freshen up, so you can toss on a cover-up and go straight to lunch or dinner. Melted beauty products is a bummer, especially when you have paid good money for decent products. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to have to replace things when I don’t have to. Things an only stay cool in your beach bag for so long, but if they’re in an Icepops bag, they will stay cool for hours.

In Portland, we have a lot of outdoor festivals and activities where having a bottle of water and a few snacks would be great to have. Icepops would fit in my purse, or with the handy loop handle, I can slip it on my wrist and go. With the nice slip pocket on the back, I could also carry my hotel key, I.D., debit card or some cash with me. (If plain water is not something you love, you can add a few of those flavor packets to your bag to make tea or other yummy drink.)

Run your errands and keep cool, too. Once you’ve gone in a few stops, that bottle of water in your car is going to heat up. Not only is warm bottled water gross, but experts say it’s also unsafe to drink. Icepops keeps it cold through all your errands and keeps other items from warming up, too: your tube of lipstick for touch-ups, that candy bar for a little indulgence, your medications you have to take throughout the day that are supposed to stay at a certain temperature.

Stuck with the wee ones at Little league? Stash a couple of juice boxes and carrot sticks in your Icepops for those that aren’t playing or for celebrating after the game. How exciting to be able to present totally cold drinks and nibbles for your little ones anywhere you go. And if you go anywhere with babies and need to keep milk cold, this is the perfect solution! Slip the bag into your diaper bag and you have milk that is good for hours. If items are cold before they go into the bag, they are able to stay colder even longer.

Icepops can stay frozen for up to 7 hours, which can get you through a lot. Keep it in the freezer to use at a moment’s notice. For maximum space inside, roll up a small towel or stuff some paper inside, so you can easily get your items inside when you’re ready to use it. If you forget this step, don’t worry. You can still stash a water bottle and other goodies inside, it will just be a bit of a tight squeeze.

With summer vacations coming up, you might want to buy a couple of these to take with you anywhere you end up going. If you would like a Cool-it Caddy for just your beauty items or a more manly black, check out the website for more styles and materials.

More information:

How big is it? 8.5” x 5.5” x 3”

Where can you buy it? Cool-it Caddy Website

How much is it? $19.95

Colors it comes in: Tangerine (shown) | Raspberry | Lime | Blueberry

Like the coolness of Cool-it Caddy? Follow them on Facebook | Twitter

Disclosure: I was provided with a Icepops bag by Cool-it Caddy for the purpose of this review, but all opinions are 100% my own.

Why You Should Get to the Airport Early

As you know, I love the airport, so much so that I don't mind getting there two hours early for my flight. I like to browse the shops and eat a meal there. I think it's fun, in the way I no longer enjoy the mall. Each airport is different and they all offer similar, yet totally different souvenirs and gifts in their shops. Of course, getting to the airport early is not just for exploring. You never know what can happen on the way there or once you arrive. There could be an accident or a long, long, long security line. Also, if you haven't chosen a seat because you don't want to pay extra, you get first crack at the good seats.

Exit row seats normally don't get assigned until travelers arrive at the airport and request them. The airport employees like to see that you are qualified to operate the emergency door if needed (and how often does that even happen?). Exit row seats always have more space than regular economy seating. This can be anywhere from a few inches to a few feet. it all depends on the plane you're on. 

Other seats that are available for those that arrive early are those priority seats like Economy Plus and some First Class if they haven't been reserved yet. this can be your chance to snag one for free. Sometimes the airline will claim that the flight is overbooked if only priority seats are left, so you can't even choose a seat online if you aren't willing to pay extra. Once you get to the gate or the check-in desk, you may be able to snag whatever seats are left, which can totally work out in your favor. 

Getting to the airport early and not choosing my seat ahead of time has worked for me plenty of times in the past and each flight I took to and from Phoenix last week ended up with me getting a pretty awesome seat. On the way out of Portland, I was able to grab an exit row seat to Denver, From Denver to Phoenix, I was put in Economy Plus, because the flight was "overbooked". Basically, I saved $29 by not choosing my seat ahead of time and paying money for one of those fancy seats. 

On the way home, I got to the airport a few hours early, because I wanted to miss rush hour traffic and again was able to request an exit row. not only did I not have a seatmate next to me, but I was also a few steps away from the bathroom and had more legroom than I've ever had on a flight. My feet didn't even though the wall! I didn't have an underseat in front of me, so I had to put almost all my baggage in the overhead, but that's okay. If you get a choice, ask to sit on the right side of the plane, where you will have a place to put your carry-on and also have a window (usually). 

What's the best travel experience you've ever had?