Hi! It’s been a while 😅 - here’s what I’ve been up to: PORTUGAL RECAP: this month I spent 2 weeks in Portugal & it was incredible!! If you’re thinking about planning a trip - JUST GO!! I’m currently in the thick of editing all the video footage, but in the meantime I wrote a recap of my Portugal itinerary (including some thoughts on what I loved, what was overrated and what I’ll do next time). + lots of photos! I think it was the perfect blend of all the highlights & some hidden gems for a first-timers trip - we covered a lot of ground, but made the most of our travel days so it didn’t feel too rushed or hectic. If you’re planning a trip or thinking about going sometime soon, check out my blog post & stay tuned for a lot more Portugal content both written and videos! TESTED NEW LUGGAGE: if you’re used to traveling in North America but planning a trip to Europe, you’re probably wondering about what carry-on to use. I’m happy to report my new Bric’s 4-wheel spinner fit wonderfully on some airlines I was worried about (notably Air Transat, Ryanair, easyJet & TAP). And if you prefer hardshell, the Monos carry-on was an even better fit (my mom rocked the olive green). NEW VIDEO: if you want to see the above bags in action, check out my latest video where I share all the details on my two current favorite carry-on bags. And don’t worry - I still love and will vouch for the ol’ Travelpro Maxlite 5 (in fact Chris just bought some new underseat Travelpro bags to test out). I knew the Travelpros would fit on a lot of European airlines, so I wanted to test out a couple of other options! NEW TRAVEL SEARCH TOOL: You've heard me talk about FareDrop before (it’s how I found premium economy seats for less than economy to Portugal). well…there’s some exciting news! FareDrop is now Daily Drop Pro and it comes with A LOT more features. This new, state-of-the-art tool makes it easy to find the best points deals or lowest prices on flights and hotels. Ever wonder how people score amazing deals? This tool does the work for you! There's a free or a paid version (p.s. the paid version is on sale for a limited time). WHERE TO NEXT? We'll be in Bucerias & Puerto Vallarta in November / December - say hi if you see us! If you're packing for a trip soon, check out my Amazon storefront (US site or CA site) where I share all my favorite products like carry-on luggage, toiletry bags and more. That’s all for now, Aly Some of my emails contains affiliate links, meaning if you click through and make a purchase I may make a small commission. I only share information about things I know, love and trust! |
I'm Aly! A former Tourism Officer sharing unique travel itineraries, destination guides and all kinds of packing tips my blog and YouTube channel.
Hey friends, I hope you’re well - it’s been about a month, so here’s what’s new! 🧳 Introducing the Jenga Packing Method My latest video dives into the Jenga Packing Method - I had fun coming up with this one, so I hope you’re able to pick up a helpful trick or two from it. A couple of my favorite tips: When using packing cubes, line up your clothes with the width of the cube and fold to size. Use ChatGPT to build a capsule wardrobe! It helped me come up with 9 pieces that turned into 14...
Hi friends! Here’s what’s inside this email: 🔹 Winner announcement – Did you win the $250 hotel credit? 🎉 🔹 The ultimate airport hack 🔹 San Francisco adventures & video series 🔹 Carry-on Update 🔹 An Important Travel tip 🔹 Giveaway alert 🔹 Next email sneak peek 🏆 Are You the Winner? First up, huge congratulations to Durand C., the winner of a $250 Plannin hotel credit! 🎉 Didn’t win this time? No worries—more contests are coming soon! Just make sure you have a Plannin profile (it’s free) so you...
Happy weekend! SETTING THE RUMORS STRAIGHT: For the last few weeks, I’ve been getting so many comments on my luggage videos asking about the ‘new carry-on sizing changes in 2025.’ I was so confused about where these were coming from because I’ve heard nothing of the sort. Turns out, there have been a couple videos floating around that went viral (like, over a million views in a week) that stated that US airlines are now all following a new size for carry-on bags and that old luggage may not...