Summer Holiday Essentials - some of our all time favourite natural skincare products we always pack when we travel

Originally posted 13th Aug 2019 

It is holiday season and many of us wonder what skin care products to pack in the suitcase that would tick as many boxes as possible without taking too much space. Having just returned from a weeks holiday on the Black Sea I thought it would be perfect timing to reveal what I pack in my suitcase. Similarly to everybody luggage space is somewhat limited so i tend to opt for as few products as possible that I can use on myself and my family that don't take too much space and don't leave us wishing we'd taken this or that. So here it goes ...

First thing, we obviously needed sun protection as we knew we would be spending most of our days on the beach. For face use I packed Jason's Facial Sunblock - it is an effective oil free sunblock which allowed me to use my usual face care products (more on this later) and apply that on top without getting a greasy film on the face. For the body ...in previous years, ever since the children were little we always opted for Green People's Sun lotions - it is highly effective, unscented for those with allergies to perfumes, it is thick and water proof so if my children were still little i would most certainly have packed that one. 

However, last year we stocked and therefore trialed Alba Botanica's Kids Clear Sprays with SPF50 and surprisingly, for the first time we all got a lovely tan and not a sign of a sunburn or a heat rash. We all liked the fact that it is waterproof, non-greasy and clear as neither of us enjoyed the slight whitening of the skin as a result of using mineral based sun filters, and I personally didn't like my black bikini and beach dress getting white marks all over. This year we packed the Alba Botanica's Sensitive Clear sprays again - just over a bottle per person for the week. Again, we enjoyed sunburn and irritation free holiday and returned with a healthy summer glow.

With the sun protection sorted out, I had to pick my face care products that all condensed into a small travel bag. Well, it wasn't that hard - I packed a bottle of the Virgin Prickly Pear (to wear under my sun cream and as an aftersun skin recovery), a travel size Balancing Cream (i have been religiously using that every since the day i formulated it over 12 years ago), the Neroli toner (as a facial cleanser and make up remover for my and my teenage daughter), chamomile & mandarin lip balm, Lavender & Mandarin Baby Lotion as an aftersun lotion in case of a sunburn and for our hair our travel size Herbal Shampoo for Normal/Oily Hair, Aloe, MuruMuru & Macadamia Conditioner and the 2-in-1 Hair Serum & Mask (because waist length beach hair is so hard to brush without help) plus a bar of Manuka & Oat Soap. As I mentioned earlier, we enjoyed a sunburn free holiday although we did use the Baby Lotion as a hand cream and an all over body moisturiser. I see no reason why it cannot be used as a make up remover as well, should you be looking for a multi-tasking product. Previously we have been using our Unscented Hand & Body Lotion with Cocoa, Almond & Plum Kernel, but i really enjoy the scent of the Lavender & Mandarin so we opted for this one this year.

The prickly pear oil is my favourite oil, i use it religiously on my face and my body at home and I continued to enjoy it on my holiday, see it pictured on our hotel's balcony at the start of the article :). 

The vegan Chamomile & Mandarin Lip balm is a new product we launched last month and as it was the first opportunity to test it in a hot environment, i did bring one along with me. I was forever grateful I did because we did enjoy a few rather windy days on the beach and both skin and lips felt a bit chapped, although immediately soothed by the healing kokum butter and avocado oils contained in the lip balm. They held beautifully on the beach in 32C heat, didn't melt or change constancy so we are now 100% confident they will not let you down on your travels. Plus you will have super soft lips that will glisten in the sun. If you are wondering about sun protection for the lips, i just rubbed a little of my face sun block underneath the balm.

If you have products of ours you have enjoyed taking on your holidays and want to send us your pictures or interesting stories surrounding these products, we would love to hear from you :)