9 Ridiculous Travel Hacks That Actually Saved My Ass Abroad

How I Became the Traveler I Used to Mock

The Travel Hacks Influencers “Dis” Until They’re Stranded and Broke

Ever mocked someone for wearing a money belt, only to realize later they probably never had to beg their mom for a Western Union wire transfer at 2am?

I have. 

I used to roll my eyes at every “travel hack” that involved Velcro, laminated cards, or anything marketed to cruise ship retirees.

I figured surviving marshrutkas in Ukraine and long distance minivan chaos in Albania made me immune.

Then I got pickpocketed in an Irish pub in Tbilisi and found myself in a basement Airbnb, whispering my debit card number to a bot and begging my mom for a wire transfer.

That night, I joined the people I used to mock. 

The ones with awkward gear and zero financial emergencies.

So here it is. 

The 9 ridiculous travel hacks I once laughed at, until they saved my ass abroad.

1. The Neck Wallet I Mocked… Until I Got Robbed in Tbilisi

I used to mock neck wallets like they were a cry for help.

They were somewhere between a fanny pack’s clingy cousin and a wearable warning sign that screamed “first-time traveler.”

Then I got pickpocketed in a crowded Irish pub in Tbilisi.

It was night two of what was supposed to be a relaxing one week stay in Georgia to get a lay of the land for a potential, more semi-permanent move, after 20 years in Ukraine.

I was standing at the bar, balancing a pint of warm-ish Guinness, making small talk with a few Georgian locals. 

Nothing felt off… until I reached for my wallet and realized it was gone.

No drama, no confrontation. Just that cold, creeping wave of “Oh no.”

The next few hours? Absolute chaos. I barely had any cash for the taxi ride back to my Airbnb.

I spent half the night cancelling my debit and credit cards back in the U.S. over SKYPE in a basement Airbnb with glitchy Wi-Fi.

Then, I had to call my mom to wire me a few hundred bucks to get through the week.

Thankfully, the 8-hour time zone difference meant she was just finishing an early dinner while I was spiraling.

I never wore a neck wallet on that trip, but I sure as hell respected it after that.

Because while I was begging Western Union for mercy, some dad-tourist in socks and sandals was sipping his wine with every card and cent still safely tucked under his shirt.

Laugh now. Cry at 2am later.

What Saved My Ass: The most ridiculous-looking travel gear is sometimes the only thing standing between you and an international meltdown.

2. The Weird Packing Cubes That Kept Me Sane in Three Countries

They look like something a prepper would pack before heading into the bunker, but they kept me sane while bouncing between climates and currencies in Georgia, Albania, France and Ukraine.

I had one bag.

It carried everything from fleece layers for the Caucasus winds to short sleeves for the Camino sun to the “in case someone invites me to a wedding” shirt I never needed.

Without those hideous little cubes, my backpack would’ve looked like a sock grenade exploded.

Instead, I knew exactly where everything was… even my backup underwear had a zippered back home.

What Saved My Ass: Packing light is overrated if it means packing messy. Pack smart, label things, and avoid the 6 a.m. sock hunt.

3. I Wore The Same Pair of Jeans for Two Weeks… and It Was Glorious!

It started out of laziness. It became a lifestyle.

Those jeans walked the Camino with me, caught buses through rural Ukraine, and squeezed into more cramped marshrutkas than I can count.

They also survived spilled coffee, hostel floor grime, and whatever that stain from the Albanian bus station was.

No one noticed.

Or if they did, they were too polite to say anything in English.

What Saved My Ass: One good pair of versatile, durable pants can carry you through more countries than your itinerary.

4. Wearing the Same Shirt in Every Photo… Was the Best Decision I Ever Made

It looked repetitive. It felt revolutionary.

When I packed for a three-week run through Bulgaria, Romania, Germany, and back to France, I chose two decent shirts and hoped for the best.

One of them made it into almost every picture. 

Instead of worrying about clashing patterns or creased collars, I looked confident and surprisingly put-together.

Someone even asked if I had a “travel aesthetic.” I told them yes.

It was called “low effort, high consistency.”

What Saved My Ass: A neutral shirt and low expectations beat overpacking and daily laundry stress.

5. I Brought Printed Cheat Sheets to Georgia… and They Actually Worked

Translation apps are great until your battery dies or your phone goes for a swim in street-side puddle after a late winter’s rain.

While wandering the rain-slick streets of Tbilisi, I pulled out a laminated cheat sheet with 20 Georgian phrases.

I had laughed at myself when I made it, but it turned out to be one of the most useful things I carried.

I still don’t know if I pronounced anything correctly.

But I got directions to the Sky Tram station, managed to order dinner, and avoided whatever mystery meat was spinning under a flickering heat lamp at that street food stall in Tbilisi.

What Saved My Ass: When tech fails, old-school paper wins. Especially when you’re soaked, lost, and hungry.

6. I Traveled With A Spork For 2 Months. I’m Not Ashamed

Call it uncool. Call it overprepared.

I call it the reason I never had to eat yogurt with my fingers again.

That $2 spork survived border crossings, overnight trains, and at least one meal in a Ukrainian Stolovaya (Soviet-era Canteen) that probably violated a few health codes.

It bent slightly after a fight with a microwaved meatball, but it earned its place in my pack.

What Saved My Ass: Bring one thing that solves five little problems.

Bonus points if it doesn’t melt.

7. Ziplock Bags Are the Unsung Heroes of International Smuggling (Of Snacks)

I’ve smuggled trail mix across borders like it was precious cargo.

On my second Camino, I learned that trail mix has a melting point. It became a single fused chunk of peanuts, chocolate, and snack regrets.

Luckily, I had it sealed inside a Ziplock.

My charger, journal, and emergency snack plan lived to fight another day.

Ziplocks also saved me in Bulgaria when my shower gel exploded, and again in Greece when I packed wet swim trunks next to my only clean shirt.

Not glamorous. Just smart.

What Saved My Ass: A Ziplock can save your electronics, your clothes, and your dignity… all at once.

8. I Brought Toilet Paper in My Carry-On… and You Should Too

This one speaks for itself. If you’ve ever faced a public squat toilet in a Bulgarian train station with nothing but your receipts from Lidl, you’ll understand.

That small roll is worth its weight in gold.

Before, I didn’t think I’d need it. I even thought it was overkill. 

Now it’s the first thing I pack. I won’t travel without it.

What Saved My Ass: When it comes to toilet paper, it’s better to have it and not need it than need it and improvise.

9. I Once Scheduled My Camino Walk Around the Full Moon… and It Was Magical

It wasn’t planned. Not at first.

In 2015, I found myself walking a stretch of the Camino de Santiago under a full moon.

There were no streetlights, no tour groups, no noise.

Just silver light on stone paths and the sound of my own boots against the dirt. It felt ancient and almost cinematic.

Ever since then, I’ve sometimes checked moon cycles before booking certain trips.

I don’t always plan around them, but when I do, something special tends to happen.

Whether it’s a night walk through Galicia or a quiet coastal evening in Albania, that extra bit of timing adds more than just light.

It changes the whole rhythm of a journey.

What Saved My Ass: You can follow schedules or you can follow the moon.

One of them makes for better stories.

Why the Dumbest Travel Hacks Might Be the Smartest Things You Pack

Most of these hacks were things I mocked, ignored, or outright avoided. Until they worked.

They didn’t just save me time or space. They saved me from freezing up in moments when I needed something to go right.

They helped me keep moving, keep calm, or at the very least, keep my sense of humor when the rest of the day was falling apart.

The travel hacks I once mocked are the only reason I didn’t completely fall apart abroad.

So what’s the dumbest travel hack you’ve ever tried, but secretly saved your ass?