The Seatmates gift guide

The ultimate guide to travel essentials, curated by the top tastemakers from Window Seat

Nov 25, 2024

For the ultimate travel gift guide, I turned to the people who do it best—Window Seat’s Seatmates, a group of tastemakers who’ve shared exactly how they move through the world with style. This guide is a treasure trove of their expert recommendations for luggage, wellness, tech, and organization travel essentials. Featuring picks from Helen of

, Aja & Aliza of

, Jordan of

, and

, expect to find the products they swear by, along with a few of my own personal must-haves.

Before we dive in:

You can read my first gift guide here, which features tightly-curated products to help you fly fashionably (most of which are under $300).
***UPDATE: GIVEAWAY CLOSED.*** There’s still time to enter my giveaway celebrating one year of Window Seat! If you’re a paid subscriber, you’ll automatically be entered to win a bundle of my favorite travel gear from top brands (worth over $1,000!). Paid subscriptions are discounted right now to just $4/month or $32/year.

Luggage Picks

The clear favorite brand among Seatmates was Away, with 5 out of 8 respondents choosing it as their go-to luggage brand for its blend of style and reliability.

The good news for you? Away is having a huge sale right now where literally everything is 25% off until 12/2!

This is the absolute best time to pick up my favorite travel product ever, the Everywhere Tote. This bag is my personal item on every single trip. It doesn’t look bulky when I wear it on-shoulder, it has a laptop compartment (that fits up to a 16” laptop) with a snap closure, and features a trolley sleeve so I can slip it over my carry-on handle when I travel with one. I also love that it’s made from water-resistant nylon so it weathers any kind of transit situation. It’s the best-looking, most practical option for exactly what I need.

Here’s what Seatmates use from Away on their travels:

Jalil’s go-to carry-on is from the Away x Willie Norris collection, but he also likes the newer Softside Large suitcase
Aliza, Margot and Jordan all use and love the Bigger Carry-On
Erika swears by the Aluminum Edition Carry-On and Quilted Everywhere Bag (the latter was actually the most-clicked item in a Seatmates issue ever!)

Wellness Picks

Seatmates know that traveling can take a toll on the body, so they’ve curated wellness essentials to stay refreshed, relaxed, and ready for the journey.

Keeping myself hydrated in-flight is really important to me. I recently picked up Violette_FR’s Boum Boum Milk and Eadem’s Le ChouChou Balm and am obsessed with both for keeping my skin and lips glowing at 30,000 feet (I wrote more about both products here).

Kayla and Jordan both love Caudelie’s Beauty Face Mist, while Erika considers Tower 28’s SOS Spray a travel essential (in travel size, of course)
Jalil likes Jack Black’s lip balm while Jordan always has a customized balm from Oficine Universelle Buly on hand
For hand cream, Jordan keeps Typology’s D91 hand balm close by while Jalil packs Flamingo Estate’s Manuka Rich Cream

My favorite new-to-me wellness tip came from Jordan, who uses Aesop’s Ginger Flight Therapy—a pulse-point therapy roll-on enhanced with oils of Ginger Root, Lavender, and Geranium—to use in-flight to ease stress and anxiety.

And of course, drinking water is essential! Margot, Jalil, and Helen all mentioned how important it is to stay hydrated, while Helen has a great pro-tip: she eats a heavy protein breakfast, then aims to water fast for the duration of her flight to help prevent bloating.

Tech Picks

75% of Seatmates included tech in their lists of must-have travel products.

We know that the right tech products can transform the travel experience, making it easier, more entertaining, and more productive. But it’s more than just about having the latest gadgets—it’s about smart choices that solve real travel challenges.

Kindles were a big stand-out—Margot, Erika, and Jordan all travel with one.
Portable chargers are both considered a travel necessity by Jordan and Aja, and I agree! I love Anker’s MagGo Power Bank that stays glued to the back of your phone and offers up to almost two full charges at lightning speed. For a charger that does double duty as a chic luggage tag, try this one.
Headphones are an obvious must-have. Erika always keeps multiple corded headphones on her, Helen travels with both AirPods and AirPods Max, and Jordan opts for a noise-canceling, over-ear pair by Bose.
I’ve been an AirTag evangelist for some time now, and I’m glad I’m not alone! Jordan puts them in everything she travels with, and Aliza uses them to stay organized when traveling with her toddler. A 4-pack would make a great stocking stuffer, along with a cute leather keyring to attach them to your bag.

Organization Picks

Seatmates pack smarter, not harder. Traveling is all about efficiency, and Seatmates have mastered the art of packing with tools and strategies that keep their belongings organized and accessible.

Anyone who knows me knows how much importance I place on keeping my suitcase organized. I have dedicated organizers, travel cases, and pouches for just about everything that comes with me on a trip. Seatmates aren’t much different—here are the things they pack to stay organized.

If you haven’t been converted to a packing cube user yet, let Aliza and I convince you. We both swear by them for keeping our clothing organized (and the compression can help you pack more if you like to bring as many options as possible, like me). I’ve used these for years but have been looking to upgrade; maybe to this set?
Speaking of packing as much as possible, Helen has a great tip: she brings an expandable tote bag that packs flat but can turn into a carry-on on your flight home.
My favorite travel organization products have to be what I use for decanting toiletries: Cadence capsules and RIES refillable containers. I can’t recommend them highly enough!
Everyone needs a good pouch to keep essentials close by—I’m hoping Santa brings this one (monogrammed, of course).

Interested in being featured in Seatmates or know someone who should be? Drop me a line here.

This post contains some affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase (at no cost to you).

Tori Simokov is a Travel Writer and Graphic Designer/Strategist based in New York. To get in touch, email tori@v1projects.com. Want more? Check out Instagram, TikTok, or shop her curated favorites.