If you follow me on social media you must’ve seen that I recently went on vacation to San Francisco, can you believe that this was my first trip outside of Canada in over 10 years? Here are some things I’ve learned from this, and some recommendations!
When I was a kid, my parents and I travelled almost every summer. This continued for a couple of years until I started high school, which was when I chose to prioritize my education without distractions. See, our family vacations usually started at the end of August leading into September because, at that time, the prices were cheaper. However, that meant that I usually missed the first week of classes or showed up very tired/jet-lagged. My mom and I originally planned to do a small three-country trip back in 2020 to visit Vietnam (where we have family), Japan and South Korea, but well, we all know what happened.
This trip to the US was a long time coming, and initially would have had my mom and I travelling together but life happened and we had to go at separate times. It was my first time flying alone and I was so nervous in the days leading up to the flight. Especially because I’m a skincare girlie now, I wasn’t sure if I could fit everything I needed into the liquids bag. It’s kind of bewildering to me but why doesn’t anyone talk about this more? It’s difficult being a skincare girlie and wanting to travel… I did make it work luckily, but I genuinely wished I had a bit of firsthand experience when I first got started in skincare. Maybe it would’ve eased that anxiety a little. . .
Some people had recommended buying samples or travel sizes at your destination, and I agree that this is very smart, especially if you’ll already be buying some to take home as well. However, I feel like your mileage may vary, if you were in Asia (I’m being general here) and travelling through cities then I can see this working. I’m not too sure about the US, however, and I didn’t get the chance to try doing that. During my nine-day vacation, I think I only saw one K-beauty store (The Face Shop) and they did not have any minis at all. I didn’t have a chance to check around for other places, nor did I get a chance to stop by Sephora, Kohls or etc. So keeping this in mind, either pack up some minis for your trip or take a bunch of samples with you if you’re unsure.
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Flight Info:
I took a morning flight from Pearson Airport via Porter Airlines, it was a direct five-hour flight to San Francisco Airport. I believe this is a new-ish route because my family in SJ hadn’t heard about Porter before. One thing to note is that there are different ticket tiers with various prices and conditions, so watch out for that. There are about four tiers in PorterClassic, I booked through their website so I chose the Standard ticket which allows for one carry-on and one personal item.
The next tier up, their “Flex” tickets allow for free seat selection (I believe there are conditions too), free advance changes and one piece of checked luggage. Meals are available for purchase unless you purchased their PorterReserve tickets, and they do offer free snacks and drinks. My flight to SF landed around 1-2 pm local time, and my return flight was an afternoon one and landed around 10 pm local time in Toronto.
Initial Observations
My advice for flights with Porter is to definitely book through their website, there were various promotions run when we booked our flights so there was a slight discount. Additionally, if you think you’ll fly somewhat often you can earn points by making an account with Porter. If you need checked luggage, definitely book their flex tickets or opt to purchase them ahead of time online to save some money. And if you end up going with a partner, I think booking one flex ticket and one standard and sharing the suitcase would be good but that depends on your preference. If you know you get hungry on the flight, I recommend buying or bringing some food/snacks to eat at the airport or on the plane if possible.
I’m personally more used to having checked luggage because that’s how we used to travel when I was younger. It was a long game of Tetris to fit the bare minimum into that old carry-on I had, so I don’t think I can recommend that lol. But your mileage may vary, and I definitely suggest trying out both methods; flying with just carry-on or with checked luggage if possible, and deciding which is better for you for somewhat short trips.
However, on this trip I was anxious because my carry-on was an old rolling duffle bag, I was worried about two things. Either the bag breaking apart on me, or it being gate checked (my irrational fear because I don’t know what to do afterwards). Unluckily for me, it did break apart on me, literally. The handle came off in my hand, turning it into a duffle with useless wheels.
Tips:
- Plan and pack your bags ahead of time to prevent missing items for the trip
- Carry your small “going out” purse or etc in the personal item or carry-on for easy access
- Carry a lip balm (stick) in your personal item because my lips got so dry during the flight
- Opt for solid beauty products instead of liquid is possible (sun stick, solid balms etc.)
- Use those medium freezer bags from Ziplock for your liquids bag. It’s the right size (apparently) and should fit a decent amount of travel containers.
Apart from this, my trip went pretty well and I had fun visiting my family and also viewing the sights around California.
