Every summer the internet produces lists of “50 travel gadgets you NEED” written by people who clearly never carried them through a 40-minute ferry boarding queue. We did the opposite: we packed ten popular travel gadgets into one carry-on across two Greek island trips in June, and kept score of what got used daily, what got used once, and what never left the bag.
Seven earned their space. Here they are.
Quick picks (TL;DR)
- Best power bank: Anker Zolo 10K (built-in cable) ~$26 → Check on Amazon
- Best beach companion: Kindle Paperwhite (2024) ~$159 → Check on Amazon
- Best action camera: GoPro HERO13 Black ~$349 → Check on Amazon
- Best luggage tracker: Apple AirTag 4-Pack ~$79 → Check on Amazon
- Best travel adapter: EPICKA Universal Adapter ~$24 → Check on Amazon
- Best cheap insurance: JOTO Waterproof Phone Pouch (2-pack) ~$9 → Check on Amazon
- Best off-grid: BigBlue 28W Solar Charger ~$65 → Check on Amazon
1. Anker Zolo 10K — Best Power Bank ($26)
The single most-used item of both trips. 10,000mAh is two full phone charges, it’s airline-legal, and the built-in USB-C cable means you stop carrying (and losing) a separate one. It topped up a phone, earbuds and a Kindle, daily, for under thirty bucks.
Pros: Built-in cable. Right size-to-capacity for travel. Cheap.
Cons: Won’t fast-charge a laptop.
Verdict: The first thing to pack. Check on Amazon
2. Kindle Paperwhite (2024) — Best Beach Companion ($159)
Phones are unreadable in direct sun; the Paperwhite is built for it. The 7-inch glare-free screen reads like paper at noon, it’s waterproof (IPX8) so a pool splash means nothing, and the battery lasted both trips with room to spare.
Pros: Perfect in sunlight. Weeks of battery. Waterproof.
Cons: Locked into Amazon’s ecosystem.
Verdict: The difference between “brought a book” and “read a book.” Check on Amazon
3. GoPro HERO13 Black — Best Action Camera ($349)
Waterproof to 10 m with no case, stabilization that turned a bumpy boat ride into smooth footage, and 5.3K video that makes phone clips look flat. The footage from the sea caves was the best souvenir of the trip.
Pros: Unmatched stabilization. No housing needed for snorkeling depth. Rugged.
Cons: Battery life in heat means carrying spares. Editing 5.3K eats storage.
Verdict: Worth it if your summer involves water, boats or bikes. Check on Amazon
4. Apple AirTag 4-Pack — Best Luggage Tracker ($79)
One in the checked bag, one in the daypack, one on the keys, one in the camera case. Watching your suitcase report its location from the hold while the airline app still says “processing” is the most reassurance $79 buys in travel.
Pros: Find My network is everywhere tourists are. Year-plus battery.
Cons: Android users should look at Chipolo or Tile instead.
Verdict: Buy once, never wonder where your bag is again. Check on Amazon
5. EPICKA Universal Adapter — Best Travel Adapter ($24)
One brick that covers 150+ countries with four USB-A ports plus USB-C — it charged a phone, watch, earbuds and power bank simultaneously from a single hotel outlet, which is exactly the bottleneck every hotel room has.
Pros: Whole-family charging from one socket. Built-in fuse.
Cons: Bulky in a pocket. USB-C output is modest — it’s not a laptop charger.
Verdict: The hotel-room multiplier. Check on Amazon
6. JOTO Waterproof Phone Pouch — Best Cheap Insurance ($9)
Nine dollars for two pouches that let you take your phone swimming, kayaking, or just keep it sand-free on the towel. Touchscreens work through the film, photos shoot fine, and the lanyard means it doesn’t end up at the bottom of the Aegean.
Pros: Costs less than a beach cocktail. Touchscreen works through it.
Cons: Photos through the film lose some sharpness underwater.
Verdict: The highest value-per-dollar item in this guide. Check on Amazon
7. BigBlue 28W Solar Charger — Best Off-Grid ($65)
A fold-out solar panel that hangs off a backpack or beach umbrella and genuinely charges devices in Mediterranean sun — we watched a phone go from 20% to 80% over a long beach lunch. For boat days and remote beaches with zero outlets, it replaced range anxiety entirely.
Pros: Real charging speed in full sun. No battery to age out.
Cons: Useless in shade or clouds; pair it with a power bank.
Verdict: For the beaches that don’t have a beach bar. Check on Amazon
What we left out
Three gadgets didn’t earn their space: a portable espresso maker (used once, cleaned for ten minutes), a “travel” white-noise machine (a phone app is identical), and a mini projector (hotel walls are never as blank as you imagine). The lesson from keeping score: the gadgets you use daily are boring — power, reading, charging — and the exciting ones mostly stay in the bag.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the airline limit for power banks?
100Wh (about 27,000mAh) in carry-on only — never checked luggage. Everything in this guide is comfortably under the limit. Some airlines now ask that power banks stay reachable during the flight, not in the overhead bin.
Do AirTags work internationally?
Yes — they piggyback on every nearby iPhone, so coverage is best exactly where luggage gets lost: airports, ports and tourist towns.
Is a GoPro better than my flagship phone for vacation?
For anything involving water or motion, yes — waterproofing without a case and far better stabilization. For everything else, your phone wins. That’s why the phone pouch is the budget alternative.
Verdict
If you buy one thing, make it the Anker Zolo 10K — it’s the gadget that gets used every single day. The Kindle Paperwhite and AirTags are the comfort-and-sanity upgrades, and the $9 JOTO pouch is the best money-to-usefulness ratio we’ve ever scored on a trip.