ADVENTURE IS OUT THERE. – CHARLES MUNTZ
Home is where the heart is but it doesn't have exclusive rights to our creature comforts. It's no secret I use essential oils to increase my comfort, boost my health, and elevate my overall well-being. I have a nice routine at home with my plant friends, but I also travel a lot. I left my plant friends behind for a long time, feeling silly for wanting to dedicate space and weight in my luggage to them. For a long time, I was foolish. Using essential oils while traveling has become, well, essential.
Getting There
There are a few necessities that come in handy no matter how or why you travel. The main goal while traveling is to arrive safely, happily, and healthily. Essential oils that have antibacterial and antimicrobial properties really shine here. The other way essential oils really help, no matter how you are traveling, is with your mood. Oils can be very soothing, highly stimulating, overall refreshing, or very uplifting.
First off, let’s focus on arriving in good health. There’s no place dirtier than gas stations, airports, bus stations, or cruise ports. While traveling keep your hands clean. It’s your best defense against germs. Here’s a recipe for some homemade hand sanitizer.
Hand Sanitizer
⅔ cup of rubbing alcohol.
⅓ cup of aloe vera.
5 -10 drops of essential oil such as Eucalyptus, Tea Tree, Lavender, and Rosemary are good choices. Our Papa Legba, and Simbi Anpaka blends are also wonderful additions to hand sanitizer.
Alternatively, you can customize and enhance your commercial hand sanitizer by simply adding your essential oils. If you’re an anxious traveler, you can get a two-for-one benefit by adding some antibacterial and calming oils like lavender or marjoram. If your stomach turns when you’re on the move, add in some peppermint or ginger essential oil.
Deodorizer/ Refresher
Another simple, but effective potion to take on your travels is a simple deodorizer or refresher. A simple spray-on that helps remove the travel funk and reset your mind can be an absolute godsend.
In an 8 oz spray bottle mix:
⅔ cup of witch hazel
⅓ cup of aloe vera.
16 drops of essential oil
I particularly love citrus oils for this purpose. Not only are they calming, but they are also uplifting, giving you the boost you need to make it that extra mile.
Our Marie Laveau blend, Papa Legba, or our Traffic Jam blends would be my top choices for a deodorizer/ refresher spray while on the go. An essential oil roll-on is also an option, but I find the witch hazel more refreshing than a roll-on.
Travel Sickness and Anxiety
There is nothing worse than suffering from motion sickness or anxiety while traveling. Thankfully essential oils can really help in this department. Peppermint, lavender, and ginger are at the top of the list to help with nausea. Simply inhale the oil directly from the bottle. Our Vishuddha blend can help calm your mind while settling your stomach. I also used to always travel with the OG peppermint Altoids. The peppermint Altoids in the larger tin are made with real peppermint oil and can really settle your stomach. Ginger chews are another helpful tummy soother that's easy to take in a carry-on.
Travel anxiety can be alleviated in the same way, just choose oils on the relaxing side of life. Ylang-ylang is a good oil to have if you get heart-pounding anxiety. Ylang Ylang can actually ease anxiety-induced heart palpitations. Other oils that will calm you down include lavender and marjoram. Our best calming blends are Yemaya, Erzulie Freda, Anahata, and Marie Laveau.
Please keep in mind that super-strong essential oils can irritate other passengers if you're on public transit.
By Air
A quick note on air travel anxiety. As much as I love and use essential oils to help with anxiety, the absolute flying game changer I discovered is noise-canceling headphones. I went from being a white-knuckle flyer to being a pretty darned calm flyer. I don't think I ever realized how much the noise of the engines stressed me out till it was gone.
If you're traveling by plane there are a few extra guidelines you have to follow. TSA treats essential oils just like any other liquid. You are allowed as many 3 oz containers of liquids as you can fit into a quart-sized bag in your carry-on. Here's what I always make sure to bring with me on a plane.
Long flight refresher / Personal deodorizer,
When going for the long haul nothing will make you feel better than a personal refresher. This is a sure way to reset your mind and remove the funk. Also always have your toothbrush and some paste in your carry-on. Brushing your teeth on an overnight or red-eye flight actually really takes the edge off.
Mix 2 oz. organic witch hazel extract and
12 drops of essential oil in a spray bottle.
Choose the essential oil that best suited your needs.
The following oils are good choices: Lemongrass, Lavender, or Frankincense. Our Papa Legba, Simbi Anpaka, and Marie Laveau blends are really wonderful at renewing your mindset.
Jet Lag
Jet lag sucks and can really put a damper on your trip. There are a few ways to help reset your body to any new time zone you find yourself in.
The fastest way I've found to reset your body to a new time zone is to eat at the appropriate local time. You probably won't be hungry, but eat something, anything. So many long flights leave at night, you land in the am, and get all your stuff and out around lunchtime. Eat lunch! Also, make sure you stay up till at least 9 pm. No matter how tired you are DO NOT TAKE A NAP!!
There are a few essential oils that can also really help. Peppermint, lemongrass, and tea tree can help keep you alert and awake. Our Long-haul blend is a stimulating blend designed to keep you up and focused for the long haul.
When it does come time to sleep, no matter how exhausted you are, it can be really difficult when adjusting to a new time zone. If this is you, Marjoram needs to be your new BFF. Lavender is relaxing and, while it is a good choice, marjoram is the plant that will put you to sleep. Our Yemaya and Anahata blends are Marjoram based.
By Land
Everyone loves a good road trip! There are a number of really good ways to use essential oils while you’re on the road. You can buy a travel diffuser that sits on the vents of your car. I have also applied essential oils directly to my car vents. You can also make an air freshener spray. As always, just inhaling the scent from a bottle is quite effective.
Travel Blends
We’ve designed a couple of blends targeted at traveling on the road.
Traffic Jam
It just sucks when you finally get on the road, ready for adventure and you hit traffic. Is it normal? Is it an accident? How far behind schedule is this going to put us? Fortunately, we made a relaxing blend that eases tension, yet is not sedative. It is also designed to spur creativity and a sense of wonder. Lavender, bergamot, benzoin, grapefruit, and clary sage combine to keep you calm and cool, even during traffic jams.
Long Haul
When you’re going to be on the road for the long haul this blend is for you. Energizing, balancing, and soothing. This is also an awesome blend to soothe those who experience car sickness. Peppermint, niaouli, lavender, and myrrh helps keep you alert on the longest of road trips and throughout the longest of days.
Arrival
We’ve arrived. The traveling is over. Now it’s time to settle in. Essential oils can really help make your new place really feel like a home. Traveling with your own essential oils really supports your mind and body while making your hotel really feel like your own place.
If you find yourself in a room that is a little musty or smells a little. . off, a room spray can be a lifesaver. Mix 10 drops of essential oil per 1 oz of distilled water in a glass spray bottle. You can also just use the same personal spray for travel to help refresh your room. If you’ve chosen to travel with a bottle or two of pure essential oil you can add a few drops to the AC vents if it's a wall unit. I’m also a fan of adding a couple of drops to light bulbs as a make shift heat diffuser.
Toiletries
Another thing I’m not a fan of when staying in hotels is their toiletries. The soaps and shampoos are drying. I always travel with my own soap and shampoo. When choosing what to bring I always take into consideration the climate of the place I’m traveling to. I definitely always travel with a Miracle Salve and a lip balm, when traveling to more arid climates.
Adjusting to new allergins
Another thing to think about when venturing out into the world is regional allergies. You never know when you’ll come into contact with something your body just isn’t used to. Essential oils that act as antihistamines include Frankincense, Rosemary, Eucalyptus, and Lavender.
For business trips
When traveling for fun it’s easy to forgo the comforts of home. There are so many shiny things to focus on, people to meet and new experiences to be had. But when you’re not traveling for fun essential oils can really add a layer of comfort that make even the most grueling business trips a treat.
When I travel for business it’s usually made of many, many really long days. I have a couple of concerns when I travel for business. First off is fighting the homesickness. For this, I like to take grounding, centering, and comforting blends. Marie Laveau, Maman Brigitte, and Muladhara are all excellent choices to help you center and ground yourself.
Secondly, I take essential oils to keep me alert, focused, and on the go. It can be hard to be in a totally new place and function in a professional capacity at the same time. My favorite oils for this purpose are Black Pepper and Lemongrass. I love using the Papa Legba blend when I need to get focused and productive. Baron Samedi also helps me stay alert and centered.
When traveling long term I like to bring a little lagniape. A treat to look forward to, if you will.
Think of something nourishing and soul-soothing to bring with you. I love a good bath. This last trip I took was a month on the road and I brought two Ritual Baths to treat myself throughout. You can also just bring your favorite oils and add them (no more than 12) to some Epsom salts for a restorative soak. You can also add essential oils to a carrier oil to make yourself a wonderful massage oil.
OH, THE PLACES YOU’LL GO! – DR. SEUSS
My best advice for traveling is to pick your favorite three oils or blends. Shoot for one that is calming, one that is action-oriented, and one for health. Take a personal spray that can also be used as a room spray that brings your joy. Bringing straight essential oils with you opens up more possibilities. It’s easy to find carrier supplies on the road, and then you have more options on how to use your oils without having to bring a lot of stuff while you’re traveling.
From making the traveling process more bearable to making your temporary home feel more like your regular home, essential oils are a necessity while traveling. Not only can they help keep us germ-free and healthy, but they also help us adjust to new climates and settle in while on the road. Essential oils don’t take up a lot of room and don’t weigh much. Leaving them behind is really just silly.