Travel is always an adventure, but you don’t want it to be an ordeal. To help you be properly prepared, we’ve rounded up some of the best travel hacks submitted in our Travel Hacks competition!

In case you missed it, we’ve announced the winners of both the Travel Hacks competition and the Best Departures Photo competition! Congratulations to winners Shelly Cause, Mel Bedwell and Brianna Bellamy who each won a Samsonite suitcase set valued at $1428 each.

1. You can survive almost any emergency at sea with duct tape:
   • Repairs the hem of your dress
   • Tape the curtains closed to keep out the sunlight
   • Make your own lint brush
   • Keeps extension cords out of the way
   • Line hats inside to make smaller
   • Keeps long shoelaces from tripping you on the treadmill (Yes there is a gym)
   • Make sticky notes out of the ship’s stationery
   • Belly button lint remover
   • Tape bingo cards to the table in rough seas
   • Keeps your eyelids open to stay awake for late shows
   • After too many midnight buffets, make your own girdle
   • Tape yourself to the toilet during rough seas
   • Do-it-yourself bikini wax
   • Garters to keep your stockings up
   • Instant hand cuffs
   • The rowdy kid in the cabin next door… tape him to the wall
   • Makes a great strapless bra, it lifts and separates
   • Done correctly, it can be used as a contraceptive device (apparently)
2. When staying at an Airbnb, screenshot all the photos on the listing.
   Search the address on google and screenshot those images too. You’ll never get lost this way!
3. Put a thin lining of Vasoline inside each nostril. This stops the inner lining of the nose drying up which prevents too much bacteria from getting into your nose and throat and making you sick.
4. Bring an extension cable and powerboard with you. This enables you to charge multiple devices at the same time regardless of the location of the power points.
5. Use a button to keep earrings together
6. Store your cables and chargers in old glasses case to minimise tangling
7. Pack your shoes in a shower cap to keep everything clean
8. Use your hair straightener as an iron for your wrinkly clothes
9. Book you return flight on a different month than your outbound flight so you have a different set of movies and entertainment to choose from
10. Mark your bag as fragile, that way it is treated better and is first off the plane and first onto the carousel.
11. When heading somewhere cold with all those puffy baggy jackets that take up room, pack them in vacuum seal bags so you don’t waste space and you have room for so much more! Not sure how to vacuum seal coming back home? Put everything in the bag and then roll them to get all of the air out then put the sealer cap on
12. Use your glasses to put your phone at the perfect angle for watching videos. Don’t get tired arms from holding your phone!
13. Buy an over the door shoe organizer and place every day essentials in it so it’s all in one place when travelling
14. Take a lightweight bike chain to secure your suitcase in the luggage racks when travelling on trains overseas. You can then sit back and enjoy the ride.
15. Pack a box of tumble dryer sheets to put throughout your bags then when you arrive your clothes will smell fresh. This is also a great hack if you’re backpacking for a few months!
16. Bring a little bit of dishwash liquid with you when travelling with a baby, so you can clean bottles in bathroom sink if you aren’t staying in an apartment with a sink
17. When travelling with kids, pack a days worth of clothes in separate reusable bags and label each bag the day they wear it. Saves a messy suitcase, 100 conversations about what they need to wear, another 100 conversations on ‘I can’t find it mum’ and the dirty clothes can go back into same bag at end of the day
18. Use Park on King – we’ve saved the best for last and this was one of the most popular submissions for good reason! Flying out of Sydney Airport? Save time and money by driving your own car to Park on King. Pre-book your airport parking online for our best rates and enjoy our free on-demand shuttle to your terminal.