We all know there is more to holiday essentials than a passport, phone and debit card. Here, six stylish and well-travelled women reveal their travel style essentials.
A happy trip away requires a suitcase full of style heroes you can really depend on – sandals that don’t cause blisters, dresses that can actually be worn day to night and compact cover-ups with multiple functions. Although there are always new shopping nuggets that cry out to us every year, there is a lot to learn from the wardrobe treasures we really can’t live without when travelling. Every item we pack has to hold its own.
Refining the art of packing usually comes with experience and understanding the pieces that really work for you, which is why we’ve called on six well-travelled, stylish women to share one fashion essential they always take on holiday, year after year.
Alexandra Fullerton, author and personal stylist: the white shirt
Billie Bhatia, writer and podcast host: the maxi dress
“There is nothing that feels more like summer to me than that calming shade of sea-foam green. It immediately evokes a sense of summer fun. The dress I’m reaching for this season – and the piece I know I am going to pack in my suitcase every year to come – is one I have designed with fashion insider’s favourite dress brand, Rixo. It’s layers of soft, flouncy, chiffon in that sea-foam green. To me, it’s show-stopping without being ostentatious. The neckline is elasticated, so that you can wear it off the shoulder for a more dressed-up evening look with big statement earrings and a pretty pink lip, or you can throw it on over your swimwear and feel a million bucks.”
Vanessa Sposi, swimwear designer: the silk jumpsuit
“The one piece I never travel without is my silk jumpsuit, along with a few essentials from my wild silk collection. These are my go-to pieces – effortlessly elegant, incredibly lightweight, and versatile enough to take me from city mornings to beach afternoons and dressed-up evenings. They don’t take up space in a suitcase and always make me feel confident, comfortable, and polished. There’s something about wild silk, it moves beautifully, feels like a second skin, and reflects a sense of empowered modern femininity. I always pack the black version, which goes with everything. I often add a belt or a printed silk scarf around the waist to give it a twist.”
Scarlett Conlon, journalist: the sarong
“I travel for work a lot and never leave without my block-print Indian cotton sarong packed in my hand luggage. It is the most versatile travel companion. It’s obviously great on beach holidays as a coverup or to put on a sun lounger, but it also doubles up as a lightweight blanket for train and plane journeys, or a scarf if I need one. I also use it to cover up upholstered headboards and chairs in hotel rooms (I just can’t with fabrics in shared spaces), and made it a curtain for a bathroom window with no blind in a recent Airbnb stay. It dries in no time, so can be laundered quickly and always smells like my favourite lavender laundry detergent, which is so comforting when staying away from home.”
Rachel Story, Citizen Femme Style & Commerce Director: the pull-on trouser
“I bought these Toteme trousers from Net-A-Porter when I was pregnant, and three years on, I have worn them on so many trips since. When looking for maternitywear, I wanted to feel polished and put-together in pieces I could still wear after I’d had my baby. I wore these trousers well into my third trimester and they came with us on our babymoon to the Amalfi Coast. They have an elasticated waistband, which is perfect for travel, accommodating both flights and long, big lunches when it helps to have more breathing room. I like styling them with linen or oversized shirting, but they’re just as good thrown over a bikini as a beach look, or dressed up with a blazer for evening. They have a wafty pyjama appeal, but with a real elegant ease. The silk material means they take up zero space in my suitcase, and don’t wrinkle too much either. The burnt orange colour is so sunny too.”
Anna Berkeley, personal stylist and Think Shape founder: the sandal
“I watched these Marni fringed bejewelled sandals like a hawk in Selfridges for a long time before investing. I bought them in 2017 and they get wheeled out a lot. They’re decorated with black, onyx-adjacent jewels and fringing on the top and have an open-toe. They go with absolutely anything. You can wear them in the winter with socks which I love, and with any dress or a rolled-up trouser – any look that shows off the shoe because they’re freaking amazing. If anything happened to them I would be desperate. They come with me on every trip I take.”
Lead image: Billie Bhatia x Rixo
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