Travel Hack: The One Grocery Item I Always Pack For Travel
Whether I’m planning a weekend hotel getaway close to home, an overnight at a B&B, an ocean or river cruise, or a two-week trip to Italy, I always pack one item from the grocery store in my suitcase: Disposable bathroom drinking cups. (I bet you thought it was dark chocolate!)
Although BPA-free plastic bathroom cups are available in bulk on Amazon, I generally buy them at my local grocery store because I also use them at home.
Why I worry about hotel bathroom glasses
I’ve read too many travel articles, studies, and anecdotal reports that all agree it isn’t a good idea to use the glasses in a hotel or cruise ship bathroom.
Several hidden-camera investigations by the media have shed light on hotel housekeeping practices. Both experts and housekeepers report that if a water glass is sitting unwrapped on the bathroom counter, it most likely hasn’t been sterilized or run through a dishwasher.
The well-intended housekeeper may have:
- Rinsed the glass in your bathroom without washing it,
- Not rinsed it because it “looked clean,”
- Dried it with a dirty rag or towel, or
- Used a cleaner like Windex to make it look clean and shiny.
One sobering report suggested that some housekeepers reuse the same rag to clean both the toilet and the sink area, potentially exposing your drinking glass to fecal bacteria.
Why I always pack plastic drinking cups
This is why I bring my own:
- I can be sure that I’m rinsing my mouth, taking my pills, or drinking water (preferably bottled) from a clean cup.
- Bathroom cups are inexpensive, lightweight, and take up virtually no room in my suitcase.
- Because they are single-use, I don’t have to leave them on the sink counter, where they’d be exposed to bacteria or cleaning products.
My personal disposable drinking cup preferences:
- Dixie or Solo brand
- Plastic rather than paper (more robust for packing)
- Transparent rather than opaque
The bottom line on hotel bathroom glasses
If you’re lucky, you may find yourself in a hotel or cruise ship bathroom with individually wrapped paper or plastic drinking cups. If so: Cheers! Salud!
But because you never know in advance, it makes sense to always pack drinking cups when you are taking a trip.
N.B. After you read this post, I’m sure you’ll agree that you should always cover your toothbrush in a hotel bathroom. In fact, I keep my covered brush standing up in the glass I never use. And you may have second thoughts about using the glass cups at a minibar.
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