You’re ready to take your trip and see the world, but if you don’t properly care for your glasses while traveling, you might not be seeing much of anything. Traveling with glasses is easy enough, but losing or damaging your glasses while on a trip can be a nightmare.
Follow these tips for traveling with glasses to avoid any mishaps on the road!
Know Your Prescription
If you damage or lose your glasses while traveling, you may need to get a new pair. Having your prescription on hand will make this situation a lot easier! Bring a physical copy of your prescription or save it to your phone in an app like Evernote with your other travel documents that you can access offline.
Some destinations (such as the USA) require a recent prescription in order to make glasses. Luckily, even if you don’t know your prescription, Glasses.com will call your doctor for you! And with their fast and free shipping, you can quickly get a new pair delivered to you.
Take an Extra Pair (Just in Case)
For those that heavily rely on their prescription glasses, bring an extra pair. It’s also wise for those that wear contacts to also bring their glasses just in case!
I was traveling in Europe with a friend one summer and my friend accidentally left his toiletry bag with his contacts in it on the plane.
He was so lucky he packed his glasses because his eyesight was so bad it took a week for a local optometrist to order him new contacts. Better safe than not without sight!
Speaking of Cases…
Always store your glasses in a hard case! The easiest way to damage your glasses is by neglecting to store them somewhere safe. Avoid putting your glasses on your head or hanging them on your shirt because it’s the easiest way to break or lose them!
For sunglasses, a neck strap is the ultimate accessory for safe keeping- especially if you’re wearing them around water! That way your glasses are safely secured around your neck, and if they fall off, they won’t get far.
Carry On Your Glasses
If you’re flying, bring one pair of glasses in your carry-on luggage and pack your extra pair in your checked luggage. That way, in a scenario where your luggage is delayed or lost, you always have a pair with you.
Pack a Repair Kit and Lens Cloth
I always pack a glasses repair kit for my reading glasses and sunglasses. Sometime a screw can come loose or you need to tighten your glasses. You should also keep a microfiber lens cloth in your hard case to clean your glasses on the go!
BONUS: You can also use it to you keep your camera lens nice and shiny!
Love this! I’m blind as a bat but I’ve always brought my contacts (and not glasses) while I was traveling. Once I couldn’t find my contact boxes in my suitcase so I was freaking out about essentially being blind the next day. It turned out that my mom had packed it in hers but that scare basically guaranteed I’ll always be carrying glasses with me abroad. So important!!
Great tips! I’m too lazy to deal with contacts on a regular basis, so I usually bring my glasses along! I’m always losing them though because I hate wearing them 24/7 but there are some scenarios (like going to the movies, or reading a Starbucks menu) where I just have to have them! Will definitely keep these in mind!