Have you been making a list of things to do post-circuit breaker? Or post-pandemic?  No one can tell us when the “virus-free” day will come or how the pandemic will end, but nothing will be the same again.  Especial for travellers.

Whether we can afford the flight tickets, post-covid19 remains to be seen.  But there is no harm thinking about the next vacation spot.  Taiwan came to my mind while scrolling through the old photos on my phone.  Here’s sharing some of my zero waste reusable kits when I travel overseas.

Bring your own water bottle so that you can refuse all the bottled water during the trip.  The water dispensers in airports even dispense hot water, great for tea lovers like me.

I bring this reusable coffee cup instead of my usual stainless steel water bottle during vacations. Because this cup has a wider mouth, this makes it easier for stallholders to fill it with my takeaway drink orders.  The double-walled container is also suitable for hot drink orders.

Waste from single-use plastic bottles can be easily cut to zero when you bring your own reusable ones.  I always boil my own supply of drinking water using the electrical pot provided by the hotel.  Before sleeping, I will boil a full pot of water and let it cool down overnight.  Next morning, fill the bottles and go.  Or, you can also politely ask the hotel’s cafe or restaurant to fill up your drinking bottle before you head out for the day.  At mealtimes, I will also try to ask the eateries to help fill my bottle with plain water.

There is a lot of trash from the pantry items inside the hotel room and at the breakfast counter, if you consume them.  I don’t mind drinking black coffee to skip individually packed sugar and creamer.  I also bring along my handkerchiefs, instead of using the serviettes.  Disposable straws and stirrers are also unnecessary for me; I drink straight out of the cup (yes, iced drinks too!) and reusable chopsticks, spoons, even knives, make suitable stirrers as well!

Taiwan is a vegetarian-friendly destination.  Almost every place has vegan or vegetarian options.

Ice cream served in a cone produces less waste than one served a cup.

Dining-in is always our first choice so that we can be served with reusable plate ware and cutlery.  Byo containers are reserved for packing street food!

Another good reason for dining in; watching chefs close up while they cook your meals!

The reusable menu is so rare to find!  Everywhere else provide paper slips.

I bring along tenugui as a reusable towel/handkerchief, avoiding create trash from the use of wet wipes and tissue paper.

The tenugui make great carriers too!

Tea seed powder is also part of my byo kit, as I use it to wash my greasy food containers, cutlery and drinking bottle at the end of the day.

This enamel food container helped saved plenty of disposable waste being created.

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What kind of reusable containers do you bring when you travel overseas?  What is the max number of byo items you can pack before your bag becomes too heavy!