No matter how reputable the airline, mistakes are still made. Most know that you need to make certain your essentials are on the plane with you: medication, passport, money, jewelry (why bring jewelry overseas?), and electronics. Equally important is an essentials kit.

Ten+ hours on a flight is a long time to go without important things like soap with which to wash your hands. (I have been on a Lufthansa flight with no hand soap in the bathrooms because they did not have time to refill before we left.)

Also, Arriving in a new place with your luggage lost and no toothpaste or fresh underwear can launch your trip on the wrong foot.

My coming trip, with a jam-packed agenda and no room for errors makes an emergency kit more important. If luggage is lost, it will be chasing a tour bus all over Austria. Here is what I intend to bring for my personal emergency kit:

• Two pair socks and underwear
• 1 set light weight jammies
• 1 fresh shirt
• 1 warm jacket
• Toothbrush/toothpaste and a small shampoo
• Hairbrush
• Small bag of trail mix
• Gum
• Choral music and binder
• Doterra OnGuard pearls
• 2 aspirin
• Probiotic pills

All of this will only take up a small space in my carry-on and it will be great to have should my bag not make it to Germany with my person.

This article from USA Today is also handy.