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Product review - Travelon travel toiletry sheets
In today's product review, I'm going to review the Travelon travel toiletry sheets. The product consists of an assortment of dry travel toiletries in small plastic containers. Each container holds 50 sheets. Travelon has 6 different sheets; Hand soap, laundry soap, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream and body wash.
Since the sheets are dry, you can carry them on board without worrying about the TSA. To activate a sheet, you simply wet it, and rub a little.
I put the sheets through the only test possible; by actually using them.
Hand soap - the container recommends using 1-2 sheets, but I found that one sheet is more than enough for a decent lather. The sheet dissolves in a matter of seconds and has a pleasant, but fairly neutral smell. It certainly doesn't smell as bad as the cheap generic soap in most public bathrooms. After a good scrubbing, my hands did feel noticeably softer than before washing.
Laundry Soap - the only way to test this, is on something stained. Thankfully with a young child in the house it isn't too hard to find something filthy. The package recommends 1-4 sheets depending on the number of items.
In a sink filled with water I added 2 sheets and after about a minute of rubbing, the shirt appeared clean. It's hard to tell whether the water did most of the cleaning, or the sheets. There is very little foaming from the sheets, but once I had let the shirt air dry, it did smell like it had been freshly laundered. The laundry soap sheets are fairly sticky, so you need to be careful to only remove the number of sheets you need, it's pretty easy to grab 6 or 7 by mistake. The sticky sheets also took much longer to dissolve, with little pieces of green gel sticking to the sink, so you really do need to rub the sheet quite a bit to dissolve it.
Shampoo/conditioner - In the name of science, I even tried these sheets. The package recommends 1-6 sheets of shampoo and 1-4 sheets of conditioner. If you have a head full of hair, you'll be leaning towards the maximum number. The sheets didn't foam up as much as regular shampoo, but it did leave my hair feeling cleaner. Like with the laundry soap, you need to rub hard to dissolve the sheet, and I highly recommend keeping the soap out of your hair till it has all dissolved.
Shaving cream - The package recommends 1-4 sheets, but I found that 3 is about the bare minimum for a decent shave. It lathers up lightly and smells like most generic shaving cream products.
Body wash - The package recommends 1-8 sheets which clearly depends on how dirty you are. Of all the sheets I tested, I'd say that this one smells the nicest, but it's also the stickiest. Once the sheet gets wet you really need to rub hard to dissolve it completely or you'll be covered in green gunk.
Each Travel toiletry sheet package contains 50 sheets and costs $5.95 (MSRP). The packages weigh .6 ounces, for a total of just 3.2 ounces for all 6. Being able to carry 6 different toiletry products at just 3.2 ounces is fantastic for light travelers. The sheets are certainly not a product I'd use to replace "real" toiletries, but they are perfectly usable for those occasions where you don't have access to anything else, or just need a quick cleaning or a shave on the plane. Because the sheets are sensitive to water, I'd highly recommend carrying them in a sealed bag or other watertight container, once they get wet, you have to use them right away and I doubt water directly in the package would do them much good.
You can purchase the Travelon travel toiletry sheets from most major online travel product stores, including Magelllans (sold per 2 for $9.85), and Irv's luggage (sold for $4.95)
In conclusion, I'm pretty impressed with most of the sheets. They clearly get "the job" done without adding too much weight to your luggage. At $5.95 each, they are not too expensive, especially considering you get up to 50 uses out of each package. I highly recommend them for anyone who has ever arrived at their destination feeling in desperate need of a shave or quick wash. A bottle of water and a couple of sheets are all you need to feel fresh again.
Filed under: Gadling Gear Review
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
beatofhawaii Jul 23rd 2008 4:18PM
The sheets are fine, but you can't get much less "green" than that. There is a plethora of non-liquid, travel-friendly alternatives to Travelon, which I listed here: http://beatofhawaii.com/carry-on-only-how-to-avoid-tsa-liquid-hassles/.
Aloha, Jeff
gwen khoury Jul 31st 2008 10:42AM
To the Flying Public: We're sorry.
We're sorry we have no pillows.
We're sorry we're out of blankets.
We're sorry the airplane is too cold.
We're sorry the airplane is too hot.
We're sorry the overhead bins are full.
We're sorry we have no closet space for your oversized bag.
We're sorry that's not the seat you wanted.
We're sorry there's a restless toddler/overweight/offensive smelling passenger seated next to you.
We're sorry the plane is full and there's no other seats available.
We're sorry you didn't get your upgrade.
We're sorry that guy makes you uncomfortable because
he "looks like a terrorist".
We're sorry there's a thunderstorm and we can't take off.
We're sorry we don't know when it will stop.
We're sorry you're crammed into a space so small that if you were an animal PETA would protest.
We're sorry a Super 80 has no music or video entertainment for your 3 hour flight.
We're sorry we ran out of your favorite soda.
We're sorry there's no more sandwiches.
We're sorry that Budweiser costs $6.00.
We're sorry we don't have diapers for your baby.
We're sorry we don't have milk for same baby.
We're sorry you can't hang out by the cockpit door waiting to use the bathroom. We're sorry you can't hang out at the back of the airplane.
We're sorry you have to sit down and fasten your seatbelt.
We're sorry you have to put your seat up for landing.
We're sorry we don't know when we're going to land.
We're sorry we don't know whether your plane to (substitute any city in the world) will be waiting for you when we land.
We're sorry we've been diverted because we ran out of gas waiting to land.
We're sorry for these and so many other things that we have absolutely no control over but which we are held accountable for EVERY SINGLE DAY.
Please understand. Flight attendants are not the enemy. We share your space. More than anyone – we want to have a nice, pleasant travel experience.
There is a reason behind everything we ask you to do. It may be a FAA Directive. It may be security related. It may be a company procedure.
We don't just make stuff up. We don't spend 8 weeks at the flight academy learning how to pour a Coke. There are many things that flight attendants are watching for constantly on every flight FOR YOUR SAFETY.
It's not because we're bored or so controlling that we just enjoy telling people what to do. I, for one, would like to have one flight where I didn't have to repeatedly tell people to put their seats up for landing. Seriously. Can't you just do what we ask sometimes? Without the glares, eye rolling and disdain? For the record – putting your seat up for landing may not seem that important to your personal safety. However, it is very important for the person sitting BEHIND YOU. If you have ever tried to get out of a row where someone has their seat back you know it can be a challenge. Try grabbing your ankles (emergency brace position) or getting out that row quickly with smoke in the cabin.
Understand a little better now?
Many of the things we ask passengers to comply with are FAA directives. Like carry-on bag stowage and exit row requirements. When we can serve drinks (in the air) and when we can't (after the aircraft door is closed or on an active taxi-way). We are only allowed to move about the cabin during taxi out for safety related duties. We can't get you blankets then, or hang coats, or get you drinks. It's not because we don't want to. It's because we are held personally responsible if we fail to comply with FAA directives. Meaning that the FAA can fine us personally up to $10,000 if we fail to comply or enforce an FAA Directive. Like no bags at the bulkhead. No children in the exit row. No one moving around the cabin during taxi. Perhaps now you know why flight attendants get a little testy when people move about the cabin when they're not supposed to. It's not the company that gets in trouble for that. It's us.
Personally, I wish the airlines would show worst case scenario safety videos. Like what happens if you walk through the cabin during turbulence. There could be a guy who has just fallen and smacked his face on the metal armrest and now has a bloody, gushing broken nose. Or an elderly lady who now has a broken arm because someone walking to the bathroom fell on her. Maybe a passenger with a broken neck because somebody opened an overhead bin during turbulence and a suitcase fell out and onto the person sitting beneath it. These things can easily happen in a fast moving, unstable air environment.
Please just trust that we are looking out for your best interest and stop fighting with us about everything we ask you to do. It is exhausting.
Finally, please, please direct your hostility and frustrations in the direction where they will be most effective: The customer service department. They are the ones equipped to handle your complaint and implement procedures for CHANGE. Think about it. Complaining to the flight crew about all your negative travel experiences is about the same as complaining to the office janitor because your computer isn't working. It may make you feel better to vent about it – but it really won't fix anything. More than anybody we are already aware of the lack of amenities, food, service and comfort on the aircraft. Please share your concerns with the people in the cubicles at corporate who need that information to make better decisions for the flying public.
It's frustrating that so many people are in denial about what the travel industry is about now. The glory days of pillows, blankets, magazines and a hot meal for everyone are long gone. Our job is to get you from point A to point B safely and at the cheapest possible cost to you and the company. So be prepared. If you are hungry – get a sandwich before you get on the plane. If it's a 3 hour flight, anticipate that you may get hungry and bring some snacks. If you are cold natured – bring a wrap. Think for yourself and think ahead. Otherwise, don't complain when you have to pay $3.00 for a cookie and are left with a crusty blanket to keep you warm.
We hear often that the service just isn't what is used to be. Well, the SERVICE we provide now isn't what it used to be.
When I was hired, my job was to serve drinks, meals, ensure that safety requirements were met and tend to in-flight medical issues.
Since 9/11 my primary job is to ensure that my airplane will not be compromised by a terrorist.
9/11 may be a distant memory now to many, but be assured that EVER DAY a flight attendant reports to work he or she is constantly thinking about 9/11. We feel a personal responsibility to ensure that something like that never happens again. We can never relax. We can never not be suspicious about someone's intentions. It is difficult to be vigilant and gregarious at the same time. Especially when most of us are working 12 hour days after layovers that only allow 5-6 hours of sleep. Not because we were out partying and having a grand time on the layover – but because the delays that you experience as a passenger also affect us as a crew, so that what was a 10 hour layover is now 8 hours which doesn't leave a lot of time to recover from what has become an increasingly stressful occupation.
Despite everything, I still enjoy being a flight attendant.
I am writing this letter because I do still care about my profession and about the public perception of flight attendants. In the increasingly challenging travel world it is becoming more imperative than ever for people to just be decent to each other. I can go through an entire day without one person saying anything remotely civil. I will stand at the aircraft door and say hello to everyone who enters and maybe 50% will even look at me and even less will say hello back. I will try to serve someone a meal who can't be bothered to take their headsets off long enough for me to ask them what they want. Most of the time the only conversation a passenger has with me is when they are complaining. Is it any wonder why flight attendants have shut down a bit? After suffering the disdain of hundreds of passengers a day it's difficult sometimes to even smile, much less interact. We are human.
We appreciate the same respect and courtesy that passengers do. The next time you fly, try treating the flight attendants the way you would like to be treated. You may be surprised how friendly your flight crew is when they are treated like people