Travel Skincare Tips: Your Guide to In-Flight Skincare

Holiday travel can be stressful. We’re here to make sure you get off the plane looking with your skin well hydrated, out of the car looking merry and bright, and onto your final destination glowing and ready to take on the holidays. Just because the trip may be stressful, doesn’t mean your skin needs to show it.

The most important travel skincare tip we have is this: prep. Prep your skin for dryer air up in the sky, cooler temps that the holiday season tends to bring, and changes in water from what your skin is used to.

Treat your skin the week before traveling and apply a hydrating face mask. Our No Plans Face Mask uses kaolin clay to effortlessly pull impurities from the skin, while powerful antioxidants like raspberry, rosehip, and lemon peel deeply nourish the skin to keep it healthy all through your busy travel day.

Counteract dry airplane air by applying a natural hyaluronic acid serum (like Pep Rally) before you head to the airport. It keeps your skin moisture levels up for brighter, clearer, and travel-ready skin.

This next step is important: Don’t forget to lock in the moisture from your serum with a natural face moisturizer! Serums penetrate deep into the skin tissue, but you’ll need a thicker cream to keep the actives from your serum in your skin. Our Daydreamer Face Moisturizer leverages the power of jojoba oil to form a protective cushion around the skin, trapping in moisture and blocking pollutants.

The best news ever? Our minis are TSA-friendly so you can build the best travel-size skincare set for your flight with all your favorite Eight Saints products. Check out our tie-dye travel totes to complete the cutest travel skincare kit out there.

We recommend removing all makeup before a flight. The air is harsh on a plane and adding makeup to the mix just makes it harder for your skin to keep a healthy balance up there. Use a gentle, yet effective face cleanser like our Down to Earth natural gel cleanser, to remove makeup without irritating the skin, and keep your pores clear.

Flying during the day? Make sure you have your SPF on! UV radiation levels are twice as high at 30,000 miles (the altitude of most commercial flights) than they are at ground level. The windows usually protect from UVB rays but you may still be vulnerable to UVA rays that can cause premature aging and sunspots.

Our natural Chase the Sun SPF Moisturizer blocks UVA and UVB rays with zinc oxide while keeping the skin hydrated with vitamin E, squalane, and hyaluronic acid. It also comes in a soothing lavender scent just in case we have any nervous flyers out there.

Choose an aisle seat if you can or a seat where you can conveniently get up and move around a few times throughout the flight, plus you won’t have to continuously nag the person beside you to let you out (that’s never fun). Walking down the airplane aisle will help with circulation and keep your skin from getting puffy.

If you don’t want your skin to puff up while traveling, then skip the alcohol. As tempting as that glass of wine may sound, it will speed up the dehydration process of your skin. So, stick to water and keep the hydration up on all levels, inside and out.

Lastly, don’t forget your most sensitive areas – eyes and lips. Your eyes are usually the first place you will notice dehydration, puffiness, and dryness as this is the most fragile area of the skin. Apply our All In Eye Cream to avoid bags, dark circles, and crepey skin around the eye.

Leave the chapped lips behind with our Lip Trick organic lip mask. It uses coconut oil, vitamin E, and organic beeswax to protect the skin and promote new skin regeneration to seal in moisture, keeping your lips plump and hydrated all flight long.

By now you know how to care for your skin before and during your flight - but what about after you land?

Once you are safely on the ground, we recommend washing your face one more time with our natural Down to Earth gel cleanser. The recirculated air can build up on your skin and it is best to clear it away to ward off any breakouts. Follow this with a spritz of our Coast Is Clear facial toner to clear the pores of any dirt and grime. It’s formulated with natural kelp and seawater, which are loaded with numerous healing minerals such as magnesium, calcium, zinc, and potassium to absorb toxins and get your skin back to a healthy balance.

After cleansing, make sure to follow up with another application of our Pep Rally hyaluronic acid serum and our Daydreamer face moisturizer.

If it is still daytime when you land, we recommend finishing up with another application of our Chase the Sun SPF moisturizer. Never forget: sun exposure is the number one accelerator of the skin-aging process.

If it’s nighttime, go ahead and do your full nighttime routine, complete with Night Shift and Up the Anti to hydrate and renew the skin overnight.

The best skincare travel set will be loaded with hyaluronic acid to keep the skin hydrated and plump all flight long. Specialty products for the eyes and lips as these are the first areas to dry out. And a toner to mist on and keep the skin clean even when the recycled air feels like it’s suffocating.

Keep your minis in your carry-on and your suitcase packed with the full-sized versions to ensure you have a skincare travel kit that can take on anything. Show up to your holidays glowing no matter what the journey was like to get there.