4 Ways to Protect Your Eyes While Traveling

by Sara Roberts
(Ann Arbor, MI )

With all the planning that goes into most trips, it can be easy to let eye care fall by the wayside. However, if a traveler doesn't take good care of his or her eyes, there isn't going to be much point in traveling at all eventually! Below are some tips to make eye care while traveling quick and easy so you can give your "peepers" the attention they deserve on the road.

Stock Up on Supplies

Depending on where in the world you are traveling to, you may find it difficult to find the kind of eyeglass cleaner or contact lens solution you are accustomed to. A trip away from home is not a great time to try out a new product on sensitive eyes, so make sure that you bring extra eye care supplies. It is also a good idea to distribute your supplies among your various bags and suitcases in case one bag or the other gets lost.

Wear Sunglasses

Whether you are going on a beach vacation or heading to a cooler destination, you are likely to be exposed much more to the sun on vacation than at home. This is simply because of the sheer fact that most people spend much of their vacations outside, rather than cooped up in their apartments or offices back home. Thus, even if you don't usually wear sunglasses, bringing a pair along on vacation with you can be a great way to take care of your only pair of eyes. People who regularly wear glasses should consider purchasing prescription sunglasses to ensure they get the benefits as well.


Know Your Travel Environment

Wearers of contact lenses know that they often have to treat their eyes gently. Thus, when away from the familiarity and routine of home, every day should begin with an assessment of whether it is better to wear one's contacts or glasses. For example, on a long plane ride, the dry air can make contacts very uncomfortable and glasses a better choice. As another example, the fine dirt kicked up during a jeep safari can make one's contacts very itchy and even difficult to see out of.

Know What to Do In Case of Emergency

Many people will leave for a vacation with concrete ideas of where to turn if they get food poisoning or break a limb. However, few have any sense of what they would do if they break their only pair of glasses, or even worse suffer an eye injury. Since preparing glasses or contacts, as well as treating eye injuries, is often a professional or medical specialty, it is well worth researching the eye care options available in the place you will be traveling to. A little preparation can turn a potential travel nightmare into an experience that one can at least bear willingly.

Sara Roberts writes for Just Eyewear, a discount eyeglasses and prescription sunglasses online retailer.