What do you do with all the travel toiletries you get in airline amenity kits? What about the small bottles of shampoo, etc. in hotels? I collect amenity kits, and write (many…) reviews of them here. As often as I stay in hotels, I also have a collection of travel-sized shampoo bottles. I can’t remember the last time I purchased shampoo, conditioner or lotion for myself. I don’t take the bottles from hotels all that often anymore, unless it is a product I really like. Thankfully, that has reduced my collection of these little bottles a lot. That said, many hotels are moving away from single-use travel toiletries bottles.
Donating Travel Toiletries and Amenity Kits
I also have a large box of various amenity kits I have received in my travels. More than once I’ve gone through and pulled out duplicates and other items I’m no longer interested in. Rather than throwing this stuff away, I make donations of these items to a local shelter. While I’d love for you to support the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, I’m sure there are equally worthy facilities in your local area. The shelter I work with lists the following among their urgently needed items:
Toiletry/Resource Bag Items:
- deodorant—men and women
- travel size shampoos
- travel size conditioners
- single toothbrushes
- travel size lotions
- travel size toothpaste
- single women’s/men’s razors (preferably 3 blade)
Many of those items are in amenity kits already, so making a difference for someone in need doesn’t take much effort. It seems that people often leave partially (if at all?) used amenity kits onboard. Doubtful that shelters want used items, but do welcome unused products. While I usually bring the kits home with me, I’ll try to remember this next time I’m flying in a premium cabin, since I rarely use the items during the flight.
What do you do with amenity kits on flights and travel toiletries from hotels?
