Needless to say, one of the great joys of modern travel is the ability to work while you’re away. Whether you’re a digital nomad, travelling for business, running your own small business, or simply checking in occasionally while exploring somewhere new, having that flexibility feels liberating. So, do you really need to take backup tech with you?
You’re no longer tied to one desk, one office, or even one country. You can answer emails from a café in Florence, join a Zoom call from a hotel in Edinburgh, or upload photos while waiting for a train in Sri Lanka. For many of us — especially those over 40 who value independence — this kind of freedom is one of the real luxuries of travel today.
*This site uses affiliate links and I may earn a small commission when you use my links and make a purchase without incurring an additional fee yourself.
Thank you for supporting this website. See my disclaimer page for more details.
But there’s a less glamorous side to it too.
Because when something goes wrong with your tech while travelling, it tends to go very wrong, very quickly. And the truth is, most of us are far less prepared for that than we think.
Your Tech Is No Longer “Just Tech”
At home, a phone is a convenience. A laptop is a tool. If something breaks, it’s annoying, but manageable, we can pop to a shop, call someone to fix it or have a go ourselves.
On the road, however, your devices become everything.
Your phone is:
- Your boarding pass
- Your wallet
- Your hotel key
- Your map
- Your camera
- Your banking access
- Your emergency contact list
- Your booking system
- Your taxi service
- Your way of making new friends
Your laptop is:
- Your office
- Your income
- Your client communication
- Your storage for important documents
- Your creative workspace
Lose access to one of those, and suddenly you’re not just inconvenienced — you’re stuck.
That’s why backup tech isn’t about being paranoid or over-prepared. It’s about acknowledging how dependent modern travel has become on a handful of devices, and planning accordingly.
How One Broken Gadget Can Derail an Entire Trip
Imagine this.
You wake up on the morning of a client call, open your laptop… and it won’t turn on. No warning. No drama. Just a blank screen.
Or your phone slips out of your pocket while getting into a taxi. By the time you realise, it’s gone — along with your boarding passes, banking apps, authentication codes, hotel details, and contacts.
Or perhaps the simplest (and most common) scenario: you arrive late at night, exhausted, only to discover your only charging cable is still plugged into a socket at home.
On a normal day, these are annoyances. When you’re travelling, they can:
- Block you from checking in for flights
- Lock you out of hotel reservations
- Cut off access to banking apps
- Stop you contacting clients, colleagues, or family
- Leave you unable to navigate an unfamiliar city
And that’s before you add time zones, language barriers, or unreliable Wi-Fi into the mix.
This is where trips unravel — not because something dramatic happened, but because one small failure triggered a chain reaction.
It happened to me….
In 2022, I was travelling in Madagascar. My MacBook Pro laptop was in its “waterproof” case and I thought all was well as we punted along the river towards our campsite. However the boat had leaked and my waterproof case, wasn’t. My laptop was fried!
Luckily, I only lost one day’s work. My laptop automatically backed up to my Dropbox account, and the photos I had taken were backed up to external hard drives.
However, it did mean for the rest of my trip I couldn’t do any work, as I only had my phone and trying to write a 2,000 word blog post on a phone is nigh on impossible!
Why Most Travellers Don’t Prepare for This
The problem is simple: most people pack for the trip they hope to have, or don’t even consider that the tech we rely on day in, day out can and does fail.
They imagine smooth airport connections, working sockets, stable internet, and devices that behave perfectly. What they don’t plan for is:
- Lost luggage
- Faulty hotel plugs
- Dead power banks
- Airports with no working sockets
- Phones that suddenly refuse to charge
There’s also a belief that “backup” means excess — extra weight, extra clutter, extra hassle. No one wants to feel like they’re lugging their entire home office around the world.
But backup tech doesn’t have to mean overpacking. It just means having a Plan B.
What Backup Tech Really Means
Let’s be clear: backup tech is not about carrying two of everything.
It’s about building layers of protection so that one failure doesn’t ruin the whole trip.
Think in terms of:
- Power – Can you keep devices charged?
- Access – Can you log into essential apps?
- Data – Are your documents and information safe?
- Devices – Do you have an alternative way to stay connected?
You don’t need to cover every scenario — just the most likely ones.
Level One: Lightweight, No-Excuses Backups
These are the absolute basics, and they take up very little space.
Power banks
A good-quality power bank can keep a phone alive for days. For longer trips, carrying two smaller ones instead of one large one gives you redundancy without much extra weight.
Spare charging cables
Cables fail far more often than devices. Carrying at least one spare for your phone — and ideally one that can also charge other devices — is a simple win.
Universal travel adapters
Not all hotel sockets are reliable, and some are positioned awkwardly. A solid universal adapter can save a lot of frustration, getting one with USB charging sockets is an extra!
Offline maps and downloads
Download Google Maps areas, airline apps, hotel bookings, and important emails before you travel. If Wi-Fi disappears, you’re still functional.
Printed or screenshot documents
Having printed copies — or at least screenshots — of hotel bookings, flight details, passport, and insurance information is old-fashioned, but incredibly effective when technology fails. I know we are all trying to go paper-free, but sometimes they do come in handy.
These are small, lightweight steps that already cover a surprising number of problems.
Level Two: Digital Backups That Matter
Physical gear is only half the story. Digital preparation is just as important.
Cloud storage (done properly)
Important documents should be accessible from any device. That means passports, insurance policies, itineraries, and work files stored securely in the cloud.
Password managers
Trying to remember login details while stressed and jet-lagged is a nightmare. A password manager lets you access everything quickly — even from a replacement device.
Two-factor authentication planning
This is where many travellers get caught out. If your authentication codes only go to one phone, losing it can lock you out of everything. Set up backup methods before you travel.
Email and banking access checks
Make sure you can log in from a new device without triggering security blocks that require your lost phone.
This kind of preparation isn’t glamorous — but it’s what turns a potential disaster into a mild inconvenience.
When It Makes Sense to Pack a Backup Device
For some trips, basic backups are enough. For others, a full backup device is genuinely worth considering.
This is particularly true if you:
- Travel frequently for work
- Combine long trips with professional commitments
- Rely on your phone for banking, bookings, and authentication
- Are travelling solo
Phones, in particular, are high-risk items. They’re easy to lose, easy to steal, and easy to damage. Anyone who travels a lot for work or mixes travel with longer stays knows phones are usually the first thing to cause lots and lots of issues, like getting stolen for example, or left somewhere on accident.
That’s why many experienced travellers carry a dedicated backup phone — often an older or refurbished model like a refurbished iPhone 16 Pro Max as a dedicated travel phone — set up with:
- Essential apps
- Email access
- Cloud storage
- Maps and travel bookings
It doesn’t need to be fancy. It just needs to work.
The same logic applies to laptops. Some travellers bring a lightweight secondary device or tablet that allows them to check email, access documents, or contact clients if their main machine fails.
Packing Smart, Not Heavy
Backup tech works best when it’s intentional.
Instead of throwing extras into your bag “just in case”, build a small, deliberate tech kit:
- One spare cable
- One spare power bank
- One universal adapter
- One backup access method
This keeps your packing light while dramatically increasing your resilience.
Final Thoughts: Peace of Mind Is the Real Luxury
Ultimately, backup tech isn’t about gadgets at all.
It’s about peace of mind.
It’s knowing that if something goes wrong — and eventually, something probably will — you won’t be stranded, panicked, or scrambling for solutions in an unfamiliar place.
For solo travellers, older travellers, and anyone combining travel with work, that confidence is priceless.
You don’t need to expect disaster. Just plan for reality.
Because the best trips aren’t the ones where nothing goes wrong — they’re the ones where you’re prepared when it does.
Do you travel with backup tech or have you had a mishap with your travel tech? Share your thoughts or questions in the comments below — I’d love to hear from you!
