Surf Trip Wash Kit: What to Pack When You Are Carry-On Only

A carry-on surf wash kit is solids only, because a solid is not a liquid under EU security rules, so nothing in your wash bag has to go in the liquids bag at all. Swap shampoo, shower gel and face wash for one solid bar, deodorant for a stick, toothpaste for tablets, and your whole wash kit walks through security untouched. That leaves the litre bag free for the two things that genuinely have to be liquid: sun cream and after sun.

This is the bit that catches people out. You book hand luggage only, then end up repacking at the scanner while the queue builds.

• 1. What actually counts as a liquid at security
• 2. What goes in a solid only wash kit
• 3. What about sun cream and after sun
• 4. How do I keep a bar dry between flights
• 5. What about the wetsuit and wet kit on the way home
• 6. What if I am checking a board bag anyway
• 7. Summary
• 8. Frequently asked questions

What actually counts as a liquid at security

Security does not just mean liquids. It means liquids, aerosols, gels, pastes and creams, which is a wider net than most people pack for. Toothpaste is a paste, sun cream is a cream, aloe is a gel, deodorant spray is an aerosol. All four go in the bag even though none of them pour.

The European baseline comes from the common aviation security rules built on Regulation (EC) No 300/2008: containers of 100 ml or less, all fitting inside one transparent resealable bag of about one litre, presented separately at the scanner.

Here is where it gets confusing. Several European airports have newer CT cabin baggage scanners, and at some of those larger containers are allowed. It is not one rule across Europe though. It varies airport by airport, and your return airport may not match your outbound one.

So assume the 100 ml rule every time. Pack to that standard and you are fine everywhere. The detail is in can you take soap on a plane.

What goes in a solid only wash kit

A solid bar is not a liquid, an aerosol, a gel, a paste or a cream, so the restriction does not apply to it at all. It goes in your bag like a pair of socks. No container limit, no litre bag.

Item	Liquid or not	Carry-on or hold
Solid 3-in-1 bar (hair, body, face)	Not a liquid	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
Solid conditioner bar	Not a liquid	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
Deodorant stick, solid	Not a liquid	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
Deodorant spray or roll-on	Aerosol or liquid	Liquids bag if 100 ml or less, otherwise hold
Toothpaste tube	Paste, counts as a liquid	Liquids bag or hold
Toothpaste tablets	Not a liquid	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
Sun cream	Cream, counts as a liquid	Liquids bag if 100 ml or less, otherwise hold
Zinc stick	Solid stick	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
After sun or aloe gel	Gel, counts as a liquid	Liquids bag or hold
Lip balm stick	Solid stick	Carry-on, outside the liquids bag
Surf wax	Solid	Carry-on, no issue

Read that middle column down and the picture is obvious. Once one bar replaces shampoo, shower gel and face wash, the only things left arguing with security are sun protection and toothpaste.

Most people get somewhere between 30 and 60 washes from a bar, depending on use and storage. If you are weighing bars against bottles, see shampoo bar vs liquid shampoo.

What about sun cream and after sun

Be honest with yourself here: proper SPF is a liquid, and there is no solid workaround that does the same job. Sun cream, lotion and after sun gel all count, and they are staying in the litre bag or going in the hold.

A zinc stick is a real solid and it is genuinely good for your face and shoulders, because it stays put better than a lotion. But it is not a whole body plan for a week on an exposed beach.

• Hand luggage only? A 100 ml sun cream in the litre bag, then buy a bigger bottle when you land.
• Hold bag or board bag? Full size bottle in there, small one in the cabin for day one.
• Zinc stick in your pocket either way. Solid, cannot leak, and it is the thing you actually reapply.

How do I keep a bar dry between flights

A bar needs to dry before it goes in a bag, and a wet bar shut in a sealed container turns to mush. That one habit decides whether you come home with most of your bar or a soft puck stuck to a lid.

1. Shake it and wipe it. Ten seconds of shaking, then a wipe on your towel.
2. Let it breathe while you get changed and pack everything else.
3. Never seal it wet. Use something that lets air through, and open it when you arrive.
4. Keep it away from the wet kit. A bar next to a soaked wetsuit never dries.

Storage is the whole game with solid bars, and how to store a soap bar covers the airport, the car, the tent and the shared bathroom.

Where you wash matters too. Use a shower or tap that drains properly, and keep the lather out of the sea, rivers and lakes, and off the sand and the ground. Rinsing salt off with fresh water at a beach tap is fine, and it is the most useful habit on any surf trip. Save the soap for somewhere it runs away down a drain. If all you have is a bottle, how to wash your hair without a shower has the method.

What about the wetsuit and wet kit on the way home

The flight out is easy. The flight home is where carry-on only gets tested, because a damp wetsuit weighs more and smells worse.

• Rinse it in fresh water and get it as dry as you can before packing. Weight is what hurts when you are hand luggage only.
• Roll it, do not fold it. Rolling from the legs up squeezes water out.
• Keep it away from clean clothes in a dry bag.
• Open it the second you land. A suit left sealed overnight is how the smell becomes permanent. How to get rid of wetsuit smell is the rescue job.

For the rest of the kit there is the surf trip packing list, and hand luggage only toiletries is the non surf version of this guide.

What if I am checking a board bag anyway

If a board bag is going in the hold, the liquid rules stop mattering. So is a solid kit still worth it? Yes, for reasons that have nothing to do with security.

Situation	Why solids still win
Board bag in the hold	Pressure changes and rough handling make bottles leak, and a leak in a board bag gets into everything
Bag of wet kit	Nothing to spill, and a bar does not mind being knocked around
Outdoor showers	Rarely a shelf, often one hand free. One bar beats three bottles
Shared surf camp bathroom	One small item to carry in and out. See surf camp showers
Weight and space	No water being flown around the world in a bottle

There is also what the water does to you: saltwater, chlorine and sun covers it, and how to rinse off after a surf is the short version.

Summary

A carry-on surf wash kit is solids only. A solid bar skips the litre bag entirely, and one 3-in-1 bar replaces shampoo, shower gel and face wash. Add a solid deodorant stick and toothpaste tablets and your wash kit clears security untouched.

Assume the 100 ml rule even where airports are more relaxed. Keep the litre bag for sun cream and after sun, dry the bar before you pack it, and wash where the water drains.

Still picking the destination? Start with the best surfing destinations in Europe.

Frequently asked questions