Traveling With Eczema: How to Keep Your Skin Comfortable Away From Home

Travel can expose your skin to several changes at once. The weather may be warmer, colder, or drier than you’re used to. Air travel can dry the skin, hotel toiletries may contain fragrance, and activities such as swimming can introduce additional irritants.

For people with eczema, these changes can sometimes contribute to a flare. The National Eczema Association recommends planning for known triggers before traveling and bringing the products and medications that you already use successfully at home.

If you’re looking for guidance on your regular bathing, moisturizing, and skin-care routine, see our Everyday Care tips →

Check the climate before you travel

Weather is a common eczema trigger, although the effect varies from person to person. Cold and dry conditions can increase skin dryness, while heat and sweating can trigger itching and irritation.

Before your trip, check the temperature and humidity at your destination and consider how your skin has responded to similar conditions in the past. The National Eczema Association also recommends considering environmental differences such as pollen and other allergens when planning a trip.

For warmer destinations, breathable clothing and access to shade or air conditioning can help reduce overheating. If you’re traveling somewhere cold or dry, you may need to moisturize more frequently than you normally do.

Pack the skin-care products you already use

Travel is generally not the best time to introduce unfamiliar products. Hotel soaps, lotions, shampoos, and body washes frequently contain fragrance, which can irritate sensitive skin.

The American Academy of Dermatology recommends bringing your usual skin-care products when traveling, particularly if you have sensitive skin. Keeping your travel routine similar to your routine at home can reduce exposure to unfamiliar ingredients.

Depending on your routine, consider packing:

Your regular fragrance-free moisturizer
A gentle cleanser that your skin already tolerates
Sunscreen you’ve used successfully before
Any prescription eczema treatments you currently use
Enough medication and skin-care products for the entire trip

If you’re traveling internationally or to a remote area, bring enough supplies rather than assuming the same products will be available at your destination.

Keep medications and essential products in your carry-on

Checked luggage can be delayed or lost, so keep essential eczema medications and enough skin-care products for the first few days of your trip in your carry-on.

The National Eczema Association recommends keeping medications in their original containers and packing essential treatments where they will remain accessible during air travel. Its travel guidance also recommends carrying a short supply of moisturizers and medications with you rather than relying entirely on checked baggage.

Before a longer trip, check your prescription supply. If you may run out while you’re away, arrange any necessary refill in advance. For international travel, check destination-specific rules for traveling with prescription medications.

Expect some dryness during air travel

Airplanes and changes in climate can leave the skin feeling drier than usual. The AAD recommends moisturizing when skin feels dry during travel and applying moisturizer to damp skin after bathing.

For longer flights, keep a travel-sized container of your regular moisturizer accessible. There is generally no need to introduce a separate in-flight skin-care routine. Using products that your skin already tolerates helps limit unnecessary exposure to new ingredients.

Be cautious with hotel toiletries

Hotel toiletries are convenient, but many contain fragrance. If fragrance or certain skin-care ingredients have triggered your eczema before, using your own products can help avoid an unnecessary exposure.

AAD travel guidance specifically recommends that people with sensitive skin bring their own skin-care products because hotel-provided products often contain fragrance.

People who are particularly sensitive to laundry products may also notice differences in hotel bedding and towels. NEA travel guidance suggests bringing familiar fragrance-free products when necessary, including laundry products for longer trips.

Take a few precautions before swimming

Pool chemicals can dry or irritate eczema-prone skin, although reactions vary between individuals. Swimming can usually remain part of a trip with some additional skin care.

The National Eczema Association recommends moisturizing before swimming, rinsing with fresh water afterward, and applying moisturizer again after showering.

Apply moisturizer or petroleum jelly before entering the water.
Rinse the skin with warm, not hot, fresh water immediately after swimming.
Gently pat the skin dry rather than rubbing.
Apply moisturizer to damp skin shortly after rinsing.

If the skin is raw, oozing, infected, has open sores, or is experiencing a severe flare, AAD advises avoiding the pool until the skin improves.

Protect your skin during outdoor activities

Travel can also mean spending considerably more time outdoors than usual. Sun exposure, heat, sweating, insects, and prolonged walking may all affect the skin.

AAD recommends broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher when traveling and reapplying it every two hours or after swimming or sweating.

If sunscreen has irritated your eczema in the past, bring a product you already know your skin tolerates rather than trying a new formula during the trip.

For warm-weather travel, lightweight clothing and opportunities to cool down can also help if heat and sweat are known triggers. AAD notes that sweat can leave salt on the skin and contribute to itching in some people with eczema.

Prepare for a flare before you leave

Even with careful planning, eczema can worsen while you’re away. Before traveling, make sure you understand how to use any treatments your clinician has prescribed for a flare and bring enough medication for the duration of your trip.

The National Eczema Association recommends anticipating the possibility of a flare and traveling with the medications and other eczema-management supplies you may need. This is particularly important when your usual clinician or pharmacy may not be easily accessible.

For people with a history of more significant flares, it may be helpful to discuss an upcoming trip with a clinician beforehand, particularly for longer or international travel.

When to seek medical care while traveling

Not every rash that develops during a trip is eczema. Travel can expose you to insect bites, allergic reactions, infections, and other skin conditions that may look different from your usual symptoms.

Seek medical care if you develop symptoms that are substantially different from your usual eczema, or if your skin becomes increasingly painful, warm, swollen, crusted, draining, or rapidly worsening.

If a new rash develops during or after a trip, the AAD recommends telling your clinician where you traveled, what activities you participated in, and whether anyone traveling with you developed similar symptoms.

Before you leave

A short travel checklist can make it easier to maintain your eczema routine away from home:

Check the climate and expected weather at your destination.
Pack your usual moisturizer, cleanser, sunscreen, and prescription treatments.
Keep essential medications and skin-care products in your carry-on.
Bring enough medication for the entire trip.
Avoid relying on unfamiliar hotel toiletries if your skin is sensitive to fragrance.
Plan for swimming, heat, or other activities that have triggered your eczema before.
Know how you normally manage a flare and bring the treatments your clinician has recommended.

Keeping your routine consistent can reduce some of the uncertainty that comes with a change in environment.

For your regular bathing, moisturizing, and skin-care routine, see our Everyday Care tips →

If your eczema is no longer responding to your usual routine or treatment:

Find my treatment →