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Best water bottles for traveling

Best water bottles for traveling
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Nadav Levy

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Staying hydrated is very important for your body. It’s even more important when traveling. But, we also need to reduce the usage of single-use plastic bottles, as we all know their effect on the environment. This post lists the best reusable water bottles for every trip type and need. Reusable water bottles won’t only help save the environment but also save you money and keep your drink clean and cold or hot for hours.
If you’re a fan of flavored water, try infuser bottles. Simply drop your favorite fruits and herbs in the infuser basket, add water, and enjoy the healthiest kind of flavored water.
For sport, hiking, and outdoor activities, try collapsible bottles. They’ll save space on your bag, are sturdy enough to withstand bumps and drops, and usually have loops to attach them to your backpack easily.
Traveling to a place with no running water, or to a country where the water treatment process is different than what your body is used to? Try bottles with filters. They can reduce the risk of upset stomach or worse and provide clean drinking water anywhere you go.
Are you traveling with your dog? No worries. I got you covered with the best water bottle to travel with your hairy friend.

Things To Consider When Buying a Water Bottle

When you go shopping for a new reusable water bottle, you should consider the following factors:

Materials

Your water bottle must be durable, prevent leaks, and easily clean. Most water bottles are made from either glass, stainless steel, or plastic. Most bottles made today are also BPA-free. Just make sure the one you pick is also BPA-free, making them safe for you and the environment. Stainless steel bottles are far better insulated and perfect for keeping cold or hot drinks cold or warm for a long time.

Features& Design

Reusable plastic comes in a variety of shapes, sizes, and designs—each with its own pros and cons.

  • Glass bottles solve the problem of plastic waste and unwanted BPAs, but they are breakable and do not insulate as well. Therefore I do not recommend glass bottles for traveling.
  • Plastic bottles offer the widest variety. You can fill them with all types of liquid and choose from different tops such as pop-up tops, flip tops, or even just plain screw lids.
  • Stainless steel bottles are BPA-free, lightweight compared to glass bottles, and durable. They may cost more than a standard plastic bottle, but they should last for a long time if you take good care of them.
  • Insulated water bottles are designed to keep your drink cold or hot for a long time. Some can hold cold water for the entire day easily.

Capacity

When traveling, carry just enough water for your needs. Choose a bottle that can hold enough water to last you in between refills. Make sure it’s not large and heavy, making it difficult to carry, takes too much room in your backpack, or doesn’t fit your backpack’s external bottle pocket (if you have one). Standart water bottles are between 16 and 24 ounces (470 to 700 milliliters), but you can find bigger ones if needed. I wouldn’t recommend smaller ones as it’s not enough for a day. If you’re trying to save space, look for collapsible bottles.

Easy To Clean

Although many bottles are dishwasher safe, to keep your bottle for a long time, I recommend washing it by hand only. It’s fast and easy, mainly if you only use it for water. If it’s not easy to clean, then it’s not practical, and you shouldn’t buy it. Also, if you won’t clean your bottle regularly, mold and mildew can build up in the spout and base of the bottle over time, and you definitely don’t want to drink out of that!

Filters and Purifiers

Some bottles have built-in filters that remove chlorine and other contaminants from the water in the bottle, giving you purified water with every sip. Purifiers are especially important if you are on a nature trip and need to fill your bottle from streams (make sure they are safe to drink from) or if you’re traveling to countries where the tap water isn’t the best quality.

Opening and Lid Types

The bottle opening should allow you to easily clean the bottle and easily fill it with drinks and ice cubes. They also must provide secure, leak prof closing. Most will have large screw openings for easy filling and cleaning, and they’ll have different lids to drink from (cap shape, spouts, straws, and more).

Weight

Your water bottle weight depends on the bottle materials, size, and obviously on the amount of liquids in it. As long as the bottle is comfortable and durable, the lighter it is, the better. If your bottle feels quite heavy without any liquid in it, imagine how heavy it will feel when it’s full, and you have to carry it the entire day. You’ll notice that stainless steel water bottles are usually heavier than plastic water bottles.

How do I pick the right travel water bottle?

There are endless choices in the market, and it is not easy to pick the best bottle for your needs… so I did the work for you 🙂
After extensive, hands-on research and testing, along with online research, on a wide variety of bottles, here are the best travel water bottles for just about any need.

Our Pick for Top water bottles for traveling

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The best Insulated water bottles

Hydro Flask 21 oz (710 ml)

If you love your drink cold or hot, this is the bottle for you. It will keep your drink cold for 24 hours and hot for 12 hours. Its made out of stainless steel insulation in a slim, chic, travel-friendly profile, which fits in most water pouches and pockets, and most car cup holders. The wide opening makes it easy to fill and clean, and the double-wall insulation prevents the bottle from having drops forming due to condensation. To match your personal needs, you can find it in different sizes and lids (a standard screw top or a sports top for easier on-the-go sips).

Bottom Line: Excellent quality, good size, variety of colors and lids selection, and no leaks. All that makes it perfect for casual travelers and for everyday use.

Hydro Flask 21 Oz
Hydro Flask
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S’well Water Bottle

S’well’s stainless steel water bottles are triple-walled, vacuum-insulated, and come in three sizes. The 17-ounce version claims to keep your drink cold for 48 hours and hot for 24 hours. The bottle opening can fit most ice cubes, and the sleek design makes it great for daily use when going to the office.

Bottom Line: This bottle is a perfect choice if you want a great bottle to keep your drink hot or cold but don’t want to pay so much.

S’well Water Bottle
S’well’s stainless
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YETI Rambler Stainless Steel Bottle

YETI is another popular brand for the best bottles for travel. The double-wall vacuum insulated design keeps your drink cold or hot all day, with no dripping or drops forming due to condensation. It comes in various colors, sizes, and lids to choose from.
This bottle has a 3″ (7.6 cm) diameter, which fits standard cup holders and most water bottle pouches and pockets. It has both a large opening for easy filling and cleaning and a small lid for drinking. You can find different accessories such as lead, slings, and straps in the YETI store.

Bottom Line: Buy this bottle if you need to keep your drink hot or cold for a very long time.

YETI Rambler 18 oz Bottle
YETI Rambler
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The Best Infuser Water Bottles

Live Infinitely 32 oz Fruit Infuser Water Bottle

Live Infinitely has some of the best infusion bottles out there. With a full-length infusion rod, you can pack tons of fruit while still fitting plenty of water in the bottle. In addition, you can find these bottles in various colors so you can choose what suits your taste.
There’s a thumb-release (button) flip top that opens up the straw-protecting cap, grips on the side of the bottle, so you don’t drop it, and a traveling hook so you can clip it to your backpack or gym bag.

Bottom Line: High quality, very comfortable, leakproof.

Live Infinitely 32 oz Fruit Infuser Water Bottle
Live Infinitely
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Infusion Pro Fruit Infused Water Bottle

Simply pop some fruits or veggies into the extra-large infuser basket and wait for the flavor to fill the 24 oz (710 ml) water bottle. The strainer stops seeds, pulp, or ice from clogging the drinking spout while giving you an awesome-tasting healthy beverage that’s a little more exciting than just plain water. The added insulating sleeve and carry strap lets you take your flavored water anywhere you want, and it will still be pleasingly chilled when you get there. The locking lid covers the top of the bottle, keeping it dust and dirt-free.

Bottom Line: The added insulation sleeve keeps the drink called for hours. Not as good as isolated water bottles, but better than other plastic bottles. The bottom loading infuser means the fruits will reach the water, no matter the water level, ensuring you’ll enjoy flavored water until the last drop. You can also easily remove the infusion part and use the bottle as a simple water bottle.

Infusion Pro Fruit Infused Water Bottle
Infusion Pro Fruit Infused
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The Best Hiking and backpackers Water Bottles

This category was hard to choose since I found that backpackers have few main requirements for their water bottles. First, it must be durable yet light. It also has to be compact, as they don’t have a spare room in their backpack. The third thing is that they are often in locations with no access to tap water.

That’s why they need bottles that can Purifier water from the river or waterfall. That is why under this category, I haven’t listed any bottles. Instead, I listed them under the relevant categories (Collapsible, Purifier / Filter)you can find below. I did find the GRAYL GeoPress Water Purifier is the best option for backpackers, as it’s durable, good size, and has an excellent purifying filter.

The Best Collapsible, light weight Water Bottles

Hydrapak UltraFlask

The Hydrapak UltraFlask water bottle is a very impressive collapsible water bottle. You can find it in 3 sizes, it takes almost no space when empty, and it can hold hot and cold drinks. It’s also one of the only flexible bottles with a large lid for easy filling of water and ice cubes and a sipping cap for easy drinking on the go.

Bottom Line: If you’re looking to pack light and you are short on space, this is the water bottle for you.

Hydrapak UltraFlask water bottle
Hydrapak UltraFlask
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Nomader Collapsible Water Bottle

Nomader Collapsible Water Bottle has a highly durable silicon body, designed to survive drops and knocks. You can use it for both hot and cold drinks and even freeze it. It’s leakproof, comfortable to grab, has a large opening for easy filling and cleaning, and can even stand when full or empty (remember it’s collapsible). It also has a carry strap, which is essential when you travel. When empty, the bottle collapses to a fraction of its size, making it perfect for long-distance travel.

Bottom Line: Great bottle to save that vital space on your backpack, with all the functionality you can expect from a water bottle.

Nomader Collapsible Water Bottle
Nomader Collapsible
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Platypus Soft Bottle

This Platypus bottle is an extremely lightweight and packable design. It’s around 80% lighter than a hard bottle and not as bulky. It’s BPA, BPS, and phthalate-free, and you don’t have to worry about a plastic taste. Its unique design makes it easy to hold, and it’s available with either a Closure Cap or a Push-Pull Cap. Users report using this for years while maintaining the functionality and look.

Bottom Line: Great bottle to save space on the go. Unfortunately, the small opening makes it hard to fill or clean.

Platypus Soft Bottle
Platypus Soft Bottle
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The Best Water Purifier / Filter Water Bottles

GRAYL GeoPress 24 oz Water Purifier Bottle

I absolutely love this bottle. It lets you enjoy the best quality water everywhere. Either if you’re drinking from the river or not sure if the tap water is good enough. The award-winning GRAYL One Press design can transform dirty water into clean, drinkable water in just 15 seconds.

The manufacturer claims their clever filter system can remove 99.9999% of viruses, including hepatitis A, SARS, and rotavirus, and 99.9999% of disease-causing bacteria responsible for E. coli, salmonella, and even cholera.

On top of that, the filtering process leaves no aftertaste, just cool refreshing water. Some reviewers described it as “produces very tasty water.

The bottle is more expensive than most other bottles. Still, it is the perfect investment if you’ll be traveling to places where safe drinking water is hard to come by. Great for camping, hiking, backpacking, and hitting the open road, and for casual travelers who want to ensure the tap water is clean and safe to drink.

Bottom Line: Great quality water anywhere you go. The only issue I found is that pushing the filter down requires a bit of force. However, it’s easy to use, making it great for traveling as you can fill calm when drinking water, even tap water, from unreliable sources.
It’s not my first choice if you’re a casual traveler with access to trustworthy tap water since it’s a bit bigger and heavier than other bottles. However, it’s perfect if you’re not sure about the tap water quality, or you travel to faraway places, go hiking, and can’t carry a lot of water with you.

GRAYL GeoPress 24 oz water bottle
GRAYL GeoPress
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LifeStraw Go Water Filter

This bottle has the filter built right into the straw. You filter the water as you drink, making it very simple to operate. The LifeStraw series by Danish company Vestergaard is perfect for camping, backpacking, and emergency kits. The award-winning LifeStraw hollow fiber membrane protects against bacteria, parasites, microplastics, chlorine, and other chemicals.

The manufacturer claims this bottle can remove 99.9999% of waterborne bacteria and 99.9% of waterborne protozoan parasites without chemicals, iodine, or batteries, meaning all water can become safe drinking water.
Incredibly durable, with a food-grade silicone mouthpiece. The microbiological filter promises up to 5 years of safe drinking water while traveling. And the 23 ounces (680 ml) leakproof bottle is large enough to keep you hydrated.

Bottom Line: It really has a genius design, but since you filter as you drink, it’s a bit challenging to suck liquid through the straw.

LifeStraw Go Water Filter
LifeStraw Go Water Filter
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Best Water Bottle For Traveling Dogs

When your dog travels with you, the change in the environment and timelines may affect their behavior. You must make sure they eat and drink regularly. The best dog water bottle possesses a combination of features that suits both the dog and its owner’s needs.

I looked for several vital components when testing dogs’ water bottles to take along for walking, hiking, and even for flight and car rides. The first is that it must be comfortable for the dog to drink from. In addition, it should be durable, lightweight, easy to use, and don’t waste water, as water access is limited when traveling. To ensure your dog has water available at any time during your trip, I’ve tested some bottles with mine and some friends’ dogs, and their pick is the Yicostar Dog Water Bottle.

Yicostar Dog Water Bottle

This 19 oz (560 ml) Pet Water Bottle has a built-in water dispenser. You simply press a button and the water transfers to a built-in bowl from which the dog can drink. If he doesn’t finish the water, you can click the button and return the remaining water back into the bottle. Remember you’re traveling, and you can’t waste water. It comes in various colors, and you can also find it with a 12 oz (354 ml) capacity if you have a small dog and want to save some space. It’s leakproof, durable, and effortless to use. You can easily fit it in your bag or carry it with the attached strap.

Bottom Line: Your dog would love it. It’s very easy to use, leakproof and has a strap for easy carrying.

Yicostar Dog Water Bottle
Yicostar Dog Water Bottle
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lesotc Pet Water Bottle for Dogs

Lesotc Pet Water Bottle for Dogs is a lightweight dog water dispenser for travel. It comes in 18 oz (532 ml), 21 (621 ml), or 28 oz (828 ml) and is available in a variety of colors to choose from. It Is straightforward to use. Simply unfold the water bowl, unlock the security lock, and press to insert water into the bowl. When the dog is done drinking, open the safety lock, and the remaining water will go back into the bottle. Fold back the bowl, and you’re good to go. There’s no need for any external bowl to give your hairy buddy water to drink anymore.
The bottle is leakproof, has a strap for easy carrying, and is made with high-quality materials. Easy fill, clean and use, and fold to save space in your bag.

Bottom Line: The Lesotc water bottle is an excellent choice if you need a more compact bottle.

lesotc Pet Water Bottle for Dogs
lesotc Pet Water Bottle for Dogs
Check Price at Amazon

Final Thoughts

We all know the impact of Plastic and Bottles on the environment. Plastic is one of the most common types of waste found in our environment today. There are millions of plastic water bottles thrown away each day. While these bottles might seem like an easy way to enjoy the fresh, cool water, they are filling up our landfills and damaging our oceans.

Reusable water bottles are an eco-friendly alternative to disposable plastic bottles. They are better for the environment as they eliminate the need for single-use plastics and reduce carbon emissions from transportation. The first step to reducing the impact of plastic is to stop using it!

You must have a water bottle with you when traveling unless you’re in an all-included hotel and you stay in the pool the whole day. Modern refillable bottles offer many options to fit everyone’s needs. They will help you drink more water, healthier water, save money, and save the environment.

Choose a bottle that suits your needs and invest in quality bottles to ensure years of service for your bottles. Whether camping in the wild or traveling through bustling cities, a reliable water bottle is an essential item to pack for your next trip. It’s important to remember that you are not allowed to bring liquids to your flight, so you’ll have to drink the water before passing the boarding and refill it later.

My personal daily water bottle is the Contigo Autoseal. I love this bottle for different reasons. First, it has an auto-seal lid. It’s not entirely leakproof, but it’s sealed, and all I have to do to drink some water is press a button and drink. In addition, when I put a few ice cubes in the morning, my water remains fresh and cold the entire day. The reason it’s not on the list of bottles I recommend for traveling is that there is no option to seal it to prevent any leaks. Still, if you put it in your car, side pocket, or on your desk, it’s perfect. Very easy to fill, carry, and clean.

Pick your favorite bottle today and enjoy healthy fresh water wherever you go.

Q&A

Are filtered bottles better?

Filtered bottles with purifiers provide access to clean drinking water anywhere you go. However, they are more expensive, heavier, and harder to use and clean compared to simple bottles. That’s why they are only recommended if you need to filter your water. Either when you’re on a trip with no access to tap water or in a place where you’re not sure the tap water is good enough.

How much water should I drink while traveling?

An average adult should drink about 8 cups of water each day. When traveling you usually work and walk more than usual. When flying, the airplane air dehydrates us, if you drink alcohol you get even more dehydrated. For these and other reasons, when flying or traveling, try to drink 1 cup of water every hour.
Check out our tips on “Stay hydrated and stick to water“. And as a bonus, read ‘Selfmade cooler right in your hotel room‘

Can you take a water bottle on an airplane?

Yes, you can. You are not allowed to pass liquids through TSA, so make sure the bottle is empty before the screening, and you can refill it at a filling station later or on the plane.

Last update: July 2022

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