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Travel is the great equalizer. Everyone waits in the same security line. Everyone removes the same shoes. Everyone eats the same tiny pretzels.
Which is exactly why the luxury travel accessory exists: to make sure everyone in that line knows you are not, spiritually, in that line.
Here are the luxury travel accessories that cost more than the flight. Every one of them will be placed in a gray plastic bin at some point. Every one of them: Necessity: 0%.
The Carry-On Edit
The Blanket
Brunello Cucinelli Cashmere Travel Throw $2,300
A fringed cashmere throw made for the plane, for when the airline blanket feels like it came free with the seat. Because it did. At $2,300, it costs more than most round-trip flights, including the one you are on.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: First class, regardless of the seat number.
The Headphones
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H100 Headphones $2,200
Noise-cancelling headphones from Bang & Olufsen, the Danish audio house founded in 1925. They are equally popular with the woman in 2A watching a rom-com and the man in 2B pretending to listen to a business podcast.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: The crying baby in 14C is still there. You just don’t have to know.
The Suitcase
Tumi 19 Degree Aluminum Rolling Trunk $1,695
An aluminum rolling trunk from Tumi’s 19 Degree line, with the curved, ribbed shell you can spot from across baggage claim. Which is good, because you will be standing at baggage claim for 40 minutes.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: It will get its first dent on the first trip. That is called character.
The Passport Holder, His
Prada Saffiano Leather Passport Holder $675
A Saffiano leather passport holder with the Prada triangle, for a document with a photo nobody likes.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: The TSA agent will not be impressed. But they will notice.
The Passport Cover, Hers
A leather passport cover from Smythson, the London stationer founded in 1887 that holds a royal warrant. It is the more sensible of the two passport options on this list, which tells you everything about this list.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: Royal-adjacent. Still has to take its shoes off at security.
The Toiletry Bag
Prada Re-Nylon Pouch $650
A Prada Re-Nylon pouch for your toiletries, which makes it a $650 home for a travel-size toothpaste.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: The liquids rules still apply. Prada has not been told.
The Gauche on a Budget Version
The Sleep Mask
A mulberry silk sleep mask from Slip, the brand that turned silk pillowcases into a personality. The most attainable thing on this list, and the only one that might actually help.
Necessity: 0%
Verdict: You still won’t sleep on the plane. You will look like you might.
The Bottom Line
None of this gets you there faster. The plane leaves at the same time for everyone, cashmere or not. But you will arrive looking like someone who flew private, and that, for one brief moment at the gate, is worth a lot.
For where to stay once you land, see Gauche Travel, or keep it sensible with Gauche on a Budget.
Prices and availability are as reported by the linked retailers and may have changed. The Gauche flies economy and has strong opinions about the armrest.
