I love to travel, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love coming home after a big trip.

Coming home is like being wrapped in a warm hug for me—seeing my things, that familiar smell of home, and knowing I can kick off my shoes and be myself without any pretence is so gratifying. The trip doesn’t even need to be that long—hell, I’ve felt this way after bad dates or awkward parties!

When I come home from a big trip—or even a small one—there are tons of things I want to do, and none of them include being productive. I’m not someone who unpacks the minute they get home, or who can shift seamlessly back into “work mode”, planning my week’s meals and social engagements. I have absolutely no qualms about ignoring my 9-to-5 job until I’m back in the office. When I come home, what I want is to shower, change into comfy cloths, and lie down looking at my phone—letting my brain go into autopilot.

But being someone who has a full-time job, that can’t last forever. Eventually I need to fall back into the routines of my at-home life, and there have been times this has been harder than others. If I’ve been staying at a hotel with a breakfast buffet, having to make breakfast every day suddenly has me sighing a lot more. If I’ve been walking 20,000 steps every day exploring somewhere new, sitting at a desk for eight hours feels lazy.

It’s a privilege to be able to travel, of course. But adjusting can be tough, and I’ve found some tricks that are able to help ease the transition a little bit:

I don’t force myself to unpack ASAP. I know much more efficient travellers than me who unpack their suitcase within an hour of coming home. This will never be me—I “unpack” by opening my suitcase on the floor of my bedroom, and unpacking slowly throughout the week based on when I can get to it/feel like it. Undoubtedly there will be things that don’t have a “home” yet—souvenirs, postcards and other paper products for my bullet journal, and probably a new item of clothing or two (or six!). When there’s no place for something, you need to create one, and re-working how a space looks and functions to accommodate new items can take time and brain space.

I’ve learned to live with a bit of mess. I used to beat myself up for the mess I wouldn’t deal with immediately after a trip—now I see it as an important part of settling back into life at home. The floor might have an open suitcase for a week; that’s OK. My countertops will look dishevelled; it’s all right. Laundry not getting done ASAP is fine. And speaking of laundry…

When I’m travelling, keeping a “laundry” bag is a must. This can even just be a separate pouch of your suitcase; but somewhere where the dirty clothes don’t touch the clean ones is not only sanitary, but it means when you get home you don’t have to ask “did I wear these socks?”—you can just empty everything into the hamper. You don’t have to do the laundry right away, but not letting smelly things stay in one place too long will make sure your suitcase doesn’t get nasty.

I constantly have a “to donate” pile in my home. Some people like to do a big clear out of their closets once a year; I do this regularly. I mostly donate clothes that don’t fit and books I won’t re-read, and I find that the best way to do this is regularly taking a handful of items to the thrift store, rather than waiting until my “donations” bag is too big to carry.

I’ve found this useful for two reasons—first, I almost always come back from trips with more stuff than I left with. With the exception of consumables (like snacks and sunblock, that get used up during the trip) I come back with postcards, jewellery, clothing, new towels—you name it. I try not to over-consume, but some things are too pretty to leave on holiday. And unless you find a way to incorporate them into your life, they sometimes just sit in a box. Making space for new items sometimes means getting rid of older ones.

The second reason this works—and I know I’m not alone here—is that sometimes, I’ll pack a dress for a beach vacation that fit last summer….only to find out that it doesn’t fit anymore, and I need to get a new one while away to enjoy the beach. Don’t hold on to things that don’t suit you; pass these pieces on to someone who’ll enjoy them!

I plan a “when I get home” freezer meal. No one wants to cook when they get back from the airport, so make your night easier for yourself and make sure that you plan what you’ll eat the night you arrive prior to your trip. This doesn’t have to be a fancy meal, either—my partner and I usually stock a frozen pizza or lasagna before we leave.

I have doubles of all my toiletries that live in my bathroom. Rather than forcing myself to rifle through my suitcase every time I need a serum or a mask, I make sure everything I need is waiting for me when I get home. My toiletries bag for travel includes refillable rubber capsules for body wash, shampoo, and conditioner, and travel sizes of the cosmetics I use regularly. I put everything in a clear bag, so that I can see easily what’s in there (and what I’m missing, in case I need to restock!).

I clean what I can prior to leaving. I’m not suggesting you deep-clean your flat, but there are some touches that will go a long way to making sure the home you’re walking into feels welcoming. Two big things in my household are the fridge (which gets a full cleanout before leaving, to ensure that we don’t come home to rotting vegetables or funky smells), and the garbage bins being taken out the night before or the morning of. Something else that I find nice is to change the bedsheets the night before you travel; you sleep in clean sheets before you travel, and when you come back, you don’t have to wonder how many nights they’ve been slept in. Figure out what will make you feel good to come home to, and make it a priority for when you return!

I try to slip back into my morning routine. Mornings returning to work after an exciting trip are always a bit of a let-down; a reminder that we all need to make a living is not what I like after being on the beach for a week! But something I look forward to in the mornings is overnight oats (I’m going through an “apple pie”-flavour blitz right now!) so I try to have those ready for me in the fridge. I make a point to stretch, especially if I’ve had a bad night’s sleep. On my better mornings, sometimes I go for a walk or to the gym, but the low bar I set for myself is: breakfast, stretch, and a bit of writing before work. It’s simple enough, but it helps me feel like I get into the swing of home life a bit quicker.

How do you like to set up your home to make travel easier? I hope you’ll let me know in the comments. Happy travels!