Top 4 Beauty Products to Buy when Travelling through Asia

I think it is well established by society that I have a bit of a shopping addiction. I feel like this would be a lot more obvious online if I managed to ever do hauls (but I’m far too disorganised). That said every time I travel through Asia, there are a few shopping “must haves” that I always pick up, not all are possible in every Asian country, but if you’re traveling through Asia and are unsure what you should get, you may find this list helpful!

Brightening Products
I’m a sucker for brightening / whitening products, not that I aim to be as pale as a ghost. More so I aim to keep my skin are clear and “glowy” as possible. If you check the makeup counters for any of the popular brands, Estee Lauder, Chanel, Dior etc, you’ll find that they have one foundation line that focuses on brightening / whitening that you usually won’t be able to find in Australia / USA. Granted this has started to change a little over the last couple of years (mostly in skincare), but Asia still has a mountain of variety that has yet to hit our shores.

Face Masks
Oh my, the face masks. I won’t tell you that I brought home 5kg worth of face masks from my latest trip… but that’s only because the price is so much better than anything you’ll find here. You can purchase great masks for under a dollar a sheet, which is pretty much unheard of in Australia. This is especially the case if you manage to visit South Korea, so definitely stock up and explore all the different brands and formulas.

False Lashes
May not apply to everyone, but I do love me some good false lashes and you can purchase literally 5-10 pairs for a few dollars in Asia. So like face masks, I always stock pile them. Plus one of the benefits is that they are incredibly light and won’t add much weight to your luggage back home.

Cleansing Oils
These are finally slowly starting to seep into the market locally, but the price you pay for them here is still pretty outrageous. Turn your attention to the drugstores in Asia, especially the Japanese brands and really almost any brand you go with will serve you well, and for cheap! The range is amazing as is the price, but more importantly the quality is far superior to what you’ll find for many western brands. If you’re on a really tight budget, then instead of purchase the actual bottles, Asia sells cleansing oils as refills in sachets at a much cheaper price. So long as you have a bottle you can depot to, pick up the refills instead.