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Your Holiday Checklist at Royal Victoria Place 

Whether you’re camping in Cornwall or lazing on a beach in Corfu, this summer is all about some much-needed downtime with family and friends basking in some sunshine.  

To make your life easier, we’ve put together a list of summer 2022 must-buys alongside holiday prep and useful essentials for city breaks, road trips, beach holidays, weekends away and long summer holidays. Just don’t forget your toothbrush.  

This summer’s holiday clothes and shoes

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This summer holiday season, colour and fun are back. Think ice-cream shades, 90s-style slip and prairie dresses with jumpsuits paired with sky-high platforms and sliders alongside ballet pumps, clogs and knee-high boots. Fenwick, Marks & Spencer, French Connection, Superdry, Monsoon, Next and Oliver Bonas are filled with on-trend beautiful collections right now while Office is the place to find this season’s shoes.

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For jewellery, both chunky and delicate gold chains are everywhere (wear round bellies, hands and feet for Ibiza vibes) while giant hoops and statement hair slides lead the way in easy accessories (try Accessorize or Claire’s or jewellers Pandora, Ernest Jones, Burrells, Claybrooks and Toulson Jones for inspiration).

For evenings, wideleg trousers and oversize shirts are your go-to for easy tailoring (head to Hobbs and French Connection) while airport looks are all about neat-but-comfy joggers and sweatshirts (try Gas Station and Marks & Spencer’s acclaimed athleisure designs).

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For men, tropical print and board shorts with lightweight jackets and polos will instantly update the holiday wardrobe alongside bright citrus pops of colour and accessories that embrace the summer feelgood factor. Visit Fenwick, French Connection and Next for breakout looks to suit him. For fresh out-the-box trainers and slides, don’t miss JD Sports, Office and SportsDirect.com.

Get some new sunglasses

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When it comes to women’s sunglasses, colourful, oversize and angular frames are the big trends for s/s 2022 with men’s leaning more towards more conservative tortoiseshell and metal looks. Next, Boots, Accessorize and Oliver Bonas are essential pre-holiday visits.

Swimwear for the pool and beach

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Swimwear has upped its game this season with colourful crochet, cutout slimline one pieces and 50s silhouettes making for wearable and universally good-looking pool and beachwear from Next, Monsoon and Marks & Spencer. Meanwhile for men, it’s sport-casual (think 70s-Californian running shorts) or more tailored finishes to give a slightly preppy look – try French Connection and Fenwick.

Bags and luggage for travelling

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The bum bag/banana sling/fanny pack is everywhere this summer and perfect for holiday packing. You’ll need to complement it with a useful tote though for those everyday vacation essentials – straw, crochet and colourful are ideal.

Pre-holiday prepping

Ready for your pre-holiday prep kit? Beauty professionals recommend a haircut two weeks before you arrive on holiday to remove any split ends and damage then a countdown of body exfoliation (10 days) to buff skin, eyebrows shaped and coloured with any lash extensions (seven days) finishing up with waxing and threading, fake tan, shellac gel or normal pedicures and manicures five to three days before you go. Calista Beauty, LA Hair and London Nail Company are on hand at Royal Victoria Place for holiday prep with Buzz Barbers for pre-holiday cuts and trims.

Must-buy SPF and skincare

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In need of some Vitamin D? Don’t leave home without your SPF and sunscreens whatever your skintone (there are some excellent transparent sunscreens designed for darker skintones that won’t leave that annoying white residue). You should be applying SPF even on cloudy summer days in the UK when the UV index is at its highest between 11am and 3pm (remember that SPF moisturisers are good but no replacement for sun cream).

UVA causes skin ageing while UVB causes sunburn so when buying good sunscreen, look for a UVA logo with the letters UVA printed in a circle or choose a four of five-star UVA rating. UVB rays are responsible for the vast majority of sunburn cases and linked with increased risk of skin cancer; SPFs with 50+ offer the strongest forms of UVB protection and you should wear an SPF of at least 30 in the summer.

For children under the age of two, UVA clothing and broad-brimmed hats are excellent buys as they protect the back of the neck and ears as well as providing shade for the face. A sunscreen with at least SPF 30 and a high UVA protection should be applied to children every two to three hours. And, don’t forget your hair sunscreen too.

For all your skincare needs from go-to brands including L’Oreal, La Roche-Posay, Garnier, Avon and Nivea, try Boots.

Beauty and travel essentials

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From a signature summer fragrance at The Perfume Shop to bronzers and lipsticks from MAC and The Body Shop (orange and pink vs neutrals), update your beauty bag before you get on board your flight. If you’re carrying your bags on the plane, remember to ensure you decant all your favourite items into 100ml travel sizes. Then, don’t forget essentials such as dry shampoo, moisturising conditioners for curls and Afro hair, waterproof mascaras that can be worn to the sea and pool and soothing body moisturisers from Lush and L’Occitane.

Plus there’s the practical bits: mosquito repellent sprays and plug-ins, anti-insect bite creams and antihistamines, ear plugs for the flight, Calpol, plasters and Sudocrem for children plus wet wipes and contact lens solution.

Holiday tech accessories – don’t forget your charger

If you don’t want to spend the first morning of your holiday trying to find the local tech supplier then now’s your chance to stock up on the holiday accessory essentials at iStore, WH Smith and Boots. Don’t forget essential hair straighteners and curlers, travel adaptors and hairdryers and take a travel charging unit in case anything goes walkabout and you desperately need to access tickets and contact details on your phone. You can also pick up handy passport and document folders at Paperchase so you don’t mislay your paperwork.

Holiday essentials for kids

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For kids’ swimwear, summer outfits and shoes, head to Marks & Spencer, Next, Accessorize and Fenwick and find clever travel games for the journey at Kids Stuff.

Finally…

Top up your holiday cash at NM Money and relax into a much-needed break. We recommend pre-holiday coffee and food from any of our incredible cafes and restaurants as your reward. Happy holiday shopping.

Discover the best places to eat, drink and shop at Royal Victoria Place and follow us @Royal_Shopper 

Last updated Thursday 21 September, 2023