I never leave for a business trip longer than 24 hours without carrying some trail mix with me. For longer trips I pack a little in my backpack and a bunch more in my suitcase.
Trail mix means not buying overpriced junk snacks at the airport. Trail mix means not begging for a second bag of complimentary peanuts. Trail mix means it’s OK if I accidentally sleep through the meal service on that overnight flight. Trail mix means if I get lost in conversation and suddenly it’s 1AM and I’m exhausted in a hotel room and nothing is open, I can still go to bed without a growling stomach.
Trail mix is the perfect travel food. It’s nutritionally dense. It doesn’t reduce to crumbs when smashed into a suitcase. It doesn’t go bad. If you keep chocolates out of it, it can withstand heat. If you keep keep cereal and other baked filler out of it, it can even withstand getting damp and still be edible.
(And seriously, keep that stuff out of it. The closer to candy/junk food you make your trail mix, the more likely you’ll binge on it.)
Trail mix. Don’t leave home without it.