#1: Nalgene apparently makes dropper bottles! Take a look at their product listing page for “dropper bottles” at their Web site. You want to specifically look at products 2750 through 2753. Avoid the “drop dispenser bottles” on that page… I don’t trust those caps for travel purposes.

#2: Have you ever purchased a bottle of nasal spray where it looks like an eye dropper bottle but the dispenser sprays a mist instead of a drop? I’m not talking about the fancy “pump” styles like you see with Zicam or other nasal mist products. Well, it turns out these squeeze (vs. pump) bottles ARE eye dropper bottles, but they have a tube inside that dispenses a mist. These are called “indicator bottles” and are apparently common for science labs. You might want to Google that phrase and find some for your needs. I’m gonna order some myself to see if they actually work as a spray bottle. In which case, it might actually work for sunscreen liquids and hair spray! I’ll see how it goes.

There are a couple of ways you could deal with this. First, if you can take the bottle apart before you buy it, see if there is a rubber or soft plastic gasket at the connection point. If there is, you’re in luck. The gasket is pretty effective in preventing leaks.

Your second trick, depending on what you want to use your spray bottle for, is to leave that empty when you fly, and taking its contents in a normal bottle for transport. You can refill the spray bottle when you land.

Third, you can make sure to fill your spray bottle to the brim, and/or see if you can squeeze out any extra air out of the bottle before twisting the spray cap on. Many spray bottles are too rigid to do this, but some of them will let you squeeze the bottle just enough to take the worst of the pressure off.

Finally, you can always be extra cautious and cover the spray bottle top with a bit of plastic wrap, or put your bottle in its own little plastic baggie before putting it in your 3-1-1 bag.

Good luck!

Have a great trip!