Say Yes to Functional Beverages: Pack Yesly for Your Next Road Trip

Travel has a funny way of making a perfectly reasonable person say, “Sure, I’ll have another drink. It’s vacation!”

Whether that’s booze or soda, it’s often not what you need—what you probably need is vitamins, hydration, and more energy. Even if you’ve lugged your cooler to the beach. Or you’ve rented a gorgeous house for the weekend! Or your friends are opening something cold for the big game. Sometimes you feel like winding down, but maybe what you should have is a refreshing drink with benefits—and that’s where Yesly comes in.

We tried two of the brand’s drinks, Yesly Functional Water (no sugar, no calories) and Yesly Energy (low calories), and loved both for different reasons. (There is a third: Yesly Sparkling Protein Water, which we have not yet tried, but it sounds great!). Yesly Functional Water is a clear, zero-sugar, non-carbonated water with electrolytes and vitamins, while Yesly Energy adds caffeine from green tea, plus electrolytes and vitamins. Both are sweetened with stevia rather than artificial sweeteners.

Yesly Water is the easy hydration solution for your vacation. Throw a few cans into the cooler for a beach day, take them along on a hike, or stash them in the fridge at your Vrbo for the morning after. It’s especially nice when you’re tired of plain water and don’t want a soda, beer, or sugary sports drink. The flavors are fresh and enticing: think Kiwi Strawberry or Pomegranate Acai Blueberry.

Then there’s Yesly Energy, for the moments when vacation requires actual energy! Think early-morning road trips, a hike that turned out to be considerably more ambitious than advertised, sightseeing after a red-eye, the workout you have to squeeze in after your indulgent dinner, or the afternoon boat excursion when everyone else is starting to fade. With 114 mg of green tea caffeine per 12-ounce can, Yesly Energy provides a moderate caffeine hit alongside electrolytes and vitamins such as C, B12, and B6. The lightly carbonated, real-world flavor profiles are tasty: Orange Cream (delish!), Green Apple, Tropical Punch, Mixed Berry—very unlike those other energy drinks with their synthetic taste. But trust us: this energy drink works. There’s no crash, but you will feel supercharged for hours.

We love the sustainable aspect, too: The cans are 100% recyclable and contain no plastic. We especially like the social aspect. Going to a friend’s house and skipping alcohol doesn’t have to mean standing around with a glass of water while everyone else has a cocktail. Crack open a cold Yesly, and you have something colorful, flavorful, and decidedly more interesting in your hand. You’ll be the better conversationalist, the better designated driver, and you’ll be up and at ’em the next day.

One caveat for travelers: these are canned drinks, so you won’t get them through airport security in your carry-on. They’re made for road trips, Pride festivals, picnic and beach coolers, boats, walking bags, backpacks, and a variety pack for your vacation rental is a great idea—anywhere glass or plastic is a drag and wherever you need a little more pep in your step.