It's a metal coil that you plug into a wall socket. It heats up the water in your coffee cup very fast, and voila!... Coffee is ready! You can heat up a cup of water and use it for instant Oatmeal too. It didn't take any space in our luggage and really worked great. Yes, we had to bring our coffee mugs, but we just wrapped them good in bubble wrap, placed them between clothes in the suitcase, and they made the trip without breaking. We brought plenty of coffee packets and creamers which, again, didn't take much space. The instant oatmeal didn't take much room either. It all worked out great. Gotta have that coffee in the morning to get energized and head out to the parks.
