Easy Bag Packing Tips for a Stress-Free Trip: What Frequent Travelers Recommend
As a veritable globetrotter, I’ve travelled to over 50 countries spread across every inhabited continent on this planet, save Antarctica. While some of these trips were for leisure, others were for work. Add to these a few cruises, long transits during intercontinental flights, and travel to areas with fewer amenities.
Over the last 30 years of my travels across the globe, each journey and stay has been memorable. Meaning, I cherish memories of each, despite a few inevitable hiccups due to issues such as inclement weather, flight delays or cancellations, unavailability of choice hotels at the destination or even political turmoil.
Regardless, one of the vital lessons I learned from over three decades of my domestic and international travel is that it’s best to carry minimal luggage. Airlines, cruise lines, bus operators as well as railways expect you to carry the least possible volume of baggage.
Reasons for Carrying Less Baggage
You might wonder, why airlines and other civilian transporters want us to carry less baggage.
The reason is simple.
With fuel costs soaring skywards, airline companies, cruise lines and bus operators now scramble to save on Aviation Turbine Fuel, diesel and gasoline. Cutting the overall payload of any vehicle- aircraft or a humble bus- helps save fuel by the simple equation: the heavier the engine drags, the higher the energy consumption.
Next, we live in an era of budget carriers, also known as Low-Cost Carriers or LCCs under the nomenclature designated by the International Air Transport Association. Globally, LCCs allow you to haul only 20kgs as checked-in or cabin luggage and that too, in a single male. Odd-sized or oversized bags are discouraged and hence, the airline charges a hefty Excess Baggage Fee for hauling that extra weight or dimensions.
Modern-day travelers too are aware of hazards and inconveniences caused by carrying heavy bags or too many of these during any domestic or international vacation. Caring for bags is a major hassle on land routes such as rail and bus while too many of these are frowned upon by air carriers since they need to be checked in after completing security checks and for international trips, the imminent Customs check at the point of origin and destination.
Added to these are limitations posed by insurers. Most of us frequent travellers have comprehensive travel insurance. Such insurance is vital since it provides some basic protection against baggage theft, illnesses, accidents and injuries or even loss of credit cards and debit cards, identity documents or other personal belongings. This necessitates us to carry smaller and lightweight bags. I have trotted around the world with a single trolley bag that would contain my laptop, camera, clothing, toiletries and a few basic needs.
Finally, top luggage manufacturers worldwide are nowadays making bags that suit specs prescribed by airlines, bus companies and cruise operators as well as railway networks. If you look online, it would be clear that most luggage items available nowadays conform strictly to these specifications and sizes, regardless of the place of their manufacture. As a result, we have even less space to pack our stuff.
So, how does one pack a bag for a business tour, leisure trip, cruise or weekend haul? If that’s something you wish to explore, stay with me till the end of this article. I will discuss in detail, easy tips for packing bags to enjoy a hassle-free journey.
Things to Know Before Packing
Coming down to brass tacks, let’s explore whether it’s easy or difficult to pack a bag for travelling, regardless of the duration of the journey and length of stay at one or multiple destinations, modes of transport and types of accommodations.
Know Your Hotel
The first tip to pack your bag depends on the amenities and services that are available at the destination. For example, if you reside at a plush hotel, you do not need to carry toiletries such as soap shampoo or body lotion. The hotel invariably provides these as part of their service package. Furthermore, such hotels also provide adequate fresh towels that are replaced daily by the housekeeping service.
Nowadays, people like me book hotels online. Hence, it’s easier to learn about the amenities and complimentary stuff that your hotel package includes, right at the time of booking. Global websites such as www.booking.com list hotels of all categories for various budgets at most locations worldwide, giving a complete picture of services and freebies that are available at the hotel, for the price band you choose. Never pack stuff that’s available at the hotel or locally since this means encumbering yourself with excess weight.
Mode of Travel
Next comes the mode of travel. This would broadly decide how many luggage pieces you can carry without being charged extra, baggage dimensions and other limitations. Generally, a small bag such as a backpack or duffel or a weekender or a travel tote is allowed in the cabin by airlines, bus operators, railways and cruisers. Larger ones are invariably loaded in the cargo hold to prevent inconvenience to other passengers and travel safety.
When booking a ticket online or even offline, always enquire about the maximum free baggage allowance and charges for excess baggage. All civilian transporters also have specific dimensions of luggage they carry free of cost. Make sure, your luggage meets those specs, as I have already mentioned. Failure to comply means coughing up a lot of money for carrying a bag that might not contain anything of significant value.
Once you’re aware about the permissible dimensions for cabin and checked-in baggage, the next step is to buy suitable luggage or borrow one from a relative or friend.
I recommend buying branded luggage by renowned makers because they’re lightweight compared to most others. Also, brands comply with international baggage standards, that are stipulated by the US Transport Security Authority (TSA). Therefore, you won’t be charged for carrying odd-sized luggage. Lower weight bags mean you can pack in more stuff.
Shopping at Destination
Personally, I never bother to carry soap, shampoo or toothpaste for any journey, long or short. That’s because such items and their wrappings can rob you of a precious 500 grams or a couple of pounds of precious baggage weight. Instead, I prefer packing gifts for my contacts at the destination. It’s also worth knowing that shampoo, hair oil and other liquids can leak easily inside the bag, regardless of how you pack, during a journey. Since bags get tossed around, so will your toiletries. That could destroy your precious dress or newest suit.
And that’s not all. Airlines strictly enforce various restrictions on carriage of cosmetics and toiletries on domestic and international routes. In such cases, you’ve two options and both of these are unpleasant. The first one is opening your baggage at the check-in counter and dunking all those favorite shampoos and other stuff in the trashcan under the vigilant eyes of airline staff or, paying a stiff excess baggage charge to carry them. In most cases, the excess baggage charge will be far greater than the value of these toiletries. Incidentally, bus operators also charge for excess weight and odd-shaped or large baggage.
I circumvent such situations by buying toiletries at the destination. Generally, you can find 7-Eleven stores that’re open round the clock at most places. Added to that, you’ve the comfort of getting free or paid toiletries from the hotel where you’ll stay. This is far better than hauling your own stuff over a large distance.
Duration of Stay
Next, we come to the length or duration of your stay. This includes any city hopping too, or traveling to multiple locations during the same trip during a domestic or international journey. This is common to both, business and leisure travelers. We all wish to get as much done as possible or take in every single attraction, during a single tour, regardless it’s for business or pleasure.
Duration of stay plays a very major role in the stuff you’ll pack for the journey. If staying for a couple of nights at a destination, the best is to carry clothing that would be sufficient for two city hops. That’s because you can get the clothing laundered at a laundromat at the next destination and yet have fresh clothing to wear. Carry adequate formal and casualwear for three changes since you can launder one or two sets easily when necessary. Good hotels have in-house laundry services and provide quick room delivery too.
Usually, city hopping or resort hopping involves traveling by land, meaning road or rail. Hence, carrying a large heavy bag is impractical and also inconvenient. The same holds good for air travel between cities in a country you’ll visit, since it could help avoid excess baggage fees.
Actual Travel Time
And finally, actual travel time. Most people mistake a total travel time to be the number of hours they’ll spend getting from the point of origin to the destination on board any vehicle. That’s wrong. The actual travel time begins from the second you leave your dwelling to reach a destination, regardless of the mode of transport. That’s because you’ll be travelling during that time span.
For most international flights, you can consider the actual travel time by calculating the minutes or hours it needs to get to the airport, the minimum reporting time at the airport, which is generally three hours or 180 minutes for international flights and 90 minutes for domestic flights. This reporting time can differ according to each airport and hence, consult the airline.
If you’re travelling by road or rail or even by sea, calculate the actual travel time from the second you leave your dwelling to the time spent at a railway station or bus terminus before the journey begins. For international transits, a passport check is often necessary before boarding a bus or train to a foreign destination.
The actual travel time will help determine the stuff you could pack in for a journey. Carrying adequate food or drink might prove economical when travelling by air since snacks and beverages at airports cost astronomically higher. The same holds true for railway stations and bus terminus where food and drink stalls are operated by independent contractors and hence, rates are higher.
At the same time, remember that carrying unconsumed food or drink on board flights is prohibited worldwide for various reasons such as risks of foodborne disease and terrorism. Hence, discard all bottles with liquid and half-eaten food before boarding a flight. This restriction doesn’t apply to land travel but can be enforced on some sea routes.
Easy Packing Tips for Travel
Once you’re familiar with the tips provided above, the next obvious step is to commence packing bags for the forthcoming journey. I’m writing these steps considering that you’ve found the right-sized luggage and are aware of free baggage allowances, charges for excess baggage and other essentials listed above.
The first and golden rule: Never pack your passport, identity docs, cash, credit cards and debit cards in any bag, regardless of whether it’s carry-on luggage or check-in bags. Always carry these on your person. Specially made passport and card holders that easily fit into pockets are easily available online and offline. You could also use skin-hugging passports and document holders that are concealable for better protection.
Now, here are some easy packing tips for stress-free travel:
Pack in Formalwear First
Obviously, the next step is to get down to packing your stuff for a journey. Before doing so, acquaint yourself with the travel itinerary. If travelling for business, you might need to pack in some formalwear for the trip, regardless of whether you’re female or male. You wouldn’t like to attend a business meeting in denim and polos. Formalwear such as suits consume a lot of space in a trolley or maleta and to make matters worse, you’ve to ensure they’re wrinkle-free and ready-to-wear.
Hence, pack these first, before placing anything else in the bag. Generally, all bags that conform to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) specs open in two equal halves. One of these is for formal wear. That area can be distinguished clearly from the other because it has a fabric closure with a zipper. This portion of your bag safeguards your formalwear. Place all your formalwear on top of the suit and blazer. It’s best to carry a suit and a blazer because business meetings merit using both of these, depending on the agenda.
Casualwear Comes Next
In the other section of your TSA size bag, place all casualwear. This includes dresses or clothing that you’ll generally use during a holiday or for your evenings and spare time on business trips. Casualwear generally consists of denim or cargos, T-shirts and polos as well as innerwear. Next in this section comes nightwear such as pajamas or shorts and tops or loose shirts, unless you intend sleeping in your casualwear.
The number of such clothing items should be directly proportionate to length of stay at a destination, plus one. That means, one set for two nights. You can get them laundered at destination or the next and should have enough clean clothing for each hop. Here, I recommend using laundry services of hotels since they have swift turnarounds and deliver your cleaned clothing within a few hours only, leaving enough time to repack for hopping or even prolonged stay at the same destination.
Packing Electronic Gadgets
Now here comes the trickiest part: packing a laptop, its power cord, mousepad, memory drives and other stuff. It’s best to place these over casualwear and innerwear, since its important to shield these gadgets from damage. By placing them between formalwear and casualwear, you’re creating a good, strong buffer that could help protect them against any manhandling of baggage by you or luggage handlers, tosses and bumps during land and air travel.
Remember to pack in an international adapter if you’re going to a foreign land since plugs and switchboards in a different country might not be able to accommodate plugs of your laptops. You can also place a lot of other gadgets such as electronic toothbrushes, razors and trimmers, vibrators and in this section. These are common items that’re permitted by the Federal Aviation Authority of the US and other countries, in carryon or cabin baggage only.
A word of caution: you aren’t allowed to carry laptops and electronic gadgets such as power banks in checked-in baggage on flights. Hence, make sure you carry these in cabin baggage only. This makes it easier to access your gadgets should you need to use them during a flight or rail travel. Also, Customs and security checks will screen all gadgets before allowing embarkation on a flight, regardless whether it’s domestic or international.
The same holds true for land and sea travel. Carrying gadgets in a cabin bag or the one you can easily carry inside the bus or train because it’s lightweight and compact, makes it easier for you to complete security checks and use while traveling.
Personal Comfort Items
This might come as a shock to most of you, especially if you’re not a seasoned domestic or international traveler. Therefore, please be forewarned that stuff such as blankets, pillows and stuffed toys can be considered as cabin baggage by all airlines, without any exceptions. And, all airlines, road transport carriers and even some railway networks are within their legal rights to charge you excess baggage fees for carrying them onboard.
This is particularly true if you’re carrying one more cabin baggage such as a large bag, a backpack with laptop or even a plastic or cloth bag. Cabin baggage rules worldwide stipulate you can carry only one item that has been properly security screened and tagged by the airline or transport provider and bears proper identification. Unfortunately, this never happens because we tend to shop at Duty Free stores at airports that increase our carryon or cabin baggage pieces.
This rule is enforced strictly because pillows are bulky and hence, occupy cabin space. Blankets are prohibited on many airlines because they could carry ticks that trigger allergies and could infest the entire aircraft. Stuffed toys also carry ticks and occupy large spaces. Generally, airlines provide blankets and pillows and so do a lot of railway networks worldwide for long journeys.
However, if you need to carry a lightweight Dohar onboard, make sure it’s freshly laundered or completely new.
Pack it neatly in your cabin baggage in a separate bag for easier management. The same holds for pillows. Both pillows and blankets are subjected to security screening, along with stuffed toys. Mule passengers are known to carry drugs sewn into hems of a blanket or stuffed in pillows and toys and hence, undergo strict screening.
Medications for Travel
If you’re on prescription medication for any chronic ailments, always pack them in a cabin bag or what some airlines call carryon bags. Never commit that colossal blunder of packing them in your hold or checked-in baggage, regardless of the mode of travel- air, sea or land. That’s because checked-in baggage, including on airlines, can sometimes be misplaced or loaded on a wrong flight due to system or loader errors or even lost.
In such an unfortunate eventuality, you would be left struggling without your medicines.
The same holds true while traveling on trains or buses or cruise liners and passenger ships. Bulky bags are checked-in and hence, loaded into the cargo hold or freight hold. Modern trains aren’t made to accommodate archaic metal trunks and their delicate, aesthetic fabrication disallows heavier bags in the module or cabin.
If you’re traveling to a foreign land, make sure that you also pack in a fresh prescription from your doctor. Such a prescription should clearly indicate the nature of your sickness, names of medicines and their generic contents and dosage. In many countries, including the US and Australia, it’s illegal to carry foreign medications above a certain limit. Even then, there’re strict regulations for you to actually get them past the Customs checkpoints at airports, seaports and land border crossings for buses and trains.
Pack your medicines in a small and light, airtight box and clearly mark it so that you don’t need to fumble and search during inspections. Not declaring medicines can render you liable for being denied entry into a country, deportation or even smuggling, leading to criminal charges.
Enjoying a Hassle-Free Journey
Follow these simple tips and tweaks to have a hassle-free and comfortable journey.
Traveling light and with minimal baggage is the keyword nowadays. Above all, traveling light saves you money because you can travel on budget airlines that offer fares that’re almost half of those charged by Full-Service Carriers. You won’t have to pay excess baggage fees for extra weight or carrying more pieces than your free allowance.
Traveling light also helps avoid your baggage being manhandled and being stashed into the cargo hold of a bus or train, aircraft or sea-liner and hence, reducing the possibilities of your stuff getting damaged and the need to replace.
All transporters carry your luggage under the explicit understanding that you’re solely liable for any damages that could occur, except in rare cases. And even in such rare cases, the compensation you can expect is a pittance.
Wrap Up
From my personal experience, I can testify that traveling light with a single TSA specifications cabin bag and at the most, a backpack, is more than sufficient for air, sea or land journeys. Over the year, I’ve hopped across the vast expanses of the US, Europe, Australia and Asia with minimal baggage and yet enjoyed memorable journeys. Too much baggage renders you prone to Jackdaws or baggage thieves in your own country as well as foreign lands. At some locations, cabbies too will levy a fare depending on the number of bags and its weight.
Before concluding, I encourage you to get acquainted with airline, sea and land transport laws at destination, realities and other such details so that you can pack in only what’s legally permissible and admissible. You can find such details on websites of transport companies and governments or even large tour operators. Gone are those archaic days of traveling with portmanteaux and trunks with loads of comfort props.
