Packing Tips for Travel

Whether you’ve been traveling for leisure, business, or a little bit of both, remember that even the most avid travelers face challenges when it comes to packing. Packing can be made more complicated when kids are involved. Here are some tips to get you on your way to being a packing pro! 

Consider the weather

Wear the same travel outfit to and from your destination. For the other days of your trip be sure to consider the weather of your destination. If you’re going somewhere rather chilly, wearing your heaviest clothing on the plane will save you the stress of trying to pack it in. Once you’re seated, it’s easy to put your jacket either under your head or in the overhead compartments and get yourself more comfortable.

Plan your shoes

Shoes can take up valuable space in your suitcase. Try wearing your bulkiest footwear on the plane. Consider packing flip flops or flats which take up basically no space, and maybe a pair of dress shoes. Shoes should be packed in the bottom of your suitcase. If protecting your shoes from scuffing is important, consider a ShoeSling® which has a separate pocket for each shoe. Alternatively, attach a ShoeSling to your backpack or carry-on and keep your shoes away from your fresher clothing.

Be basic

This is easier for adults than kids. For adults, try choosing clothing items that can be re-worn without showing reuse. For kids, pack an outfit for each day. For everyone: remember to choose clothing for weather layering.

Keep valuables and essentials in your carry-on

Any emergency items or valuables like prescription and OTC medications, ear plugs, and jewelry should be in your carry-on. This is also the place to keep extra earplugs, eye masks, charging cords, games, snacks and other things you might need during the flight. 

Roll or bundle clothing

Folding and then rolling your clothes can save you a lot of space in your suitcase. Once you place your shoes in the bottom of your suitcase, place your rolled pants and shorts next to them. Then you can lay your shirts face down, fold the sleeves back, and roll up from the bottom. They can be separated nicely with tissue paper, or for more sturdiness, rolled onto packing paper.  Another method is “bundle wrapping”, a process where you strategically make a bundle with the most wrinkle-resistant items, and wrap more wrinkle-prone clothing around it (the most wrinkle-resistant materials are nylon, lycra, and polyester). The goal for both rolling and wrapping is to avoid folding, which causes the most wrinkles. If you don’t care too much about that and just want to pack as much as you possibly can, a compression/space bag might just be your best bet. 

Packing cubes/compression bags

Packing cubes are lightweight zippered pouches that help keep your items organized, compact and easy to access. Compression bags work like a vacuum that sucks the extra air out of your clothing, leaving room for more items.

Leave space for souvenirs

Even if you think you’ve mastered packing, remember that you might want to take something home, so leave a spot for anything you might buy on your trip. So, really, there is no reason to feel intimidated or dread organizing for the next plane or road trip. Knowing the basics of packing will save you time so you can focus more on you and enjoying your destination.