We’ve been doing a lot of travelling recently and have somewhat honed our cramming skills. Here are our best tips for easy suitcase packing!
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1. Pack for the activities you will be doing
This may sound obvious, but just because you adore a pair of shoes and might wear them out (once), doesn’t mean you should choose those over something you will be doing. Something we brought with us that I kind of regret is our professional camera – we thought we’d be doing loads of lovely natural shots, but in reality are either too worried or too forgetful to carry it with us. It’s pretty heavy and bulky: both out and about, and in our cases!
2. Pack for the activities you should be doing
No, this is not a repeat point! Enter nuance!
We also made a point of bringing workout specific clothes with us; I’d never have considered doing this before, but because we’ve uprooted our entire life, having those items to hand is a good step towards actually working those activities into our daily routines. A good rule of thumb (that we’re admittedly still working to achieve) is to think about how much of your life you want to dedicate to certain things… And pack proportionately! You want to spend a fifth of your time working out? Allocate 1/5 of your suitcase to it. Obviously, this won’t work with everything, but take this as food for thought.
3. Choose items that are multi-purpose
I packed one jacket.
It is my workout jacket (I don’t normally need a workout jacket, but it’s got thumbholes!) and my ‘it’s so cold I need to layer everything ever’ jacket.
I do have two jumpers as well, but I had to make a conscious decision to not take my favourite jacket as we were leaving the UK.
4. Pack things into other things
I’ve brought my running shoes with me in an ill-fated attempt to persuade myself to go running more (as per the earlier point, they’re still my workout shoes).
They’re quite bulky in my efficient carry-on, so I’ve shoved 5 pairs of sports socks (possibly a bit OTT, but they’re a set so I couldn’t split them up) and 2 sports bras into them. Once the laces are done up nice and tight, it’s a much more efficient use of space.
5. Learn efficient packing techniques
My favourite method is rolling clothes – socks in particular look so neat when they’re all rolled up! It does take a while to do though, so there’s always a slightly grumpy packing period when clothes are cleaned…! In terms of space, this is one of our best tips for easy suitcase packing.
6. Use tools that work for you
There was a hoo-hah a few years ago about packing cubes, and we did give them a go. Right before our trip, we even ordered some really well-reviewed ones… But they just didn’t work for us. We had to work around them and it just didn’t make suitcase packing easy.
Don’t get me wrong, they did their job and compressed impressively, but they didn’t fit well into our suitcases, and it made more sense to roll our clothes instead (point 5), so we were realistic and sent them back.
On the flip side, I’d also placed an impulse order for Antler’s Mini Clifton and Chelsea Travel Organiser. OMG. I adore them… I actually placed two orders because I needed more of those bags in my life.
One of the travel organisers holds all my wires really nice and snugly, one holds Francis’ mouse and laptop cable and one holds a tonne of sanitary towels. One Mini Clifton holds 2 pairs of sunglasses and cases along with all my jewellery (the pieces I brought with me), and the other holds my sports leggings and t-shirt. It’s almost 3 months later, and they still make me so happy: for me, it was incredibly worth it.
7. If you’re away long-term, take an honest look at your suitcase and don’t be afraid to have a cull!
When you’re in and out of your suitcase so frequently, it’s relatively obvious to see what you’re just passing over time and again. Because we had a period where we weren’t getting on and off planes nonstop, I stuffed everything we weren’t touching into a bag.
We’re very lucky because we have family who are prepared to (begrudgingly) receive a package of stuff we don’t need but aren’t prepared to be fully rid of. But other options are: charity, buying more luggage, or working harder to use it.
8. Don’t fall into the trap of under-packing (this is not a problem I have)
The risk here is that, like in the case of Francis and his goggles, you have to buy them on the road. The issue with that is threefold: you still have to make room in your suitcase, you have to take whatever price/quality payoff you can get; worst of all, you have to spend your valuable time getting something you already have!
9. Learn more!
There are a lot of seasoned travellers out there who either travel for work or pleasure, or just are really efficient on family holidays! There is loads of information people put out there, and some of it may work better for you than what you’re doing already. A lot of it might not, so unless you’re really interested, I’d only make this a micro hobby, but there are always ways to improve! A tip that makes me feel particularly smug is purposeful stuffing into pockets… And a neck cushion can be hung on the outside of your bag!!
So there are our best tips for easy suitcase packing – happy travels!
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