Packing Light for a Long Trip

People may spend a lifetime travelling, but packing light is not just some skill they can pick up on their way from one place to another. Light packing for long trips, as a matter of fact, is even more difficult than normal packing. The best way to avoid over-packing while travelling is to have a carry-on. With a carry-on by their side, people can not only carry it with themon the plane, it has a minimum limit which makes them pack less and save baggage fees (not to forget long check-in queues).

The three best reasons why one should be a travel minimalist is because it’s a totally liberating experience, getting around from one place to another way more easy when they do not have a bag to heave through the roads of a new city, and because it’s a boon to the environment when people travel light, since people pay for the weight they carry in emissions, and travelling with less means people can opt for walking or public transport.

However, a word of caution: light packing can be an addictive exercise, and people need to make sure that they pack appropriately when the situation demands for it. Here are a few tips that people can refer to, every time they intend to pack light but fail miserably:

• Don’t pack at the last minute: packing light is a technique that needs a lot of contemplation and strategic planning. Therefore, if one wants to pack light for any trip, they need to start packing in advance rather than leave stuff for the last minute.
• Going wheel-less: when the baggage is with wheels, people usually get tricked into carrying more than they need, eventually forgetting how to pack light in the process. If one needs to pack light, they should ideally opt for a duffel bag or a backpack which has limited space and forces one to pack mere essentials.
• No rolling of clothes: it is one of the biggest hearsays in the world of luggage packing that rolling clothes increases space and helps people pack more in their bags. However, the truth is that rolling the clothes might increase space but it also accounts for people being greedy and stuffing more things than they need in the extra space.
• Shop light: it is always a good idea to carry the bare minimum while travelling, and shopping for things like clothes, shoes, etc. on the way. This way people can fulfill their need to shop, and save up on money and space during their trip.
• Being tech savvy: saving up on technology is one of the best ways to pack light for travelling. One should be ready to adjust to the small screen of their phones for just a few days, in order to save themselves from packing in multiple gadgets, their chargers, and adapters for the same (especially when travelling to foreign lands).
• Multi-functionality is key: it is always the ground rule when it comes to packing light that one needs to pick their luggage according to their multi-functional features. The more purposes a particular thing fulfills, the better. This way, one can save space and not pack unnecessary things in their luggage.
• Minimizing toiletries:if one wants their own shampoo and conditioner by their side, they should carry them in small portable bottles instead of carrying the entire unit. Or else, they can use the toiletries provided by the hotels and save up on space that way.
• Putting the wallet on a diet:no, this does not mean that people would necessarily need to leave their money at home or something. It just implies that while travelling, people generally would not need things like their gym membership card, library card or such things. So it’s always better to get rid of such things and make the wallet as light as possible.