3 Ways You're Packing Your Suitcase Wrong

Packing is probably a lot of people's least exciting part of travel. I know plenty of people who straight-up say they hate packing, which is funny, because I love packing and hate unpacking. You can't just not pack for a trip, unless you have someone who will do it for you. Believe me, if I could figure out how to make a living from packing strangers' suitcases, I would totally do it. For now, I have to settle for telling people how to do it instead.

There are a lot of ways to become adept at packing, but most people don't have the patience for it and also don't want to do any of the things I explain help to pack lighter and save money. I'm not going to spend $30+ each way for my clothes to go on the plane and maybe arrive at my same destination. I like knowing where all my things are and not having to wait around at the carousel for it to *hopefully* come off the plane. I want to take my stuff and get right to my vacation. No stress.

I'm a small person, so I am not bringing a bag that I could ride in and definitely not one I can't pick up. If I travel alone, I usually only bring along a bag that fits under the seat, because I'm short and have anxiety about getting my bag in the overhead. You don't have to be like me, but you can pack better by avoiding these 3 things:

1. You didn't make a packing list

When you don't make a packing list, you have no clear vision of what your travel wardrobe is going to look like. It leaves you open to overpacking and taking too many things, most of which won't go together, and then you end up either struggling with a heavy bag or paying to check it. Worst case, you have to do both. Make a packing list and make sure every top you bring goes with every bottom. I promise this works even for business trips. Black pants go a long way on almost every trip, unless you're going to the beach.

2. You brought too many shoes 

I love shoes. I have a whole closet full of them. Do they all go on vacation with me? They do not. I bring one pair of walking shoes, like sneakers, and a nicer pair of walking shoes to go to dinner or somewhere dressy, like a pair of ballet flats, mary janes, sandals, or a short packable boot. 

If you're going to the beach or the pool, throw in a pair of flip flops, but that's it. I wear my sneakers on the plane and pack the others and I have never been upset to only have 2 options, even when it rained so hard I had to go back to my room and change into my second pair and leave the first to dry out. 

3. You took the wrong bag

The right bag is essential. If you know that you're an overpacker, choose a smaller bag and pack for that one. Don't just assume you'll pack less in a larger bag, because you won't. I need to downsize to pack less and I bet you do, too. For a long time I either packed in a full-size roller bag or a backpack or both. I still take a backpack, because I like it for my laptop and snacks, but I've now gone to a smaller roller bag for when I travel alone or we are going on a short trip.

The more you practice packing, the easier it gets to take fewer things and choose the right bag for you. I have a lot of bags, because I'm a firm believer that certain trips call for certain bags, but even if you just invest in one good main bag and a personal item size bag, that's perfect. Figure out what you want from a bag (organization, pockets, 4 wheels, convertibility) and choose one based on those criteria. It's better than if you just buy one randomly based on price or because it looks good on the outside.

Now you have a good foundation for your packing and can start becoming more of a packing pro that can focus on downsizing your wardrobe and toiletry bag and using packing cubes (or not). Spending the time to really research how you want to travel and with what, you'll be happier to start packing for every trip.

What are your favorite travel brands for bags or clothes or shoes?

Why It's So Hard To Pack Less

I hear from a lot of people that they always check a bag and they're always shocked when they find out I rarely check a bag. If I do, it's only on my way home from a trip and nothing I've purchased there gets checked. Why? Because if my clothes go missing, that's one thing, but if things I just bought go missing, I'm going to be really upset.

When I ask why people don't just do carry-on, I get a lot of responses, but here are some of the most popular reasons they decide that they'd rather check a bag:

• They don't want to drag their bag through the airport
• They need too many things
• They want to bring 6 pair of shoes
• They won't carry their coat on

People are more than free to their opinions and travel styles, but when they complain about baggage fees and want me to give them tips, but then hate every suggestion I have, then the problem is definitely them. If you don't want to pay baggage fees, then you need to take fewer things and downsize your suitcase. You don't need to check a bag that is also oversize and/or overweight, unless you are packing to move across the country, need a bunch of camera equipment, or have medical items that take up a lot of space, but you can't live without.

So, why is it so hard to pack less? As a former overpacker, I get it. I had no strategy and just took a bunch of things and figured I'd decide what went with things when I got there. I wanted options. I love shoes. I never knew what I needed and often still brought things I didn't need and didn't wear or use. 

My whole outlook changed in October 2006. We were on our honeymoon and we arrived in London with two big bags, but because also didn't know where we were going or how to get there until we showed up, we spent hours riding the Underground, going up and down escalators and stairs, and walking over cobblestones. My ankles were swollen from the long plane ride (because did we really know about compression socks in 2006?) and I was tired and hungry. 

My bags weighed too much and I could barely even pick up my larger bag, which was horrible going up and down stairs when stations didn't have escalators, and I cursed myself for bringing anything at all. When we were near our hotel, I said if we weren't there soon, I was going to toss my bag into the street and just live without it. I didn't. We got to our hotel, where we were given the smallest room I had ever seen, and we dumped our bags, changed our clothes, and went around the corner to eat, at probably the worst restaurant I'd eaten at on a vacation. It was food though, so I didn't die of starvation.

I learned a lot on that trip. I wore the same pair of shoes the entire 2 weeks we were gone, because my legs were so swollen from the plane and I couldn't get them into the boots I packed. That's when I realized I didn't need a bunch of different shoes, just two very good pair of shoes. 

I packed too many heavy items of clothing. Not only did I end up having to lug those around, but I also didn't wear most of them, because the weather wasn't as cold as I expected. 

I started changing the way I traveled after that trip. I didn't always get it right, but I tried, and the more I tried, the better I got at it. We've gone from two big suitcases and carry-ons to two large carry-ons and personal items, to one large carry-on and personal items, and sometimes 1 small carry-on and personal items. 

I stopped packing things just because I might wear them. We joked about the "fear-based lifestyle" making you overpack because:

• What if I want woolly socks?
• What if I want to wear a Hawaiian shirt?
• What if I need extra boots?
• What if I need more pajamas?
• What if I'm asked to a gala and I don't have a tuxedo?
• What if I go sailing and don't have the proper shoes?
• What if I want to go spelunking and I don't have ropes?
• Will people know where I'm from? Better pack four or five more Oregon shirts!

You get scared you won't have everything you need, but you need way less than you think and you can always buy things if you do need them (we had to buy jackets one year when we went to Disney and it was much colder than expected, when a few years before that we were wearing t-shirts and shorts at the same time of year).

If you need everything from home when you travel, then you're not really traveling that well. You might as well stay home where all your things already live. You want options, but don't realize you're leaving yourself open to too many options when you have too many things and it makes it harder to make a decision each day to get to the point that you can leave the room.

What you need is to make a packing list before you go, but a good packing list that gives you mix-and-match options and not too many of them. You can make a ton of outfits from just 8-10 pieces of clothing, and even that is sometimes too many pieces.

Use your energy and decision-making before you go to plan your actual trip, not every outfit you plan to wear each day, because you're going to get there and then realize that it's impractical or uncomfortable or something you don't actually like now that you brought it with you. Plan your trip, watch the weather, make a layering plan, and go have fun. 

What are some of your biggest struggles when packing less?

In Which I Bring Back An Old Series

When I first started blogging, I used to do a Live and Learn segment, where I would tell you about things I learned on vacation, so you wouldn't make the same mistake, or at least try not to. I started just incorporating my lessons learned into my regular writing, but realized it might be fun to bring it back, not only because it helps me remember what went wrong and how we dealt with it, but also makes it clear that we are always learning from travel, even if we don't think we are.

What's something I recently learned on a trip? 

On a trip to San Francisco, we had a lot of things go wrong in the very short time we were there. One of those things was that our rental car got broken into and both of our backpacks were stolen out of the trunk (there wasn't anything in the car that was visible when we parked it on the street). We were, literally, 20 feet away in a tea shop having afternoon tea, and when we came out, one of the back windows was smashed, the seat was pulled down to be able to reach stuff in the trunk.

What I learned:

Thieves now have bluetooth/RFID detectors to find electronics in cars, so they broke into the car to steal my laptop, even though it was in the trunk and not visible.

What we did:

• I went onto my phone and signed out of Google for my laptop and deleted any personal info that they might have had access to to sign into websites.
• We made a report to our insurance to cover our luggage and everything inside. 
• We also had to call the rental car company and make a claim through them for our insurance.
• We took as many pictures of the damage as possible for ourselves and insurance.
• Eric tried to make a police report, but they said there are so many break-ins that they almost never follow up, so that's...discouraging.
• Once I got home and ordered a new laptop, the next thing I ordered was a set of Faraday bags, so no signal could get in or out and detect my laptop. So far, in the 2 1/2 years I've been using them, I've had zero problems. I put my laptop in a large one and put it in my bag. Eric puts all his electronics and key fob in a smaller one, which also keeps it all together in his bag and then at our destination, too. Once I left my laptop in it in the car for the entire day we were at Universal Studios and had no issues.

So, don't leave your belongings in the car where people can see them, and if you leave them in the trunk, either take your electronics with you or get protection for them like I did. Things happen on vacation that you can't always prepare for, but when you can and it's an easy fix, you should do it before it becomes a problem. Did I freak out at the time? Yes. But did everything work out? Also yes. Did I also say I was never going back to San Francisco? Yes, but I didn't mean that. I just probably won't drive if I don't have to.

I'm hoping to make this its own series instead of an addition to regular content, but it's going to be much shorter, so let me know if this is also content that you enjoy and/or tell me in the comments what are some of your travel live and learn moments.