Pack Lighter and Smarter For Traveling – Have you ever looked at your suitcase and thought it’s too small?
It happens to all of us, especially when going away for a longer period.
People often dislike packing bags because the process is time-consuming and is often stressful. What to bring and what to leave behind….
However, the key is in focusing and taking time to think about what you need on your trip.
Outside of work, Max Kenyon of Cleanthatfloor.com, loves to travel. He decided to share his best tips and tricks for packing.
“It’s more than just throwing things in a bag,” he says.
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How to Pack Lighter and Smarter for Traveling
Take a moment to check out the helpful tricks on how to pack lighter and smarter for traveling, regardless of how long your trip is.
Write a Packing list
Lists are amazing and always helpful though people rarely ever take them seriously.
Writing a list of things you’d like to bring makes all the difference, much like when you make a shopping list for going to the grocery store.
It helps to have things on paper, so when the time comes, you don’t forget to pack anything.
Think about your trip and the things you want to bring. Now take a piece of paper and write all of it down.
You should do this sometime before you have to pack.
Keep one master list for packing that you modify for each trip. In this way, you won’t have to rememeber the basics like toiletry items, medications, sunglasses, ID’s, etc. each time you travel.
Give yourself time to think about what you’d like to bring as you go about your day.
This way, you won’t have to brainstorm the items in which case you’d probably forget a few.
You can also make a shopping list of things you have to buy for your trip.
Are you going to a beach?
Make sure you purchase and pack a swimsuit, sun cream, shades, hat, and other such items.
Choose an adequate suitcase
Trying to squeeze everything in a bag that’s too small is stressful and messy.
If a bag is too small, it’s difficult to get everything packed even if you organize the contents well.
For this reason, think about the items you’ll bring, the length of your trip, and the size of your luggage.
You don’t want it too big either since all the items inside would turn to mess once you arrive at your desired location.
If you’re going away for a month, you’re better off with a larger suitcase.
Not only you’ll be packing more stuff, but you’ll probably buy a few things while you’re away.
Consider getting two smaller suitcases if carrying a large one seems like too much work.
It makes things easier, especially if you’re traveling alone.
Use packing cubes
Think about using packing cubes instead of throwing everything in the luggage.
Cubes come in a wide variety of sizes and colors, so you can even color-coordinate your belongings.
This, though it seems like too much effort, makes all the difference.
You’ll know where your stuff is from the moment you open your suitcase, so you won’t have to search for anything.
Cubes make packing easy, but they also make unpacking just as effortless.
You can simply lay them out in your hotel room and finish unpacking in a minute.
Plan your outfits
How often you returned home to realize you didn’t wear half the stuff you brought with you?
It happened to all of us, but luckily, there’s a way to prevent it.
Think about the length of your trip, the weather that awaits you there, and activities you’d be doing.
This will help you figure out outfits that would work the best for the occasion.
A good trick is to pack outfits, not single items.
Be realist in whether you’ll wear the item or you’d just like to.
In other words, bring the skirt if you’re also bringing a shirt and shoes to match it.
Another useful trick for women is to pack dresses instead of shirts and skirts.
It saves space in your suitcase, and it requires less organizing, matching, and planning.
Buy a pair of shoes that would work for most of your outfits.
This way, you won’t have to pack three different pair for each occasion, event, and activity.
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Bring only half of what you packed
Though it sounds funny, you’ll probably need less stuff than you think if you’re going away for a more extended period.
We often think about what we might need during the month that we’re away from home, and end up packing too much.
In reality, you probably didn’t use or even touch the items you packed in the last month or so.
It’s in our nature to pack for just in case, so that’s not at all as unusual.
However, what you want to do is take half of the stuff out.
Yes, you heard it well.
Pack everything you think you’ll need, and then review it before taking half out.
Better yet, let your well-packed suitcase sit for a few days before returning to review the items you packed.
You’ll notice how, after a few days, you’ll find some items unnecessary.
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Have a ready-to-go bag
Are you traveling short-distance a few times a month?
If so, you probably already hate packing since you’re doing it all the time.
The key to making it less stressful is trying to spend less time on it.
In other words, keep a few ready-to-go containers and bags that would just wait for you to pack them.
Take a bag for your travel-size shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, toothpaste and other toiletries that you won’t have to unpack.
Buy an extra toothbrush for traveling, and maybe even a small hairdryer as well.
Use another bag for a go-to medical kit.
This will save you time and effort on trying to find a pharmacy in a foreign country.
It’s especially handy if you’re not as fluent in the language they speak.
Pack a few band-aids, aspirin, cold medicine, pain relievers, itch relievers, medicine for stomachache, and earplugs.
Pack this toiletry bag according to your needs and preferences, but make sure to check that all the medications are safe to bring in the country you’re traveling to.
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