The colder months are upon us and it’s a wonderful time to head somewhere warm. And as the spokesperson for Professional Organizers in Canada, I was very excited to be contacted by Global News to provide some tips on how to pack a carry-on for a week-long getaway.
When you plan ahead and pack efficiently, all you need is a small bag. Yes, really! Here are few quick tips:
- Be sure to choose the right size luggage. For many economy flights, the carry-on dimensions are small so don’t get caught with a bag you may have to check.
- Transfer your toiletry items into smaller containers. There are lots of restrictions on liquids, so pay attention to the sizes.
- A couple days before you travel, use your toiletry bag as part of your routine (you’ll realize pretty quickly if you’ve forgotten something).
- Wear your heaviest items on the plane.
- Finally, be sure to pick your clothes to mix/match. If you can’t wear an item multiple times, don’t pack it!
Here’s what you need for 7 days:
- Vital documents (leave a copy of your passport, insurance etc. with someone or in the cloud)
- Phone and/or electronic device and charging cables & converter (extra batteries too!)
- Some local currency (if traveling to remote foreign country credit cards might not be common payment)
- Toiletry bag including medication, supplements, and jewelry
- 7 undergarments (less if you will be doing laundry)
- 3 pairs socks/sockettes
- 2 pants (jean/khaki; skirt/skort; tights/cropped pants). Wear one pair on the plane.
- 1 dress /skirt for women – in place of 1 pant (but one of your tops can be dressier with one bottom)
- 7 tops. Wear one on the plane.
- Coat/jacket (if evening temperatures can be cool/cold). Wear it on the plane.
- Swimsuit & cover-up
- Shorts
- Pajamas
- Beach flip flops
- Dressier shoe (choose ONE of either black, brown or tan and design wardrobe around this)
- Walking shoes. Wear them on the plane.
If you’re heading somewhere warm, just pack a carry-on. With a little pre-planning, you can skip waiting for that baggage carousel, avoid baggage fees, stop worrying about lost bags and move much, much more freely.
See the entire article here with more suggestions from my colleagues on efficient packing tips for travelers.
Any additional suggestions, please leave a comment!
(image above from Global News)
What a wonderful article and I completely agree. I took a 4 week holiday with just a back pack. My non-wrinkled evening clothes were rolled around a small towel and place vertically on the side of the backpack. Everything else was rolled and placed side by side with lots of room left over because I did not want excess weight on my back. T-shirts, shorts one pair of double duty shoes, the work horse shoes I wore. I carried my camping towel which is small and very absorbent. In short the whole experience was very freeing. I walked on and off planes, trains and taxis, no waiting around, it was wonderful