How to Travel with Just Hand Luggage

Many people balk at the idea of travelling with just hand luggage. Paring down your packing and travelling light might seem like a sacrifice, but it can make your trip far more pleasant. Travelling light and just taking cabin baggage has a number of benefits. Not only can it save you money on baggage check-in fees, but your bag is less likely to get lost or stolen as it will be with you the whole time. In addition, when you arrive at your destination, you can skip the baggage reclaim crowd and head straight for the nearest exit.

Check your airline’s restrictions on cabin baggage. Most airlines offer a generous allowance in size and weight, but you need to make sure that you’re within that allowance otherwise you could find yourself having to check your bag after all.

Skip scissors or any other sharp objects. Most everyday items, including common toiletries will be available at your destination. Buying these things abroad will save valuable space and weight in your luggage.Swap liquid cosmetics for solid counterparts, where possible. Soap, shampoo, and deodorant are all available in solid form from shops like Lush. Using solid toiletries will help you stay within your liquid allowance.Remember that any liquids you carry must not be more than 100ml each and must all fit into a clear 1 litre plastic bag. Items like toothpaste, deodorant, and cosmetics like mascara and lipstick all count as liquids so be aware of this when packing.Ask for a doctor’s note to cover any liquid medication you need to take on board. It’s also worth contacting your airline before flying to confirm that you will be taking necessary medications on board.Choose three, and only three, outfits. However long your trip lasts, you won’t need more than this. Sinks and washing machines are the light traveler’s best friend.Be ruthless. As a general rule, I’ve found that I usually need about 25% less clothing than I take on a trip.Take clothes that work with multiple outfits. That skirt that only matches one top won’t be a practical addition, whereas a pair of denim shorts that you can wear with pretty much anything will serve you well.Wear bulky clothing on the plane and save lighter clothing for your case. Boots, walking shoes, jeans, and winter jackets all take up space in hand luggage, so wear them on the plane to reduce the weight of your bag.

Making a few simple adjustments to how and what you pack will save you a lot of space. Here are some suggestions that will help you cut down your load even further:

Get a Kindle or other e-reader. Gone are the days where we need to check a separate suitcase just for our holiday reading. Kindles are small, light, and give you the chance to carry around your own personal library.Book swap. If you’re determined not to go digital just yet, take one paperback book with you to read on the plane, then swap it for another paperback at your destination.Check whether your accommodation provides toiletries like soap and shampoo. If so, you don’t need to take them yourself.Swap a beach towel for a microfiber towel. Microfiber towels do everything beach towels do, but weigh less, take up less space, and dry faster too.Use your pockets, especially if you’re taking a jacket or wearing cargo pants. Your hand luggage might have a weight allowance, but you don’t…Roll your clothes instead of folding them. This helps reduce the amount of wasted space inside your suitcase, and is less likely to crease your clothes than folding.Use any shoes you’re packing as storage containers. The inside of a shoe is wasted space so stuff them with underwear or miscellaneous objects for more efficient packing.Sharp objects. Nail scissors, pen knives, tools, crafting equipment and other sharp objects are not hand luggage friendly.Liquid-based gifts – Remember that you can’t take more than 100ml of liquid in a single container. Save buying gifts such as spirits or perfume for the duty free section, and make sure you can fit it in your case before purchasing.

What are your tips for travelling with just hand luggage? Leave a comment and let us know!

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/how-take-charge-your-tech-related-hand-pain.html: How to Travel with Just Hand Luggage

Featured photo credit: Businesswoman is waiting at the airport - selective focus via Shutterstock

Hannah runs Becoming Who You Are, the guide to authentic living. She is passionate about helping people create the lives they want from the inside out using a rational approach to personal development. Get the free ebook “The Five Most Common Blocks to Authentic Living... and How to Overcome Them" and much more at http://www.becomingwhoyouare.net/.

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How to Pack Luggage Like a Pro

If you have any plans to travel over the next few months, it’s pretty much guaranteed that you’ll be packing a suitcase or other travel case to take with you, unless you’re going to a naturist retreat or somesuch. Should your holiday plans include actually being clothed, then you can follow some of these steps to ensure that you pack everything you need.

Before you actually put anything into your suitcase, check what the weather’s going to be like at your destination of choice for the time of year that you’re heading over there, as this will give you a general idea about the clothes you should be packing. If you’re going to a tropical destination, naturally you’ll want to be prepared to dress for hot, sunny days and balmy nights, but you might also want to pack some warmer clothes for unexpected cooler, overcast days, or even rainy ones. Remember that wearing layers is optimal for any climate, as you can add more if you get cold, or take a layer or two off if you’re overheated.

Try to plan ahead and sort out what you’ll be wearing for each day that you’re gone, and remember that the clothes you travel in count as one of the outfits. Choosing pieces that can mix and match is a smart idea, and be sure to add an extra pair or two of underwear/socks just in case.

Once you’ve sorted out exactly what you’re going to wear, write it all down on a sheet of paper (or type it up and print it out). As you pack each item, cross it off your list—this ensures that you won’t arrive at your hotel to discover that you’d forgotten to pack something vital.

*As a side note: always, always have an extra set of clothes in your carry-on luggage. Always. You never know when/if your luggage will be misplaced, and you don’t want to be stuck in your traveling clothes until the rest of it shows up. Keep your personal medication (along with a prescription letter from your doctor, if need be) in your carry-on as well, along with your toothbrush, passport/wallet, etc.

List Apps You Can Choose: The Complete Guide to List and To-Do Apps

Shoes and heavy/bulky items such as hairdryers and extra handbags should be placed at the bottom of your luggage. If it’s a piece you’ll be carrying, the heaviest bits should be right next to the hinge that attaches the lid, while if it’s a luggage piece on wheels, the bulky bits should be right at the bottom, above the wheels.

Your shoes, boots, and packed purses are ideal spots to carry smaller items within: tuck jewellery, socks, gloves, belts, extra glasses, etc. into these to maximize space. Once the heavy bits have been places where you like them, use the spaced in between them for small items like socks, underwear, rolled-up bathing suits, etc.

Contrary to what some might believe, rolling your clothes to fit into your luggage is not a good idea. Items that are folded lay nice and flat, as opposed to all those rolled clothes wasting space. The first layer atop your shoes and such should be those of the thickest fabrics: jeans, khakis, woolen skirts, jackets, and sweaters. As you pack these, leave a small gap right in the center of the suitcase—this is where you’re going to nest your toiletry bag (mentioned next). If there are any spaces left around the edges, use those gaps for items like your hairbrush, an extra book, etc.

Ultimate Guide: How to Pack Luggage Like a Pro

Fragile items and personal care products should be placed in a padded fabric case, and kept in the center of your luggage so they’re buffered by all of your clothes. Small bottles of perfume or cologne should be kept in zip-able freezer bags just in case they leak: you don’t want to reek of your favourite scent the whole time you’re traveling. In fact, it’s smart to pack any creams inside those bags as well to be on the safe side. Remember that if you’re flying, any liquids or gels have to be packed into travel-sized containers and stored within a clear plastic bag in your checked luggage.

Complete Guide: How to Pack Luggage Like a Pro

The very top layer of your luggage should be comprised of lightweight, delicate fabrics that are prone to wrinkling, such as thin cotton, linen, satin, and silk. If you want to be super careful, items like silk shirts/blouses, etc. can even be wrapped in tissue paper to protect them from any damage, and then placed between more sturdy items of clothing for extra protection. This is a smart thing to do if you’re a bridesmaid heading to a location wedding and you have a delicate dress to wear, for example. This is also the place where you’d pack a suit, unless your luggage has a special front piece that unzips into a garment bag—if it does, use that instead.

Be sure to take a copy of the list you made with you so that you can cross things off again on your return trip: you don’t want to leave anything behind in your hotel room. When traveling, it’s best to leave your most valuable jewellery, watches, etc. at home, but if you do plan to take such items with you, either wear them, keep them in a travel belt on your own body, or store them in your hotel room safe.

Happy travels!

SEE ALSO: 10 Travel Tips from a Seasoned Traveler

Featured photo credit: old shabby leather portable suitcase for travel trip on floor via Shutterstock Lana Winter-Hébert has been writing professionally for over a decade, and now divides her time between writing, editing, and doing collaborative projects with Winter-Hébert: the design studio she runs with her husband. Best described as "endearingly eccentric", she spends any spare moments wrestling with knitting projects, and devouring novels by obscure Czech writers. A Toronto native, she now resides in rural Quebec with her Sir and their animal companions.

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