Our top tips for travelling light this summer

Have you noticed how good other people seem to be at packing? In any movie or TV show, everyone seems to travel light. 

Take the recent series of The Apprentice, for example. As each fired candidate made their way to the waiting taxi, they trailed behind them a small carry-on case. That’s all. But when you think of the array of clothing, toiletries and grooming products we saw being used during the show, that can’t be right surely?

And then there are those magazine articles that claim you can survive a two week holiday with just a few “capsule” items in your rucksack. Swimsuit, shorts, T-shirt and sarong, and you’re done. Really?

These examples may be a little far-fetched, but in the reality of life, many of us pack far too much to take on holiday. Wouldn’t it be nice to have one small carry-on case instead of having endless waits for cases at luggage carousels? Not to mention the stress and strain of then having to haul cases off and drag or carry them to your next destination.

If you are flying, you could also save money by travelling light, by being able to carry on your luggage rather than paying extra for it to go into the hold. And you completely avoid the risk of having to pay an excess because your luggage is too heavy!

So in this article we look at five top tips – realistic tips! – for travelling light this summer.

Make a list of absolute essentials

Make a list of the things that you really can’t do without. The things that you absolutely have got to take. This might include:

• Money
• Passport
• Travel documents
• Medication
• Inhaler
• Glasses or contact lenses
• Particular toiletries that you are not allergic to
• Underwear
• Swimwear

This is your failsafe list. If everything else got lost, you would still be ok if you had these things. 

So everything over and above this list is an extra.

Think what you used last holiday

OK, it’s probably been a while since you were last on holiday! But there were definitely lots of things that you took with you and didn’t use. Try to remember what was and was not worth taking. Perhaps use some holiday photos to help you. 

This should help you to start planning what to take this time – as well as get you in the holiday mood!

Make every item earn its place

When travelling light, you need to make some tough decisions. Only take things that you really love and that will be useful. Avoid the temptation of taking a special outfit that you are only likely to wear once. Wear it when you come home instead! 

It really is not worth taking up luggage space for an item that will only be used once.

Be conscious of weight

Remember that everything that goes into your luggage is going to need to be carried at some point. So make your luggage as light as you can. Do you really need four pairs of shoes?! 

It’s much better to err on the side of not taking things than to end up stuffing your case with far too much and making it too heavy.

Remember you can buy things there

Why do we have a complete panic in case there is something we need on holiday but we’ve forgotten to bring it? For most holiday destinations you can buy most things; either there or en route. 

Be honest, who hasn’t felt a bit deflated having spent days shopping and packing, only to see all the bits and pieces you can easily pick up at the airport.

Pack with care

Even when you have a minimalist amount of items to pack, there are ways of packing that can also help to make things easier and save space. Here are five tips on how to do this:

• Roll your clothes

If you’re a fan of the Japanese decluttering expert Marie Kondo, this will come as no surprise. Rolling your clothes helps to prevent creasing and also means that they take up less space in your case.

• Choose crease-free fabrics

Your clothes will be even more crease-free if you choose fabrics that don’t crease easily. So, for example try to major on fabrics such as polyester, tencel and denim and avoid linen and light cotton which wrinkle very easily.

• Put clothes in first

You can save further space by putting the rolled clothes into your case first, then fitting in more awkward items such as shoes, accessories, toiletries etc on top.

• Use plastic bags or packing cubes 

Many experienced packers also like to organise items into either plastic bags or packing cubes (small zipped fabric containers). This helps to keep your case nice and tidy and makes things easy to find. When packing to come home, your bags or cubes can also be really useful as laundry bags or toiletries bags.

• Keep heavier items at the wheel end

If you have heavier items in your case – for example shoes, electrical items or books – try to keep these at the wheel end of your case so that there is more weight at the bottom when you are wheeling your case along.

So if you are going on holiday, and want to travel light, we hope that the above tips help you to do just that!

Have a wonderful time, and remember to check back in with us soon at Loans 2 Go.