Pack Like a Pro

Tips and tricks to help you bring only the essentials on vacation.

Summer is right around the corner and with it, hopefully, comes a summer vacation! Whether it’s your annual trip to the beach or a totally new destination, the ideas and advice below aim to help you tackle the least fun part of traveling and that’s PACKING. I’m not going to go on and on about how to Marie Kondo your suitcase for maximum use, instead I’m going to focus on helping you pack like a pro by doing these three things:

• Pack Less
• Pack Appropriately
• Pack destination-specific items that will save you time and money

The main thing to remember is to give yourself enough time to work through each of the steps outlined below in order to make packing less stressful and optimize your packing space.

Research

You should perform research on three different subjects pertaining to your vacation:

• Your destination — this includes the town you are visiting as well as the specific hotel, resort or other accommodation.
• The weather
• What you plan to do on vacation

1. Destination Research

The most important travel tip I can give you is to be prepared for what you will encounter when you arrive at your destination. This means researching the town you are staying in, the surrounding areas and hotel amenities. The information about your resort will tell you if you need to bring a hair dryer, toiletries, your own beach towel, etc. The town information can help you figure out things like if there are convenience stores nearby to purchase items you may not want to pack, if you will need foreign currency and how formal or informal the dress code is.

For example, one year my family went to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico. During my research, I found out that the beach can be rocky in certain areas, and they recommended you wear water shoes. Additionally, when reading the forums on Tripadvisor.com, people noted that they brought stainless steel drink tumblers with them. The temperatures are obviously very warm, and the frozen drinks melt right away. People will have the bartenders make their drinks in their tumblers to keep them frozen…genius!! A third thing my research brought to light is that men are required to wear dress pants at certain dinner locations.

So, into the suitcase went our family’s water shoes, tumblers and a pair of dress pants. Doing a bit of homework before traveling ensures you won’t have to pay resort destination prices for items you could have easily brought with you. In addition, you won’t have to spend your precious vacation time hunting down things you forgot to pack.

If you are travelling to Europe, you will need currency, perhaps a SIM card for your cell phone, outlet converters, etc. When travelling to Disney you should bring rain ponchos, blister bandages and your Disney swag. A beach vacation will require beach chairs, toys and umbrellas. Each destination has its own unique set of items that go along with it — some more obvious than others. Reading up a bit on what past travelers have suggested will help you pack like a pro.

Each destination will also have different dress codes. A lazy beach town is probably super casual, but a cosmopolitan European city might require some nicer attire. Search travel reviews to see what others have said about your vacation destination to help with your clothing choices.

2. Check the Weather

Weather plays a big role in the clothes you pack. During our Mexican vacation, the weather was hot and most of our activities centered around the water. We wore bathing suits all day and then dressed up for dinner at night. There was really no need for daytime clothing. Each vacation destination requires a different set of clothing and accessories. Check historical weather trends when planning and then again as close as you can to your departure date as possible for any changes. I always recommend you throw in a travel umbrella, a few cheap dollar store ponchos and a light zip up jacket or sweater in any case. Sightseeing in the rain is miserable if you’re not prepared and a light jacket helps in chilly airports or hotels even if you’re going to a warmer climate.

3. Figure out what you’re doing

Now that you have researched your vacation destination and the weather, the next step is to take into account the activities you will be partaking in on vacation. This is an obvious one to some extent—if you’re going to the beach, you need a bathing suit. Duh. But there are also some nuances here that shouldn’t be overlooked.

For example, a few years back, my family and I went to Disney World in August. Anyone who’s ever been to Florida in August will tell you, it’s hot, sticky and HUMID. We brought the usual stuff, sunscreen, hats, comfy walking shoes. However, there were some items we saw that would have REALLY upped our game and enabled us to last a bit longer in the scorching heat had we done a bit of homework.

First up was a cooling towel, my brother-in-law had one and it helped him, and his small children not get overheated. You try to buy one of those at a Disney Park and see how much it will cost you! Secondly were those water misting fans. Again, they sell them in the parks, but you’ll pay an arm & a leg for it. For myself, I purchased and packed anti-chafing stick to help with the thighs rubbing together and blister bandages for the inevitable appearance of those nuisances.

If you know what you are doing ahead of time, like standing in lines in the sweltering Florida sun in August, you can be more prepared with comfort items that make your vacation more enjoyable. If you want to snorkel but your research tells you your resort charges you $20 per day for snorkel gear, bring your own! You might want to add a travel phone charger to your shopping list if you’re going to be off the grid hiking for a long period of time or bring a waterproof phone lanyard if you plan on kayaking but want your phone to be safe for pictures. Take some time to think about what you’re doing and what you might need with you to save time, money and increase your comfort & enjoyment on vacation.

Make a List

Ahhh…lists! My favorite! Seriously, I live my life by lists. I really don’t know how people do without them. When it comes to packing, a list is a MUST. Lists help you plan, shop, organize and inform others of what’s coming with you on vacation. Perhaps the most important function of the list is to ensure nothing is left behind.

I like to keep my lists on a spreadsheet, (because I also love spreadsheets), and because I can review them after each vacation and keep track of what I no longer need and/or what I need to include for next time. We do a lot of repeat vacations, so a running list has been great for me. No need to reinvent the wheel, I simply fine-tune it each year to account for any changes.

I typically like to start making my list a month or so in advance of my travel dates. This is because the next step in our travel packing journey is the shopping process. I tend to take my time when it comes to that step, so the longer I have to complete it, the better.

How detailed you get in your list is up to you. I like to first tentatively sketch out each day of my vacation with the outings we plan on doing and the expected weather for the day and then use that information to make my master list. I make that list by person and then have a column for shared items and one for toiletries. That way, I can dole out some of the packing to the other members of my family while ensuring everyone is bringing only the essential items we need.

I highlight items that need to be purchased and review it with the family for any oversights or changes. You do not need to go into the detail that I do, and you should obviously have flexibility to move around activities based on the weather and the moods of your traveling companions. But even a rough outline will help in determining what to pack.

When you make your list that way, you can be sure you have the specific gear for the days’ activities, and you know exactly what you are wearing and bringing along for your outings by day and then your master list is used when packing to ensure nothing is left behind.

From your day-to-day itinerary (click link to view), you make your master packing list (click link to view). Add in any toiletries or other columns you see fit. For the sake of this sample vacation used in my links above, we are getting an Instacart order so we can cook at home and not waste vacation time going to the supermarket. One of my columns indicates a food list for that order. Note that the beach house we are staying in has a washer & dryer. This can help you pack even less clothing if you feel like doing laundry on your vacation. That’s up to you.

Go shopping

Kids need new bathing suits? Sunscreen expired? Beach chair broken? Then it’s time to go shopping! Be sure to give yourself ample time for this step especially if shopping for seasonal items off season. Additionally, you should consider your packing gear. Are your suitcases and carry-on bags in good condition? Do you have enough luggage? Will you need any other pieces such as beach bags, backpacks or laptop bags?

Pre-Pack

I know this seems redundant and you may be thinking I’m crazy. Packing sucks as it is, do you really need to do it twice?? The answer is YES!!

The pre-pack is essential, especially if you have limited packing space. The reasoning behind it is this–when you have everything laid out, it gives you a visual of what you are bringing, allows you to pare down and helps you decide if it will fit into your luggage. I really need to do this because I’m a visual person who tends to overpack. Having it all out in front of me lets me reassess my choices. This way, you are gradually packing and not doing it all at once and it feels less stressful. It’s not REALLY packing twice, it’s more like packing over a longer period of time.

I start by grabbing some empty laundry baskets and putting the things I want to pack in the baskets, checking them off my list as I go. If there’s stuff that needs to be washed or purchased, I can highlight it and make a note. As soon as the item is clean/purchased, I put it in the basket, check it off and move on.

Pack

Now that all of your belongings are sorted out in laundry baskets, you can put them into your luggage. Make sure you are checking items off of your list as you go. When I pre-pack, I check the list, but I also check it again when the items go into the suitcase (I told you I was a recovering Type-A). To keep your clothing together and more organized, packing cubes are a great idea. Rolling your clothes instead of folding them is a way to save space and keep wrinkles to a minimum. Rolling clothes in packing cubes is the ultimate way to do it!

If you are flying, make sure you research your airline’s bag policy to figure out weight limits for bags, toiletry policies and carry-on allowances. Label all of your luggage with your contact information and consider putting a change of clothing and essentials in your carry-on bag in case your luggage gets lost in transit.

Now that you’ve packed like a pro, it’s time to enjoy your vacation! Bon voyage!

Travel Item Recommendations

Packing cubes

Packing cubes are a great way to keep items together when packing. I like to assign cubes to each family member, so all of their clothing is in one cube. While on vacation, I will use an empty packing cube to corral our dirty clothes. I do not own these exact packing cubes, but they are similar to what I have, and reviews are good.

Travel Steamer

If you don’t enjoy wrinkled garments on your vacation, travel steamers are a game changer. Not only do I pack them on every vacation, I use them in my everyday life. So much so that I don’t even use my iron anymore. They are compact and easy to pack, heat up quickly and get rid of any wrinkles that your clothes have after being packed in a suitcase. They are also good to refresh any clothing items you might want to re-wear.

Portable Phone Charger

When you’re out traveling, you can’t always be sure you’ll have enough battery power for your phone or that there will be places to plug it in. This is why a portable phone charger is a must. I have several of these specific chargers and they work well for my needs. Charge them up at your hotel before bed so they are ready to go for the next adventure-filled day.

Luggage Scale

This genius little handheld scale is great to make sure your luggage is not over the weight limit for checked bags per your airline. Store it in your luggage and you’ll always know where to find it. Bring it with you on vacation to check the weight for your return trip.