Are you ready for some trip planning hacks? Looking for how to turn those dreaded hours of stressful luggage packing into a faster and better way to prep for a trip? If you’re a lover of the traveller’s lifestyle, then you definitely know that one of the biggest pre-departure bummers is facing difficulties packing up your bags. It can be quite frustrating trying to cram a bunch of stuff in, but we’re here to fix this issue.
The last thing you need right now is to forget some important items or over-pack, so read on as we highlight 10 exciting tips for frequent travellers to up their packing game.
10 Tips To A Better Travel Packing Experience
1. Make A List
The most important advice we can offer is to start your packing early by creating a travel packing checklist. This list contains all you need to pack for the trip as well as the travel essentials you might be missing. This lets you purchase them ahead of time.
The last thing you want is to over-pack or under-pack, so get rid of that procrastinating vibe and create a list as early as possible.
2. Rolling Is Better Than Folding
This is our favourite hack. We’re sure you’re confused about how people stack a lot of items in their luggage, especially clothes. The simple trick here is to fold your clothing before you pack them in. it’s way better than folding since you save a lot of space.
Rolling also helps reduce those annoying fold creases, so you don’t have to worry about your dinner outfits needing some iron.
3. Check Airline Luggage Policies
Before stuffing your bag with travel essentials, check your airline’s baggage fee policy to see just how much they charge for extra luggage. This way, you avoid annoying fees and unexpected costs. It also helps for better decision making in terms of what airline to use.
This is especially useful if you’re travelling on a budget.
4. Heavy Items Go In First
One vital aspect of travel packing is organizing your items to best fit into the luggage. The best way to do this is to balance the weight of the items in the luggage. Start with the heaviest items, such as shoes and books, and place them at the bottom.
The light-weighted items can sit on top to avoid getting squished. This organization also helps your suitcase remain stable when placed upright.
5. Use A Smaller Bag For Souvenirs
As a frequent traveller, we’re sure you love to shop and keep travel souvenirs during your trip. Therefore, don’t forget to bring a tote or cross bag along for storing those travel keepsakes. These bags don’t take up much room and are very light to carry around.
This way, you don’t have to pass by those attractive souvenirs simply because you lack room.
6. Organize Liquid Bags
This is another vital tip to take note of. Remember the TSA rule on liquid products? Yeah, the 3-1-1 rule states all liquid products must be 3.4 ounces or less and must fit in a one-quart size bag. We advise you follow this rule if you want to have a smooth airport experience.
So when next you’re stashing those facial and hair products you love so much, make sure they’re within the size limit and also make sure you store them in a clear, separate bag so you can be checked easily at the airport.
7. Pack In Layers
This entails that you pack in clearly defined layers that make it easy to sort your clothing and travel essentials into categories. This is also useful for getting checked at the airport. That’s right, packing in layers is necessary for getting checked faster.
The simple reason is this: when you sort the items in your bag into layers (clotting, shoes, liquid products, electronics, etc.), the items become clearer to the TSA agent, and you can waltz to your plane in no time.
8. Pack Double-purpose Clothing First
The saying, “less is always better” is one we all know, and it doesn’t get any clearer than when it’s time to pack for a trip. But it’s also a piece of difficult advice to follow when you have so many items that make up your travel checklist. The simple solution to this problem is the use of double garments.
There are lots of these around, including jackets that double as travel pillows, shorts that can double as trousers, and so on. Just think of the space you save when you switch to the double-garments packing strategy.
9. Important Documents and Medication Go In the Purse
You need to realize that not every essential travel item goes into your heavy luggage. Examples of such items include your personal documents (passports, ticket pass) and your medications if you have any. It’s important these items are always close to you.
This is very important again in the event of a check at the airport. You can easily present these items and avoid complications from keeping drugs in your suitcase.
10. Use Packing Cubes For Better Results
Another great way to organize your suitcase is with the use of packing cubes. These cubes aid the packing process by providing a perfect means of sorting and stacking your travel items. These cubes are light-weighted, so they don’t take up precious luggage space.
Using these cubes to guide your travel items as they move into your suitcase is like a cheat code in the luggage assembly. Say goodbye to days of trying to fit your clothing like misplaced pieces of a hard jigsaw puzzle. And the sweet part is that they’re so thin, that you don’t lose any space.
Conclusion
There are several reasons why travel packing is no child’s play in your trip planning. If you over-pack, you are left with a heavy burden which leaves you disoriented and your pockets empty from paying all the baggage fees.
Also, if you don’t get all your items in, the chances of you replacing them on the road are low, and this is a huge bummer. Since we don’t want you to have a gloomy trip, follow the tips above for a better travel experience.