The "1/3 Rule" of Travel Packing

by Dee
(Cape Cod, MA)

Travel packing

When packing for travel, I always try to follow advice that my grandmother gave me years ago ...

"Pack only what you think you'll actually use - then remove 1/3 of it."

This is a tough rule to follow the first few times, because you think: "Oh my gosh. What if I don't have enough blouses (or shoes, or skivvies, or whatever!) to get me through the whole vacation?"

But trust me. Just do it. It works!

I've been following the "1/3 Rule" for travel packing for years now, and I still come home from most trips with things in my suitcase that I never got around to wearing.

Dee

www.affordable-cape-cod-vacations.com

Roll It Up!

by Marcie McMurray
(Surrey Canada)

Elizabeth great site.

My mom has always sworn by rolling up all her clothes when packing them in a suitcase. I though she was crazy till we did a test my way (folding) and her way (rolling). Well she won. Now I am a converted roller.

Color co-ordinate your clothes.

by Lakshmi
(New Zealand)

When I go on a trip, I get a bit overwhelmed and try to take everything. In order to stop this, I choose a "main" color like blue and co-ordinate my outfits around it. That way I know that everything matches when I pull things out and I end up taking less overall.

Don't put all personal belongings in one luggage

by Lelia
(Vancouver, Canada)

If you go on vacation with your family, don't put all your personal belongings in one suitcase!
That's what happened to me when we went for one week vacation in Cuba.

We had three small suitcases. I packed all my stuff in one small suitcase. We all arrived OK to our destination, minus my luggage, which got lost on the way. No clothes, no toothbrush, no swimming suit for me, nothing...
All I had was a t-shirt and my jeans...And it was hot!!!

I had to buy some new clothes there.
The good part of the story: my suitcase arrived a day before we left!

Your suitcase

by Angelika Kolompar
(Vancouver Island)

Do not travel with an over-large suitcase like I did on my last trip to Europe.

It was so heavy I could not even lift it onto the train, until a man jumped out of the train to help me.

I don't know what I would have done if he didn't offer to help. I was going over my options as quick as I could. I just really couldn't miss that train. I was actually contemplating leaving my luggage behind.

I hated to do that-not just because of the content but also I had to pay overweight charges at the airport to get it there!

I learned the hard way. Next time I will take a small suitcase or maybe just a carry-on.

I never used half of the things I packed anyway.

Safety for Valuables

by Debbie from France-Travel-Info.com
(US)

How Safe are Your Valuables? Please remember to not store valuables in the front pockets of a back pack (day pack) nor in an open top purse (all my travel purses have a zip closure). It is super easy for a pick pocket to be in and out of your bag totally unbeknownst to you. They are so very light-handed it is unbelievable (I speak from experience!).

Put your valuables in the pocket of the backpack that rests against your back and always use a cross-body bag. Avoid putting a lock on your backpack - that just screams "tourist" and which will encourage theft, particularly if you set the bag beside your chair at a sidewalk cafe. Be safe and expect the unexpected so you have a great trip!

If you are traveling abroad and need guidance on Travel Insurance, I invite you to visit www.france-travel-info.com/travel-insurance/

Roll it All!

by Rebecca
(Reno, NV)

Best packing tip for when you travel: Roll everything!

And this doesn't mean just lightly and loosely roll up your clothes. It means to fold your shirt in half, start at the top and tightly roll down. Not only does this make it possible to pack in a much smaller piece of luggage, you are also able to fit in a lot more things.

If you happen to be traveling for a conference, a wedding or the holidays, this is also good advice. You can neatly fold your clothes for the trip there so they're not too wrinkled and then tightly roll them when you're done so that you can fit in any extra souvenirs which you may have picked up along the way.

Are you going on an extended backpacking trip to far off lands? This is great advice for you as well. I've found that rolling my clothes and stacking them in my backpack so that I can see the end of the rolls when I unzip the bag makes traveling and staying in hostels so much easier. You won't have to unpack everything to get to a certain piece of clothing every single night because you can see the ends all rolled up and packed in tightly.

So, best packing tip ever...? Roll it baby!

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