The sight of people hauling mammoth-sized suitcases as they wait in the airline queue is a real cause for concern. Travel is stressful enough without the extra pain caused by lugging heavy luggage everywhere. The journey from home to hotel can be made a lot easier and even enjoyable if you cut down your luggage to the barest minimum. Imagine being able check in online, walk straight to the gate, stow your bag in the overhead locker and walk off at the other head without waiting for baggage reclaim. It’s the way to go!
Choose Your Luggage Dimensions According to Airline Rules
The IATA rules state that “Cabin baggage should have maximum length of 22" (56 cm), width of 18" (45 cm) and depth of 10" (25 cm). These dimensions include wheels, handles, side pockets, etc.” In Europe the restrictions are even tougher and limited to dimensions of 55 cm x 40 cm x 20 cm. This is a good general guideline but you should always check with the airline.
Now cases with wheels are fine, but they’re also heavy and cumbersome, and not great for mounting kerbs. If you’re packing light, it makes more sense to go for a hybrid case/rucksack like this Tatonka Flightcase. What’s brilliant is that, although it looks like a normal soft case, concealed within the back cover are padded shoulder straps, so it transforms into a rucksack with a flick of a zip. And if you’re packing less than 10 kg, it’s not a great load to carry on your back.
The Ultimate Lighweight Travel Packing List
The aim is to get everything into one piece of cabin baggage. Nowadays there are often weight restrictions, sometimes as low as 5 kg, so it’s important to pack only the bare essentials. Here’s a basic list for two weeks travel to a warm country:
- Light shoes – wear for travel
- Plastic sandals like Teva
- Light Jeans or other trousers – wear for travel
- 1 shorts
- Swim shorts or trunks
- 1 long sleeve T-shirt - wear for travel
- 2 T-shirts
- 1 short sleeve shirt
- 3 pair's of underwear – wear one for travel
- 2 handkerchiefs
- 3 pair’s socks – wear one for travel
- Thin fleece – wear for travel
- Waterproof jacket – wear for travel
- Baseball cap – wear for travel
- Washing kit
- Sunglasses
- Book – stow in jacket pocket
- Small towel or fabric wrap
You can keep the weight down by wearing the heaviest items. If you’re travelling from a cold country, this makes good sense anyway.
The other thing to remember is that you can always wash your underwear and T-shirts and they usually dry within 24 hours. And, of course, if you find you haven’t got enough, they are cheap enough to buy, and even cheaper if you shop in a thrift store or charity shop. That way you can always leave them behind.
Packing for Cold Countries Like Greenland
If you’re travelling to somewhere very cold, even Greenland, then the basic list still holds good. You just need to bulk up your clothing accordingly, and use the principle of layering. The base layer could be a thermal long sleeve tee shirt, and long underwear covered with a woolen shirt, warmer fleece and thick trousers. And you would be wearing most of these for travel, so you don’t need a lot of extra space in your pack.
Subscribe to the Pack Light Philosophy
As you pack, ask yourself if you really need each item, then, when you’ve finished, go through the pile and ask the same question again. That way you’ll be surprised how much you can leave behind. When you return from your first trip make a note of what you’ve used and what’s stayed in the case. Then type up a list and store it on your computer. Then, next time, you don’t have to worry.
There’s much more to this philosophy then avoiding hassle at airports. It allows you to take buses rather than taxis, avoids endless unpacking and repacking as you change hotels, and there’s no need for porters to carry your bags. It’s your ticket to travel freedom.
Rupert Parker - Rupert Parker is journalist, photographer, cameraman and TV Producer. He specializes in factual programming and has worked for the BBC, ...
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