>traveling soon
>decide to pack light
>end up filling the suitcase
What are some ground rules for packing? I always overpack and end up not wearing 50% of the clothes I take but I still come up with scenarios where I might find them useful
Light packing
One pair of socks, one pair of underpants, one shirt, one trouser, two small shoes. Fill rest of bag with butt plugs and lube
>pack early, minimum a day before departure
This keeps last minute stress at bay and enables you to plan your packing rationally.
>make a packing list
Self-explanatory, the earlier you start the better.
>lay out everything you want to pack, make a rule to put a third or half of it back
This works against the hamster mindset as you have to pitch items against each other instead of coming up with more and more possible scenarios
>only pack clothes you can combine
Same as above, plus it increases versatility while decreasing the items needed.
>if going to cities, plan to buy some clothes there
This further reduces the space needed and gives you the opportunity to buy souvenirs that don't end up as clutter.
Only pack what you need. Just let your bf do it for you if you really want it done properly.
Wrote a whole post and then the browser refreshed and I lost it. Fark.
Basically, i'm on a 3 month Eurotrip and packed more than I needed despite going through freezing temps, snow, rain, heat, wind.
My tips for you are:
Realise you're going to be wearing the same clothes more often than you think. Same socks for 3 days, same shirt for 5 days, same pants for 2 weeks, etc.
Anti-perspirant is your friend as it'll stop you stinking up your clothes after you've only worn them for a day.
Every city is going to have a laundromat so the chances of you getting stuck with no clothes to wear is unlikely. If you're overly paranoid though or travelling somewhere you doubt there will be laundromats, pack a clothes washing soap bar.
Depending on where you're going all you really need is 1 scenario-specific outfit (by that I mean a "going out" outfit or a "hiking" outfit) and even then, try and fit that with your everyday outfit. For example, a "going out" outfit might just be your everyday jeans with a nice shirt rather than bringing nice jeans and a nice shirt. If you're going hiking your everyday shirt will be fine and more often than not, so will your everyday jeans.
Of course if you're a woman you're probably going full wacko mode and you're going to pack shit you don't need regardless. My gf has done this but even she recognises she's packed too much and has "nicer" clothes that she's hardly worn because at the end of the day when you're travelling and you're tired of catching buses and trains all day and it's freezing cold and you're hungry, you don't give a fuck about what you're wearing you just want to be comfortable.
Roll your shirts and socks and put them in a gallon zippy so you can compress and zip them up. Please give more specifics about your trip so I can be more helpful.
I'm going for a month and a half in central america
More socks and underwear, less pants and shirts. You can get away with wearing the same clothes for a few days, if you change your socks and underwear, and aren't a pig fat sweat baby.
Don't bring books, don't bring two pairs or shoes, don't pack your entire bathroom, just what you absolutely need.
Most things you think you might need, can be found easily in whatever country your heading too
>you can get away with wearing the same clothes for a few days
Especially if you rotate the clothes, (hand) washing the ones you won't wear the next day.
>don't bring two pairs of shoes
Absolutely bring a spare pair if there's the slightest chance that you'll walk around a lot, your feet will thank you for being able to switch shoes in the evening.
>don't bring two pairs of shoes
Why not?
>sports shoes for walking in day to day
>hiking boots if you go in nature
>casual/dress shoes if you go out
I have brought one pair of comfortable hiking shoes with me on my travels and they have been fine for both walking day to day and hiking. You only need dress shoes if you're going out to fancy places.
Shoes take up lots of space. If you insist on bringing fancy shoes take vans or some other flat shoe brand.
Just buy one pair of black low top trekking or trail running shoes and you are set for everything. Saves space, looks fine and unless you plan on serious mountaineering they will be more than enough for everything. Not great looking but passable with a dress shirt and/or an informal jeans/sneakers/suit jacket combo.
For backpacking style trips in central America or SEA this would be all I would bring and buy sandals on site.
Picrel as I walked all 960+ km of Camino del Norte from Irun to Santiago de Compostela in an earlier model of the same.
>Don't bring books
lmao low iq brainlet, the real advice is to print out books so you can discard the papers as you read, or alternatively to bring some cheap book you wont mind tossing when you're done with it.
Or get an ebook reader and download all the books you want from libgen...
>discarding instead of using it as toilet paper for maximum utility
I've been doing some reading into this and came across merino wool clothing. They're very expensive and fragile but it's lightweight, doesn't smell as much and you can wear it for multiple days without washing it. Is merino wool an overpriced meme or are the characteristics justify having such a high price?
Does the characteristics*
Merino wool are top tier as base layers for hikes and mountaineering. Also comfy as shit as general winter baselayers like longjohns and long-sleeved undershirts in cold climates.
Wool is very warm as it creates many insulating air layers next to your skin. Critically, it's one of few materials that will keep trapping heat even when wet, hence the popularity as a base layer. It is terrible against wind though, a cotton tshirt will block more windchill than a $50 wool undershirt so you need another layer.
I suppose it's practical for the purposes you wrote as well but if you plan on wearing it instead of a t-shirt day to day you'll probably get pretty warm when indoors.
But if you plan to do hiking you should at least avoid cotton since, as you know, cotton shirts gets soaked and cold when wet. In colder climates this means that you'd have to change the shirt whenever you break to avoid getting cold (which is absolutely doable). You can avoid that discomfort with a woolen baselayer though. For warmer climates sticky wet cotton shirts are still uncomfortable so I'd prefer a in part synthetic work-out shirt.
I don't own any merino clothing but I'm thinking of buying some before travelling indefinitely. Is 2 pairs of t shirts, underwear and socks enough?
Depends what you use them for as well as the product itself. Some products are labeled "merino wool" but its a blend with only 20% or so and doesn't have the properties you would expect.
I like merinowool socks and they are relatively cheap.
If you can afford it merino is GOAT. Ignore people saying that it is too warm, if you sweat it in (you'll sweat when it's hot regardless of what you wear) then it wicks the moisture away and keeps you cool. It also doesn't get clammy when sweaty/wet like cotton.
It is fucken delicate though. I've had shirts get holes within a few months. You have to be careful with packs/buckles/belts wearing on pressure points.
My concept of travel light: Gas Powered Stove (camping)
Some clothes
A frying pan and a saucepan
Buy rice, meat, eggs and gas cannisters at first port of arrival
This methodology also allows one to save lots of money
Extra savings could be incurred by bringing a tent
Ebook readers are trash, they will never compare to a real book. On the other hand, books are cumbersome and heavy. I would say you can probably pack a single good novel at a time, and you would need to be prepared to sell/donate your books as you finish them and buy new ones in the country you're in. You also may or may not need to be literate in multiple languages as English book stores may be uncommon in some countries.
>Ebook readers are trash, they will never compare to a real book.
Why do you think this? I bought a Kobo last year and haven't read a paper book since.
Pack enough clothes for the time you're gonna stay, and then +2 outfits and +2 underwear/socks. Light jacket. That's all you need.
Wear your underwear/socks inside out when they become filthy.
Hand wash your clothing at your hotel washroom and dry them with hair dryer.
Bring clothing that can be use as pajama then outside clothing when they get dirty.
Use a Japanese manual travel cloth vacuum bag.
Bring only old cloth and throw them away as the trip progresses.
Buy from local Uniqlo
Leave your laptops/game consoles at home