- 10 tips on how to pack
better for travel right now.
I'm Tom, the founder of
Pack Hacker, and we love
helping people optimize
their travel experience
with reviews, guides and
video content just like this.
So if you're new to the
channel, consider subscribing.
I've even spent two years
living out of one singular
40 liter backpack, so I definitely have
a lot of experience in this arena.
Let's jump into the video.
[upbeat music playing]
Before we get going I want
to mention that this video
is sponsored by onlywhatmatters.com,
an online community for
aspiring minimalists.
Mac, the founder, is
all about teaching folks
to live better with less stuff.
He's big on closet audits,
which enable you to
declutter your wardrobe
and add more simplicity
to your everyday life.
Feel free to join me in the community.
I've got a link in the description below.
Let's get into tip number one.
One of the best ways to
decide what you want to take
with you on a trip, and what
you want to leave at home,
is to just lay everything
out in front of you -
either on the table or even the floor.
Maybe even your bed.
With this you have a
big picture view on what
you want to take with you,
what you can leave behind,
and maybe what you need
a little bit more of.
So when you have it all
laid out, it's a lot easier
to see all that and notice
the patterns you have
going on in your selections.
Pro tip - look at everything
in front of you and
try to cut it in half.
Just take out one item,
after item, after item and
pretty soon you'll notice
that you make it a lot more minimal.
Last thing you want to do is
to have an overweight pack
and be that person in the
airport rummaging through
everything trying to save space - to either
fit your bag in as a
carry-on, or trying to take
even more things out so that
you can properly check your bag
based on the airline regulation.
With everything in front of
you it becomes easier to pick
an organization style
that's going to work for you.
So here are a couple
that have worked for us.
First - frequency of use.
Something that you use
very often - say your phone.
Makes sense to have that
in a quick-access pocket
on your bag or luggage,
maybe even your pocket.
Or, like a fanny pack or a sling.
You don't want to have
that thing, you know,
in your bag in a packing
cube in another pouch.
It just doesn't make sense,
so really think through your items.
If there's a jacket that's going to be warm
for the most part, the second
leg of your trip is maybe
a little bit colder - put
that jacket way at the bottom
of your bag, stuff it out of the way.
Out of sight, out of mind.
You save a lot more room for things
that you want quicker access to.
Secondly - you can sort by item type.
It's good to keep light
products with one another.
So if you keep your socks
with your underwear,
it just makes sense.
You keep your long sleeve
shirt with your sweatshirt
with your jacket, keep that
warm stuff compartmentalized
in itself, maybe even a scarf
or some gloves in there too.
That'll help you think
through the organization
if you think in themes of item types.
And next - outfit packages.
Consider putting items that are used
in conjunction together with each other.
For instance, if you're
heading to a nicer dinner
maybe there's a separate
cube or compartment
where you keep all your nicer clothing.
Whereas if you're going
to the gym, there's a spot
in your pack for all of that as well.
This is kind of like
the item-based approach,
however it's different in the
fact that it's contextual.
So it's more about the
activity that you're
going to be doing with that gear versus
holding like things with one another.
So again, those are three
ways that have worked for us
in how to organize things,
your mileage may vary.
Compartmentalize your gear.
Think about storing
everything in your bag within
packing cubes or pouches,
that keeps things
a lot more organized overall.
Even a plastic grocery bag or
a Ziploc bag can work wonders
if you have it laying around your house;
you don't even have to buy anything new.
This helps with the previous
tip and keeps things
neat and very easy to access.
We recommend strong and
lightweight packing cubes,
especially if there is
compression technology.
Packing cubes and pouches
come in many different sizes
and allow you to cater
specific items to put inside.
Grab a smaller packing cube
for socks and underwear.
A larger cube for pants,
jackets, and sweaters.
Or medium-size cubes to
compartmentalize complete outfits.
We've typically found that
rolling clothing saves
the most space within
a cube. And the cube can
take care of the rest,
and really hold its shape
and make it a lot easier to
pack and organize in your bag.
It's kind of like Tetris, it's fun.
Small pouches are also good
for organizing your tech gear,
your toiletries, and any small
medicines or small things
that you need to carry with
you when you're on the road.
For a quick pro tip - use
packing cubes and organizers
of different colors.
This will help you create
mental models in your head
so you know where things are
within your pack just by remembering
those couple of colors in your head.
Consider multi-functional items.
Take an inventory of what
you've packed and really look
for things that can
serve multiple purposes.
For instance a coat,
especially a lighter weight
compressible one can
double as a pillow when
you're on the road if you're in a pinch.
Take inventory of your cables.
The less you bring with you, overall,
the better it's going to be. So look for
small, tiny little conversion pieces.
For instance if you have a
small USBC to USBA adapter,
it's a lot better than taking
two giant cords with you.
Better to pack lighter weight overall.
If you're a photographer,
consider bringing zoom lenses
instead of lenses with
a fixed focal length.
And that's going to save a lot of space
and add versatility,
especially if you're trying
to travel lightweight and minimally.
Also, pick up a buff.
It's one of our favorite
lightweight and multi-functional
items that you can bring
with you on the road.
You can use it as a
scarf like I have here,
you can also use it as a hat.
You take this, you twist
it, you fold it over itself,
and boom! You've got a little skull cap.
Look at that.
I'm not going to put it on 'cause
it's going to ruin my amazing hair.
Also, you can use it as a
face mask to block the light
if you want to take a
nap. So ... I'm just gonna.
[lullaby]
And then you do not have to
have a dedicated sleeping mask.
And that's a plus - two for one.
Pro tip - despite all the
paring down and minimizing,
sometimes it's good to have
some redundancy if an item
or a piece of clothing is
really important to you.
And that's a very personal
choice. But if you're
in more of a remote area
and it's for a long duration,
you might want to think
about that a little bit more.
If you're in a city center
where you have easy access
to things, that's not as big of a deal.
Get some Merino wool.
It is the optimal clothing for travel.
I personally wear it every
day. So my buff right here
is wool, my shirt is
wool, my socks are wool,
my underwear is wool as
well - so I definitely love it
and I've integrated it into my everyday life
even when I'm not traveling.
It's nature's magic
fabric - soft, comfortable,
and antimicrobial - which
means it doesn't stink as much
when you're on the road.
Plus, when you bring a Merino
tee instead of a couple
cotton tees, you can save space
and weight in your pack and
potentially avoid overages in
your baggage fees if you have
to check bags or carry them
on and they weigh too much.
When I was on the road for two
years I had one Merino wool
button up and four Merino
wool t-shirts, four pairs of
Merino wool boxers and
four pairs of Merino socks.
If I was going to do this again
I would probably cut that in half.
With two of everything it
is simple to wear one thing
and one wash another, and
leave it to dry while you're
out for the day from your
hostel, hotel, Airbnb, whatever.
You can wear Merino many days
before it requires a wash,
especially if it's from a
quality brand. And from a
cost per wear perspective,
if it's from a quality brand,
it can be up there as well
because Merino is a tad expensive.
But it's justifiable if
you want to carry less,
wear things for longer
between washes, and seriously,
we love this stuff. That's
why we created an entire guide
on Merino wool over at packhacker.com.
So be sure to check that out as well.
Pro tip - nobody cares if
you're wearing the same thing
day after day, especially
when you're traveling.
And even if they do notice,
it's likely that they won't care
as long as you don't smell
super bad. And that's
what's great about Merino - it
stays fresh for a lot longer.
Keep everything fresh.
Between long flights and
unplanned adventures there's
going to be times where you're
not going to be able to shower
and you're going to be a little
bit grimier than usual.
And Merino wool will
definitely help out with that.
We also like to have,
like, pack fresheners
within our bags and our luggage.
Although there are a ton of
recommendations out there
to carry along dryer sheets,
we've personally found
that wooden cedar chips
are the best option for us,
especially if you like that scent.
The smell will last longer
than the dryer sheet
while you're on the road.
Also we just prefer the
scent of something natural
instead of something super synthetic.
Some people also like to carry
essential oils with them -
lavender oil or
potpourri sachets as well -
and that's totally fine;
your mileage may vary
based on the scents that you prefer.
When you're on the road
your bag and your luggage
is pretty much your constant in your life.
It's basically your home, so
why not try to keep that fresh?
And one pro tip with these
cedar chips - it's a natural
deterrent for bugs and
critters that like to get into
your bag and chomp away
at your clothes and things
like that, especially
Merino wool. So if you keep
the cedar in there it can help
deter those little critters
from chomping away at your stuff.
Get some solid soap.
So we have covered on how
to keep your bag fresh,
well, how about keeping yourself fresh
when you're on the road?
Shampoo bars can do wonders.
They have a small form factor so
they don't take up too much space.
They're highly concentrated
and they typically
last quite a long time.
They are multi-use when
you're on the road.
So use it for shampoo, soaking your body,
you can even use it for
washing dishes or laundry
if you're in a pinch, depending
on the soap that you choose.
And the best part? They're
a solid - which means
it's easy to get through
TSA's liquid allowance
in airports around the world.
Concentrated liquid Castile
soap also works really well -
say something like Dr.
Bronner's. However, that counts
against your liquid allowance.
And when you're going
through TSA, you're getting on an airplane,
some of the pressure
changes, and there's always -
even if you're just walking around, like
your neighborhood - there's
always a chance that
whatever tube or thing that
you have that liquid soap in
can bust open and spill
around the contents of
what's in your luggage or your bag.
Even if you're going on a
short weekend trip we'd still
recommend bringing a
shampoo bar or liquid soap
along with you. It doesn't
take up a lot of space
and you'll be glad to have
it when you need it,
especially if you're on
some unexpected delays.
Pro tip - a more fragrant
shampoo bar can actually
do a great job at keeping your pack fresh
in addition, or in place of,
those cedar chips that we
talked about in the last tip.
Bring a compact bag.
If you're going one bag
traveling - either with a backpack
or some luggage - it's good
to have a smaller, packable,
compressible bag you can keep
with you and use with you
as you get to your destination.
So whether it's a packable
day pack, a tote bag,
or a reusable grocery bag - or maybe even
one of those bags that you see
at Lululemon for instance,
where they give you the
super fancy bag with
whatever it is you're buying
and then you've got like,
50 of 'em at home and you don't
know what to do with them?
Well, just bring one on your trip
and then use it as your out and about.
If you're cafe hopping and
doing the digital nomad thing,
maybe you have a packable
day pack and can use it
with a padded laptop sleeve
to hold your tech gear -
keyboard, mouse, laptop,
things that you need
at the coffee shop to work for the day.
If you're out for a hike or
exploring the city maybe
bring your phone, a
battery pack for charging,
a map, some snacks, and a water.
It's great to have that stuff with you,
and all the essentials with
you, when you don't have to
carry around your giant
luggage or your massive
one-bag travel backpack.
Pro tip - we have all been
there, we want to take home
some souvenirs for our
friends and our family,
but our luggage is full.
Well if you have a
packable pack you can just
take that out, unravel it,
whatever, put your souvenirs
in there and use that
as your personal item
when you're flying home,
depending on your airline.
And then boom! You don't
have to check a bag,
you don't have to ship
anything, and then you are just
good to go, friends and
family will just be thrilled.
They'll love it.
Plan your flight.
Having all items close to you
on the trip is an underrated perk.
If you're using a packing
cube and a pouch method
inside of your bag, consider
making those packing cubes
a sling or some type
of fanny pack instead.
Slings come in many different
sizes and they're perfect
for the road because
they can hold just about
the right amount of stuff you want to
carry with you on a small excursion.
It's basically a fanny
pack with a larger strap
that you can wear messenger style.
Some examples of what
you can bring along
as your essentials in flight
are the following ideas:
water, drinks, and snacks.
An eye mask and earplugs
to help you sleep, USB cable,
headphones, your phone,
and a cord to plug into the
seat monitor in front of you
for charging. A notepad
and pen for any wild ideas
that come to you in the air,
plus you'll like having that pen
when it comes time to
fill out the customs forms
before you arrive at your
destination if you are
going to a different country
rather than your own.
Get creative, you can definitely
put a lot of stuff in here.
I personally like putting
everything that are in my pockets
inside of the sling.
That way when I get to
the airport checkpoint,
go through security,
instead of emptying your
pockets, taking everything off,
you just already have it in your sling.
Pop that through security
and you are good to go.
Strategize to save money.
A little bit of planning
will help you save
some cash while you're on the road.
Starting with food.
Eating on the road - especially
in transit - is usually
inconvenient, unhealthy, and expensive.
On a plane trip you need to
wait for specific times to eat,
and if it's a short enough
flight you may not even
be able to eat at all. Always good to prepare
and bring some snacks along with you.
For optimal packing we
recommend high calorie,
high density, and low
weight non-perishable foods.
You'll get the most bang
for your buck this way,
and generally the space and
weight to usage ratio is great.
For example - nuts, trail
mix, and protein bars
seem to do really well on the road.
Next up - being prepared
with electronic cords,
international converters, SIM
cards, and cables is great.
Oftentimes, products sold at
airports or more generally
touristy areas are overly
expensive and cheaply made.
Take some time to think
through your needs on the road.
Your wallet will thank you.
Consider loading up your
bandwidth hungry content at home
locally on your devices before
you leave for your trips -
whether it's an eBook on
your Kindle or your iPad
or video content, movies,
tv shows, et cetera.
Load all that up at home.
In flight and at a hotel,
speeds can be quite low.
In the worst case scenario
you'll be charged for either
megabytes or gigabytes of
bandwidth that you've used.
Not to mention international
phone plans or temporary
data plans with SIM cards
that have a bandwidth cap.
There are a ton of different
ways to plan and save money -
these are just three examples.
And for a quick pro tip -
be sure to bring your own
empty water bottle through
TSA security checkpoint,
fill it up with water
after you get through,
and that's going to save you at
least three bucks every trip.
Practice your trip.
We often get asked what
the best travel backpack is
or what the best travel gear
is, and we love and we're
honored to be experts in this space.
However, at the end of the
day it's all about you -
your travel style, and what
uniquely fits into your lifestyle.
With all of this, the
best advice we can give
is to practice your trip beforehand.
Load everything up in your
bag a week before you leave.
Take it to work with you.
Only use the gear that's inside for
an entire week or two, maybe even a month.
At the end of the week,
take a look back at what
you used a lot, what you didn't use.
Cut things out, add things
in, iterate and test.
Coming from me, a person
that's lived out of a backpack
for nearly two years, try
to cut some of the clutter
out of your life, you'll
definitely thank yourself for it.
Pro tip - be mindful of what you buy.
You probably don't need
to go out and buy that
shiny new thing every couple of months.
Starting with what you
have and slowly upgrading
with high quality items that
have high durability and last
a long time, is one of the
best ways to go about things.
Thanks for checking this
out, we would love to know
your favorite travel tips
in the comments below.
Be sure to head over
to onlywhatmatters.com
and join me for advice and conversation on
how to simplify not only your
packing and travel style,
but simplifying other
aspects of your life as well.
Thanks for taking a look at this video,
we'll see you the next one.
The ... you ... [trills tongue]
Or medium sized cubes to commentalize... [laughs]
Before we get going I want to mention zzt...
this video ... [trills tongue]
