How We Pack

The big question here is Do we go carry-on only or not?

We used to travel carry-on only. Now that we take trekking poles just in case (after I blew out my knee in Spain) we check a bag, mostly for gear.

Here’s a quick side-by-side comparison:

* Baggage fees are no longer simple. The first checked bag on an international flight is often free. Some airlines and ticket types charge for carry-ons.

** Unless you have to gate check it because there’s no room in the overhead storage bins.

Even though we check a bag, we still travel light. The third bag — we check one bag between the two of us — is for gear like the trekking poles we can’t put in our carry-on and larger liquids like contact lens fluid and toothpaste. We’ll also put sunscreen and bug spray in there if we’re headed someplace we want them and it will be hard to buy them.

Bags We Use

I think I still have every piece of luggage I’ve ever bought. (That hasn’t fallen apart.) We won’t bore you with details on all of them, just the ones we use regularly and why.

Carry-ons

All airlines have carry-on size limits. We’ve also run into carry-on weight limits (as low as 7k for both carry-ons combined), especially on discount airlines and smaller planes, so we bought a luggage scale to weigh our bags.

We have two sets of carry-ons:

• Wheeled carry-ons: We use these when weight is not an issue and we’ll be spending most of our time in places where we can use the wheels. I would recommend ours, but LL Bean doesn’t make them anymore. (We’ve had them since 1998 and they’re still holding up well. Other than having to replace the wheels.)
• Convertible backpack carry-ons: We use these when weight is an issue or we’ll be spending a lot of our time in places where we’ll have to carry our bags. Each can be carried by hand, with a shoulder strap, or as a backpack. The straps tuck away when not in use. They are lighter, allowing more weight for your stuff. And since they’re squishy, they fit nicely into overhead compartments, under a seat, or even on your lap.

My bag is an Osprey Porter 46. I’m not going to talk about the features in detail because mine is an older model and they’ve made some improvements with the Sojourn Porter 46L. What I like about it:

• It has a separate compartment good for a 3-1-1 bag.
• The padded sidewalls make it easy to compress it when not full and keeps the sides from flopping when you open it, so it’s easy to get things in and out.
• It’s understated.

It sounds like Osprey has fixed the one thing I don’t like about mine: There’s an outer pocket on the front that’s almost useless. They’ve also added a laptop compartment, which I wish I had.

Steve’s bag is an eBags TLS Mother Lode Weekender Convertible. (Samsonite bought out eBags a few years back. They sell a Samsonite branded Mother Load Travel Backpack that looks like the one we have.) It too has been a great bag. Features we like:

• Can expand if needed.
• Separate compartment good for a 3-1-1 bag.
• Organizer pockets in the top flap.
• A laptop pocket.
• An expandable water bottle holder and compression straps.

We bought one of each of these bags thinking we’d swap one once we decided which we preferred. In the end we decided each had its advantages. We’ve had both since 2012 and they are holding up well.

Carry-ons go on every trip because three smaller bags works better for us than one large one. Lighter and easier to wrangle, and not all your eggs are in one basket. Recently we’ve been taking both our wheeled carry-ons and the Mother Lode, which we strap onto a wheeled bag to tow around.

What goes in our carry-ons:

• Clothes (when flying we split our clothes between two bags, just in case)
• 3-1-1 bags
• Laundry kit
• Chargers, adapters, etc.

Personal Items

In addition to our carry-ons we each carry a daypack that acts as our personal item on the plane. We have LLBean Stowaway 20L daypacks, and we’re each on our second version of the pack. It’s very lightweight yet still has a waist belt and sternum strap if needed. The pouch pocket on the outside works well for towels, flip flops, or other potentially messy items. I also have a larger Patagonia pack that’s big enough to hold my travel purse. (It’s hard to fit that purse and everything else that needs to go in my personal item in the Stowaway pack.) Make sure the essentials are in your personal item! If you have to gate check your carry-on you don’t want your must-haves in there.

What goes in our personal items:

• ID, credit cards, wallet, phone
• Things we want ready access to on the plane
• Items we can’t be without, such as prescriptions and any valuables
• A change of clothes (just in case everything else goes missing)

Checked Bags

We’ve accumulated a selection of bags to check based on how much gear we need to take. We have papa, mama, and baby duffel bags so we can pick the one that’s just right for that trip.

• Papa duffel: We bought a High Sierra wheeled duffel for our trip to Australia and New Zealand. We took our snorkel gear with us, and since we were there for seven weeks, from summer in Australia to fall in New Zealand, we used it to hold our warmer layers, water bottles, hiking boots and poles, and full-size liquid toiletries we otherwise couldn’t take with us from place to place. The wheels allowed us to roll the duffel while wearing our backpack carry-ons.
• Mama duffel: We purchased a smaller general-purpose duffel in Belize when the zipper broke on a bag we’d brought with us. We again had our snorkel gear with us and wanted a smaller, lighter checked bag since we were flying in smaller prop planes in Belize. (We’ve experienced baggage not making it on the same small plane with us, so we try to keep it minimal.)
• Baby duffel: And for when we just need to check trekking poles we bought a tripod bag that’s long enough for the poles. We can also fit our water bottles, a full-size contact lens solution, and maybe some smaller items. However, sometimes airlines have trouble with it because it’s so small, so lately we just check a carry-on instead.

What goes in our checked bag:

• trekking poles
• other gear, depending on the trip
• larger-size liquids

Packing Cubes and other Aids

We both use packing cubes. It’s easier to pull one out and get what you need rather than digging around inside the bag and dislodging everything. You can also toss them on a shelf or in a drawer and not have to live out of your bag.

Medium packing cubes work well for shirts and pants or shorts. Knits get rolled first, making it easier to find the one you want. Small packing cubes work well for socks, underwear, and swimwear.

We’ve also accumulated a collection of stuff bags, mesh bags, and containers to organize things. In many cases a simple ziploc bag keeps things together and shows what’s inside.

Here are two sites that we’ve found very useful for packing advice:

• One Bag: The Art and Science of Travelling Light: Don’t be put off by the dated looking website. There’s a wealth of information here. 
• Travel Fashion Girl: In addition to great general packing advice, the site also has helpful information on packing for specific destinations. (Helpful even to my husband and to non-stylish me!)

Note: The feature photo shows our High Sierra wheeled duffel, one of our rolling carry-ons, and the Mother Lode convertible backpack carry-on.