Ok, lets admit it, the vast majority of us all make one of the biggest and most avoidable mistakes when we travel.  Over Packing!

You spend hours the night before packing everything we can think of, for ever-conceivable situation we might come across on our travels.  In reality the chances of us actually encountering these situations is less than your chance of winning the lottery. So now you have to arrive at the airport much earlier because we must stand in long check in lines because of your over sized bags.  Not to mention almost every airline is going charge fifteen to thirty dollars per bag at a minimum!   Oh, and you better not be over fifty pounds or it’s another hundred dollar charge.

If you have any connecting flights and run into delays the chances of your bags not arriving at our final destination increases with every stop you make.  At last you arrive, but what greets us is more inconvenience with our luggage. You sweat it out at the baggage claim just hopping our luggage made it, wasn’t damaged, or one of the baggage handlers didn’t get sticky fingers.  And let’s not forget about that pleasant surprise when the Department Of Homeland Security decides to search your bag leaving it in shambles.

Once you actually get your bag the troubles continue.  Porters are lining up to take your luggage for a small fee.  You must now wait for a limo or a taxi to take us to you to your hotel because your luggage will not fit in local transportation such as bus and walking is out of the question. With all this pain and inconvenience why do we consistently over pack?

The answer is simple; we don’t know how to pack light. The key is the preparation.  Make a short list of items you cannot do without, i.e underwear, socks, hygiene items.  This list will never change no matter where you travel.  Then depending on where you’re going, make a list of the activities your going to be participating in and pack only the bare necessities for that activity.  Ladies, having matching shoes for every outfit is not considered mandatory.

Remember to keep two things in mind.  Most hotels will have a way for you to wash your clothes so no need to bring an outfit for everyday and you could always purchase anything you might need for the money you saved by not checking a bag along with your savings from using local transportation. Choose outfits that will work with a variety of items that you’re going to bring.  To help those obsessive compulsive individuals like myself the list will also help you ensure that you’re not forgetting anything important.

Packing Light

Try this technique once and I promise you will not regret it.

Now get out there and start traveling!

Travelers Defense