Do as I say, not as I do.
No matter the climate or whether it’s multiple climates you will be traveling to. There are always things you can do to lighten your load when you’re packing a suitcase.
Unfortunately, on a personal note, I tend to pack on the heavier side, however, I tend to organize my things and I do use space-saving techniques to maximize space in my suitcase. But enough about me.
1.) Start with a lightweight suitcase, under 10 lbs is what your shooting for in a 22″ carry-on roller suitcase. Away’s carry-on roller suitcase is only 7.1 lbs.
2.) Switch to lighter materials for your clothing. Instead of wool sweaters bring several layers of cotton or Merlino wool as a base layer.
3.) Use the toiletries that the hotel provides instead of bringing your own.
4.) Use versatile footwear that can be used for multiple outings. Nothing takes up more space in a suitcase than shoes or even worse boots. I went on an Alaskan cruise with 2 formal nights, also hiking for 2 hours in the woods and torrential downpours in Southeast Alaska. The list of things we had to pack was lengthy.
5.) Don’t bring any more than 7 days of underwear and socks. Do laundry- bring some travel detergent with you. Believe it not we get ours at our kids’ Pediatrician’s office. They give out free samples.
6.) Bring at most 2 pairs of pants. There are zip-off pants so you can turn your lightweight pants into lightweight shorts from Columbia. (I own a pair of these, I use them for camping as well as taking on all my vacations)
7.) Please, do yourself a favor and leave the ‘Just in case’ clothing at home.
8.) Be prepared for either rain or cold with IZOD’s reversible jacket. Jackets can add a tremendous bulk to your packing list but with more outdoor companies surprisingly offer some lightweight options – such as women’s seven-ounce Featherless hybrid jacket. For the dudes the 10.5-ounce REI Co-op down jacket.
9.) Strange as this may sound (at least to me) there is reversible clothing as well.
10.) Finally, travel with the right electronics. E-readers instead of paper books and magazines and download your music and movies onto your phone or tablet.
This list is from my experiences and partially from this fantastical website called https://www.smartertravel.com/. I love this website. It contains very useful travel advice and also advice for packing light and efficiently.
If you have any packing advice let me know. I’m always trying to figure out ways to lighten my load.