The Pro’s Guide To Packing

Sufficient clothes for a 10-day trip, all within a single piece of carry-on luggage. An unlikely story? You might think so if you generally end up having to sit on your check-in suitcase to shut it – and that’s just for a week’s supply. Believe it or not, with a few straightforward tips you can achieve this miraculous packing feat yourself. True Jedi masters of packing, flight attendants know a thing or two about efficient carry. We’ve summarised the packing guide of flight attendant Heather Poole below (plus a few thoughts of our own) but you can check out the slideshow guide in full here (or click the images, which are courtesy of the slideshow, featured on the New York Times website).

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Before packing your clothing in your suitcase, roll up each item as tightly as possible. In addition to keeping wrinkling to a minimum, rolled clothes take up less space than folded clothes.

Pack your shoes first. Place them along the edges of the bag. Next, place items such as jeans and trousers (think your heaviest items) along the bottom of your bag to form the first layer. For subsequent layers, working from the bottom to the top, pack heavier items first and then progressively lighter items. In essence, your heaviest items of clothing should be at the bottom of your bag and the lightest items at the top. Make sure your rolled clothes are packed tightly together. Items you need quick access to (such as a dopp kit) should go on the top of your clothes. This makes it easy to take them out whilst going through security control, plus you’ll probably want to freshen up once you reach your destination and not having to rummage around in the bottom of your bag for your toothbrush is a bonus.

{Side note: Depending on the type of shoes you pack, you might be able to shove rolled-up socks into them in order to save space.}

If you’re going on a shorter trip and subsequently don’t need to pack as much, you can alter your packing technique a bit to help prevent wrinkles in smart clothing. Lay your dress clothing on the bottom of your case but hanging over the edges. Pack all your other clothes and travel items on top of your dress clothes and then fold the hanging edges of your dress clothes over these items.

Several airlines charge you to check in luggage. With these packing tips you can avoid the need for check-in luggage, saving you money plus the time it takes to check in and collect your luggage after you’ve landed. Additional perk: no need to worry about an overstuffed bag that’s threatening to burst at any moment, spewing its contents onto the airport floor, the pavement as you hail a taxi, or the reception area of your accommodation.

Hmm…there aren’t any really. Okay, so you’re not going to have much space for souvenirs and the like in your bag but there’s always the option of wearing more clothing on your return journey than you did on your departure in order to create some extra space in your luggage. Yes, you’ll look like you’re wearing a sumo wrestling outfit but if you want that souvenir badly enough, sacrifices must be made.