A whole month in Italy. Even saying it now makes me envious of myself! One thing that a lot of people are never envious of though is packing. For me, I LOVE packing. It's actually a bit ridiculous. We went to Italy on the 1st July and I did a "trial pack" on the 1st January...
Nothing like being prepared, right?
Even though I absolutely love packing so I might be a bit of an exception, it's really not a hard process if you know what you're doing. That little pink bag is all had for the whole month and it's about the size of international hand luggage. I chose a small bag for a few reasons. Mainly I have back problems and can't lift heavy things and it's so much easier to travel with less.
So, if you're wondering how I managed to take such a small bag, here are a few tips I've picked up from travelling:
1. You won't wear everything
I learnt this one the hard way. One of my first trips overseas, I was SO excited to go away and wear all my best outfits that I drastically over packed! The problem is, you're going to buy things while you're away, and not wear everything that you took with you in the first place. I find that once I'm away somewhere, I tend to rotate through the same clothes as you pick what's comfortable, what works best with the climate and what dries the fastest! The best tip when packing is to pack all of your things, look at it, then halve it.
2. Packing cubes are everything
I can't emphasise this enough, packing cubes are the best. I bought myself one from Kathmandu before my trip to Europe in 2014 and it was a serious game changer. With my packing cube, I roll all of my clothing, then place tops in one half and bottoms in the other. This helps to sort the clothes as well as compress them.
3. Mix and match
For our most recent trip, I wanted to go by the classic mix and match rule, however so many of my desired honeymoon outfits were floral! Instead of sticking to basics, and mixing it up with accessories, I packed a few key pieces in a similar colour palette. When deciding which pieces to take with me, I selected a dress for special occasions, a long sleeve dress to wear to churches (we had our honeymoon in Italy), two pairs of floral shorts, three plain blush t-shirts, two sun dresses, gym gear, and a couple of additional pieces I didn't end up wearing! Refer to point 1: you won't wear everything.
4. Save room for what you'll buy
Chances are, you will buy things while you're away. Shoes, clothes, knick-knacks, everything takes up precious luggage space. Think ahead when you pack and make sure you leave room for the keepsakes you'll want to bring home with you.
5. Backpacks are the best
Because you will most likely overpack at the start or definitely over pack at the end, it's easiest to take a backpack as they're much easier to carry that a wheely bag! A backpack is also SO much easier to carry between places as there's no risk of it getting caught in cobblestones or needing to lug it up stairs. On our recent Italy trip, I had to take a wheely bag as I have back issues and wasn't allowed to carry a backpack. I definitely felt the inconvenience!
What are your top packing tips?