1 piece of luggage??

[BluesTraveler]

That's a really interesting idea, packing by hotel stay. I'm going to have to explore that!

For example, in Iceland our first hotel stay (including pre-night) was 3 nights/4 days. So my first cube had 1 pair of pants, one pair of fleece leggings, 2 layering shirts, and one warmer but thin top (e.g., fleece or thin wool sweater), plus undies and socks. Obviously things got re-worn (except undies and socks), but once we moved hotels, all of those clothes were put back in that cube and not worn again - fresh clothes came out for the next hotel. And so on. Some cubes had more in them than others since some hotel stays are longer than others. It does take a little more organizing/thought on the front end, but makes it SO MUCH easier once you are there.

I also had one cube that was just outerwear - rain pants, rain jacket, thin down coat, gloves, hat. This cube would be put in my day bag with me on the bus, so all of that was accessible but still neatly contained.

For trips (generally non-ABD) where we are in one hotel for the duration of the trip, I tend to have one cube for tops, one for pants, one for dresses, one for undergarments, etc. Then its easy to put the cubes into the hotel dresser, and stay organized.

 

[old feller]

Roll up your clothes instead of folding them in your suitcase

 

[micheleq]

For example, in Iceland our first hotel stay (including pre-night) was 3 nights/4 days. So my first cube had 1 pair of pants, one pair of fleece leggings, 2 layering shirts, and one warmer but thin top (e.g., fleece or thin wool sweater), plus undies and socks. Obviously things got re-worn (except undies and socks), but once we moved hotels, all of those clothes were put back in that cube and not worn again - fresh clothes came out for the next hotel. And so on. Some cubes had more in them than others since some hotel stays are longer than others. It does take a little more organizing/thought on the front end, but makes it SO MUCH easier once you are there.

I also had one cube that was just outerwear - rain pants, rain jacket, thin down coat, gloves, hat. This cube would be put in my day bag with me on the bus, so all of that was accessible but still neatly contained.

For trips (generally non-ABD) where we are in one hotel for the duration of the trip, I tend to have one cube for tops, one for pants, one for dresses, one for undergarments, etc. Then its easy to put the cubes into the hotel dresser, and stay organized.

Fabulous! I’m a packing cube devotee as well, and I was just saying to my family that we (ok, I) will have to be a little strategic in packing as we will be in four hotels for our ABD Wyoming (one pre-stay). And my girls tend to explode all over our hotel room/cabin/villa when we are on vacation.

This week I’ll start to sort/pack, so I will have to try this method. Thanks!

To the OP, you can do it! We are a family of four and can fit in two full sized suitcases (26”) for a week with room to spare. Or we travel with one 26” and one 22”, or three 22”s if we don’t want to check bags. I’m a fan of eBags cubes and their lightweight luggage.

I also pack for myself with a color scheme. It truly helps cut down on extra items!

 

[Livelovedance]

This is how we roll as well. I like being able to mix our cubes between bags in case one gets lost, but not have to sort at the hotel. I also start with an empty cube that receives the dirty clothes.

I’ve had great luck finding cubes at TJ Maxx and Marshall’s. They’ve held up great!

More great ideas! I have to create a list so I don’t forget any of them. These packing cubes really sound great for so many reasons. Keeping one for dirty clothes will really help the suitcase organized from start to finish. Thank you!

 

[Livelovedance]

For example, in Iceland our first hotel stay (including pre-night) was 3 nights/4 days. So my first cube had 1 pair of pants, one pair of fleece leggings, 2 layering shirts, and one warmer but thin top (e.g., fleece or thin wool sweater), plus undies and socks. Obviously things got re-worn (except undies and socks), but once we moved hotels, all of those clothes were put back in that cube and not worn again - fresh clothes came out for the next hotel. And so on. Some cubes had more in them than others since some hotel stays are longer than others. It does take a little more organizing/thought on the front end, but makes it SO MUCH easier once you are there.

I also had one cube that was just outerwear - rain pants, rain jacket, thin down coat, gloves, hat. This cube would be put in my day bag with me on the bus, so all of that was accessible but still neatly contained.

For trips (generally non-ABD) where we are in one hotel for the duration of the trip, I tend to have one cube for tops, one for pants, one for dresses, one for undergarments, etc. Then its easy to put the cubes into the hotel dresser, and stay organized.

I am completely sold on packing cubes. Now to just research a set and try them out! Do most people only use them for clothes? I’m wondering what a good number of cubes per person would be. It almost sounds like I’d have to try a small number from different kinds and see what works best for what items.

 

[Livelovedance]

Roll up your clothes instead of folding them in your suitcase

I attempted this once in the past but it just didn’t seem to save space. Maybe I have poor clothes rolling technique! I’ll have to try it out again. Maybe in combination with the packing cubes I’ll have better luck!

 

[Livelovedance]

Fabulous! I’m a packing cube devotee as well, and I was just saying to my family that we (ok, I) will have to be a little strategic in packing as we will be in four hotels for our ABD Wyoming (one pre-stay). And my girls tend to explode all over our hotel room/cabin/villa when we are on vacation.

This week I’ll start to sort/pack, so I will have to try this method. Thanks!

To the OP, you can do it! We are a family of four and can fit in two full sized suitcases (26”) for a week with room to spare. Or we travel with one 26” and one 22”, or three 22”s if we don’t want to check bags. I’m a fan of eBags cubes and their lightweight luggage.

I also pack for myself with a color scheme. It truly helps cut down on extra items!

Thank you so much!!! Everyone here has made me feel 10 times better about this silly packing problem lol. My luggage is a full size, so I can totally make this work! I’m going to try out these tips on any future trips we do, so I’ll be prepared for the real thing. I’m looking forward to our future ABD, as well as my future packing improvements!

 

[sayhello]

Thanks! We’re hoping to do a future ABD to Japan. No dates in mind yet, but not in the very near future. I’ve never done a group tour trip before, so I’ll definitely feel better if everyone’s packing one weeks worth of clothes lol. My concern is the weight too, usually when I pack only one bag it gets pretty heavy. But I’ll try to pack lighter items and less items.

Hahahahahah!!! No way I'm going to Japan with one week's worth of clothes!! I never do laundry on vacation unless absolutely necessary! And then I usually pay the hotel to do it! I don't like doing laundry at home, I'm not spending time on vacation doing laundry!!!

Sayhello

 

[carpenta]

Also you know they sell extra large Zip lock bags where you can arraign a daily ensemble load the bag, zip and pack.

 

[Livelovedance]

Hahahahahah!!! No way I'm going to Japan with one week's worth of clothes!! I never do laundry on vacation unless absolutely necessary! And then I usually pay the hotel to do it! I don't like doing laundry at home, I'm not spending time on vacation doing laundry!!!

Sayhello

Lol trust me, doing laundry was not in my plans originally! I’m hoping to pack lighter clothes, pack less with the color scheme strategy, save space with rolling, and organize better with packing cubes. If all of this works out, I shouldn’t have to do any laundry! We’ll see how it goes!

 

[Livelovedance]

Also you know they sell extra large Zip lock bags where you can arraign a daily ensemble load the bag, zip and pack.

I normally do this with regular ziploc bags! I was willing to try the rolling though to see if it saved any additional space. I’ll have to try it out and see.

 

[calypso726]

I’m addicted to Ebags packing cubes. I prefer the newer lightweight ones in both shape and function. However, looking online at Amazon I am intrigued by the Shacke brand ones. They have great reviews and are far more economical than the Ebags ones. I may pick up a set just to compare.

 

[4kids4karen]

I just recently spent TWO weeks in South Korea with ONE luggage. When I left Florida, only half of my suitcase was filled, so I put snacks, cereals, etc. in the other side. Upon return, the snacks were gone so our gifts/souvenirs went into that side. My suitcase was the largest of the three of us. My boys each carried their own. For traveling in Korea, my suitcase still fit on escalators and the trains; however, mine was larger than most other travelers in the airport and trains with us. Funny, it is not my largest suitcase. I considered it medium size.

Mine was the hard side that zips open in the middle so you have to lay it flat on the floor or bed. I already owned this, but I do not recommend this style for those traveling to counties where there is limited floor space. My boys had a cloth sided that zipped open at the top and the suitcase was just one deep pocket. It is easier to open in small spaces.

My boys was like this one, although I am not sure if theirs is the same measurement. I was just grabbing the style.

Mine was like this one... but if both sides are filled, both sides are heavy and you need to fully open and lay both sides down, so it takes up twice as much space. I use to prefer hard sides like this, but for traveling in the U.S. to a beach resort, it is fine. Overseas, too much floor space is wasted.

I told the boys to pack five outfits. Now we probably had six, plus PJ's. We knew our second hotel had a free laundry on each floor, so we did laundry there. Then our third location was a relatives house where we did laundry. We went to a beach hotel for a few days, didn't look for a laundry since we had enough outfits to get us back. We use the type of space bags that you roll the air out of and ziplocks. I had looked at packing cubes but they are so expensive compared to space bags. I prefer space bags. I don't see how packing cubes saves any space. It just organizes the clothes.

Our luggage weight limit was 70lbs and we were allowed two luggage, carry on, and personal item. My suitcase was the heaviest at 25lbs, one each, and a backpack each with just items we wanted on the plane (headset, travel documents, etc.) Backpacks were not filled with clothing and other items that should be in a suitcase. We just put them at our feet on the plane and didn't need to use overhead storage.

 

[4kids4karen]

If you fly first class you are allowed two bags and 70 lbs. per bag per person. Then again in most cases it would probably be cheaper to buy new clothes at you destination and dispose of those before leaving than pay to fly first class. LOL.

I flew economy this month on Delta (Tampa, Florida to Incheon, South Korea) and was allowed two bags, 70lbs each. I don't think the concern is the airline limits, but ABD limits luggage on certain trips because during the trip, there is limited space on the buses, trains, etc. If you are touring a country where you have to take a lot of public transportation, you may not fit in a taxi. For example, the three of us in a taxi, older DS sat in front, younger DS and I was in the back, a suitcase in the middle seat between us, a suitcase on my lap, and a suitcase in the trunk. In Korea more than half the trunk is taken up by a extra large fuel tank. If we had more luggage, we would have had to have two taxi's, or scheduled a van (has to be reserved).

Going through the airport, from exiting customs, we then had to go down several escalators to the airport train (upon arrival) and my suitcase barely fit on the escalator. Elevators are for handicap and elderly, they EXPECT and are even signs about luggage on the escalator. It was about a 5-7 minute walk to transfer. Multiple suitcases would have been a PITA.

So, just saying, just because the airline allows a higher limit, doesn't mean you want to bring more luggage.

 

[laceltris3]

I use packing cubes for everything. I have one for medications, one for sunblock and bug spray, one for the outlet adapters and cables, one for hats and sunglasses. For us, everyone's clothes fit in one large size, and then we do a separate small cube for everyone of underwear/socks. I have a ton of them and I still think I need more. We are to the point now where I have so many sizes and colors that I can generally color code for every person. For luggage, we use the LLBean rolling duffles. They are so much lighter than most rolling bags and when you do empty them they take up no space at all. We can stack all 5 of them in the space of one normal sized suitcase.

 

[Livelovedance]

I’m addicted to Ebags packing cubes. I prefer the newer lightweight ones in both shape and function. However, looking online at Amazon I am intrigued by the Shacke brand ones. They have great reviews and are far more economical than the Ebags ones. I may pick up a set just to compare.

I’ll check out ebags too. I actually had an AmEx offer for them, but I didn’t add it to my card so I’ll have to see if it’s still there, and if I’d even be spending that much to use it.

 

[laceltris3]

We also got these ebags backpacks for our carry ons last year. DH got this one and I got the "Junior" as I am 5'3". These are seriously awesome carry ons especially for European airlines,, but they fit *so* much and organize everything for you. Seriously, watch the video:

https://www.ebags.com/hproduct/ebag...MItNKlxsDJ3AIVw0CGCh1fygzFEAQYAiABEgKFbvD_BwE

Here's the video. It looks like it's not on the item page anymore:

 

[Livelovedance]

I just recently spent TWO weeks in South Korea with ONE luggage. When I left Florida, only half of my suitcase was filled, so I put snacks, cereals, etc. in the other side. Upon return, the snacks were gone so our gifts/souvenirs went into that side. My suitcase was the largest of the three of us. My boys each carried their own. For traveling in Korea, my suitcase still fit on escalators and the trains; however, mine was larger than most other travelers in the airport and trains with us. Funny, it is not my largest suitcase. I considered it medium size.

Mine was the hard side that zips open in the middle so you have to lay it flat on the floor or bed. I already owned this, but I do not recommend this style for those traveling to counties where there is limited floor space. My boys had a cloth sided that zipped open at the top and the suitcase was just one deep pocket. It is easier to open in small spaces.

My boys was like this one, although I am not sure if theirs is the same measurement. I was just grabbing the style.

Mine was like this one... but if both sides are filled, both sides are heavy and you need to fully open and lay both sides down, so it takes up twice as much space. I use to prefer hard sides like this, but for traveling in the U.S. to a beach resort, it is fine. Overseas, too much floor space is wasted.

I told the boys to pack five outfits. Now we probably had six, plus PJ's. We knew our second hotel had a free laundry on each floor, so we did laundry there. Then our third location was a relatives house where we did laundry. We went to a beach hotel for a few days, didn't look for a laundry since we had enough outfits to get us back. We use the type of space bags that you roll the air out of and ziplocks. I had looked at packing cubes but they are so expensive compared to space bags. I prefer space bags. I don't see how packing cubes saves any space. It just organizes the clothes.

Our luggage weight limit was 70lbs and we were allowed two luggage, carry on, and personal item. My suitcase was the heaviest at 25lbs, one each, and a backpack each with just items we wanted on the plane (headset, travel documents, etc.) Backpacks were not filled with clothing and other items that should be in a suitcase. We just put them at our feet on the plane and didn't need to use overhead storage.

I couldn’t see your images. I’m not sure if it’s my phone or if the images just aren’t working. I was just going off of the ABD itinerary rules, I haven’t looked into flights yet so idk what the limits will be on the plane.

My luggage is a hard side also, I’m guessing it’s considered a large size but I don’t know the measurements. I know soft luggage is lighter and more flexible, but I worry about soft luggage getting ripped when being transported by the luggage handlers.

If I carried less clothes and did laundry I could definitely make it work, but I feel like I wouldn’t really want to be doing laundry on a ABD lol. I’ll see how the packing goes and if I need to I will, but if I don’t have to I definitely won’t.

I also have to work on packing travel sized toiletries. I usually pack full sized items which take up more space and are heavier. For me it’s just easier and cheaper to pack what I already have and use at home, but I know for this trip the travel sized items will be much better. I can buy those bottles that are made for traveling and fill them with the things I have at home, instead of spending more for the prepacked travel size items too.

Interesting thoughts on the space saving bags. I usually use ziploc bags in that way. I’ve never tried rolling clothes or using packing cubes, but I’ve also never packed for two weeks before! I’m going to try it out and see what difference it makes in my suitcase. I figure even if I don’t like rolling, I can still use the packing cubes to organize my ziplocs by hotel stay, like a previous poster suggested. It’ll just be a new experiment in packing lol.

 

[Livelovedance]

I flew economy this month on Delta (Tampa, Florida to Incheon, South Korea) and was allowed two bags, 70lbs each. I don't think the concern is the airline limits, but ABD limits luggage on certain trips because during the trip, there is limited space on the buses, trains, etc. If you are touring a country where you have to take a lot of public transportation, you may not fit in a taxi. For example, the three of us in a taxi, older DS sat in front, younger DS and I was in the back, a suitcase in the middle seat between us, a suitcase on my lap, and a suitcase in the trunk. In Korea more than half the trunk is taken up by a extra large fuel tank. If we had more luggage, we would have had to have two taxi's, or scheduled a van (has to be reserved).

Going through the airport, from exiting customs, we then had to go down several escalators to the airport train (upon arrival) and my suitcase barely fit on the escalator. Elevators are for handicap and elderly, they EXPECT and are even signs about luggage on the escalator. It was about a 5-7 minute walk to transfer. Multiple suitcases would have been a PITA.

So, just saying, just because the airline allows a higher limit, doesn't mean you want to bring more luggage.

Yes, my thoughts exactly! I was concerned about the ABD limits. I haven’t even looked into the airline rules yet. Whatever ABD says is what I’ll have to do in the end anyway lol. Good points about the limited space though!

 

[Livelovedance]

I use packing cubes for everything. I have one for medications, one for sunblock and bug spray, one for the outlet adapters and cables, one for hats and sunglasses. For us, everyone's clothes fit in one large size, and then we do a separate small cube for everyone of underwear/socks. I have a ton of them and I still think I need more. We are to the point now where I have so many sizes and colors that I can generally color code for every person. For luggage, we use the LLBean rolling duffles. They are so much lighter than most rolling bags and when you do empty them they take up no space at all. We can stack all 5 of them in the space of one normal sized suitcase.

Hmm good to know. I’m imagining a suitcase full of packing cubes for all different things, organized by colors and sizes. If that works out it would really be a dream lol.

I love LL Bean, and I was so disappointed when I heard they were eliminating their lifetime warranty. Their products are amazing, and I think I’ve only made use of their warranty twice, but it was definitely my reason for being comfortable with spending more money on their products! It won’t stop me from shopping with them, but I think I’d think about the prices more and compare to other places before purchasing. I’ve never owned their rolling duffels but I have always wanted one!