How to be a Suitcase Swami: one week, one carry-on
Posted July 29th, 2008 by Sheila
Can one guy get his stuff into one carry-on suitcase for one week away at a conference?
You betcha.
My Sainted Husband’s travel to a teacher’s conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan gave me a golden opportunity to use my packing skills for his benefit, and I’m going to pass those lessons on to you.
(Never mind that he and I had to go to the mat a couple of times about the number of pairs of socks he wanted to take….)
When he arrived at the airport, he was the only one of nine teachers who had packed everything into a carry-on….and he was the only one who wasn’t whacked with the American Airlines $15 fee for the first checked bag (it’s $25 for the second.) What’s interesting is that some of his fellow travelers did not know that they’d be charged for checking luggage.
Remember, folks, it’s an air travel war zone out there in the not-so-friendly skies, so gird your travel loins and do some research before you fly anywhere.
Here’s the one-week packing list for a male attending a casual conference in western Michigan in July (your mileage may vary:)
- One pair running shoes (worn on the plane) and one pair Ecco business-y shoes. Yes, I know laces are a hassle going through security - take a tip from triathletes and use lace locks for a quick off-and-on.
- One pair shorts (worn on the plane)
- 4 pair business socks (2 pr rolled & stuffed into each biz shoe)
- 2 pair Dockers trousers, one belt
- 4 collared/polo shirts (2 light, 2 dark, wear the dark ones twice and hang them in the hotel room closet to air. Sainted Hubs said, “What if I spill something on one?” I said, “They have Gap stores in Grand Rapids, right? Go buy another shirt if you have to.”)
- 6 undershirts, 6 underwear
- 1 pr nylon running shorts, knee brace and 3 “grubby” T-shirts for working out & sleeping. Wash/rinse the running shorts in room sink on workout “off” days.
- 3 pair running socks - tuck in corners
- Swim trunks. Can double as running shorts in a pinch, easier to have a suit than decide that you DO want to hit the hotel pool and not have the suit.
- Foldable, hang-able toiletry kit, with 3 oz liquid containers in separate quart-sized Ziplock bag and set on top for easy access during security checks. Try multiple-use products, but don’t feel bad if it’s a step too far to use body wash as toothpaste.
- (Optional) Ballcap, Grundig radio (not needed if you know there’s a hotel room clock radio,) mini-Maglite flashlight (if sharing a room - to find things at night without bumbling and turning on lights.)
That’s it, and it all fit in a TravelPro Rollaboard.
Additionally, in his standard canvas black messenger bag, which fits under the seat in front of him:
- Laptop and power cord in a slim padded polypro sleeve
- Loaded iPod plus charger, and cell phone charger
- Sunglasses and reading glasses
- A couple of magazines and energy bars - never expect anyone to entertain or feed you nowadays.
- Nalgene water bottle. Leave it empty until you’re through security, then fill it at any airport terminal water fountain.
Also loaded onto his laptop with a backup on his thumb/USB flash drive - a PDF guide to Grand Rapids from a new guidebook site now in beta testing, Offbeat Guides. I’m participating in their beta process, so I ordered up a customized guidebook that included area history, maps, restaurants and local events scheduled to coincide with my husband’s stay.
Caveats to this packing list….
Winter travel: Coats/jackets, gloves, scarves, etc. make it tougher to be a cold-weather packing Swami, but it is still possible. Be brutally efficient.
Women: I recommend 3 pairs of pants (one black, one brown, one khaki,) one skirt (if you have to - they’re a pain) and four tops. Shoes: one pair black loafers/flats, one pair brown loafers/flats, one pair running shoes if you work out. Take a cue from the guys - no one notices that you’re wearing the same pair of black pants for more than one day. Vary your tops, maybe add a scarf and change earrings, and that’s it. It’s not cute to lug a bunch of girly junk anymore, unless you like self-inflicted pain.
Kids: They each rate a carry-on but their clothes are small, so you can mix adult and kid items and spread them across the available space. They can each carry a little backpack as well, so make them schlep their toys, crayons, etc., not you.
To recap - pack more tops than bottoms, pick walkable shoes that go with multiple outfits, and plan on doing a little laundry in the hotel room.
Folks, it’s a travel jungle out there, and you don’t need to pay “gotcha” fees or watch your luggage get lost during a plane change. Be a wise Swami.
Could you do it? One week - one bag?
July 29th, 2008 at 7:51 am
I hope your husband knows how lucky he is.
I am positively monastic when it comes to clothes. I agree that as long as the shirt is different, no one notices you only brought 1 skirt, 1 pair of pants, and 1 pair of shorts. God help you if you spill food though.
My Waterloo is reading material…
July 29th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Hi jamie,
I hear you on the reading material - if you saw me at the airport carrying my typical foot-high stack of magazines, you’d want to have my head examined. Even on the longest flight, I’ve never gotten through it all - what am I thinking?
July 29th, 2008 at 11:53 am
loved this - thanks! I’m a great packer and this is a great reminder - don’t care if anyone notices I’m wearing the same black pants over and over again! Need some lace locks, though…
Just solved the reading material on the plane issue this year and solved the “reading more” challenge at the same time. Used to carry lots of stuff to read or do on the plane. Never got any of it done because THE SEATS ARE SO DAMN SMALL and people LEAN BACK INTO MY AIR and I can’t reach my bag, etc. (rant, rant, rant), so now I bring one composition book and pen (I must be able to write at all times) and ONE BOOK. Heresy! What if I hate that book? Doesn’t matter - it means I’m reading whole books on every trip! Almost made it through East of Eden on the last trip (at 650+ pages, no small feat). Completely lightened my load, both physically and psychologically!
July 30th, 2008 at 7:33 am
sheila–
still, magazines are disposable, so at least they don’t have to come home with you…
July 30th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Oh the books! The books! And notebooks …
But I’ve done it. Similar packing list. I’ve even done three weeks on two small bags, with a trip that included two wedding dress-up occasions.
My actual Waterloo is that I tend to dress better when I’m traveling and keep tending toward outfits. With shoes. Ack! Bad, bad. Always end up wearing jeans and flat shoes anyway …
July 30th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
You never cease to amaze me and I LOVE how I can hear your voice even in your posts. ;-)
What a great post of travel tips. I learned at a very young age to pack light when my father totally embarrassed me in front of my best friend. She thought she could take a SUPER SIZE of every toiletry product she had in 2 checked-in bags for a 3 day trip.
I now am the lightest packer of any crew I’m with.
Kim
@kimhaynes on Twitter
July 30th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
I could have used this list in June when I was packing to go to my Watkins conference! I usually pack fairly light anyways mixing and matching tops and bottoms but we need to pack one formal outfit for the awards banquet and I usually pack a couple of nice dresses for other evening events.
July 30th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
The only caveat to packing all your gear into a carry-on bag is that you can’t carry sharp objects or liquids on board the flight - so you must transfer your toiletries into 100ml bottles and limit them to the number that fit inside a small zip-lock bag.
July 30th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
** Hi Patti - I should do that; take one book that I’ve been meaning to read forever, instead of mounds of magazines.
** Antonia - jeans sound good, but they are really too stiff to fold well. Navy blue pants, the most super-comfortable you can find, are a good substitute. Die-hard jeans folks should wear them on the plane.
** Hi Kim - thanks for visiting Perceptive Travel! Somehow I knew you’d be an efficient packer….:)
** Melody - no question, any sort of dress-up makes it trickier, especially with hose and heels and all that junk for women. It’s tough to find heels that go with lots of things and that you can walk in all day.
** Caitlin - For long trips, I’ve resigned myself to buying more travel-sized stuff once I arrive, when what I’ve brought runs out. If they’re charging me $15/bag to check, I can buy toiletries at the other end and STILL come out ahead by not checking. Only sharp object that I really miss is my small scissors - I need to get some blunt-ended ones, like the kind they have for schoolchildren.
July 30th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
I spent a month in India with one carry-on bag. I wore the clothes on my back and purchased anything I needed along the way. I haven’t checked a bag in YEARS. I have a Sony Digital Book Reader and won’t ever have to carry a stack of books for a long journey again!
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Lots of great advice in this post and yes, some people are apparently living under a rock and haven’t been to an airport in years. I still see people in line who have no idea you can’t carry a Swiss Army knife and a bag of full-size shampoo bottles on the plane! Here are some product ideas for packing light.
I’ve gone on quite a few two-week trips with one carry-on and another bag with the laptop, music, and reading material. Clothes can be washed you know! I always take a huge stack of magazines and ditch them as I go. That way the load gets lighter over time.
August 7th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
[…] find out just how easy it is to pack light, check out How to be a Suitcase Swami: one week, one carry-on over at Perceptive Travel Blog where Sheila packs up her husband for a week long conference […]
August 25th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Packing light makes so much sense. It saves time, hassle, and money. I can definitely do one week with one bag. In fact, I’ve done two weeks in Australia with one bag.
I really like the travel-sized (3-oz) Febreze to Go for refreshing the clothes that I re-wear.
August 26th, 2008 at 11:22 am
Hi there Hawaii Sheila - thanks for the Febreze tip!