One of the best things about minimalism is that it makes it easier to travel.
When you have a pared-down closet to begin with, you already know what you enjoy wearing on a daily basis. This makes it easy to decide what to bring with you on your travels.
(if you haven’t yet pared down your closet – read this post on how to declutter clothing!)
Without further ado, here are five practical tips for packing light:
1. For trips up to a week long, pack half of the amount of clothes as you have days in your trip.
If you’re going on a seven day trip, pack three outfits. If you’re going on a four day trip, pack two outfits.
Unless you’re a fashion blogger, no one is going to be paying attention to what you’re wearing and nobody will care if you repeat an outfit.
Don’t fill up your bag with seven unique outfits that will be worn once and then tossed back in just to take up space.
If you’re going somewhere with a washer and dryer, I would consider even packing only two outfits for a weeklong trip. One outfit to wear while the other is in the wash.
For a weekend trip, consider packing only one outfit. At the very least, bring just the outfit you are wearing to travel, and one alternate shirt.
If you’re traveling for longer than a week or two, I’m assuming you will have access to a washer and dryer. For longer travels, keep the number of outfits to 4-5 and just make sure you have an item of clothing that is suitable for varying climates (i.e. one jacket, one swimsuit, one pair of hiking boots, etc. depending on what you need).
2. Choose multipurpose items over single-use ones.
If you want to travel light, it’s best to bring items that work with everything.
Pack the pair of jeans that work with any shirt, not the patterned ones that only go with certain tops.
Same goes for shoes. Choose the pair that goes with everything.
By bringing one pair of versatile pants and shoes, you can switch things up with your shirts and keep the bottom half the same, limiting the number of items you need to bring with you.
3. Skip the accessories.
For some reason, when we go on trips we suddenly feel the need to look extremely fashionable and sophisticated. (or is that just me?)
When I went to Napa last year (prior to becoming a minimalist), I felt like I had to create a whole Napa Valley aesthetic for my outfits. I was even searching on Pinterest for “Napa outfits” for inspiration (and it’s a whole vibe, I’m telling you).
I literally went out and bought four new outfits, one for each day of the trip. This included, hats, shawls, and jewelry. And I haven’t worn a single one of those items since that trip. It all just turned into closet clutter.
Consider wearing the same clothes that you already wear and love. I promise you, nobody is paying attention to your outfits. Everyone is too focused on themselves to pay attention. 😉
Accessories such as hat, scarves, and jewelry will add clutter to your bag without making any sort of meaningful impact on your trip.
Just go ahead and skip the accessories.
4. If you don't regularly use it at home, definitely don't bring it on your trip.
Sometimes we think that a trip is the perfect opportunity to wear that hat we’ve never worn, or that shirt that barely sees the light of day.
But I promise you: you’re not going to want to wear that thing anymore on your trip than you do at home.
Better yet, choose your favorite clothes that you wear all the time so you feel just as comfortable and confident on your travels as you do at home.
If you bring your seldom-used clothes on your trip, you might find out once you arrive that they don’t fit right, you don’t actually like the way they look, and you’ll find yourself wishing you had your favorite pieces.
5. Don't pack multiples.
Consider bringing one pair of pants, one pair of shoes, one swimsuit, one cardigan, etc. (depending on the weather wherever you’re going).
By keeping the base of your outfits the same every day (same pants and shoes), you can bring two or three shirts that won’t take up much space in your bag, and you’ll have a bit of variety without needing to stuff your travel bag to the brim.
Bonus points if you just bring the outfit you are wearing.
Even if you are going somewhere for a week and you exercise every single day, don’t bring seven sets of workout clothes. Assuming you have a washer and dryer at your disposal, bring two or three sets of sweat-it-out clothing so you have one to two days’ worth to wear while you wash the other one.
Having to do laundry is way better than hauling around an overstuffed bag.
Benefits of Packing Light
By packing light, you’ll be able to spend less time worrying about your stuff on your trip and more time enjoying your destination!
If you can fit all your items into a carry-on bag, or even better, just a backpack as your personal item (if you’re flying), you can jump off the plane and go straight to your destination without having to wait for checked bags or haul them to your hotel before you begin exploring. With just a lightly packed backpack or carry-on, you can immediately begin your adventure!
If you’re driving, it can be tempting to bring more stuff than you need because you are not limited by airline regulations. However, it is much more enjoyable to drive in an open, spacious car than one that is bursting at the seams with stuff.
You will also be able to spend more time adventuring and less time loading/unloading the car!
It is extremely freeing to pack lite and not feel weighed down (literally) by unnecessary stuff.
Traveling Light In Action: An Anecdote
My husband and I went to New York City for three days in December and I only brought one outfit: the clothes on my back.
My small backpack contained three pairs of underwear, a T-shirt to sleep in, my minimalist toiletries, and a book to read on the train. An additional benefit of traveling light: I didn’t pack my bag until the morning that we left, because I knew I needed little more than the outfit I was wearing. It’s so quick and easy to pack your bag when you pack light.
It was incredible to jump off the train and immediately start walking around the city. Because we brought so little with us, we didn’t first need to make a pit stop at the hotel to drop off our bags. We got right to exploring!
Because we were traveling in winter, we were wearing heavy coats all the time. Packing multiple outfits would have been pointless anyway, because they would have been hidden underneath the coat. My winter coat is calf-length so it literally would have covered up everything, lol.
Another trip we completed in February was a weeklong vacation to the beach with our friends. We went to Hutchinson Island, FL.
Here’s a packing list of everything I brought on that one-week trip:
- one pair of jeans
- one pair of jean shorts
- three T-shirts
- one cardigan
- one pair of sweatpants
- one swimsuit
- four pairs of underwear
- three pairs of socks
- one bra
- two sets of workout clothes (exercise shorts + top)
- one pair of sneakers
- one pair of sandals
- minimal toiletries
- journal
- phone charger
The T-shirts were multipurpose: I wore them during the day as well as to sleep in at night. Even though I exercise everyday, two sets of workout gear was plenty. Every other day I did a quick load of laundry to get everything nice and clean to wear again.
One swimsuit was sufficient. If we swam in the morning, I’d leave it out to dry in the sun so it was dry enough to put back on again in the afternoon.
As far as toiletries go, I brought a hairbrush, toothbrush, toothpaste, mascara, brow pencil, makeup remover wipes, nail file, chapstick, and deodorant.
Here’s a picture of everything! It fit very easily in a normal-sized backpack. I was wearing the jeans, cardigan, and sneakers.
I brought just what I needed, and nothing extra. Everything got used and nothing added clutter.
I was able to spend next to zero time deciding what to wear, and spent all the more time enjoying kayaking, swimming, and exploring!
Final Thoughts on How To Travel Lightly
Once you have laid out your clothes to pack for your trip, see if you eliminate anything. Choose one backpack or carry-on piece and set that bag as your limit for your travels. If something doesn’t fit, you don’t bring it. If it’s too full, you don’t pack a second bag; you take something out.
An added bonus of traveling lightly is that you will have less to worry about losing when you’re at your destination. More stuff = more items you could potentially leave behind by accident.
Try it sometime. Pack light and see how you feel on your trip.
You just might find that you don’t need as much as you thought you did.