Why Travel Light?

One question we keep encountering during the planning process is "Why do you insist on packing light?" It's an understandable question. Some people that backpack through Europe pack more for one person than Super Nel and I combined. So why is it that we choose to take one carryon bag for a two week or in this case, one MONTH trip to a foreign country? I honestly have no simple answer to that question. All I know is that once you've traveled light it's really hard to go back to checking bags, lugging luggage up stairs or through trains and I don't ever want to experience running through the airport with a backpack, purse and two roller luggages only to realize that I missed my flight by thaaaaat much. Never again.

There's something exhilarating and adventurous about packing a bag, one bag, and knowing that this bag will sustain you for several days and everything you hope to need must be packed inside it. It's pretty easy to pack light once you get the hang of it. The trick is to plan ahead. You have to be willing to let go of the mentality that allows you to say "I want to bring all these clothes just in case I want to wear them." How many times have you traveled somewhere and at the end of the trip when it's time to pack up you say to yourself "Oh, I forgot I packed these pants. I never wore them." This is usually the case. So when it comes to packing light, you want to keep this from happening.

The first step is to decide on a color palate. Every single item of clothing-tops, pants, shoes, socks and accessories have to be a part of the same color scheme. Guys, you're not exempt here. Find clothes that work together. If you're traveling in the colder months you have to layer and invest some money in a good base layer that will help keep your core warm.

Now that you've decided on a color schematic work on numbers-for a month long trip you should bring 3-4 pants/bottoms. This should also include the pants/bottoms that you will wear on the airplane-most people forget to count these. You should bring 4-5 shirts/tops. This should include a shirt to wear to a dressy function as well as the shirt/top you wear on the plane.

Shoes take up the most room in your luggage so it pays to limit the amount of shoes you bring with you. It's hard to say exactly how many or what type of shoes to bring because it really depends on the terrain and weather you'll be traveling to. Our Groupmoon will take place during some chilly/colder temperatures but it will warm up towards the end of the trip. That being said, I'm planning to take a pair of shoes that are made for day to day wear-walking many miles, standing for long period of of times in a museum and made to survive the cobble stones of Rome. Also, these shoes will ideally let me ride bikes in Amsterdam and Provence (France). I've done a ton of research on shoes and I had my heart set on a pair of Birkenstalks, however, due to the cold weather at the beginning of our trip I decided against them. Yesterday, I found what I think will be the best fit-a pair of Clark's originals, the faraway fields in a gray color.

I aimed to find a shoe that wouldn't scream "I'M A TOURIST!" Another great option is any comfortable tennis shoe with support-yet this will identify you as a tourist and more importantly from the USA. If this is acceptable to you I encourage you find a comfy pair of Nike's or other similar style of shoe and use this as your primary everyday walking shoe. Whatever style of shoe you choose to wear the majority of the time-it should be the shoe you wear on the plane. The theory behind this is that it will more than likely be your largest, heaviest, bulkiest shoe and by wearing it on the plane you won't take up as much space in your luggage. My other shoes for this trip are going to include a skinny tennis shoe option-probably going to be Sketchers brand-to hike the Cinque Terre or for any other hiking, trekking option. I know friends who will pack a hiking boot as their everyday shoe and wear these during the majority of their trip. The last two shoes I'll have is a fancy shoe-I'm going with a pair of silver Tieks-these are my fancy flats. They are hands down the most comfortable flats I've ever worn and I'm not a huge fan of flats because they don't usually have support. These have really nice padding and are made of leather (no stinky feet!) so they don't hurt my feet after wearing them for hours. I know some ladies have to pack heels. However, it's almost impossible to wear these in some parts of Europe-Italy especially. If you plan to go to Rome and you have to wear some kind of heel choose a shoe with a wedge bottom or else you'll spend the rest of your trip using crutches for your sprained ankle(s). I'm more about comfort so I'll stick with my fancy Tieks. The last shoe I'm bringing is a flip-flop. Nothing fancy-these will be for hostel showers, hotel floors, the beach or any other quick slip on situation. I live in San Diego and we live in our flip-flops the entire year. We go to fancy dinners in flip-flops, shop in them and no one gives you a second glance. That will not be the case in Europe-especially for men. Ladies, in the summer you can get away with wearing fancy flip flops with your outfits but you will not see men wearing flip-flops anywhere except the beach. I spoke with Super Nel last night and he said he'll be packing a pair of Nike's as his everyday shoe, a pair of flip flops and a dark colored pair of Toms or Vans-like shoe to wear to fancy dinners.

Now that the bulk of your packing is complete, all that's left are you toiletries and accessories. I encourage you to find toiletry products that do double duty. I have discovered Lush products-they have face wash scrubs that also double as body wash. One product is shampoo, face wash and body wash in one. You can also avoid going over your max carryon liquids by using a shampoo bar (solid) or a shae butter bar (solid) in place of lotions. If you are traveling with friends that you'll be bunking with discuss who will bring which products before packing. If one person brings toothpaste to share and another person has floss you can decrease how much you pack in your toiletry bag.

The last step is to get everything into your bag. Your luggage should NOT be full. You want to have plenty of space for souvenirs or anything else you pick up on the trip. Before I start putting anything into my luggage I always lay everything I plan to take with me on the bed. Then I try to decrease my total belongings by 25%. This allows me to have space in my luggage for any items I purchase while on vacation.

I know this can be hard. Some of us are ingrained to want everything we own with us "just in case" while on a trip. Remember: anything you MIGHT need can be bought while abroad. You can find shoes, shirts, toothpaste and shampoo in any country in Europe. You will be ok if you leave a few things behind or pack small amounts of something.

Good luck and happy packing!