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What to pack and how to pack it, two of the most asked questions on vacation planning.
It seems that most people are now beginning to pay attention to their packing with the new restrictions and costs involved in taking suitcases on planes (weight allowances have dropped and check in costs have risen).
For the most part people are happy booking packages and even going to specialist travel agents to book safaris or other adventure travel, many go the independent route and book it all themselves, so although there are still plenty of questions related to travel planning with respect of actual travel, more and more people ask about packing! So what are the best tips? Let's start with what you pack your belongings in, invest in a good quality lightweight case, either a holdall type or suitcase, whichever is your preference.
Because you don't want to have to carry it, even if you have packed lightly, get something with wheels and make sure it's stable on those wheels! Now let's look at what you're actually going to put in this ultimate of cases! Questions to ask yourself before you decide.
- Where am I going, is it hot, cold, changeable?
- How long am I going for, a weekend, a week a month?
- What sort of trip is it, business, pleasure?
- Will there be activities, swimming, surfing, golf, walking, climbing, hang gliding?
- Who am I going with, family, friends, work colleagues, romantic partner?
If it's a business trip then you probably need both business smart and casual smart.
Take a look at your wardrobe and sort out the colours you have, aim for a basic building block colour like black, grey or white, you can then team these with brighter colours and mix and match.
One basic pair of tailored black pants can be the basis for both business and casual smart, ring changes with tops and accessories, not too many though, you're packing light remember! Shawls are a good way to ring the changes, besides being light and easy to pack.
A simple shift dress in either grey black or white can be dressed with a jacket, a shawl, or a lightweight cardigan.
The pants with a top and jacket, top, top and shawl, or sweater can give you many different looks.
All primary colours and many pastels work well with these three basic colours so you certainly won't be drab! Shawls come in a myriad of designs and two should see you through most occasions, a bright bold one colour pashmina type wrap will see you through both day and evening, for more dressy occasions, something with decoration will dress up your basic shift, add jewelry and a small evening purse and away you go.
Oh, that's right, shoes!! We can't forget shoes! 1 each of elegant sandals, flip flops, and business heels should be enough unless you're going walking in which case some leisure shoes will be needed, boots or trainers, the choice is yours.
Let's see what we've got so far:
- Black tailored pants.
- Grey shift dress.
- White shift dress.
- 3 tops - different colours.
- 1 Jacket.
- 1 sweater.
- 3 pairs of shoes.
- 2 wraps
- Shoes
On the beach and in bars etc, carry the copy not the original.
Take copies of all important documents and keep them in separate places, that way, if you lose one lot, you still have the information.
Prior to travel make a list of any emergency numbers you might need, these may include the number to call if your credit card gets stolen, emergency numbers to call in the country you're visiting in case of accident, illness or crime.
The number of the local consulate or embassy, whilst it's very rare to need these, when you do, you want them to hand.
Chargers for your phone, iPod and any other electronic entertainment devices you may have (eBook reader, PSP, Nintendo etc).
Travel Documents - plane, boat, train tickets, visa's, car hire voucher and any medical certificates to prove vaccinations where applicable.
Driving license if you're picking up a hire car, make sure it is the original and not a photo copy, if you hold a UK 2 part driving license you will need both parts.
If your driving license is not in roman letters (Arabic, Cyrillic, Greek, Kanji etc) then you should bring an International driving license as well.
If you are hiring a car and will be the lead driver you will need a credit card in your name, with enough credit for the car hire company to 'hold' the deposit.
Do you take any medications? Be sure to bring enough for your trip and don't forget to bring original packaging in case of emergencies (where you may need to replace them).
Also put together an emergency medical kit, pain killers, plasters (especially Compeed blister relief plasters), antibiotic cream, diarrhea pills, indigestion pills and of course vitamin c! With the restrictions on liquids in hand luggage and the weight restrictions on checked bags decant toiletries into 100ml bottles, you can always buy more at your destination, this also applies to sun block and insect repellent.
Although I would always take travel sized hand sanitiser, toilet paper (small roll) and wipes, as well as aloe vera gel in my hand baggage.
With those restrictions in mind, if you're staying in a hotel or self catering accommodation, check to see if they provide hair dryers etc, if they do, it's one less thing you have to carry.
If you need glasses, take a spare pair, you just never know what can happen and you don't want to be stranded half blind now do you? If you're going to a hot country take two pairs of sunglasses (in case of breakages) plus a hat to keep the sun off your head, it's surprising how many people, especially those with fair hair get sunburned heads! If you want/need to take a towel, take a micro fiber one, they weigh a lot less and dry much more quickly too.
Don't take your best jewelry unless you're staying in a hotel where you have access to a safe and even then think twice because nothing can spoil a holiday quicker than losing a favored piece of expensive jewelry especially if it has emotional significance.
Beach Trip Going to the beach? Then you need to pack some sun block! Add some aloe vera gel for soothing sunned and sanded skin, dark glasses and a hat! Of course you'll need a couple of swimsuits, sarongs work well on the beach and are so light and easy to pack.
Take several in exotic prints and they can double as party time dresses too! http://videojug.
com/film/how-to-tie-a-sarong will show you just how versatile sarongs really are, and what's more, they leave plenty of room in your case to bring home lots of lovely bargains! What clothes to take, think about it, will you be going to glitzy nightclubs and restaurants or relaxed beach bars and discos? Pack as lightly as you can, take wash and wear items so you don't have to carry lots of dirty clothes home with you.
Sarongs make a good choice for women as they come in a multitude of colours and patterns, are light and easy to pack and so versatile that with only a couple you could go from beach to restaurant effortlessly.
You can even make your own, in colours to suit your taste, a sarong or pareo is about 6 feet in length and the width is whatever you want it to be! If you want to you can wear them as a skirt with a favourite top, wear them as a dress, or even a jacket how versatile is that?!! If sarongs are not your thing then think about taking just some basic items that you can dress up or down with accessories, a shift dress (yes even though this is not a business trip) always works well because it can be dressed up or down as needed.
As it's not a business trip take as few shoes as you can because they take up a lot of room, weigh a lot and most of the time on a beach trip you end up wearing your flip flops all the time A string bag for the beach to take all your 'stuff' to and fro, your own water bottle to keep refilling, not forgetting a good book or whatever you take to the beach to do whilst you're not in the water or ordering another Mai Tai!
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