Solo Packing for Transatlantic Trip

On my first solo trip I way over packed - I had a roller case to carry on and checked luggage too. Over the years I have paired down to knowing what is critical to pack and what can easily be left at home.

In an era of skyrocketing baggage charges, it makes sense to limit the amount of luggage on a trip.

There is nothing more embarrassing than coming home with clothes you never wore once on your trip - or worse something really heavy that you never used, like a hairdryer. So to save time, money and traveler's embarrassment, pack light!

Here are the essentials:

• Lots of disposable plastic bags - good for laundry, trash when there's no trash can around, and grocery runs - in the UK there is a law that you have to pay for even the cheapest plastic carrier bags at the supermarkets.
  
• Ziplock bags - sometimes leftovers from one meal can be a sustaining snack or the next meal 
• 
• Tissue 
  
• Face moisturizer/sunscreen - a combo of these is best 
  
• Soap bar or scrap in a zip lock bag, or soapless soap in your liquids
  
  
• Comb 
  
• Face towel 
  
• Brush 
  
  
• Mints 
  
• travel meds/general pain relief medication / chapstick / any medication you usually take - many a trip has been ruined by forgetting prescription medication for example anti-depressants
  
• One set of clothes with an extra set of undies and socks 
  
• One set of nightclothes which could double as backup day clothes 
  
• Laundry liquid to wash clothes in the sink every night 
  
• Hand cream - traveling often involves washing with really hand-destroying soaps - and hand sanitizer or a combo
• 
• Toothpaste 
  
• Toothbrush 
  
• Earbuds - sometimes airlines charge you for earbuds on the plane or give you low quality ones.
  
• Travel sickness bracelets 
  
• Phone and charger - you can use Wifi for free as far as your phone service is concerned; some European coffee shops still expect you to at least buy a drink if you're using their wifi. This should be treated as part of cultural courtesy. 
  
• A pen and a backup pen! 
  
• Water bottle 
  
  
  
• Sun glasses - if going somewhere potentially sunny like France or Italy especially if driving
  
• Camera 
  
• Visa documents and Passports 
  
• Documentation for everything
• frequent flyer numbers
• ticket numbers
• all paperwork and boarding passes from the outward flight

To wear:
Layers and any bulky jackets/coats
All money, passports, visa in inside pocket or hidden travel pouch
Easy on and off shoes for going through security

And that's it! All you need to breeze through security whilst everyone else on your flight lurks in baggage reclaim for ages.

Also see my what not to pick list and what I am telling my little sister about traveling in Europe alone!

Roller case vs. backpack vs. purse vs. travel vest

The Roller Case

Have you ever tried to run with a roller case? Have you ever been forced to gate-check a roller case at the last minute? Have you ever missed a connecting flight because the roller case took forever to come out of gate-checking?

that moment right before the ground crew took everyone's roller cases for mandatory gate checking

All this and more has happened to us and here are our critiques of the roller case.

• Roller cases - or at least the cheap ones we've always bought - do not allow you to be hands free.
• Often passports are tucked away in 'safe' areas which require two hands to find. You end up having to jam the roller case between you and the wall of the check in counter while you fiddle with passports and itineraries, which just looks dumb.
• Using a roller case forces strange body mechanics - twisting and pulling which is not great for people with back or neck issues
• It is almost impossible to run with the roller case unless you carry it, as when it's dragged at high speed it can twist, flip, bounce, and otherwise make a nuisance of itself.
• It is surprisingly bulky and hard/impossible to carry on one's lap when on a busy shuttle bus - and you may not plan to be on a busy shuttle bus but if you get delayed overnight in Memphis or Paris you would be lucky to get on a shuttle bus to an airport hotel.
• The cheap roller cases are not weighted correctly and mostly fall over whenever parked
• It is awkward to carry a purse as well as pull a roller case - you see a lot of people trying to secure the purse to the top of the roller case ineffectively
• they are not great on escalators or moving walkways.
• they are tricky to unpack and repack on the fly - esp if you need something at the bottom or Security take everything out - because it's easy to overpack them at home when you have the luxury of space and time and you're not madly dashing to get on your connecting flight.
• Amsterdam, among others, makes you go through security again regardless of where you have come from or how great that country's security checks were
• sometimes the handles don't slide into the case if the case is overpacked
• awkward to roll around London or wherever on your first day abroad
• a lot of museums used to have cloakrooms and lockers for roller cases but don't now because of bomb threats. There are a few exceptions but mostly in Scotland.
• If you have checked a huge roller case and have a 'carry on' roller case, that is a lot of luggage. It does not make you popular on crowded trains or buses, which rarely accommodate American-size baggage.

Worst of all:

• The roller carry on is almost always the first thing grabbed in a last minute 'gate checking' baggage binge. Some airplanes have such limited overhead space that they can not allow even half the ticket-holders to bring carry-ons aboard. A handful of smaller airplanes cannot fit even the 'approved size' baggage and thus wrestle them all away from ticket holders at the last minute.

Three days after getting married in the States, I packed a roller carry-on with all the valuable china and knickknacks I was bringing to the UK.

One of my uncles worked as a baggage handler and he assured me that checked bags get thrown around and also riffled through quite a bit.

There was a last minute 'gate checking' baggage binge on the flight from Paris to Edinburgh and I refused to let go of my baggage. Once I got on the plane I realized why they had had the binge. Even my small carry on case wouldn't fit in the overhead lockers.

I ended up having no leg room on that flight because I had to wedge it between me and the seat in front me.

I did get it home without breaking anything. But it was an uncomfortable trip and not one I would recommend for anyone.

The one thing that can be said for the roller case is that it is good for keeping the weight of your luggage off your shoulders. When standing in lines for hours - say at customs/immigration - it is nice to have a case that can inch along with you.

However if you are trying to carry children or pull children along on a trunkie, you absolutely cannot have a roller case - at least not with speed and mobility.

The Backpack

Having traveled a fair bit more since my newlywed naivety, I would always reject the roller case in favor of a backpack. The majority of people should try it. There are classy and cute backpacks out there as well as the more Spartan, serviceable ones.

Here are some practical points for carrying a backpack:

• It allows you to be hands free.
• It's easy to unpack or look through whilst sitting, standing, etc
• Equally distributed weight across body
• Perfect size to carry on lap
• Great on the go
• Less awkward to carry around London or wherever, though mind those randomly placed pieces of art in the galleries as you turn! It might be best to carry a backpack on your front or in your arms in a museum to avoid nicking any masterpiece on passing.
• It is almost never snatched in a last minute 'gate checking' baggage binge. Whereas every roller case is taken for fairness' sake. 
• One lady on our last flight to Pisa begged and begged to keep her case - she had a tight connection and was speaking at a conference in Florence - but they took the roller case anyway. 
• I have never seen a normal sized backpack taken - once or twice a massive backpacking-across-Europe backpack has been taken but never a normal one. Or even a baby carrier backpack, which can be massive - these are never touched.

But you travel with kids - so you need four carry-ons to encompass baby food, burp cloths, and toys, you say? Well I have traveled with a backpack with babies and small children many a time. It's surprising how creative you can get if you put your mind to it. See my family packing tips and what not to pack list.

Also see my blog post on re-covering tired backpacks here.

Purse/laptop case/brief case/hip pack/book bag

If you can get away with traveling with nothing but a purse or laptop case, that is great. We always prefer to carry on instead of go through the rigmarole of baggage reclaim, which can add an hour to your trip when you are most worn out.

Traveling with a purse in Europe, where pick-pocketing and purse-snatching is rife, is not the best idea. A quality leather purse or a sleek laptop case puts a target on you, I have always felt.

I have one friend who always travels with a hippyish, over-one-shoulder style bag which has no zip and doesn't look worth stealing. This seems like a good idea.

I doubt any Anne-Shirley style carpet bag with a broken handle would get snatched either, but clearly you have to be discerning.

The body mechanics of wearing something over-one-shoulder for hours would clearly not work for people with certain neck or back issues, and spending a whole trip worrying about a purse being snatched doesn't sound like my idea of a relaxed trip.

Travel vest

I know some folk who decided to pack everything they needed for their trip in their winter coats. They added pockets to the point that it looked like they were wearing backpacks under their winter coats, and also wore travel vests with pockets underneath. They said it worked well but it did look a little strange.

See my article on making a travel vest out of a coat or vest you already have.

The NOT to pack list

Here are the top things I have learned not to take on our outward trip.

• We rarely take gifts back for family - we order things online to be shipped directly to them. There are exceptions to this rule - for example if there is something that can only be bought abroad or is much higher quality, like chocolate. However I know from experience that 12 bars of chocolate can make a carry-on rather heavy.
• 
• shampoo and conditioner - most hotels and homes you go to will have some in the bathroom. You may want to pack baby shampoo for any babies or small children on the trip. If you are doing a hostel or backpacking tour or university dorms, you will want to pack shampoo and conditioner or maybe a combo.
• bathrobes
• jewelry or anything valuable
• towels
• electrical appliances or anything with motors - which need adapters and sometimes converters. Transformers are often more expensive to buy than just purchasing a cheap one in the UK. 
• guide books - a whole guide book can be quite heavy and do you really need the whole thing? We recommend photocopying or even slicing out the parts of the book you think you'll need. If you are only doing a week in London, why lug around the entire Rick Steve's England guide? 
• extra books. A 200 page book should take 5 hours to read at average speed. I would always prefer to take a kindle or a phone with a kindle app for the compulsive reader, or limit everyone to one book (except toddlers who usually get 3 small ones).
• neck pillows - most transatlantic flights have inbuilt head-huggers which make neck pillows superfluous or even uncomfortable
  
• pillows - they give out pillows on the flight and someone clever told me recently you can bring your own pillow slip which takes up hardly any space for the same feel of home
• pj's - try to set up your destination if it's with family or friends to have pjs and three sets of clothes for everyone. The exception is if you want to dress your kids in pjs on an overnight flight to help them feel it is bedtime. If you are a student/backpacker, try to take day clothes that are comfortable enough to sleep in so they can be your backup pair of clothes. Everything on a trip has to work double-duty!
• two costumes - this is what I packed in my bag on my first solo trip abroad! The long, flowing cloak I only wore once in a Scottish gale took two and half days to dry in my airless dorm room. It took up loads of space in the suitcase and my friend who saw me in it said, 'I hope no one else saw you.'
• Satsumas or any fresh fruit. My family still laugh about the satsuma story - when we brought two satsumas over the border and got stuck in the longest line in creation. We were only saved waiting three hours by our two babies starting to shriek their heads off and airport staff hurrying us to the front of the line. Now we ditch any fresh food on the airplane or don't bring it at all.
  
• If you have kids:
• Your kids' own packing of their backpacks. They are sure to pack their entire homemade salt dough collection, their megablocks collection and Dad's weights. I never let our kids even have their own backpacks because they invariably want me to carry them - along with their coats and half-eaten snacks.
• changing pads - I now take pieces of fabric I've cut up from sheets from charity shops. Then I can throw them away after I use them. They take up less space than these plastic ones.
• bibs - baby is not going to spit up on a bib, he's going to spit up on you or dad or your neighbor or his shoes which aren't washable. The exception is these enormous, plastic, long-sleeve painting bibs that you might only get out during Craft Time. Well pack a few of them for your trip because that's the only bib that will be useful.
• stuffed toys unless you need them desperately. I try to mentally prepare my kids for leaving behind their toys for a month in advance. If they have to take one, it is better if it's a small one and washable. So work on attaching them to the stuffed toy of your choice.
  
• if you are blessed with a direct flight, you might not need three changes of clothes per kid but I tend to pack an outfit per layover (so a two leg trip gets two sets of clothes, a three leg trip gets three changes of clothes, etc.)

How to transform a jacket into a travel vest

On an aircraft you are probably going to be separated from your luggage.

Whether checked in the hold, last minute 'gate checked ' or you put it in the overhead compartment before you swapped seats with the kid three rows back, your luggage will not be accessible. There are some items that you just need on your person at all times. Riffling through a million bags for that one thing can be frustrating, if not fruitless.

The best thing is to have all essentials on your person. In pockets.

Me in travel jacket in France

If you have the sewing skills or knows someone who does, you can design a travel vest or jacket. You can get really creative but remember you have to wear this through an airport with hordes of sleek business men and women. If you look nice, you will feel more confident push forward to catch a tight connection and to stand up for yourself against obstructionist airport staff. Peter Pan says first impressions are the most important and if you are meeting a group of students you will travel with for weeks, you might also want to ensure you are not wearing a sack.

Next, size 14 - a size or two bigger than I usually wear

Here are the steps:

Write a list of everything you need. It may be short like this:

• Kindle
• Phone
• Pen for immigration docs, visa waivers 
• Tissue
• Chapstick
• Mints
• Earbuds

Or long like this if you have kids:

• Nappies/diapers
• Wipes
• Nappy bags
• Travel sickness bracelets for everyone 
• Extra onesie
• Baby medicine 
• Plus everything on other list:
• Kindle
• Phone
• Pen for immigration docs, visa waivers 
• Tissue
• Chapstick
• Mints
• Earbuds

Collect these items to figure out how big your vest needs to be. The more items you take, the longer and more bulky your vest must be to accommodate.

Now decide how big to make the pockets. 

My kindle-sized pocket for my kindle

Keep in mind pocket placement. There may be parts of your body you don't want to look bulkier than they already are (bust, hips, tummy....). 

Some people including myself have an arch in their back so putting a pocket to the small of back can be a good option. I can fit 4 diapers in the back pockets and it is actually really comfortable and supportive when sitting!

I knew some people who put clothing for two days in sewn-in back pockets. They said they looked like they were wearing their coats over a backpack - i.e. it looked funny. So know how far into 'funny' you want to go.

Top tip: always do one item or type of item per pocket if you can. I once took a jacket, cut an incision to the lining, added an invisible zipper and used all the dead space between the jacket outer fabric and lining as one giant pocket. The result was lumpy and disorganised and I had trouble finding items quickly.

The best thing for finding items quickly, staying organized on a long trip and keeping your Kindle from getting scratched is to have separate pockets.

Never place a pocket behind another pocket. One or both will bag out or the stitching will interfere. The one exception is something really thin like a kindle might go behind another pocket. Just make sure the seam line doesn't interfere.

Pocket empty and open - note waterproof lining

Pocket full

Pocket closed

1. Find a coat or vest you like. Charity or thrift shops are great for this. Find a washable one as you will want to wash after every international trip to remove the airplane smell, spills and stains.
1. Try to find a vest or coat with a lining. If your vest or coat is not waterproof, consider lining the pockets with waterproof fabric.
2. If you plan to breastfeed, try to find one without a zip as the zip can catch breastfeeding babies in the face
3. You can alternately design and construct a vest or coat if you so desire. 
2. Choose pocket fabric. You need at least half a yard. It should match your jacket lining as closely as possible.
3. Lay out your items. Cut an inch more than you need in two layers of fabric.
4. On the phone pocket, cut an extra three inches for a compartment for your pen which is the most useful item you will pack. Also consider velcro or snaps for this pocket to allow Earbuds to attach while in the pocket. We love listening to Rick Steves podcasts when we travel.
   
   
5. If using zippers, apply zipper according to manufacturer's directions. If using velcro or snaps, apply now.
6. Consider how warm you want to be. If you are taking a heavier coat, remove sleeves to make a vest.
7. If keeping sleeves, consider adding a cuff pocket. When you pull a small item out of the cuff, it feels like magic!
8. With right sides together, sew pocket front and back. Press. 
9. Sew to garment. I recommend hand stitching to avoid pocket shape seams which alerts pickpockets. If a side of the pocket lines up with the seam then go for the sewing machine on that side if you like.
10. Fill the pockets!

Small of the back pocket, empty

Small of back pocket, with diapers

Maintenance: check seams every time after a long flight or a wash. Hang to dry. Press.

Travel vests or jackets are a great way to stay hands-free and even luggage-free a lot of the time. You can avoid being in a pinch without that essential item by sewing a special pocket for it. A breastfeeding mom can use this extra layer as a breastfeeding shawl. It can be tied around one's waist in hot weather. Usually European off-peak travel season, when it is cheapest to travel, is bound to be chilly or freezing so you will never be sorry you brought your travel jacket. The best way to be on top of any situation when traveling is to be prepared with your travel vest/jacket.

And when it's really cold in the Loire Valley, you can use it as a cozy toes!