How to Pack

The Inventory Packing Method

1. Pick your luggage (including your carry-on or personal item)
2. Gather your items and lay them out neatly
3. Group together like items and put them in small containers
4. Pack tightly

Benefits

This method allows you to see just how much you’re taking before you put it in the suitcase. You can see if it will all fit or not. If you give yourself enough time to fully think through what you need, you’ll be less likely to forget something.

Step 1: Pick your luggage

Choose whatever luggage you’re bringing, including your purse.

Dust them off and remove any old airline tags. Make sure your current contact information is on them, or create a reminder to get an ID tag from the check-in counter.

Remove all of the contents from the luggage.

Make sure they meet the dimensions the airline has regulated for carry-on and personal items.

Place the luggage in the back corner of your work surface–a nice, flat area that you can work on and the items will be undisturbed. (Beds are ideal for this.)

Step 2: Gather what you’re taking

Start with clothes: shirts, bottoms, (dresses), socks, underwear, jacket, exercise/working clothes, pajamas. Include the outfit you’ll wear on travel day. Set this aside in its own pile.

Accessories: shoes, jewelry, cold-weather gear, sunglasses

Electronics: devices, charging cords, earbuds, batteries

Paper: books, journal, travel information, passport/ID

Bathroom dry bag: brush, comb, toothbrush, hair accessories, medication, makeup

Wet bag/liquids: shampoo, conditioner, body wash/soap, toothpaste, creams, lotions,

Misc.: dirty laundry bag, ear plugs, eye mask, travel pillow, snacks, gum, games, etc.

Step 3: Bundle like items

What really makes packing work is to subdivide your items into smaller groups. That way, your suitcase isn’t one jumbled mess. When like items have a home in the same container, you’re able to access what you need quicker. Consider purchasing packing cubes, a permanent quart-sized liquid bag, or a flat folding pack for shirts.

An added bonus of smaller containers is you can use them as storage for your items at your destination, making them handy to take into a separate room, like the bathroom.

Step 4: Pack as tightly and efficiently as you can

After you have bundled, it will be easy to see where items need to go.

Heavy, bulky items should be on the bottom of your suitcase- this includes when the luggage is both upright and lying down. After that, pack whichever bundle is the biggest or heaviest.

Keep in mind that you don’t have to bundle everything; Rolls of socks fit nicely into random open pockets in your suitcase.

Don’t be afraid of the rolling method for shirts and other clothes.

The last layer of your suitcase should include either more delicate items, like button-down shirts, or items that you need to access quickly, like a jacket.

Don’t forget to keep some room for new items you might acquire on your trip.

Your quart-sized bag of liquids should be placed in an easily accessible location, such as the outside pocket of a backpack.

With these tips in place, you’ll have what you need, be less likely to misplace an item, save time in the security line, and save money on baggage fees.

Happy travels!