Luggage and Road Trips - What You Need to Know
A road trip is hands down the best way to get to know a region or country. You get to stop whenever you choose and take your time appreciating the sights that you see along the way. Of course, you also get to experience some of the most amazing roads in the world.
One thing that can be an issue, when choosing to explore by road, is luggage. So, how can you make sure you have everything you need without having to buy a bigger car?
Choose the right size of suitcase
If you choose to take a massive suitcase on your road trip, you will end up packing things that you do not really need. This is especially the case if you, or anyone you are travelling with, is a "just in case" person. If you are, then you will find yourself continually saying, "We have room, so we'll pack this just in case". Using a small suitcase helps to stop this from happening.
Do not take your entire wardrobe
You may not want to admit to being one of those people who takes way too many clothes on a road trip, but there are plenty of people who do. Assuming you have somewhere to wash clothes along the way, you should be sensible about the clothing that you take, even on a long road trip. You should normally need no more than:
- 5 sets of underwear.
- 4 shirts or tops.
- 3 pairs of trousers or skirts.
- 2 pairs of shoes.
It's also a good idea to take a hat with you, in case you need it for protection from the sun.
Be ruthless
There are some people who would take a mountain of stuff with them on a road trip, if they could find a house sized suitcase. If this applies to you, you need to be ruthless when you pack. Before you put anything in the case, lay items out in front of you and go through them one by one. Consider whether each item is a must have for your trip. Anything that does not fall into this category should be left behind.
Use soft sided suitcases and clever packing
You only have so much room in your vehicle, so you need to pack carefully. It's a good idea to use soft sided cases or duffle bags as they take up less space than hard cases.
Take your time packing your cases and bags so that you can make best use of the space that you have.
- Pack socks inside of shoes.
- Pack shoes heel to toe so that they fit together and take up less space.
- Roll clothes together, with underwear at the centre of the roll.
- Keep items you need easy access to, such as toiletries, at the top of the case.
When you are heading off on a road trip it can be easy to overestimate the amount of things that you need to pack. But, you only have so much space available so you need to make the most of it. Take only the items that are essential and do not worry too much about leaving something behind. Unless you are traveling to a remote location you can always buy anything you need.