Packing in Carry-On Only
Ok, so I know that right now might not be the ideal time to write a travel/packing post in light of COVID, but you can pin this to come back to.
I for one LOVE to travel! I grew up in an airline and hospitality family and think a love of other countries and cultures was ingrained in me at a young age. It’s also what I believe has helped me be tolerant of those with differing opinions because I can take a step back and evaluate from their point of view. As my husband likes to remind me, Mark Twain once said, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”
Like many women, I’ve been known to be an over-packer. (anyone else?) I would go on long weekend trips and check a bag.. When I married Cale, he was bound and determined to teach me the ways to travel with only a carry-on. He didn’t hold me to this for our honeymoon, but every trip after that he has.
In 2014, we decided to take a 21 day, 4 city, trip to China. Cale used to live there and wanted the chance to share the food, the language and the people he loved with me. I just knew he would bend his rule for a 21 day trip halfway across the world- I was wrong. He shared this video with me and put me to the challenge of trying to limit myself to two carry ons.
Looking back I can’t imagine waiting for luggage at each of our city stops: to Beijing, to Xian, to Xiamen, and then Hong Kong. Even more so the trip home… Our flight from Hong Kong to the states was cancelled and we ended up having to fly HK to Guam, Guam to Honolulu, Honolulu to Houston. We left at 9pm Friday and landed at 7am Saturday, after going forward and backward in time twice! It was a WHIRLWIND!
Fast forward to present times and as you read this my daughter and I are on a trip with two other moms and two other girls in Disney World. Once again, I packed both of our items and food in one rolling carry on and a backpack for each of us.* I often get asked how I do this so in addition to the video up above I want to share some of my personal strategies:
- I make a list of everyday I am going to be there and what outfit ideas I have while I’m there. For this trip we used Traveling Ears Vacations to plan and she sent us a checklist.
- I typically try to stay in one color scheme (navy or black) to make coordinating other pieces easier. (That won’t be happening with Disney but we have some fun coordinating ideas including Red, White, and Blue on election day).
- I try to pack each day’s items in a bag together. For this trip I used gallon and a half zip locks with my daughter and my attire in the bag along with coordinating ears. For pajamas and extras I used the video method.
- I have also found other bags to be my friend. I have a bag with chargers, one with extra masks, makeup, toiletries for each of us, etc.
*I do want to acknowledge those who think traveling right now is crazy. I know it’s a risk, but a Harvard study has shown that planes are one of the safest spots because of regulations in place. And everything I have read about Disney, they are going above and beyond what they normally do to ensure they can stay open. If you’ve read my previous posts you know this has been an especially tough season and I am looking for some magic. We will be overly cautious and I will report my thoughts when I get back. Also this trip was originally supposed to be to Disneyland with 6 moms and 6 kiddos. We realized Disneyland probably wasn’t going to open and made the switch, but 3 moms couldn’t manage the change with their plans and state’s travel restrictions to Florida.
