Are you traveling by airplane and want to pack a carry on bag?

Do you want to know the best way to prepare and pack your bag in advance of your travels?

Carry on bags make airline travel a little easier.

You don’t have to pay for checked bags or wonder if your checked bags will make it to your destination the same time as you.

They can also make your general travel itinerary a little less stressful.

Perhaps you’re traveling by car, bus, train, or boat, and want to reduce the amount of luggage you’ll carry.

No matter your motivation, sometimes it’s a good idea to travel light!

In this post, you’ll find some noteworthy tips to help you assemble and pack a small carry on bag.

Why a Carry On Bag?

Carry on bags have become quite popular over the past several years.

In fact, there’s several good reasons to pack a small bag, versus a large and unwieldy one.

• There’s less to carry. No more juggling five pieces of luggage and having your cafe latte spill down the front of your pants leg. Yuck.
• It takes less time to pack. That’s right, you can throw items into your bag and head to the airport in record time.   
• It might save you some money. Why pay for your luggage to be stored in an airplane hold?
• No waiting for bags at the luggage carousel. You can easily grab your bag from under or on top of your seat, and proceed to your final destination.

Hopefully, those are some compelling reasons to convince you packing a carry on bag is a good idea!

Before we get started to the actual packing procedure, you should keep these other pointers in mind:

A carry on holds a finite amount of items.

Any piece of luggage will hold a finite amount of items.

That being said, it’s extremely important not to force a carry on bag (or any other bag, for that matter) shut.

Yes, you might fit in just one more shirt.

But why run the unnecessary risk of straining, breaking, damaging the zippers, clasps, hooks, ties, snaps, and integrity of your bag?

You should use All Packed items.

You should physically use all the items you pack on your trip.

That way, you’ll have exactly what you need, and not a stitch more.

It’s a good idea to pack with a plan.

When will you wear specific pieces of clothing?

Avoid adding items of clothing for “just in case,” or if you should you want to wear an item.

Remove items as necessary until you’re left with the absolute basics.

You’re not headed to the ends of the earth.

Chances are you’re not traveling to the ends of the earth.

Your destination will have running water, electricity, food, and stores where you can pick up spare or forgotten items.

You don’t have to pack food rations to feed a small family for a week.

Nor do you need to pack twenty shirts and five pairs of pants for a weekend trip.

You can always do laundry.

Want to carry less stuff? Pack fewer items and do a quick load of laundry while you’re away.

It’s certainly not glamorous, but it is quite practical.

Okay, it’s time to get packing. Follow the below tips to pack the perfect carry on bag: 

Inspect your bag.

It’s a good idea to check whether the dimensions of your bag indeed make it a “carry on bag.”

Confirm acceptable bag dimensions with your airline, carrier, or other mode of transportation

Once you’ve confirmed your bag is suitable for your trip, you’ll want to do to a pre-check.

Be sure to throughly clean out the pockets, flaps, and compartments.

Make sure all the fasteners, snap, tags, and zippers on the bag are in good working order.

Layout all items to be packed.

You need to know exactly what you’ll pack on your trip.

An easy way to do this is to lay everything out on a freshly-made bed, or a cleared off table or counter.

Don’t skip this step! You’ll probably want to make a packing list as well, so you can easily keep track of everything.

Here’s a list of some basic items for a short weekend trip*:

• Two to three pairs of shirts
• One pair of slacks, a skirt, or a dress
• A light sweater
• Three changes of undergarments (choose between panties, briefs, boxers, undershirts, brassieres, and/or tank tops
• Three pairs of socks or tights
• A pair of pajamas
• Small travel-sized toiletries (comb, brush, razor, toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, lotions, medication, etc.) and personal items in a large plastic zippered bag
• A couple of accessories, such as a scarf, tie, costume jewelry, etc.

*These are just basic items to get you started. This list takes into account you will: wear one complete outfit for one day, carry a coat or jacket, and wear the same pair of shoes for the whole trip. Feel free to edit items as necessary for your trip.

Prepare items for packing.

Now comes the challenging part; making everything fit! There are several camps when it comes to packing.

Over the years, I’ve used a combination of organization techniques to successfully pack bags.

These techniques include folding, rolling, and bundling items. Let’s take a moment to review these approaches.

Rolling and Folding Technique

• Fold slacks and shirts, and then roll tightly into a long tube shape
• Lay each of these tubes, side by side, at the bottom of your bag, and then layer other items on top, either in rolled, or folded fashion
• Repeat the process until the bag is filled

One could envision this as stacking mini logs in a squared off fashion.

Another way to do this is to start with neatly folded shirts in a short stack, place it in the bag, and then place rolled items on the side of the stack.

Lastly, be sure to fill up space on the ends and sides of the bag. That is, don’t just pack your bag vertically, go horizontally as well with tightly rolled items.

Bundling Technique

• Lay several items of clothing flat on top of one another, and then either place rolled or folded items in the center (small items such as undergarments, work well)
• Wrap the outside layers around the smaller center until you’ve wrapped everything into a tight bundle
• Place the entire bundle in your bag

Remove extraneous items.

Still having trouble fitting things into your bag?

Re-fold, re-roll, repack, and/or declutter a couple of items from your bag until everything comfortably fits.

Repeat as many times as necessary.

Be brutally honest with yourself about what you’re packing, and when you will wear it.

Remember, this is a short trip; you don’t have to take your entire wardrobe with you.

How about you? Which of these packing tips will you follow for your carry on bag? Join the conversation and leave a comment below!