Packing Tips

Apart from a cruise I now only do carry on luggage when flying, wear my heaviest stuff, use travel size toiletries, kindle not books etc as I always used to take too much stuff.sometimes I find I could have done with something I had left behind but can usually make do. Delta airlines for example let you take a a cabin sized case and an extra bag so plenty of space for at least a week away without having to queue up for check in.

Message deleted by Gransnet.

I just take one case for my six weeks in New Zealand but of course I can launder anything I like. I am gradually starting to leave things there - spare trainers, a thick dressing gown, and a pair of walking poles.
I have never used more than one case for any holiday. Shoes are the problem - I wear flat shoes which I can slip off easily for long flights and just have a pair of very light strippy sandals for evening wear. For short haul, I wear trainers.
I am off for a week in Manchester tomorrow, but I am not taking any hold luggage, just one of those little cases on wheels that can go in the cabin. My sister will lend me night clothes and I can wash underwear and tops. It saves me £20 with Easyjet.

That is exactly why I cruise Cunard from Southampton!
I know maniac and I are flying to Rome and back from Athens, but that is I wanted to do the holy land and couldn't find one from Soton!
Xmas cruise will be from Soton!

grannyactivist people like you are so impressive. But presumably you go somewhere hot if you can manage with so few clothes?

We went to the Arctic with our 12 suitcases and one case alone was packed tightly with duffel coats, scarves, woolly hats and gloves. But that's no excuse, I know. The reason for such self-indulgent packing was that we weren't flying and a nice taxi-man carried everything from house to car, from car to Southampton docks and from setting down point to porter. We didn't see the luggage again until we were in our ship's cabin. And, as they say in all the cruise brochures "you only have to unpack once".

This time is different. We are travelling on trains and we are staying in five different hotels in five different European cities. Despite this, we have been advised to have just one small case each. DH has been in the loft with his tape measure (don't ask) and, being a stickler for rules (which I am not), has given me a teeny weeny case which won't even begin to meet my needs. But, you'll be pleased to know grannyactivist that we have invested in a backpack each (they used to be called rucksacks, but hey ho, times change). I can't bear the things but I suppose they have a point.

This is not a moan. I am extremely excited. But what about pretty shoes and gorgeous dresses? I'll just have to leave them behind in the certain knowledge that when we get home I'll be too fat to wear them again. And I'll almost certainly have dowager's hump after all that rucksacking business. As I've said before, holidays are so exhausting!

jack I can't begin to imagine taking TWELVE suitcases anywhere. I've only just graduated from a rucksack to the luxury of a suitcase and having bought a Kindle now I found it impossible to achieve the 20 kilos I was permitted to take on my last holiday. I had plenty of room for holiday purchases - and for the first time ever I had a change of clothes for every day of my holiday. (Pre-Kindle I used to take very few clothes, lots of books and clean undies.)

My bank is wonderful , and you don't often hear people praise them ( it's one of the high street ones). They know my spending patterns and won't put card purchases through if they are for large sums, especially when I am abroad. It may be embarrassing to have to stand in the shop while they phone the bank but on the other hand they have phoned me at home with questions such as ' have you tried to buy a computer today?'
My husband and I always carry different cards and take a copy of our passports with us.

I have a pre-loaded euro card which is pretty good value - Martin Lewis recommendation last year - as long as I can remember which pin I have allocated to it.

I'll give it a go misunderstood. But I have never rolled up anything (I promise) in my life. But I like the thought of no creases.

And jeni, I do realise you can't do trains (which is why we're doing this holiday now, before backs and joints give up). I wonder whether we have met on a cruise? - especially if you sail from Southampton.

DH adores cruising. He dreams about it - then wakes up feeling rather disappointed we're not on the ocean wave.

The best way to pack clothes in a suitcase is to roll them up this way there are no creases.

Too disabled together on and off trains. Also with crutches I can't carry luggage! My main items seem to be evening and cocktail dresses. Can't wear the same dress twice! also, if I sail from Soton, I can take as many cases as I like!

jeni I realise you're a seasoned cruiser but have you tried the train thing? We had a short taster in France a few years ago and had a lovely time - despite foul May weather. But two weeks with only a suitcase each! My make-up and moisturiser and shampoo et al will take up one case. What about knickers and bras and shoes and socks and tights and clothes and pills?

I use my debit card for on board spending only. Credit card ashore!

Holidays are exhausting, aren't they. And that's before you even leave home!

If they are the ones that you can vacuum pack, using a, well, vacuum hose - fine, but I have always wondered how you repack to come home if there isn't a Hoover available?? Would love to know!

Just looked at the Lakeland squares - I use resealable plastic food bags to separate my chargers etc - much cheaper - also they are clear so I can see which charger it is

A few years ago I spoke to a chap in the bank about taking cards away with us and his advice was NOT to take debit cards at all as they can from the details you need to give empty your account - he said with the credit card you had protection. So we take some currency and some sterling cash and then use the Credit card for purchases where possible.
The cards need to be looked at because of the rates they charge. I spoke to the manager in my Halifax branch recently and said to him about them charging for spending on the credit cards in another country and he told me that they now have a card called Clarity which has much smaller charges - there is no weighting for the foreign currency spending - we checked this out with our last bills and sure enough they were giving a much better rate than Tesco. The charges are I believe hidden in the exchange rate they give.

jeni www.lakeland.co.uk/22862/3-Packing-Squares

Just checked the packing squares on Lakeland web site. Unnecessarily pricey, I think and have found something similar on good old Ebay. I wonder if this would make me more organised?

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I hate packing! Am completely disorganised. Turned up in San Francisco without my phone charger and had to buy one at a far greater price than I'd pay here. now I have two chargers each for phone and Kindle, one of which is permanently in the suitcase. I should - but don't - have a check list. This time it was my asthma preventer inhaler and I had one of my very rare attacks. Luckily my sister had one - an inhaler, I mean, not an attack. She had a set of packing pods which I think I have seen in Lakeland. Anyone got these?

Well,you all know my iPad cant spell! It's not me! Honest gov

I used to pack just about everything I had as I was sure I would need it all! Of course I invaribly came back without using half of it, but I have now learned to take a lot less. We used to travel to Spain quite a lot and only took hand luggage also on my last trip to Australia I took 1 suitcase and a small carry on bag. I have learned to colour match and wear my heaviest clothes to travel.

One thing I can't cut down on is knickers! If I am going away for 14 days, I take at least 28 pairs. I have an absolute phobia about running out of clean knickers. One year we went to Hawaii and I was determined to break this habit, so I took less and washed them in the room and left them on the balcony to dry overnight. Unfortunately, there was a strong wind during the night and when I woke up I looked over the balcony to see my knickers festooning a tree! Needless to say I didn't try to reclaim them - just went out and bought some more!

jeni - a 'NETTLE' !!

My cruise was on Royal Carribean and on the ship I was on there wasn't a laundrette. No kettle, but room service is so great, who wants to lift a finger to do anything? Love cruising!