My writing career began with writing about luggage. As you can imagine, I have gathered quite a few travel essentials that I never leave the house without.
But after years of testing products on real trips, I also have formed strong opinions about what should stay home when you hit the road.
To avoid overpacking, I recommend leaving home anything that’s a “what if” or to address a problem that might happen, like bad weather or illness.
I’d also skip anything that takes up more room than it’s worth. Everything on your packing list should have a clear, defined purpose to earn the coveted spot in your suitcase. Some travel accessories that others view as essential don’t make the cut when I’m packing my bags.
Below, you’ll find what I always skip when I’m packing, along with more efficient, travel-friendly alternatives that can solve the same issue.
In this article
Single-Use Travel Toiletries
I recently swore off single-use travel toiletries, and I’m so glad I did. I ended up in an endless cycle of running to the store before a trip, buying new products, and coming home to pack, only to discover I had a dozen half-used bottles already.
Plus, since the products I used were different from what I use at home, my sensitive skin and hair would suffer from the break in routine.
I’ve since switched over to using reusable toiletry bottles, which I refill with exactly as much product as I need before traveling. My skin and hair are happy that I’m using the same shampoo and cleanser as I do at home, and the bottles are lightweight and less bulky than their single-use counterparts.
The fact that I’m reducing my single-use plastic consumption isn’t bad, either.
Pill Bottles
The bulk of my overpacking stems from “what ifs,” so my philosophy for packing medicine used to look a little like this: “What if I get a headache on the plane? What if the new environment irritates my allergies? Might as well toss in a bottle of ibuprofen and antihistamine just to be safe.”
As you can imagine, this led to toiletry bags stuffed full and toting bottles of pills everywhere without using them once.
Now, I instead rely on pill organizers from Dosey when I travel.
The pill compacts are slim and easy to pack, and they’re big enough to keep my most used pills within reach. Plus, it’s easy to organize my daily medication and ensure I’m keeping up with my routine, even when I’m traveling.
Laundry Bags
Laundry bags have become standard included accessories for luggage brands like Away, but I’ve started leaving them at home when I go on a trip.
This might be the most controversial item on my list, since many appreciate laundry bags to keep dirty clothes separate from clean clothes, but in my experience, most modern suitcases can handle that for you.
It’s just as easy to keep dirty clothes on one side of a clamshell suitcase and clean clothes on the other. Plus, laundry bags usually have a limited capacity, only fitting one or two full outfits. Shoving clothes into a bag also makes the suitcase more difficult to repack at the end of the trip, so I prefer to refold or roll my dirty clothes to take up less room.
Even if you prefer to maintain a barrier between clean and dirty clothes, most hotels provide free laundry bags if you end up wanting one. For me, they’re just not worth the space in my suitcase.
Multiple Pairs of Shoes
When my suitcase is full and I need to lose something, shoes are always the first to go.
Since they’re bulky and heavy, packing a ton of shoes is the quickest way to add unnecessary pounds to your luggage. Recently, I’ve given myself a goal to only travel with a single pair of shoes at a time. I gravitate towards comfortable sneakers that I can dress up or down to match whatever outfit I’m wearing.
If you’re traveling for work or you’re a runner, sometimes bringing extra shoes is unavoidable. In that case, I recommend wearing the bulkiest pair on your travel days so they don’t take up a ton of room in your suitcase.
An Umbrella
If you’re worried about the weather, an umbrella seems like an easy thing to quickly toss into your bag.
But even if you’re using a travel umbrella, it can take up a lot of room and you might not even use it once.
Instead, I travel with a lightweight rain jacket when I go to a rainy destination. It folds into a small square at the bottom of my bag, barely taking up any room.
I also love that I don’t have to worry about managing an umbrella in crowds or tight spaces.
The Shortcut
Swap refillable bottles and a slim pill organizer for single-use toiletries and bulky pill bottles.
Skip the laundry bag and use your suitcase's built-in compartments instead. If you really need one, most hotels have free disposable laundry bags.
Shoes are the biggest space hogs. Look for a versatile pair of sneakers that can be dressed up or down and build your outfits around them.
A packable rain jacket covers more situations than an umbrella and takes up less space.
