Travel Tips: How To Be A Carry-on Ninja For All Your Travel
The main principle you should keep in mind when traveling is very simple: if it’s not carry-on, chances are high that it will get lost.
Will it get lost in reality? It may or it may not. But do you really want to find out, especially if it’s an important meeting and you absolutely need for everything to go smoothly? Do you need all the stress and can you afford to spend time trying to find your luggage and deal with the airline, airport and so on?
If, when traveling, you try to pack for every contingency, you will inevitably end up carrying a load worthy of a mule. You will end up with at least one piece of heavy luggage that is not a carry-on. You will spend time and energy carrying it around. You will be thinking about whether you forgot to bring something with you or now. You’ll have to check in your luggage. You will waste time at the airport checking your bag in and then on arrival waiting to pick up your bag, that is if your airline doesn’t lose it. This is hardly a smart way to travel.
It is much smarter to travel with a carry-on bag only. In case you really need something on the road, allocate somewhere between $50 and $200 to a “travel fund,” which you can use on the road to buy items that you really need.
When choosing a carry-on bag, get a bag with wheels, such as Gate8 Trifold wheeled bag. A bag like Gate8 Trifold is accepted on all airlines, including international ones, as a carry-on. It has a detachable laptop compartment and easily fits a suit, a jacket and enough clothes to last you for a week. If your trip lasts more than a week, it is much more efficient to do laundry than to bring more things with you.
Here’s a list of what you can choose to have in your bag:
- An organizer for all your devices, such as Cocoon Grid-it. Such a system lets you organize all your cords, chargers and gadgets so that they stay firmly in one place and don’t pile up together.
- A nano router. For example, Edimax BR-6258n is matchbox sized router that works as a router and a wireless adaptor. You can use it to turn an internet access point into a wi-fi network for all your devices.
- Travel adapter. The Kikkerland Travel adapter is ultra-compact, worldwide compatible and folds flatter than any other adapter available on the market.
- Toiletries pack. Use a 1 gallon Ziploc bag for easy access and visibility of all your items. Always keep the bag in one of the front pockets for easy access. Do not spread toiletries in between your clothes.
- Neck pillow.
Clothing:
- A base layer for cold weather, such as Uniqlo heat-tech base layer.
- Underwear from your favorite brand and 2-3 t-shirts
- A coat or an outerwear jacket
- A pair of jeans
- An extra pair of shoes
- 3-5 shirts
Electronics:
- Your laptop and possibly other devices such as iPad
- Smartphone
- Noise-cancelling headphones
Copy this list to your smartphone, expand it, pick items that work for you and keep a detailed list on your smartphone and in the cloud.
For personal travel, it’s even easier still to travel with only a carry-on!
We recently heard from a regular KEE client who told us that for the last 2 personal trips to the Caribbean and Cancun, they only traveled with one carry-on each, for 5 nights!
Because they went from our home into a warm KEE Limo car, no winter jacket was needed. They both wore sweaters which came off when they landed. Dress code-wise, they both had khakis on, which doubled for “resort casual” dining restaurants.
They each had a 20 “or 21” wheeled carry-on in which contained bathing suits, shorts, shirts and for his wife, rolled up sun dresses. Instead of lugging big toiletries, they shopped at CVS, Rite Aid, or Walmart and bought “travel size” toiletries. The only item they wound up having to purchase at the resort was sunscreen for $30.
By traveling with carry-ons, they smartly avoided the long lines for claiming their luggage and also customs/immigration. This easily saved over an hour both coming and going—more time for the beach!
When they arrived at their destination, they arranged with the hotel concierge for private van transportation from the airport directly to the hotel, for approximately $40 each way.
Finally, a tip if you really need have a lot of things with you during your trip, consider sending big items via Fedex or USPS Priority Mail before your trip to your hotel. This way your items will arrive at your destination even before you do. Using Fedex you will be able to see where your items are at any given time. During your trip you will save time at the airport and be able to travel without having to carry heavy bags, at the same time having a piece of mind knowing that your luggage will be where you need it when you need it.
Need tips on the best bags for carry-ons? Check out our recent post Travel Tips: Four Versatile Carry-Ons To Save You From Baggage Fees
