How to Pack a Carry-on For a Week Long Trip to Anywhere

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It’s no secret that airports are stressful places, and that stress can only be amplified by a mishap like losing your checked bag, which is why, whenever I travel, I make sure everything I need for my trip can fit in a carry-on sized suitcase and a backpack.

Every environment and travel destination is vastly different from the last, so it’s no wonder why people love to bring a lot of stuff along with them, especially when traveling to big, fashion forward cities like New York or Paris. While it may feel easier to simply put half of your closet in a giant suitcase, it is completely possible to fit your whole week-long life in one bag, with just a few simple tips.

Roll Your Clothes

Everything you bring can easily feel incredibly overwhelming when you’re looking at your

closet before a trip, but shrink that down a few sizes, and that pile of clothes will feel a lot

more manageable. How? Roll your clothes! Rolling your clothes up like cinnamon rolls instead of folding them actually saves a lot of space and allows you to fit a lot more in a small bag. When I do this, I usually find that I even have extra space to fit a few more tank tops or pairs of socks in the crevices left between larger items. When I used this technique for a recent trip to Pennsylvania, I even had room to fold up my travel yoga mat (Manduka eKO superlight travel yoga and pilates mat) and bring that along with me to keep up with some daily mindfulness.

Pack Mindfully

Speaking of mindfulness, when deciding which things you need for your trip, genuinely keep that word in mind: need. While traveling is a luxury, it’s not always necessary to bring all the luxuries of home along with you for the ride. Choose clothes that you can either wear multiple times, or clothes that fit a whole outfit into one item, such as dresses and rompers. Limit yourself to only a couple pairs of versatile shoes. You’d be surprised how clean clothes stay, especially when spending time in large cities, and keep in mind that the only people who will know you’re re-wearing your clothes are you and your fellow travelers!

The Toiletry Problem

When I tell people I only use carry-on bags for traveling, they always bring up the problem of bathroom items. This was something that especially worried me when I first made the transition into veganism because I didn’t know how to buy these products consciously while keeping the TSA guidelines in mind. The simplest way to solve the problem of bringing along more commonplace products like shampoo, conditioner, and lotion, is to invest in a few reusable TSA-approved bottles to put your favorite products in before you leave. You can buy these at pretty much any store that sells cosmetics and it is a much more ecological solution than simply buying tiny versions of everything for every trip you take. For things that are a little more complicated, such as shaving cream and toothpaste, there are vegan friendly brands that do make TSA-sized products perfect for bringing along with you on a plane! EOS is the perfect brand for shaving cream and can be found at most stores (I found mine at Target!), and Tom’s of Maine, while it may be harder to find, does make very small toothpaste (I was able to find it at Sprout’s Farmer’s Market, so it can probably be found at most organic health food stores).

Packing small can feel very intimidating at first, but in the end, it is a more mindful way to travel. Minimalizing the things you have to keep track of can open your eyes to the place you’re in because you not only have less stuff to worry about, but you also have less to carry.