Planning a trip to multiple continents is a blast. We spent months staring at maps and googling different places on this giant, beautiful planet. How to pack for a long trip was a whole different story. We knew we’d be doing lots of shoulder-season travel, which means unpredictable weather conditions and a wide range of temperatures. July in Vietnam is extremely hot, and December in Belgium is cold. Trying to find the right clothes is hard.
We found tons of posts online about people’s suitcases, but none helped us. We searched high and low for rules about how to pack for a long trip. Neither of us care too much about fashion and we definitely weren’t buying new clothes for this trip. So many posts were laying out perfectly planned outfits for one specific climate. They were pretty to look at but didn’t actually lay out the reasoning behind their items, and the price tags were all $300. It felt more like they were selling us something instead of trying to help us answer the question of how to pack for a long trip.
We decided to make up some rules as we started sorting clothes and making cuts to our wardrobes. I didn’t want to share our process until we had lived with it for a while. Six months in, it’s safe to say that it worked. Today, we are sharing our four rules about how to pack for long trip.
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How to Pack for a Long Trip: The 4 Rules We Tested and Approved
Rule 1: Every item must be able to be paired with three other items.
It’s easy to figure this out. We laid out all the clothes we were bringing and made sure that we could wear each with at least three other items. One black shirt goes great with three different pairs of pants. You have to be able to mix and match a lot, and this was the easiest way to do it.
We chose a lot of black, white, and neutrals. But if you love bright colors, you can still make this work. Stick with colors that work together and embrace the monotony a bit. Your scenery is changing enough that your outfit won’t matter.
Rule 2: It must be easy to clean.
Sometimes, you do laundry in your hotel sink, so it’s important to pack materials that are easy to clean. I made the mistake of washing the temple pants I bought with my white T-shirt, and the shirt is not really white anymore. You live, you learn – just keep it simple.
I hope it’s obvious, but when you are thinking about how to pack for a long trip, avoid any dry, clean-only items or things requiring special care in transport. Items will take a beating on the road, so care for them as much as possible.
Rule 3: Comfort and good fit come before everything else.
Days in trains, planes, and automobiles are hard enough, so you should be comfortable with everything you pack. Although pajamas were tempting, we didn’t just pack pajamas. Instead, we packed things that we could wear to dinner and also go hiking in the mountains. A lot of athleisure is mixed into our suitcase, but it has worked. In fact, if I was planning how to pack for a long trip all over, I would probably exclusively pack athleisure with one dress for nicer spots.
Rule 4: Must be simple with minimal writing on it.
If you’re following rule #1, this will probably be obvious. We stuck to neutral colors to make things easy but also because we didn’t want to draw attention to ourselves. Bright colors don’t necessarily draw attention but might be a bolder choice than black. Avoiding clothes with writing helps you blend in more, which is usually the safest travel method. We strived to be as respectful as possible in the places we visited, and solid, neutral colors never failed.
The Exact Contents of our Backpacks
I wish someone had been as simple as listing out what they packed instead of showing all the outfit combos. Since we struggled to find it, we are sharing ours, hoping that it will help someone like us in the future. We made this list while repacking after a week in Prague. We included the visuals below so you can see the clothes next to each other.
Justin’s Clothes
- 2 full zip sweaters – gray and blue
- 2 pullover sweaters – dark gray and light gray
- 7 t-shirts – dark green, maroon, black, blue, tan, dark gray and white, gray & black striped
- 1 button up shirt – gray with cactuses on it
- 2 jeans – dark blue and gray
- 1 pair of swim trunks
- 2 pairs of hiking/outdoor activity pants – gray and black
- 1 pair of comfortable lounge pants that worked great as hot weather temple pants when he needed to be covered
- 1 workout outfit
- 2 pairs of pajama shorts and shirts to sleep in
- 8 pairs of socks and 10 pairs of boxers
- 1 baseball hat
Steph’s Clothes
- 2 full zip sweatshirts – black fleece and light gray
- 3 sweaters – black & white striped, green and dark gray
- 6 t shirts – pink, white, navy blue, black, purple and black & white striped
- 1 button up shirt – black & white striped
- 3 pairs of leggings – 2 black and 1 gray
- 1 pair of green jeans
- 1 pairs of dressier pants – dark green
- 1 pair of black yoga pants
- 1 black jersey dress
- 1 workout outfit
- 1 swimsuit
- 3 tank tops/undershirts, 8 pairs of socks, 3 bras and 10 pairs of underwear
The Extras
- 2 black puffy jackets for colder weather – Justin has used this one for years, and Steph bought this one right before Iceland, and it’s still holding strong.
- 2 black rain jackets that compact into tiny little compartments – these Houdini models were pricy, but they will last us a long time and take up zero space
- 2 pairs of Merrells – the women’s Moab 3 model and the men’s MQM model – this is our brand of choice because they last, they are comfortable, they can hike, and they have neutral colors that work with everything we brought
- 1 pair of these Allbirds for Steph
What Don’t We Have Anymore
In the span of six months, a few items have been sent home with loved ones or donated to local places. Packing for a long trip is difficult because things change, and you have to be OK letting things go. In full transparency, we wanted to share the things that didn’t make the full year with us.
Warm Weather Clothes
Once we were done with the warm-weather climates, it was easy to reduce the weight of our backpacks by sending home a few things. Our sandals and a few pairs of shorts went home with our parents in Paris. We didn’t have too much, but it freed up a little space that we will use for a couple of beanies and maybe scarves.
Clothes that Didn’t Fit
In sticking to our rules, we got rid of some pants that didn’t fit anymore. We haven’t really gained or lost pounds on this trip, but our bodies have changed with the amount of moving we are doing and some pants just didn’t fit anymore. Those went to donation centers in the countries we were in at the time.
Our Away Suitcase
One of the best purchases we’ve made is good luggage. We bought a few Away Suitcases a few years ago when we traveled often for work. These suitcases have seen it all, and the one we brought with us cracked. We had just landed in Australia and weren’t sure what to do, but we knew it wouldn’t last the three flights to Africa.
I contacted the company, and they impressed us with their service. We had two options – either find an address to have one shipped or send one to our parents’ house and find a temporary replacement. We chose option B and recycled the cracked suitcase and picked up a duffle with backpack straps for the second half of our journey. It is pretty awesome to be able to avoid wheeling luggage on the cobblestone streets, AND we know we have a new hard suitcase waiting for us at home.
If you are looking for luggage that is practical, attractive and has a pretty amazing lifetime warranty – click here to see what they’ve got. I love their stuff and was so impressed with their customer service.
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Read more about the luggage we are using here.
Final Thoughts on How to Pack for a Long Trip
We were able to pack for this trip with items in our closets already, but it was tempting to go out and buy new things. If we have learned one thing on this adventure, it’s that we need very little. Consumerism and overconsumption are killing this planet, and it’s stressing people out and adding to anxiety levels.
We put this post together because people asked how to pack for a long trip, and we wanted to see it in this format while we were packing. This post includes links to the products we have with us. That said, don’t buy anything unless you need it. Wear your clothes out and simplify. That’s the best advice I could give you whether you’re packing for a long trip or not.
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