Planning for what you bring is an absolute necessity in order to minimize what you bring. I guess it also helps you not forget anything, but other than the 4Ps: phones, passports, prescription meds and people, which you won't likely forget - everything else is totally replaceable! From my perspective, in general, it's better to have not brought something and need to buy it on the trip than to pack something that you don't use but still have to carry around the whole time.
For trips that I don't spend planning what I'm going to pack, I always over pack. I did a long weekend solo-trip to The Netherlands to visit my sister and run a race last year and I did a terrible job packing. I had too many shoes and clothes, several that I didn't even wear. It weighed me down and was completely unnecessary. I had as much weight in my bag for 4 days in Europe as I did for 2 weeks in Chile! Mostly because I didn't follow my own suggestions. I didn't make a list and I waited until the last minute and then I kept throwing things in my bag that I 'might' need or want.
As you start to think about packing for the trip, let's assume your itinerary is pretty stable. The main considerations before making your packing list are mainly:
Weather. Ok, captain obvious here. Plan clothes for the weather that is typical. Don't feel the need though to pack clothes for all the 'just-in-case' scenarios. If the weather is typically in the 80s, don't feel the need to pack clothes just in case multiple days are in the 60s. For warm climates, we plan for one warmer outfit that is used mainly for plane rides and air conditioned activities and can double in case the weather isn't fantastic. Don't plan to look at the 10-day forecast for another country and expect to see an accurate forecasts. I have found that they are not generally accurate and likely show a forecast based on historical averages, not actual radar predictions. Tropical regions especially have a lot of rain. Forecasts will show rain every day. It's green for a reason, but doesn't mean your trip will be a rain out!
Activities. Pack for what you've actually planned to do, not for 'what if' scenarios. Will you be doing a major hike, then pack hiking shoes. Maybe you'll do some hiking? A pair of normal sneakers is probably find. Do you have a fancy restaurant night out planned, then pack an outfit for it. Are you thinking there might be a nice restaurant that you maybe will want to look nice for? My experience is, it's probably not going to happen. Have a dual purpose outfit that is sufficient for a night out. Definitely don't bring extra shoes, black flip flops are highly versatile.
Laundry. What is the laundry situation at each of the destinations? We have opted for Air BnBs with laundry so that we can pack half the amount of clothes we would normally need for the week. Laundry mats are of course another option, but you may not want to spend time in a laundry mat on your vacation. In some countries, laundry mats are only full service. You drop your clothes off and pick them up several hours later for a very reasonable rate. In other countries, the hotels offer laundry services that are incredibly affordable.
Access to Trusted Medicine. When traveling to less developed countries, I have an entire pharmacy which I bring along with me. I do not skimp here. However, I do opt to bring less of my pharmacy when traveling to developed countries, like throughout Europe. I also know the most common medical issues that could arise and pack accordingly.
Making a List... and checking it twice: I am notorious for creating my list of what needs packed a week or two (or sometimes longer) before we leave on the trip. If it's not on the list, it doesn't get packed. This is to make sure we buy anything we need beforehand and also to make sure we don't start throwing additional things in our bags just because we have space as we are running out the door.
It doesn't have to be fancy. For many trips I have used a format like the one on the right. A section for each person and their individual clothing. We then have shared toiletries and medicines. Items we need for transit/technology and miscellaneous things that never fit nicely into a category. In this case I also identified which items would go in our carry on, when we checked bags. (Pro tip: If checking luggage ALWAYS have a spare set of clothes in your carry on.) I then use the list to identify what we need to purchase and then check items off as they are packed.
For more details on what to pack, check out the other packing blogs!
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