Packing Tips

A few things that genuinely work. No hacks, no fourteen-step systems.

Pack by weight, not by space

Most people run out of allowance before they run out of case. Weigh the case before you leave rather than at the airport — bathroom scales work: weigh yourself, then weigh yourself holding it.

Heavy things go at the wheel end, so the case sits stable when it's upright and doesn't tip when you let go.

Roll the soft, fold the structured

Roll t-shirts, jeans, knitwear and anything casual — it takes less room and creases less. Fold shirts, tailoring and anything with a collar, and lay them flat on top of the rolled layer.

Shoes go in first, soles against the shell, stuffed with socks. Bag them — the soles have been on the floor of an airport.

Use the compression straps

They're not decorative. Strapping a packed case down stops everything shifting in transit, which is what causes creasing far more than folding does.

Packing cubes, honestly

They don't create space — a packed cube takes up the room its contents take up. What they do is make a case unpackable at the other end: one cube out and your shirts are in the drawer. If you move between hotels, they save real time. If you fly somewhere and stay put, they're optional.

Liquids

Bag them separately even in checked luggage. Cabin pressure changes and bottles leak. Screw caps down, then put a square of cling film under the lid.

The bag inside the bag

A washbag and a small pouch for cables and chargers save more time than any folding technique. Keep them permanently packed with duplicates of what you need, and packing becomes a five-minute job instead of an evening.

Leave room to come home

You will return with more than you left with. A case packed to the lid on the way out is a case you'll be sitting on in a hotel room. If yours expands, save the expander for the return leg.

What goes in hand luggage, always

Passport, medication, chargers, a change of clothes, and anything you couldn't replace. Bags do occasionally go missing, and the day it happens is not the day to discover your only prescription is in the hold.