These are the tips you need to pack your luggage in the best possible way and thus experience a stress-free vacation.
When we start planning our vacations, once you see the activities you can do and the places you can go to eat, you already begin to experience the excitement of leaving the city to relax at your destination. But, what happens when it comes to thinking about what one should take from home?
For many, packing may be a total nightmare, especially when traveling with the little ones in the family. You think about bringing to your vacations the bathing suits, the toys, all the changes of underwear and if the little ones are even smaller… you think about the diaper bag, the cleaning wipes, changes in case it gets dirty, endless things that have to be considered at time to pack.
Whether you go with your family, your friends, your partner or your solo, packing can become a headache because you feel that there is never enough time and sometimes you may end up organizing your luggage the night before your trip.
We tell you a secret… The key is 100% preparation, because once you start doing it this way, everything becomes easier and packing will no longer be a torment for you.
Avoid making the following mistakes to ensure you pack perfectly for your next getaway:
1. Overpack
One of the most common mistakes we make when packing is to overpack. You really need to stop for a moment and think about what you are really going to need and use.
For example, if you only wear one or even two pairs of jeans in your day to day, why would you take another 12 pairs of pants that you have not worn in the last 3 years?
Make an exhaustive analysis of what you are really going to wear, something that can work a lot for you is to pack basic clothes that you can easily combine or make a visualization of how to imagine seeing yourself with ‘x’ clothes on day 1, day 2, etc.
2. Not making a list
Making a checklist of what you need to take on your next trip can completely change the way you organize your vacation. Sometimes we tend to think that we can make a mental list of what we are going to need and that we will remember each and every one of the things that we have thought about, but there are so many things that you have to take into account that one can forget at the last minute.
From the toothbrush, to the charger of the camera and the cell phone, you do not want to end up going to an electronics store to buy a charger on your vacation, the ideal is that you get to enjoy your vacations.
Write a list to pack essentials, start writing it a few weeks before your trip. You can save this same list and use it for future vacations. You can even make different lists according to your needs, you can make one for short weekend trips, another for Christmas vacations and another for Easter vacations.
3. Not checking the weather
There is no worse feeling than arriving at your destination to find out that it is much hotter than you thought and knowing that you have your entire suitcase full of jackets and sweaters that you will not wear. The weather can be unpredictable at times, so it’s extremely important that you check the forecast before you start packing.
And for the same reason that sometimes the weather is unpredictable, we recommend bringing a rain jacket, especially in climates such as tropical forests.
4. Fold, don’t roll
For a long time it has been thought that rolling clothes when packing is the best option to save a little space; however, rolling it up will only wrinkle it and you won’t actually be saving space.
Start folding your clothes and you will see how you will get more space in your suitcase, also if you like to organize and separate your clothes by categories, you can buy transparent separator cubes and if you fold your clothes to put them inside these cubes you will be able to easily identify which cube has what, you will achieve much more order.
5. About your shoes…
When you pack your shoes and any heavy items, be sure to place them at the bottom of your suitcase and inside a plastic bag to prevent dirt from the soles from getting on your clean clothes.
We also recommend that you avoid carrying more than 3 pairs of shoes, because you will most likely not wear them. Just take some for walking, other elegant ones for special nights and sandals for the bathroom or for the beach.
6. Not taking a bathing suit
Swimsuits don’t really take up a lot of space in your suitcase and it’s always a good idea to bring one, you never know if you’ll come across a swimming pool, a jacuzzi or a water amusement park that you may not have contemplated, you never know.
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7. Wait until the last minute
When you start packing a few hours before the trip, the only thing you will achieve is stressing yourself out and probably forgetting a few things in the process. In fact, it is much more likely that you will forget something essential because you will not have enough time to plan.
Make sure you start thinking about what you will need on the trip in advance, this will help you de-stress and not forget to pack some essentials.
8. Pack only light-colored clothing
When planning your vacation outfits, be sure to pack dark clothing, it will be your lifesaver in case some of your light clothing gets dirty.
Although light colors are nice, especially when you go on vacation to a hot place like the beach, unlike dark clothes, light clothes show dirt and wear out much faster than dark clothes. So packing a couple of dark garments would do you no harm.
9. Forget a laundry bag
After the use of each garment it becomes dirty clothes in our suitcase, at the end of the trip our luggage becomes a store of clothes to wash, but we will always return with some clothes that are still clean. Separating your dirty clothes from your clean clothes will make a big difference, as well as making it easier for you to unpack at home, so we recommend separating them with an additional bag.
And it doesn’t have to be a special fancy bag for dirty clothes, it can even be a plastic or cloth bag.
So now you know! The next time you pack, follow these tips to avoid all the stress of packing your clothes, you will see that it will be much easier and maybe even a little fun.
7. Esperarte hasta el último minuto
Cuando empiezas a hacer maletas unas cuantas horas antes del viaje lo único que lograrás es estresarte y probablemente olvidar una que otra cosita en el proceso. De hecho es mucho más factible que olvides algo esencial debido a que no tendrás el suficiente tiempo para planear.
Asegúrate de empezar a pensar con antelación lo que necesitarás en el viaje, esto te ayudará a liberarte de cualquier estrés y de no olvidarte de empacar algunos esenciales.
8. Empacar solo ropa de colores claros
Al momento de planear los conjuntos que llevarás a tus vacaciones, asegúrate de empacar ropa oscura, será tu salvavidas en caso de que algunas de tus prendas claras se ensucien.
Si bien los colores claros son agradables, sobre todo cuando te vas de vacaciones a un lugar caluroso como la playa, al contrario de la ropa oscura la ropa clara muestra la suciedad y se desgasta mucho más rápido que la ropa oscura. Así que empacar un par de prendas oscuras no te vendría nada mal.
9. Olvidarte de una bolsa para la ropa sucia
Después del uso de cada prenda ésta se convierte en ropa sucia en nuestra maleta, al final del viaje nuestro equipaje se vuelve almacén de la ropa para lavar, pero siempre volveremos con algunas prendas que aún estarán limpias. Separar tu ropa sucia de tu ropa limpia hará una gran diferencia, además de facilitarte el desempacado en casa, por lo que te recomendamos separarla con una bolsa adicional.
Y no tiene que ser una bolsa sofisticada especial para la ropa sucia, puede ser incluso una bolsa de plástico o de tela.
¡Así que ya lo sabes! La próxima vez que empaques sigue estos consejos para evitarte todo el estrés de empacar tu ropa, verás que será mucho más fácil y hasta puede que un poco divertido.
And in case you still haven’t considered the place where you will spend your nights on your next vacation, we invite you to visit Ancana, to acquire your vacation co-owner residence in your favorite destination.
Owning a vacation home has never been this easy.