15 Clever Techniques for Traveling Lightweight and Stress-Free
5 min readOct 5, 2021
- First pack only what you truly believe you need. That which you absolutely can’t live without. From there add what you feel would be highly useful to have with you. If you traveled only with these belongings, your bag would probably remain relatively light. We nearly always travel with more than we really need. It’s normal for us to want to be fully prepared for a journey. We want the security of making sure that we have everything we might require. We’re leaving most of our comforts behind after all. What do we really need though? Food, clothes, money, a phone and perhaps a computer… Yet we won’t die without a computer. The phone is just a really small computer anyway.
- Packing-cubes are your best friend. These organizers are essential to travel with some sort of foundation to your various items. They can be packed categorically and stored more easily when you travel from place to place. The items don’t need to be removed from them. Keep them in the cubes. Mine carry: clothes, toiletries, and electronics. They all fit perfectly in my backpack.
- Pocketable products are essential. Such as a jacket that can store easily in your bag or a blanket/towel that folds up into a small compact-able size. Some backpacks are made with extremely lightweight material and can be folded into a pouch. All of these types items travel very well.
- Leave your suitcase behind. The truth is, a suitcase is not the most portable type of item. It can’t be maneuvered hands-free. Which is a crucial element to ultra-light travel. Rule: If it’s difficult for me to carry completely alone, I should never assume that someone will assist me with the responsibility. There have been situations in which I’ve traveled and naively expecting that in certain moments someone would be there to help me with my luggage. Why would I even assume this? Well I was young and inexperienced. I know now that I need to be able to freely use both hands. To ride a bike or carry something in my palm while opening a door with another. A suitcase prevents all of this. It may be hard to hear but a backpack is really the only viable option. Plus one definitely looks like a tourist while walking around pulling luggage behind them.
- Use the size of your backpack as a beneficial limitation. The weight restriction allowed for one carry-on bag could be used to your advantage. Let’s say the average carry-on weight allowance is 20 pounds or 9 Kilograms. Do we really need to travel with more than 20 pounds of luggage? That’s already a lot of weight. I’ve learned to be grateful for the weight limitations that have been placed on me as a flyer.
- Check the weight of your items. Consider the material and heaviness of your bag itself. Every gram of the load increases the burden. Even if an item feels relatively weightless, it really does add up quickly. Think carefully about the importance of each belonging you place inside your bag.
- Metal versus plastic water bottle. Metal will be insulated and keep your water cool but likely twice the weight of a plastic bottle. On the other hand your plastic bottle will be lighter and your water will become warm. Your choice. If you drink from the water bottle as you journey, it will become lighter. Drink your water.
- Electronics are heavy. Carry as few as possible. Perhaps these are the most burdensome items you will carry. A laptop plus charger, tablet, camera, portable gaming console, headphones, hard-drive, and so forth. For many years I traveled with my camera and the loads of accessories required to make great photos and films. One day I was stressfully hiking from a campsite in Hawaii. I had all my camping gear in hand plus cameras, a drone and more. In that moment I finally admitted to myself that carrying these electronics made me miserable. As time went on, the mobile-phone cameras improved and I replaced most of my gear with something of this nature — lighter, smaller and more portable. Nowadays I opt to leave nearly all my electronic equipment behind when I hit the road.
- Refrain from collecting souvenirs. I have this belief that if we collect too many souvenirs from a location, it may prevent us from returning back there in the future. This is because we have that feeling of having collected an item from that destination and now there is no need to return. Souvenirs will be costly and add more weight to your luggage. Buying souvenirs for other people is a bit silly too… they didn’t attend the trip, that place wasn’t important to them, they didn’t spend time there. Why do they need a gift from there? I’m sure if anything they’d rather hear stories and be inspired to travel there themselves. Perhaps a small, lightweight gift will do. Sending a postcard in the mail is a solid option. You can also write a postcard to yourself as a souvenir. A form of time-capsule.
- Buy when you arrive and donate when you leave. Keep in mind that you may need a certain items per each specific location. However that doesn’t mean you’ll need to keep it when you travel further. Sure, you spent money on it, but is it necessary to hold onto? Especially if it’s causing you trouble to carry a greater distance? Likely not. Set it free, set yourself free.
- Purchase your toiletries where you settle. Especially soaps and shampoos. It’s not essential to bring them in your luggage and make it heavier. The only items I travel with are a toothbrush, toothpaste and deodorant, nail-clippers, facial-hair trimmer. It’s important to brush your teeth even when you’re at the airport. This is particularly refreshing. Other personal-care items can be pickup and let go. This tip can be adjusted to your discretion.
- If you bring a book make sure that you’ll read it. If you don’t read it, you’ll just be carrying dead-weight with you and you’ll be kicking yourself for it. A lightweight E-Reader is useful for minimalist travelers. A soft-cover book will travel better than a hard cover. I’ve actually read a few books while traveling so I don’t discount the joy of it. At the end of the day though I’m still considering the weight.
- Travel somewhere warm. You’ll need a lot less clothes. Consider that the winter will require many more layers and clothes with heavier, thicker fabrics. The ultra-light traveler may be wiser going to the tropics rather than a frigid winter wonderland. Tropical island? Just bring that swimsuit. Perhaps a rain-jacket as well. Islands can get an immense amount of rain. It rained like Zeus was angry while I was living in Hawaii. Just food for thought.
- Bring less clothes. One pair of pants, shorts, a few shirts, 4–5 pairs of socks, and 5–7 undergarments, a sweater, a jacket, hat. You’ll be set. You can always buy more clothes while traveling. Clothes with thin, compressible fabric will store easier and with come less weight.
- Only one pair of shoes is necessary. I wear New Balance Minimus. They are a medium between gym shoes and barefoot shoes. They’re light and can pack easy. I recommend this type of footwear. Flip flops do come in handy as well.
