Katja

Last week's trip to the DC area, 8 nights, 9 days, business travel:

The bag: B&R Deluxe Travel Tote, 1800 cubic inches, empty weight 3.6 lbs, 11.5" x 16.5" x 10.5"

Why it works for me: no wheels, no straps. I am a wheelchair user, and this bag travels on my lap. It is squarer than most carry on bags, which is better for lap-carrying.

What goes in it:

3 days worth of clothing, including 1 pair of pumps and 1 pair of fold-flat workout shoes
1 qt ziplock with sunscreen, toothpaste, antiperspirant, moisturizer
1 qt ziplock with meds, and miscellaneous stuff like a tiny sewing kit (everything in there has been needed at least once)
swimsuit, swim cap
1 gallon ziplock with power cords, a Netgear Push2TV adapter and video cables
ASUS 14" laptop
1 Eagle Creek small Pack-it Sac containing a spare tube, tire levers, patch kit, wheelchair tools, dry lube (I used to put these in a ziplock, but it wasn't durable enough)
1 mini bike pump
1 small waistpack containing keys, smartphone, wallet, hex keys for wheelchair repair
Sea 2 Summit Ultra-Sil Daypack
Sennheiser PCX 250 noise-cancelling earphones (can't stand earbuds)
a couple of movies on DVD

arjunrc

May I ask which one? I'm on the lookout for one.


Right, another area for me to research. Interesting product.

sanclementeviajera

Leaving Shanghai tonight after a ten day trip. What's in my nothing fancy Samsonite rollaboard:

A Brighton brand lt wt microfiber messenger bag folds flat - large enough to hold files a small laptop doubles as a purse;

One suit, extra pair of slacks, (all summer weight wool in black) one pair dress shoes, one pair flats, three wrinkle-free blouses, three lt wt silk sweaters, five patterned silk scarves to change the look, one pair socks, enough undergarments for half the trip, then laundry is in order, ziplock with makeup, ziplock with toiletries unavailable at hotel, pajamas, comb brush toothbrush, kindle, phone, laptop, chargers, protein bars stuffed into any space left. No extra jewelry except what I'm wearing. On board I am carrying or wearing a coat if the weather requires it, otherwise I'm wearing a business attire jacket with an indispensable pashmina. Along with with Kamil fleece-lined waterproof pull-on boots. I do regret not having enough room for workout clothes/shoes. Three week trips to Asia or Europe - it's the same but I know where to go to replenish supplies.

It's taken years of practice but I wouldn't have it any other way

Katja

Note that a) I'm female, and b) these shoes just have to cover my feet, as I'm not running or anything in them. They're an older version of the Merrell Lorelei Zip: http://www.zappos.com/merrell-lorelei-zip-black

Edited to add: That's not right - they're Merrell Arabesques: http://www.amazon.com/Merrell-Womens.../dp/B001QOQ7YC

If your laptop has an Intel Wireless Display adapter, this thing will extend your desktop to the TV, including audio. It's really nice for watching Netflix or movies you've got on DVD or your hard drive.

lwildernorva

That's why I go backpack or luggage that is convertible to backpack. Since I'm carrying a second bag in hand, I like to leave one hand free for pulling IDs, producing tickets, paying for stuff at airport shops. I find the small amount of weight comfortably distributed across my back. Of course, personal issues of comfort or accessibility require adaptation; thus, why I've never really thought there was only one type of correct piece of luggage. If I had shoulder or back issues, I wouldn't think of using a backpack and wheeled luggage would play more of a role in my travels.

When I take my golf bag and if I still need an electronics bag for work purposes (hate when work interferes with golf!), I lash my Red Oxx bag to a folding trolley and hook the golf travel bag and trolley together--again leaving me with one hand free.

arjunrc

Thank you. I'm just looking for a general purpose light as it gets but comfortable shoes to put on when I'm off work. Not for running or anything (admittedly running features in my vocabulary only when used in sentences such as 'I'm running towards a steak house')

Ah the pashmina. Works as a great shawl for men too, but not with a western attire unless its a scarf. When I was growing up, people would come to our house to sell original pashminas from Kashmir and we would buy those shawls all the time. Its ridiculously priced these days (maybe they were ridiculously priced then too, just that I was not paying)

Ah you lucky person, you. If I ever have time to play golf when I travel, it means I really should be at home attending to my 2 little ones. Maybe when they grow up to their teens and want nothing to do with me....

Not at all, sharing your experiences in detail is not rambling at all.
So question: Are you a two bagger for the most part ? Dell laptop bag + Samsonite?
On your micro four thirds - Olympus or Panasonic? Are you an amateur photog? If not,have you investigates NEX/RX100/V1 and other form factors?

I frankly never thought of this, and really, I hope I never reach a situation when I need to ship my clothes out, but yes, I think one should always keep this in mind if you are caught in a situation you could not avoid. Its a good idea in such situations rather than paining yourself for the rest of the trip. I do think however it may be an expensive proposition if its out of US shipping to the US.

Thanks - compared to the StS my wanderlite packable also has a pretty thick exterior - Katja elsewhere mentioned that a sharp object ripped her StS - so I am going to have to see how great the StS is in practical use.

arjunrc

As a one bagger, who often needs to hop between multiple countries, keeping receipts is key. It is critical not to mix them with other stuff, otherwise you will lose them and reimbursements are a PITA. I never keep receipts in my wallet - makes it fugly thick.

So here are my receipts tips:

a) I aways use an inner pocket of an outside pocket (!) to store receipts and nothing else. Why? Because I need to stash the receipt as soon as I get it while standing - an inner zip pocket of an outside pouch is ideal. Keeping it in an outside pocket itself is a bad idea - it can fall out when you unzip

b) I always snap a picture of a receipt thats particularly large in value (anything beyond 20-30 euros). If I ever lose the receipt, I have a digital copy. Its redundancy. I also always take a picture of luggage tags when I keep my bags in any conference - same reason

c) When I travel within the US, I enable iCloud photo stream backups for a second redundancy (I have a grandfathered unlimited data plan for domestic) but not when I am outside the US (like an idiot, I gave away my unlimited international data plan - a decision I rue to this day)

oldpenny16

I put my travel receipts in ZipLoc bags of appropriate size. Have done this for decades. I use a Sharpie pen to mark the outside of the bag with trip details.

I also get as many e-receipts as possible during a trip to have back up info.

Organizing as I go along saves masses of work and time when home.

Katja

I'm lucky in that I don't have to save very many receipts; our air travel is centrally billed and we get a per diem, so the only receipts I really need are rental car and hotel, and I get these electronically.

vikmurthy

The Netgear PUSHTV adapter is a nice lightweight gizmo if you have a WiDi enabled laptop. I am curious what products folks use if they have a non-WiDi laptop?

I use Slingplayer on my laptop or iPad to watch live TV or recorded shows, but that doesn't allow me to display video content onto a hotel TV screen.

I recently started testing out an Android PC on a stick called the Uhost2 made by a Chinese company called Smallart. It takes a little tweaking (updating the firmware to Android 4.12 Jelly Bean). Coupled with a wireless combo keyboard mouse (I use something called the Mele F10), it does a nice job of turning an HDTV into an Android tablet that can stream video, run Slingplayer and run virtually any Android app like Netflix or DirecTV Sunday Ticket.

While the Uhost2 isn't especially bulky or heavy on its own, it requires an HDMI cable for video output, a USB cable or adapter for power, and a Bluetooth combo keyboard mouse for remote control. As a result, it doesn't seem likely to make the cut for pure lightweight, one bag travel, especially considering its non-critical entertainment role.

Any other products out there worth checking out?

chollie

It's a long shot, but the first picture I take on a new chip is always a picture with my info. If I ever lose a camera and someone wants to try to return it to me, I want to give them all the help I can.

oldpenny16

Every trip I use my iPhone to snap a photo of my luggage and also where I park my car including its license plate. I take another photo of the nearest location sign.

Do it in hotels as well.

Doing that saved me hours of searching in the New Orleans RiverWalk Hilton where there are 2 garages and lots of places to lose a car in the dim light.

PS on super light bags. This discussion has inspired me. I went through my extensive collection of the old LeSportSac bags made in USA and found a super-light messenger bag that may work for me as a 'purse like object'. It was one of those gifts given out at meetings and I've seldom used it. Will give it a try.

Thanks for all the ideas.

tedst3r

For receipts I just snap photos of them using my smartphone. I email them to my gmail account and they are automatically tagged. Then I throw out the paper receipts.

vikmurthy

I might have prematurely sold the Uhost2 short. I just learned that I can download an app onto it called Droidmote that allows me to use my Android phone as a remote.

So, all in all, the Uhost2 might constitute an excellent lightweight entertainment gizmo to include in your gadget bag if you already have an Android phone. Presumably, you're already carrying a retractable USB to micro USB cable and it's possible to buy a retractable HDMI cable.

The Uhost2 offers great versatility. You can use it to stream Slingplayer or DirecTV Sunday Ticket on a TV. You can download many different apps onto the Uhost2 that will allow you to stream video content from your laptop (e.g., Plex, MX Server, etc.). And you can download remote control apps (e.g., Logmein, PocketCloud, etc.) to broadcast whatever's on your laptop's screen to a TV.

Cohiba1492

arjunrc, thank you for the kind note and feedback. It means a lot coming from you.

I'll probably have to clean it up to make it public facing first. Give me a few weeks on that.

I use this method to avoid creases. It doesn't really save on space, but it doesn't really waste any more space either. However, the bundle does take up one bigger chuck of space (hence, the idea of going to a camera backpack for its depth and hard sidewall). I've tried garment bag and other methods and this seems the best so far. Since you would stick other clothes inside the bundle, the net is the same as doing it separately.

The idea really came to me a few weeks ago and I just took this on my first trip and it worked great! I packed 3 days worth of clothes there and you can see how it works in this thread. I don't think the velcro sleeves waste much space at all. The vertical sleeves may be a little thick, but it's completely removable if I actually needed more open space. I actually couldn't fill the bag for my 3 days/nights trip and I could probably squeeze in 1 more night without any sleeves if I really wanted to. The best part was the sleeves, compartments and pockets which allowed me not to use grid-it or cubes at all. It also has a couple flat hard plastic pockets inside which I ended up using it for storing hotel receipts. Another benefits was the extra padding on the back and on the straps. Because these bags were designed for carrying heavy equipment, they all have extra padding and it makes carrying clothes and a laptop a breeze. I could really walk around NYC all day with it especially it's so narrow (only 11"). Last, I also managed to put a Timbuk2 Quickie laptop bag inside its own laptop compartment with a 14" AND my ipad w/o trouble zipping it (check out the photo in the other thread)!

I'm really happy with this particular Thinktank bag (Streetwalker Harddrive) and I'd highly recommend using this type of camera bag to any frequent traveler.


12"x8" and 10.25"x5.125". I really only need it when I use my Timbuk2. My camera bag has enough compartments for me to forgo the Grid-It.

I literally just got them a week ago. They're relatively comfortable for my first trip (not as comfortable as Allen Edmonds or Bruno Magli because of its lightweight sole, but I wanted that for travel). I didn't get any blisters even I was walking around. However, they're a bit narrow and very snug, so I can see people with wide feet won't like them. I also feel like taking them off for my feet to breath a little if that makes sense. I'd give them a 4 stars b/c I was looking for something ultra light (they are only 10oz) and something that can go along with a suit and jeans and laceless. It fulfills all of my requirements. To top it off, I got them for under $80 on AMZN.