travelmad478

Even before I switched (about 15 years ago) to carry-on only, I could never fathom what those people with 2-3 suitcases could possibly be bringing on trips with them. What the heck are they hauling in those bags?

nk15

I do Asia 5-day trips with a 13-inch rolling tote.

I also do cheap day trips (not MRs) within the US with nothing at all with me, just my cellphone. Board in the morning, sightseeing on the ground for 8 hours, back home at night. $70 day trips with first class upgrades. They feed me twice, get my miles, do my sightseeing, and back home for under $100.

travelmad478

Can you give some examples of RT airfares for $70 on aircraft that have a first class cabin and meal service? Intriguing idea, but I can't imagine where I could get to that would be that cheap.

nk15

American, ORD-DFW on lie flat beds both ways (777/787)...

Similar prices to NYC, Florida, and even West Coast, all for $70-100. But it takes some searching. Booked at least 3-4 weeks out, upgrades always clear. And you need EXP for this, BAEC Gold won't work...

Here are the routes with the food, lol...
https://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInform...mium-cabin.jsp

Flying with completely nothing with you, very liberating.

PS. This party will probably be over when basic economy fares arrive soon...snif...

im.daniel

December/January:
From Australia to: India, Central America and Canada

Had to carry winter clothing all over India and Central America, just for Canada. My country road tote bag ended up being 15kg, but luckily it never got weighed!

Annalisa12

I travelled with my husband to Canada from Sydney. My baggage, 4 suitcases was 125 kilos on departure!!! I did have a ton of presents and food in my bags!

The_Bouncer

Wow! This is the other extreme.

shorthauldad

16288mi, Europe to HKG.

Didn't want any check-in agents looking at my itinerary, the fare was very cheap. Some would say too cheap

GuyverII

Getting much tougher these days. Data point: This year, I've had to check my carry on bag in twice intra-europe with LX and LH flying J, while my three flights with Ryanair and purchasing priority boarding 0...

radiowell

And if US-based airlines impose carry-on weight limit, then it's game over. Surprised ULCCs haven't adopted this yet.

Cat Man Do

38 days.
PDX-ORD-DFW-LHR-HAM / PRG-TXL-ORD-PDX , with a side trip to Budapest by train.

I suppose, technically, I did check my bike, though.

The rest (clothing, camera kit, laptop and various chargers and adapters) was in here (Brompton C-bag). I could pretty much do any length trip with this bag only, or possibly adding a personal-item. However, as it's just a messenger bag sealed with velcro and a couple of buckles, I only take it when I also take my bike.


This bag also contained a small rolled up daybag (Osprey Daylite 13L) for around town


The Osprey bag has been my sole bag for weeklong trips to Mexico, and is about to do a 10 day PTY run on its own. I'd rather have the new Daylite Plus (20L), though. It's larger than the original but retains the same features, and adds an external jacket-and-crap holder.

I did a 2 week Costa Rica / Nicaragua trip with an Osprey 22L Talon, but it was not much roomier than the Daylite, and had too many flimsy fiddly bits that came off. I returned it.

Caveat: Leisure travel. I carry nothing fancier than a long-sleeved button-down shirt. One pair of shoes, possibly two if I want flipflops or sandals.

Annalisa12

I thought with all those condoms your luggage would of weighed 20 kilos!

Annalisa12

For those who only take carry on could you tell us your dressing MO? Do you wear the whole outfit all day or do you change for dinner? Do you wear something multiple times without washing?

The_Bouncer

I usually check luggage and take enough with me, but on the crazy trip I described above, I just bought some cheap stuff at a mall in Singapore and did the laundry at hotels and various relatives' places around the world. For toiletries, I liberated the little mini bottles from the hotels.

darthbimmer

Whether I need to change my type of outfit during a trip is the biggest factor in my choice whether to travel with carry-on only or check a larger bag. And usually that's more about dressing for different climates than dressing for business vs. casual engagements.

When I take a trip that's primarily business I'll pack one set of casual clothes to lounge around the hotel in or maybe going sightseeing on the weekend. This one set of casual clothes I may not wash every day because I'm only wearing them for a few hours at a time. When the trip is closer to 50/50 business/leisure I'll take a few outfits of each type with a focus towards items that can go both ways. For example, colored button-up shirts that look good with a sport coat or just with a pair of slacks. I've practiced doing this enough that it's no longer hard to go for a week with just a carry-on suitcase. And by doing laundry once per 5-7 days I can stretch it out to a few weeks.

Where need for wardrobe changes sends me to packing a larger bag is when I'm traveling through very different climates. For example, on one 10-day trip a few months ago I had 5 days on the beach in 90F weather and 5 days in a city with rain and temps around 50F. There was almost no overlap between the clothes I needed in each place, so I had to pack two complete sets. And I didn't care to do laundry twice on such a short trip, or re-wear clothes for 2 to 3 full days each before washing, so I packed 5 changes of each type in a larger bag and dealt with checking it.