ilcannone

You know, I noticed one trend in the UK - people wanting to go away cheap, particularly to long-haul destinations, whilst wanting to take all their possessions with them, then complaining that travelling is expensive because of these ancillary aspects.

Along with the general inflexibility of travel dates/layovers etc, the biggest issue seems to be with the amount of luggage one can take. It seems almost unthinkable to many there that travelling with as little as hand luggage only is simply impossible. But they seem to not know that you don't NEED half the stuff they believe they need. I mean, why does anyone need to bring ALL their electronic items for a week in Spain for example? It's insanity.

I, for one, travel ONLY with hand luggage, a backpack that will fit under the seat in front at that. Across 93 countries over 6 continents, I've only ever flown with checked luggage to the US and Oman (the first places I went age 19/20) and when moving to Saudi Arabia and Russia. Since then, I've deemed it absolutely pointless to take any more than hand luggage. Hell, island hopping with LIAT around the Caribbean, going through the western ex USSR/Yugoslav nations by train/bus for 6 weeks, or even business trips across Russia and Uzbekistan have never warranted suitcases.

So when I get asked how to travel cheaply and bring up the idea of travelling with so little, it simply gets scoffed at...sometimes wonder why I bother trying to suggest things to them...

Badenoch

Packing light is easy. All you need to do is accept you won't always have what you need, may sit in still damp underpants occasionally and can tolerate being dressed like a hobo much of the time. What is ridiculous is claiming superiority or "logic" by taking extraordinary measures to save a few grams packing a suitcase. Perhaps it is an obsessive compulsive personality disorder that insists the weight of your suitcase is more important than what goes in it.

yyznomad

84fiero

That sounds like how I spent my college years...

dalehill

Well I must be doing everything wrong then. I pack light and I always have what I need, I never sit in damp underpants, I wear nice clothing, I never look like a "hobo", I have never claimed superiority or "logic" about grams and only weigh my bag when I'm traveling on an airline that's OCD about that sort of thing. I can tell if my bag is heavier than I want it to be simply by picking it up.

yyznomad

I don't think @Badenoch meant that literally... I think s/he was just matching with a rebuttal in the extreme of packing light for those that weigh their socks, underwear, and coins, or whatever.

When I first started traveling on a regular basis, I packed quite a bit with checked luggage and carry on. I never thought of "packing light" or what conveniences/inconveniences I might experience. Now with 3,500+ flights over 15+ years I think I have nearly maximized the efficiency of my packing without compromising comfort, "style", and convenience... and this was through all that experience of what I eventually realized what I really didn't need, over time. And even with that in mind, a different destination and purpose often requires different contents in my carry-on, so it's a never-ending exercise. And yes, sometimes I don't have time to figure out what to pack, so I just throw in a bunch of things I think I might need and it works out more or less ok in the end.

This is not necessarily something an infrequent traveler (and even more than just a VBIT or FOTSG) would figure out, try, realize, or care about.

Packing, travel, eating, life... everything in moderation typically works best, IMHO.

dalehill

You're probably right. But the damp underwear thing is a thing! Wearing damp underwear is literally a thing that Rick Steves says is not a problem, dries quickly, blah blah, lol. Rick Steves also has minions who can run out and buy him dry underwear.

yyznomad

Because this is FT, I'll say this... last year I flew with damp underwear occasionally... but I did have spare undies in my carry-on. I just didn't have time to change into them as I barely made it through security and barely made it for those flights. Once I was seated, I konked out and then woke upon landing feeling pretty gross. As soon as I got into the lounge, I took a shower and changed into fresh tighty whities.

deniah

All fine and dandy but I can't get on board with the insinuation that checked-baggage fees is the primary impediment to those not able to travel as frequent as they would like.

beachmouse

yyznomad

Have DL pax started checking empty bags?

ilcannone

Because many Brits INSIST that they must take at least one checked bag PER PERSON so they can have everything they "need", thus increasing the prices of the overall flight tickets accordingly (after all, given how costcutting they want to be with their holidays, Ryanair and easyJet are the main airlines they'll choose due to the 'low fares').

Now when you factor in that most want to go away in the summer or holiday periods when airlines increase the prices for checked bags and the like, it just compounds the problem.

LondonElite

Do you have hard numbers on which to base this series of conjectures? I think you are coming to a conclusion unwarranted by facts.

deniah

Baggage fee isn't what's stopping Brits from flying to Bali ("long-haul destinations"), nor the or the difference maker between an annual trip to Ibiza and visiting 93 countries...

Badenoch

Light packers will often extol the virtues of scrubbing and soaking their unmentionables in a hotel room sink simply to save a few grams on packing weight. Damp underpants are definitely a risk if they are not given sufficient time hung on the shower curtain rod or draped over a heat vent.