Five Ways to Cut Your Luggage in Half

It’s a problem everyone’s faced at some point or another. You just can’t fit any more into your suitcase, your duffel bag won’t zip and your carry-on weighs a ton. Even if you’re not flying, there’s only so much luggage you can fit in your trunk, and no one wants to drag multiple bags from city to city. Here are five tricks you can use to cut your luggage in half, and make your travels that much easier.

Make a “To-Pack” list far in advance of your trip.

As your departure date draws near, begin marking non-essential items off the list. When you’re not rushing around throwing items into your bags at the last minute, you’re less likely to pack nonessentials, and more likely to really consider what will and will not be useful on your trip.

Another part of planning ahead: make a list of all the outfits and clothing that will be needed on your trip.

Think of ways to reuse pieces of clothing in different outfits to minimize the number of pieces you’re taking with you. Shoes especially take up a significant amount of suitcase room, so if you can limit to yourself to two pairs — one for more casual events and one for more dressed-up affairs — you’ll definitely decrease the amount of space you’re using.

Think ahead to the amenities that your hotel offers.

In addition to the typical hotel room hair dryer, some hotels now also provide an in-room hair straightener. Even though you may use your personal dryer, straightener, bathrobe and high-definition makeup mirror at home everyday, there’s usually no reason to drag these items along with you.

Even if you’re not flying, invest in smaller portions of your beauty and health products. Everything from large makeup palettes and cans of hairspray to bottles of vitamins and supplements take up unneeded space. If your chosen brands aren’t available in travel sizes, you can always buy unmarked travel-size toiletry bottles and easily fill them yourself.

Lastly, before you ever begin packing, choose the one suitcase that you’re taking with you, and stick to that piece of luggage only. Make it your goal to not only use just that bag, but to also have space leftover. It’s easy to forget most travelers return with more items than they left with, since they usually pick up a few souvenirs or gifts, and those items have to go somewhere as well.