Welcome back to Stuff We Like, a regular column where we shop and share items we think you’ll love.
By reader request, I’m building a Stuff We Like series on one-bag packing and tools to help you organize and travel light. My goal is to show how I travel with one bag, and since my next trip is to RWA in Florida, I have plenty of examples to share.
So far, here’s what we’ve got:
- The Calm Traveler Packing List Template for Business Travel – many of you emailed to say how useful it was, so thank you!
- I have also written about the tiny bag I carry with me all the time, and the tech essentials inside it.
- By request, I shared the Calm Traveler Packing List Template for Family Travel, which many of you have told me was very helpful as well. Yay for summer family travel!
- The Calm Traveler Guide to Pack Light and Travel Fast: Toiletries, wherein I shared what I keep in my toiletry bag for travel, even the slightly embarrassing stuff.
Today? Packing everything else! We’re going to talk about packing cubes and luggage options for quicker, lower-stress travel.
There are three ways I’ve tried packing clothing and shoes for trips, both by car for a weekend or by plane for nearly a month.
- Rolling clothes into tubes and packing them into a suitcase or bag
- Rolling clothes into tubes then putting them inside an airtight compression bag, which goes in my suitcase
- Rolling clothes into tubes then putting them inside a packing cube, which goes in my suitcase
Obviously, I roll up my clothes. This isn’t earth shattering but it makes it a lot easier for me to see what I have, and keeps most of my clothing low on wrinkles.
To be completely honest, I love compression bags. I love how they squish everything down to a smaller size, and I can fit a lot into my bag when I use them. But there’s a serious flaw: when they spring a leak, and they do, they’re useless.
Compression bags work by loading up all your clothing items into a giant zip-top bag with a one-way air valve, usually at the bottom. You close the bag, then roll up the bag, forcing the air out of the valve, leaving your clothes extremely squished and flat.
It’s like the clothing version of a vacuum sealer removing air from around food you’re going to store in the freezer for awhile.
Note: that’s not me. I can’t wear a watch that big.
There are a few kinds of travel compression bags I’ve used, including some from Travelon ($20) and from Eagle Creek ($30). I loved them – especially when packing bulky things for colder weather. I could squish down anything and everything and fit more in my bag.
But like I said, leaks end the joy real fast, and they’re difficult if not impossible for me to effectively repair, especially in a hotel. Just about all the bags I’ve purchased eventually started to leak.
So now I use packing cubes, and while they don’t squish as much as compression bags, I can pack a lot in them, and everything is very organized.
Packing cubes come in a bunch of different sizes, but for the most part, they’re nylon bags, often square (hence “cube”) with a zipper closure. There are big ones for sweaters and jeans, and small ones for undergarments or socks.
I have two sets from two different places. eBags’ packing cubes have been all over the world with me.
The eBags six piece packing cube set is currently about $50, though the full price is nearer to $75 (eBags frequently has sales, however, so keep checking back if there isn’t a discount code at present).
I can usually fit my clothing in the medium and small sized ones, and then socks, undergarments and extras go in one of the long narrow rectangles. The tops are a mesh fabric so you can press a lot of air out, but they don’t stay compressed, obviously.
Tip: the easiest way to load a packing cube I’ve found is to place large items in first, rolled up if possible. When it’s about 3/4 filled, zip the top closed on two out of the three sides, and turn the cube so it’s like a bag with the unzipped part at the top. I can usually fit a few more items in that way before I close it.
eBags also makes a new ultra-light packing cube, which looks very cool, but the thing with cubes like these? They last for such a long time in such good condition I don’t need to replace mine (though there are some tempting options, including these from Eagle Creek which combine packing cubes AND compression!).
Plus, Amazon has a bunch of packing cube choices, too – including some from their own Amazon Basics line for $16-$25.
And I just found this, should you be looking to equip yourself or need a gift for someone who is traveling: there’s an eBag value pack that includes packing cubes, shoe sleeves, and the eBags toiletery kit (which I use and love) for $70-80 (depending on sales).
The other packing cubes I have are from Tom Bihn, and I’m going to cover the cubes and the Bihn luggage I use in a moment. (I have to apologize in advance if this is your introduction to the Bihn items, as they can be very addictive.)
Packing cubes help you stay organized once you arrive, too. I tend to group like items together, and for things like workout clothing or garments I don’t need to hang in the closet, I can drop the unzipped cube into the dresser drawer at a hotel. It’s pretty handy.
So, on to the next part, which is where you put the packing cubes once they’re carrying your excellent, cultivated wardrobe for your trip:
Luggage
There are so many suitcase options out there, and they change almost as fast as color trends do. Backpacks in different shapes, roller bags with two wheels – or ultralight hard shell roller bags with four wheels! I saw a bunch of those when I traveled recently. You have a lot of choices.
I’m not going to cover all of them, but I am going to show what bags we use most often, and why.
For one bag travel, I’m not a fan of roller bags. Roller bags can be great great if you have mobility challenges, or if wearing a backpack isn’t an option for you – above all, do what works best and easiest (and safest!) for you.
The problem with roller bags is that the wheels and the handle do two things: they take up a lot of space, and they make the shape of the bag itself rigid and fixed. With overhead spaces (and airplanes as well) getting smaller and smaller, and with bag checking fees getting higher and higher, I want to know that the bag I’m carrying won’t need to be gate checked, or checked into the cargo bay for me to claim at the baggage area at my destination.
Backpack style bags work very well for me, especially because there is very little space used by the bag itself. No wheels, no handle, no structure. It’s soft sided and very handy.
I do use a roller style bag (from Costco! It’s indestructible, that thing) when I have to carry extra stuff with me, like bulky swag or larger items like notebooks and paperback books to give away at RT. But my goal with 90% of my travel is to use my backpack-style bag.
There are two we love (and I’ll show a few other options, too):
The eBags Mother Lode Weekender Convertible ($129)
My husband usually uses this one and he loves it. We recently traveled for a week with stops in Zurich, Greece, and France, and fit clothing and toiletries, plus two changes of shoes for two adults for 8 days in this bag. You can fit a lot in this bag (which does make it heavy at times, I won’t lie).
This bag opens like a suitcase and has a large main compartment and a bunch of pockets. He’s so familiar with using it that if he packs it for the two of us, or for us plus the kids, we have assigned areas for different items so everyone knows where key things are like charging cables (pocket at the top) or keys (side zipper). When we traveled to Australia in 2014, which was when I became addicted to one-bag travel, he carried this for the three of them.
The benefit to a soft sided backpack style like this one: it fits almost anywhere, including itty bitty overheads (if it’s not stuffed silly). We’ve traveled on a few very restrictive budget airlines, like EasyJet and the like, and the bag has always fit in the overhead with no problems. And while these are not backpacks designed to be worn constantly for hours on end, like the ones you’d wear for trail hiking, they are comfortable enough and manageable for travel to and from the airplane and airport.
Another benefit: there have been a few times I’ve traveled and put my backpack bag under the seat in front of me when there was no overhead space, and it fit just fine. I also have very short legs and my feet never touch the floor on any airplane seat or chair I sit in, so having the bag under me meant I could rest my feet on it, and I was pretty comfortable for once.
There are other soft-sided one-bag options that have cult followings online, such as the Red Oxx Air Boss and Mini Boss ($265 and $245 respectively). Doug Dyment, the writer and host of OneBag.com, a site devoted to one-bag travel tips, helped design the Air Boss, and recommends it. Wirecutter recommended the Tortuga Outbreaker ($249), which is designed to be comfortable while wearing the bag for extended periods. And if you search “one bag travel” there are so many recommendations and suggestions. You could go down a rabbit hole for weeks researching everything (ASK ME HOW I KNOW THIS).
I’m highlighting a good number of options because the one I ultimately went with is on the more expensive side – I ended up haunting eBay for weeks until I won an auction for the bag I wanted in my price range. This meant I couldn’t be picky about the color, but I wasn’t too bothered about that.
Tom Bihn is a Seattle-based company that makes luggage and bags out of superbly strong materials, and it has a cult following much like… just about anything on the internet.
I like the Aeronaut (45, or original recipe – there’s a new, smaller one, the Aeronaut 30) over the eBags one for a couple of reasons. One, I’m pretty short, and the size and shape of the Aeronaut makes it easier for me to manage.
Two, the backpack straps tuck inside the bag so it can be carried like a suitcase or worn on my back:
And three, it has one large main compartment, two smaller ones on the side, and a zipper pocket on one short side as well. I’ve gotten very used to packing it. This is the bag I took with me for three-plus weeks all over Australia, and I’ve carried it almost everywhere since then.
I also have a few packing cubes designed specifically for the Aeronaut that fit the two side pockets that work great for shoes. With the Aeronaut, I can carry clothing for a week-long conference or vacation and have room left over for gifts I might pick up. At RWA, this is likely what I’ll be carrying, and it’ll hold my clothing, workout gear, toiletries, swag, and podcast recording equipment, too.
If you enjoyed this series, you can get more from the Organization Academy newsletter, where I share early content, exclusive tips, plus news on the development of the course series I’m building about using Google Calendar (and other tools!) to make your life easier:
With this series, I’ve covered packing list organization, toiletries, and luggage based on the research I’ve done for my own one-bag travel quest. What do you use for your own travel? Is there a topic I’ve missed that you’d like me to elaborate on?
I have the eBags Weekender because as much as I love Tom Bihn (and am currently surrounded by both my Swifts), I just couldn’t justify the price for the Aeronaut. Yes, totally worth it in the end, but I wasn’t sure how I would like the backpack-style luggage.
The first time I used my Weekender, it wound up so heavy I nearly toppled over. Kudos to my back for not giving out. I’ve managed it better then, though because I am hauling stuff to conventions, I still need to carry my wheeled luggage as well. It makes navigating airports interesting.
What do you use for your in-flight bag in addition to the Aeronaut? Do you just use a large purse or have something like the Co-Pilot?
I am a committed one-bag traveler. I have the Eagle Creek version of the eBags Weekender (it was on sale for cheaper) but I’ve switched to an Eddie Bauer roller bag that I love because it has a hard bottom and a soft compressible top, combining the best of both features.
But the part of my packing that I’m most zealous about is my DOUBLE-SIDED Eagle Creek packing cubes. One side is mesh; the other is waterproof plastic. When clothes get dirty, I can put them in the waterproof side of the same packing cube they came from. This has saved me so much annoyance because when I travel, I move alound a lot, and I got so tired of rejiggering my compression bags so that I didn’t store dirty clothes with clean ones. I will sing the gospel of double-sided packing cubes to anyone who will listen.
I actually bought the Aeronaut 45 after someone mentioned it in the comments on one of the previous posts. So far I’m impressed. I’ve got a ridiculous set of flights to SIWC coming up, so it’ll be nice to go carry-on only.
I am a firm believer in carry-on only for business travel – I learned the hard way (oh yes, Year of 4 Different Airlines/Airports Failing to Deliver My Bag on Arrival, I’m looking at you). I will definitely be looking into these bags. I have a toddler, which has made travel packing PAINFUL, I just don’t have a good handle on what to pack for her. So our last family vacation, the suitcase had to have room for 9 days worth of diapers, as an example. Ugh!!
When I travel for work I have a messenger-style bag for my computer and work docs, plus it holds my purse contents, plus anything I want on the plane (books, knitting, etc.) then the purse itself gets packed in the “suitcase”.
I know what I forgot to mention! Fully booked international flights will sometimes weigh your carry-on at the gate and check bags which don’t comply with carry on weight guidelines. So I recommend a travel scale in your bag if you or someone you love travels heavy (looking at my husband here!). We have one similar to this: https://shop.heys.ca/products/xscale?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=googlepla&variant=350423877&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI6b_jouCf1QIV1HJ-Ch2BigMqEAQYBCABEgL2o_D_BwE (Canadian link, but there are tons of options).
I have only experienced this once, on Lufthansa from North America to Frankfurt. We had checked bags and were not anywhere close to over, but lots of roller bags were, and their owners were angry. Roller bag hardware takes up space as mentioned but can also add to your bag’s weight.
I use Ziploc brand XL bags for traveling, much cheaper to replace than the compression bags and they do not break easily. If you pack them tightly, zip them up with only a small gap and squish them with your body weight they compress quite a bit. Keeps away liquids/bugs/dirt etc. And they work great to keep dirty clothes separate while traveling, if you live out of the suitcase/bag.
I love Tom Bihn bags! I still have my first one purchased at his shop on Walnut St. in Santa Cruz from the nineties! Very sturdy bags for travel. The Eagle Creek bags are too heavy, I have one that is collecting dust in the attic, but I like their ditty bags. I always travel light, when flying, when on driving trips I bring everything.
Great post!
For the first time in over a decade, we traveled by plane and we added two kids onto that fun list of things to figure out. We managed to confine everyone to one bag each and 2 personal bags for the 4 of us. Our normal travel is usually by car. But, these travel posts have me considering packing cubes for the kids and myself. My special needs boy could use the help and I just love the organization. I do love our LL Bean duffles, but several days in and things can get a little confusing. I am going to look at those double sided cubes that Sophie mentioned further up. I have to remember to look at the toiletries bag and the tech essentials stuff.
Amazon has a bag which is almost a dupe of the Mother Lode, but for only $50. Has a few different features, but the price is great. Here’s a link (SB Sarah, you could switch it for your affiliate code, it’s on mine now, not trying to be chutzpadik!) http://amzn.to/2unbfJc
I love this series! Thanks so much. FYI for Canadians: Mountain Eqipment Co-op have cubes which are cheaper than Amazon or Eagle Creek.
This is a fun series. Honestly, I packed for myself and our daughter, including her books and barbies, for a three day weekend in a Lands End tote bag. My husband wheels his suitcase out and his tote bag and goes, where’s your luggage? /wink/
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this series! I’m having a really good time putting it together.
As far as my in-flight bag or “personal item,” it depends on the trip. If I’m traveling with the whole family, including kids, we use a Tom Bihn Synapse, which is a backpack that holds everything. That can get a little tricky given that our luggage is also back-pack style, but one of the boys usually wants to carry it, and we can put everyone’s devices and in-flight stuff in that bag.
If I’m traveling for a conference, then I have a purse, one of three I carry at conferences. It’ll hold my small laptop, a water bottle, wallet, Kindle, and whatever, and I carry that onto the plane and put it under the seat in front of me.
I am very intrigued by these two-sided cubes! Usually for dirty clothing, I roll them up and if things are damp or whatever, I put them in the plastic laundry bag the hotel provides and put that in my bag.
I packed yesterday for RWA, and fit three pair of shoes, and clothing for Wed-Sat with changes of clothing for each evening inside the Aeronaut. And recording equipment, too – digital recorder, two mic attachments, plus three handheld mics and cords. I love this bag to ridiculous levels.
I’m so appreciative of this series and read it avidly several times. Here’s what I’m hoping you or your readers can help me understand. I’m a 2x size. My shirts and pants contain a boat load of material. When you roll? How? Are you folding them up and then rolling? A shirt for example. Am. I folding it t-shirt style first? and next question, if folding it t-shirt style and then rolling, how does that keep winking down? I would that just exasperates wrinkles.
Next question. Women’s suit jackets. Are you rolling them? How to pack, please. I’ll take all tips! Thanks for this series.
@Debbie: There are a bunch of different rolling techniques (some of which I researched on YouTube). For shirts, yes, usually I fold in half, then tuck in the sleeves, then roll from the collar to the bottom. For pants, it depends on whether they’re jeans or they are trousers with a crease. Most of the time I fold in half and then roll from the men to the waistband so the waistband doesn’t get smushed. With rolling into tubes, I’ve found that any wrinkles shake out when I hang them up, but there aren’t many.
Jackets I fold inward, and line up the shoulders, so if there’s a seam down the back of the jacket, that’s where the fold is. then I fold in half bringing the collar down to the hem, and put that on the bottom of my packing cube. Jackets, at least mine, have resisted rolling!
Also, I’m so happy you’re enjoying this series. Thank you!
@Mona, I was coming here to suggest the Ziploc bags as well! I do the exact same thing- leave a little gap and sit on them to compress, then seal the gap. You can fit a surprising amount into one and they’re perfect for keeping dirty things contained as well. They hold up REALLY well and they’re also cheap enough for easy replacement if they do spring leaks. Not as nifty as packing cubes, but good enough for me!