Carry-on guru shares tips on traveling light

Tag : casual socks

Question: What's the biggest reason people over-pack?
Answer: It's a general fear of the unknown, especially if they're going toa foreign country. They don't know what they might need, so theytake everything. And the biggest mistake is that they try to figureit out the night before the trip and just stuff things in. You needto come up with a packing list.
Q: So, what's on your list?
A: I have something like 100 items, which sounds like a lot. But itisn't things you "take" on the trip, it's things you'd considertaking. It helps make sure I don't forget critical items like abelt for my trousers, and it constrains me: If it's not on my list,it doesn't go in the bag.
Q: Wheeled carry-ons are ubiquitous these days, but you're not afan. Why?
A: The compromise needed to incorporate the wheels inside the bagmesses up everything else. It becomes a lot heavier than it needsto be, and it holds a lot less stuff.
Q: But what about all those aging baby boomers? It can get prettypainful lugging a bag on your shoulder.
A: It's not hard if the bag doesn't weigh 50 pounds. There willalways be people who have physical limitations, though even then Iwould say, if you really need wheels, you're better off getting awell-designed bag plus one of those wheeled collapsible carts. Thebag I most often use on business trips weighs 3 pounds, and I havea cart that weighs 2 and one-half pounds, so the sum total is 7 andone-half pounds. That's less than what most wheeled bags weigh.
Q: Describe your perfect bag.
A: It should be soft sided and look like a box, with no curvededges or doodads hanging on the outside. The main failure point onluggage is zippers, so you should make sure you have a good one.
Q: How realistic is it for families to go the carry-on route?
A: It's extremely realistic, with one exception: babies and youngtoddlers. But once the child reaches an age where he or she canreasonably be expected to carry something, absolutely. I havegrandchildren who, other than when they were babies, travel withtheir parents and have never checked a bag.
Q: Let's talk about the "Carrie Bradshaw factor." How many womenare really willing to travel with only two pairs of shoes?
A: The good news is that women have far fewer constraintsclothing-wise than men do. They can be a lot more creative, andmake a smaller amount of clothing look like more. But shoes are thebiggest packing problem for everybody, and women who believe theyneed to carry five pairs of shoes are setting themselves up for aserious problem. I know, because I get lots of e-mail, thathundreds of women travel very happily and very smartly with twopairs of shoes -- a dressy, strappy pair and a casual, comfortablepair.
Q: What about the TSA's 3-ounce limits on toiletries?
A: A lot of the stuff people bring with them -- shampoos,cleansers, sunblocks, toothpastes -- is mostly water. You can getrid of a lot of space and weight by using things like tooth powderinstead of toothpaste. In my plastic bag, I have a quarter-ouncebottle of shaving oil, which is a replacement for shaving cream.It's less than the size of my thumb, and that's it. Everything elseis in a solid form.
Q: How important is the packing process itself?
A: In general, it's just common sense -- don't leave any spaces(such as shoes) unfilled. But when it comes to clothing, mostpeople just fold clothes the way they came from the store, cramthem in and slam the lid down -- that's the worst thing you coulddo. Rolling is certainly better than folding and stacking, but itdoesn't work for everything. How do you roll a shirt withoutgetting it wrinkled? The best way is bundle wrapping, whichinvolves starting with some core object -- I use a tiny zipperedpouch filled with socks and underwear -- and then just wrappingclothing around it. It takes me all of a minute and a half to wrapeverything I have.
Q: This summer, American Airlines is set to start charging $15 forthe first checked bag on domestic flights. Any predictions on whatwill happen to the carry-on scene if other airlines follow?
A: My guess is that people will want to check less, but they won'twant to adjust the way they travel. They're just going to want tobring all this "stuff" on the plane with them, and there's notgoing to be enough room. I have the big advantage of knowing my bagwill fit underneath the seat in front of me. I prefer not to put itthere, because I have really long legs -- but in a pinch, I know itwill work.