When Traveling ‘Light’ Can Mean Carrying A Way-Too-Heavy Load
How often do we hear from experts that packing light is the best way to travel?
I myself have touted the positives of traveling light particularly when a trip requires trains, Ubers, quick flights, and dragging a suitcase across a city with cobblestones.
But I’ve also had the experience of traveling light when it was the worst decision. A grossly overstuffed backpack and carry-on suitcase can be more problematic than a light backpack and one checked bag. Been there. Done that. Have the bad memories and pit stains from sweat that never came out of my favorite travel shirt.
Given the frustration and exhaustion I felt when I traveled light and it was a bad decision, I’m not planning to ‘rinse and repeat’ the experience anytime soon, unless it’s absolutely necessary.
I’ve come to the realization that ‘packing light’ doesn’t work for every trip I take.
Know Thyself
For many trips, I like the calming presence of my skincare, my backup shoes, my proper pajamas, clean underwear for every day I’m away, and my just-in-case fleece pullover because it’s comfy and my temperature can be a bit unpredictable (kinda like the weather often is.)
I also know, regardless of where I go, that I need space in my luggage to bring a few purchases home because that’s just who I am. I enjoy poking around artsy shops and finding something made locally. Plus, I have a Christmas tree dedicated to travel—I buy an ornament in every place I’ve been too (some from souvenir shops and some from local artisans.)
So for short trips like a weekend away, carry-on only is the way to go. But for other trips, a checked bag and a small backpack that is not overstuffed, is actually more convenient and less frustrating than an overpacked carry-on bag and much too heavy backpack.
Some Context: An Overstuffed Backpack Meets A Beautiful Bougainvillea
On one two-week trip to Europe, I confidently restricted my luggage to a carry-on and a back pack—making the conscious decision to forego a checked bag. It sounded like a great idea. How Bohemian! I’ll be like those college students that backpack through Europe after graduation! I, too, shall wash my undies and socks in the sink every night or find a laundromat mid-vacation and hang with the locals for a few hours! My back will thank me for not having to pull a checked bag across cobblestones! And I’ll be careful about what I buy to bring home.
Half-way through the trip as I was walking up a boutique hotel’s front steps, my backpack (that weighed at least half my weight) shifted to one side. In slow motion, I fell into a bougainvillea shrub, scraping my prescription glasses (and nose) in front of a small audience. So that was fun. And embarrassing. And totally not worth carrying the 30 lbs on my back instead of pulling it across cobblestones.
Like dumping salt in the wound, I paid the upcharge to the airline (at the gate no less) for literally trying to put 30 lbs. into a 10 lbs. bag (actually a lot more than that but you get the picture.) I don’t know that I can ever fly TAP Air again out of fear of recognition or simply because I’m not a fan of the airline (and not just because of this incident.)
And you thought the horror of the scale was just for your excessive calorie intake during a trip!
When Traveling With Less Creates Stress
Is traveling light like eating kale or doing yoga? Do we aspire to do it because it sounds like the morally good thing to do?
Sometimes, especially for those of us over 50 who know better, traveling light is a really poor decision. Here are the moments when “less is more” quickly becomes “less is stress.”
When You Decide You Only Need One Pair of Shoes
Ah, the optimism.
“One pair of shoes is enough,” you say. “I’ll be walking a lot, so I’ll wear my sneakers that have great support.”
Two days later you run through the pouring rain and end up in a 5” deep puddle. Now your worn sneakers are damp, a bit stinky, and they squeak with every step.
Travel tip: The correct number of shoes is always one more than you were planning to bring. This has been scientifically proven.
When You Leave the Warm Layers at Home
Every weather app told you it would be 72° and sunny. Again, the optimism.
I’m here to tell you that weather apps lie. They should include a disclaimer: “All forecasts are approximate and may change drastically just to spite you.”
Suddenly you’re buying a souvenir sweatshirt because you refused to pack a lightweight jacket. Congratulations—you saved six ounces and spent $50 on clothing you’ll probably never wear once you’re home.
When You Bring a Tiny Purse and Think It Will Hold “Just the Essentials”
Spoiler alert: It won’t.
Appreciate this truth—as we age, our essentials multiply. We now need reading glasses, drops to combat dry eyes, medications, snacks (because we no longer tolerate being “hangry”), phone, phone charger, backup phone charger, tissues, hand sanitizer, and more.
The tiny purse is a liar. It cannot hold ‘just the essentials’. It can only hold ‘some of the essentials’ making it frustrating at best and useless at worst.
Bring the mid-size purse. Make it a cross-over bag for comfort and safety.
When You Pack Only One Pair of Pants
Bravery…or delusion?
You tell yourself you won’t get your pants dirty since you’ll be visiting a city for the weekend, not a dude ranch. Instead, you drip gelato down your leg on day one, and suddenly travel light has become travel embarrassed. Now you’re spending your museum time searching for pants in unfamiliar European sizing. And, you’re spending souvenir money on replacement pants just like the ones you left back home. They’re not even a special purchase, but they will remind you of when you traveled to Paris and didn’t pack enough pants.
When You Skip Comfort Items Because Even Though You’re 50+ They Seem “Extra”
No, they’re not extra. They’re survival gear.
Compression socks. A travel pillow that doesn’t give you a stiff neck for days. Your favorite shampoo. The lotion your skin loves. The sleep mask that keeps you human. These are not luxuries—they’re the things that keep you from turning into a cranky traveler.
When You Declutter Your Carry-On Like a Rookie
The one time you travel light is the one time everything goes wrong:
Your checked bag gets delayed.
The plane is rerouted.
Your luggage goes on its own vacation.
But you? You proudly packed your carry-on with exactly nothing useful. No toothbrush. No meds. No extra underwear or change of clothes. No PJs for your first night away. Just your Kindle, some gum, a water bottle, and misplaced confidence.
When You Think “Travel Light” Means “Be a Different Person”
If you glean anything from this blog post, let it be this:
“Some of us are simply not minimalist travelers, and that is FINE.”
We like options. We like layers. We like knowing we have enough socks to survive a sudden, unexplained sock emergency.
We like the beauty and hair products we use every day. In fact, many women have told me they feel naked when they don’t have full makeup on. They don’t feel good about themselves when it’s a bad hair day because they don’t have their own shampoo and hair gels. The worst for them is reliving the day in a travel photo that now sits framed in the family room.
I’m over this. Big time. I’ve tried to travel with a minimal amount of make-up, skincare, and hair products. I never feel right and can feel downright awful if we’re taking photos. Am I too superficial or insecure about this stuff? Who knows? Who cares? I guess this is one of my monkeys that’s part of my circus.
I’m over 50 and doubt I’ll be changing how I feel about myself without makeup anytime soon. If seeing a photo with my hair frizzy or limp, my eyes appearing to fall into their sockets without liner and mascara, and my skin drying up and creating crevices instead of ‘subtle wrinkles’ makes me feel awful, shouldn’t I consider my hair and beauty products essential? Shouldn’t my moisturizer and the latest serum to maintain glow and youthfulness (snicker, snicker, let me sell you this timeshare in the bayou) be considered essential?
It’s important to pack your essentials for any trip, right? If you can’t enjoy your travel pictures unless you look your best (defined by you and not anyone else), then you need to bring with you, in travel size if you can, whatever products you normally use. Case closed.
If you’ve never worn makeup or delved into the overwhelming world of skincare, and you’re comfortable in your own skin (see what I did there?), hurrah for you. You’ll probably never have trouble zipping your bag closed on any trip.
“When you travel, you’re changing locations not your personality. ”
If you’re uncomfortable feeling naked (due to not wearing makeup) in your neighborhood, don’t be thinking you’ll be ok feeling naked in a foreign land.
Life over 50 has taught us many things; one of them is this: No one gets bonus points for suffering through a vacation.
The Real Lesson
Traveling light is great—until it isn’t.
Pack what makes you comfortable. Bring the backup item. Take the shoes. Add the jacket. Throw in your favorite perfume.
If you need a checked bag, so be it. Just make sure you have a change of clothes, medication, all your essential beauty products, phone, Kindle, and chargers in your carry-on so that you can enjoy your first few days away should your checked bag not arrive with you.
Make sure your checked bag has great rollers. Don’t overpack it. Save space in it for souvenirs. If you don’t purchase any, you’ll appreciate pulling a ‘not quite full’ bag behind you for the duration of your trip.
And do your best to limit yourself to two items: either a backpack and checked bag or a carry-on bag with rollers and a checked bag. Your future self (the one standing in a drafty European train station at 6 a.m.) will thank you.
