I rode out from the airport today w a young woman from Germany w two huge roller bags and hand luggage, I thought she was coming for grad school, nope, just a 3 week vacation.
I did 8 locations in 20 days w 8 shirts, 4 bottoms, a coat, a hat, 2 pairs shoes . I did laundry both saturdays, and everything went in together in one load.
I also had an ebags piazza cross body purse which has a great spot for water bottle, etc
Isn't it great if maturity and experience helps evolve from that? I was similar in my 20's and an inexperienced traveler. It only took a train strike in Belgium and a globe trotting sister to shape me up.
Of course, each to their own. She may be less interested in the light weight travel game, and more interested in shoes to match every party outfit. Different strokes.
Why are people on this forum so hung up on travelling light and disrespectful when others travel differently?
Most Europeans travelling for 2 or 3 weeks will take a check in suitcase/bag with wheels each or one for bag between two people, weighing 15-20 kilos plus a piece of hand luggage each. We don’t want to wash clothes whilst we are away as we are on holiday and we want to take our preferred brands of suntan lotion/ first aid products with us. Our camera kit has been scaled back, but still fills more than half our hand luggage.
But most Europeans wouldn’t try to cover 8 locations in only 20 days.
Some people are awfully pleased with themselves. I have never travelled carry-on only and have lived to tell the tale. My friends still like me. I think.
If they didn't still like you, they wouldn't be friends.
It’s so hard to do carry on only. Takes a lot of discussion.
Either way doesn’t matter but it’s always nice to get rid of the baggage at some point ;)
“it’s so hard to do carry on only “.
So don’t!
While I do carry on only, that is what is right for me. I travel for months at a time with numerous location changes so I'm going to have to do laundry anyway.
Travelers need to do what is right for them. I never understood this "I carry less than you so I am better than you" mindset. Or the scolding of others who do differently.
Do what makes you happy.
Americans cram stuff in not because we are dumb but because we are desperate. How much vacation do Europeans get from their jobs?
OK maybe we are dumb, too. But if you do choose to visit a lot of places, packing light is a valuable skill, worth talking about in the Packing forum, no?
Why are people on this forum so hung up on travelling light
Because this particular forum is for traveling light. The description of this forum is:
Pack light. Share your creative tricks to fit your world into a small bag for a European trip.
If you went to a Ford Mustang forum you’d probably hear them dissing Chevrolet’s. If you want to talk Chevys then go to a Chevy forum. That’s how Internet forums work.
It’s so hard to do carry on only.
But we do because we have found that being able to move quickly and easily is a very enjoyable freedom. In my case, after nearly losing my luggage twice in my first three trips to Europe, and considering what the consequences would have been, I decided I preferred to always have my luggage right there with me.
The carryon versus checked/minimalist versus overpacking "debates" do tend to get a little tiresome. Everyone is different, with different preferences.
Personally, I like to do carryon only whenever possible (which is about 95% of the time), simply because I don't want to wait at baggage claim and/or pay checked bag fees. I also try to pack strategically to avoid too much weight, using wheeled luggage. And at age 61, with a lot of trips under my belt, I've only had my luggage "lost" twice, both times recovered a day later. So worrying about that isn't high on my list, though I always carry a change of clothes and my toiletries with me when checking a bag.
I don't care to be doing laundry in my hotel room sink every few days, either. Once a week is about all I want to put up with, and hopefully by a local laundry or a hotel doing it for me.
On the other hand, I have a millennial daughter who packs for a three day trip like it was a cross country move. I often can't even lift her suitcase! (However, this may change. Now that she's on her own and paying her own way, she's discovering the wonderful world of overweight baggage fees. ;)
Bottom line is do what suits you and your comfort level. Vive la difference!
Doric8,
"No good deed goes unpunished." Don't feel bad about your post. I get your message with no offense. Thanks for the "thumbs-up" on the osprey fairview bag. Looks like a good bag.
If it makes you feel any better - I tried posting a joke once. Many people didn't take it that way and were mad at me - thought I was demented or evil. So, I apologized and removed it myself.
Sometimes - words cause problems even when we don't intend to offend.
Keep On Posting!
Greetings all. It was not my intent to set back the clock on European relations, she was a lovely gal and we showed each other photos of our cats. At no point did I verbally engage her about her luggage volume. What I posted above was my 3rd attempt, the 1st two disappeared off of my smart phone when the Wi-Fi network dropped on Mega bus on my homeward journey. My intent was to share a fuller review of the Fairview. 40
I had used an early version of Ricks original back door bag to Mexico but even at 20 pounds total weight, it annoyed my lumbar, so I knew I had to upgrade . M's conversation about packing cubes also had me thinking about how i had come up w a system that was working
I have 2 packing cubes a little bigger than a U.S. ream of paper. One I kept in the bottom of the pack and used as my dirty clothes bag. Folded bottoms went next. Clean shirts fit in the other cube, and pjs on the top since they were last in. I have two cubes about half the size of the others, one was kinda a utility drawer of some otc items, as Rick says, the 10 vital items you will never use. I did hide a spare credit card & two 50 dollar bills there in case of emergency. It also went in bottom layer. On top of it went the other one, stuffed w clean socks and undies. Sandals were tucked in. The Fairview has incredible compression straps both inside the bag and in an outer layer . The main compartment has a clam shell opening, so is easy to pack. The next compartment is heavily padded, and is billed as a lap top compartment. I don't travel w anything other than a smart phone now, and other on line reviews are mixed on this area. Its placement would have a heavy item far from yr back, and that area also tends to curve to conform to the bigger compartment, so another risk for a laptop . I used this area to keep a few papers in 10 × 13 envelopes, and also travel items like my eyeshade and inflatable neck pillow. I kept my charger cords and ancillary external battery in a freezer grade zip lock bag there, and my toiletries which I had sorted into a small bathroom bag and a second small "dry" bag of tweezers, qtips, etc. I also had reduced my toiletries in weight, and can now recommend Neutrogena stick sunscreen and j r liggets bar shampoo. As a bonus, I discovered that the yellow "ez pouch" with its little strip that wraps around the soap has room for a hotel sized bar of bath soap to ride along, too
The outside mesh pockets are awkward for a water bottle . I put a couple of protein bars in one and some spare packs of tissues in the other. Water and crucial items went in my piazza cross body e bag. At the top of the bag is a weird trapezoid shaped pouch. I was able to work a standard 8×5 paperback into this pocket, but it was kinda a hassle. There is also a key clip in this pocket. (I was also enjoying reading the kindle vs paperback posts while I was vacationing)
The 2 bigger compartments have zipper heads that will accept a small padlock. Its also possible to line up the finger loops so all 4 can be held by the same lock. I only kept the biggest compartment locked. Another feature of these bags are flaps that fit over all of the zippers, including the weird trapezoid one. There is another set of excellent compression straps to cinch these flaps around, another reason why the mesh pockets don't work well for a water bottle , which would be pressed against a laptop. I lashed my coat there also, and felt that the back zips were well camouflaged at all times, even when I was wearing it on the New York subway.
The reason I was drawn to the Fairview in the first place was the marketing that it was designed for a woman's body. I had surgery and radiation 2 years ago after breast cancer, so comfort and light weight was of vital importance. I probably carried it less than a mile at a time, but wore it for an hour or more several times while standing in line, etc, and it remained comfortable over a T shirt.
Doric8, thank you for your detailed packing scheme. Quite a different focus than attempt 3.
I also appreciate the review on the Piazza. it is my preferred travel style of bag.
Did you do a final weigh in on your packed Fairview? Was there a weight difference, or was the improvement in comfort more due to design?
Maria, I did weigh it mid trip at the Amtrak station, it weighed 21 pounds that day. The improved comfort is because of the design, a lightweight aluminum frame , a very nice hip belt, and even a sternum strap. It comes w a shoulder strap that I did use on the 1st day, and then stored in the Velcro spot that holds the cover for the back pack straps .
I was so pleased w my packing cube set up because it allowed me to segregate my increasingly dirty capris from my clean stuff and my pjs
Thanks for clarifying. Design makes a lot of difference.
I read a blog review that if over 6 feet to go with the Farpoint, but at 5'8" I wonder if I need a woman designed bag or not (long torso). Guess I need to find a purveyer or Osprey bags who carries both and try them on....not always easy in Canada.
Actually, here is a good review between the 2 bags:
https://packhacker.com/travel-gear/osprey/fairview-40/
| But most Europeans wouldn’t try to cover 8 locations in only 20 days.
@Jennifer, I agree with your posts re. packing, etc., (we usually check a bag on trips over 10 days) but wish you hadn’t added this last bit. It’s not nice to generalize and particularly in a condescending manner.
FYI at the library where I work we often have European travelers stop and tell us about the extensive trip they are on. It’s a long way across the ocean and life is short.
Based on things I've seen on this forum, I suspect that the young woman from Germany has plenty of company from Americans of all ages "packing heavy". She at least probably knew what she had to do to get these bags to her destinations-unlike people who are clueless about the lack of luggage space on many trains, the short time you have to get on and off trains in Germany, steps where there are no elevators, no porters to help with luggage, taxis that are not large enough to accommodate the people and their luggage. If people can do it, they should go for the "packing heavy", but I think many of us on this forum are anticipating with concern the problems they will have with this method of travel.
It's much easier to do carry-on only when there is more than one person traveling since you can share some things more easily than carting everything you need yourself (IMO).....it's even easier when one of your traveling companions is a child, with much smaller clothing and things they want to bring, and bonus, you get an extra toiletries pouch through security for more liquids than you'd have with just yourself.
In our travels - where I typically travel ahead of my husband by a week to two weeks, on my own with our two kids - it's infinitely easier for me to pack us into two carry-on roller bags, a backpack and one "personal size" item bag, along with my purse, than it is for me to have to lug a larger roller bag up stairs and around on streets as we make our way to hotels. The backpack slips over the handle of one carry-on suitcase, the personal item bag on the other, and my purse is across my body. My older son is in charge of one carry-on set, and I'm managing the other and my younger son (who is now 7) who has the responsibility for his own little backpack and that's it.
For me the Osprey Porter 46L won out over the Fairview, but that one is also a fantastic bag....glad you had a good trip doric8!
