Guys, what do you pack in daypack...

Reading material a tablet or a bottle of water or empty refillable bottle, but only in warmer weather. Most of my travel is not in the summer so I do have a jacket with lots of pockets to fit stuff in. I try to avoid carrying a bag at all costs

My camera bag/purse stayed on the bus, while when out and about from the bus I'd hold the camera and I wore a small crossbody bag with my financial items and iPod, always, too. The balance of my minor camera accessories, snacks, motion sickness items stayed in my camera type bag/purse. This 'bus bag' was 16 x 12 x 6 and was actually my personal item on my flight. In my family, everyone keeps their own items, so my husband would have had his own bus bag (but I was solo on my RS tour so not an issue).

First, I would never ask my wife to be responsible for or for carrying my stuff. Second, she’d not carry my stuff anyway.

My daybag contents, Scotland, early spring: down coat in compression sack; rain jacket in compression sack; binoculars; gloves; sun hat; sunscreen; sunglasses; notebook and pens; travel/trip information; guidebooks; eyedrops, lip balm, and other meds; water bottle; munchies.

kathim11, based on your question, I'll make a distinction between a daypack that someone carries with them while walking around, and a bus bag for stuff to access during the long bus rides. Stuff that I bring on the bus may include snacks, water, tissues, a book to read, pen & paper, camera - in other words, things I will use during the bus ride. I am not going to ask my wife to carry those for me, although we do share. Wife might take a neck pillow, small blanket, wipes. That bag is usually just a plastic shopping bag. My daypack - a small backpack - is the stuff I might need while out on the tour - rain jacket, phrasebook, map, camera, water sunscreen, moleskin - stuff I wouldn't expect my wife to carry for me, either.

I’ve been on 9 RS tours. It’s rare that I leave my day pack on the bus (Civita) only when perhaps we are making a brief stop. Otherwise it’s with me and has, in order of importance: toilet paper-you’d be surprised how common it is to find a bathroom only to find this precious commodity is absent (especially in Italy), rain jacket-we’ve had rain when least expected. Mine is ultra light weight rolls into nothing; sun screen, water bottle, a few mosquito repellant wipes, the relevant parts of the guidebook for that day. If I asked my wife to carry this stuff I’d be setting up for a divorce!

...my wife's water bottle, my wife's sunscreen, my wife's hairbrush, my wife's insoles, my wife's extra pair of shoes. My guidebook.

Daypack contains those things I might need during the day when on the bus or at the various stops alongtheu way and I don't have access to my main bag.

Rain gear, jacket, water bottles(s), any medication, guide book, snacks, tissues, and so on. Sometimes the bag stays with me, sometimes it stays on the bus depending on the stop and what I feel like. And I would never expect anyone else to carry my stuff in their bag.

Here’s contents of our day pack, which is relatively compact and can convert from backpack to shoulder bag (great for museums when backpacks are not allowed).

• Passports if not within walking distance of our apartment or lodging) or might be in moneybelt, depending on where we are)
• Kindle or iPad,
• small notebook and pens
• pet passport, Dog muzzle, dog biscuits, collapsible dog bowl, tennis ball, poop bags, dog food if we will be out around dinner time.
• Small roll of toilet paper
• Small Wallet with small amount of Euros and debit and credit card, in zip pocket inside another zip compartment.
• passport cards (to use as ID to leave in trade for audio guides, etc.)
• Bottle of water
• Lip balm,
• Sunscreen
• Advil
• Coin purse (always have change to use for pay toilets) might be in pocket with a few Euro bills
  • iPhone in pack or pocket, depending on if we are siteseeing or traveling.

If we have a jacket or fleece we end up not needing, we tie around our waist. We only take this pack, and trade off carrying it. (Most of its contents are for our dog)

I never carry a daypack, I don't require one. Everything I need I can carry in my pockets, wallet and phone. My wife 'requires' a handbag for make-up, hairbrush, toiletries, multiple bottles of water, her phone, pens, two purses, sunglasses, receipts dating back two years and a multitude of other stuff that's not required. She then complains about havng to lug it all about!

I don't carry a day pack of any sort, basically not necessary for me. Besides it is a hassle, a nuisance.

If your husband thinks it's not needed, I would say he is correct. Since i don't carry a day pack, I don't expect the Mrs to carry my "stuff" either, and, most likely, she would not either those times when we travel together.

I always like to have:
Kleenex, toilet paper (Alan is right!), chapstick, sunscreen, small notebook and pen, extra hairbands, comb, sunglasses, water bottle, extra euro or two for public bathrooms, purell, bandaids...and room to stash my folding sun hat or a small umbrella if need be. I also carry a map/tour book, compass, and sometimes a small sketchbook for urban sketching. For those days when you have some free time, a day pack is useful for carrying food. Patagonia's lightweight travel tote is nice because it can be configured as a shoulder tote (for museums) or backpack (for walking) and is very lightweight and foldable. The RS Civita day pack is also very lightweight and is currently on sale!
I think everyone needs THEIR OWN day pack.

kathim11, we don't know on which tour you are going, but for the most part, the only time you are riding on the bus is between cities. While in a city, you'll be walking or using public transportation to get round. So the "leave on the bus" part of your question is what threw me. Yes there are some places you stop in-route between cities - a winery for example - but the daily schedule doesn't always include a bus ride. So thats why your question is being interpreted as being about daypacks used while touring. Unless that is what you meant.

People also talk about "deep storage" as in bags you leave in the bus luggage compartment so as not to haul everything around with you at each hotel. Thats a different thing altogether.

If you’re going on an Alpine tour, you would want a daypack; otherwise, we’ve found we don’t need one. I carry my purse with my phone, mints, emergency TP if none in toilet, money. My husband has his phone and money.

We’ve found after several trips that we don’t need to carry water bottles, etc. in cities or small towns. When we’re thirsty or hungry, it’s a good time to take a short break, sit in a piazza cafe and enjoy the ambiance.

Side note, clarifying reason for responding: In my area of the country. 'guys' often means both sexes so so I answered this. Now that I read the answers, I apologize for answering if this was meant for males. Ever since I was old enough to go out to play with my friends, I'd say, "I'm going out with the guys", when there was no male involved in that group at all. LOL.

So if this is just for males, then, my husband would carry his camera equipment, tums and tissues. That's it.

First off, if my husband has stuff he needs he can carry it as all I have is a small bag I wear cross wise. He uses Rick's Chivita bag and usually puts a water bottle, maybe a rain coat, a couple snacks, sunscreen, toilet paper or tissues, mobile recharger etc.... It comes with us off the bus if we will be gone a longer time or the whole day. If it's a short stop or the site we are visiting frowns on backpacks it stays on the bus.

Tell him to carry his own stuff!!! My husband is finally doing this!! If you are walking around, you should carry your own Umbrella, water bottle, rain poncho, perhaps a jacket if you are not wearing it, sunglasses & hat (again if you are not wearing them). In the bus you should have emergency snacks,perhaps a neck pillow, charging cord. Weather can change in an instant and sometimes you do not see your bus again for hours.

Wow, thanks all for the replies! Stan, you are correct, I meant a bag that stays on the bus, maybe I should have called it a bus bag not a day pack. No, my husband doesn’t ask me to carry his stuff through out the day ( we wouldn’t be going on a 30th anniversary trip if he did, we’d be divorced by now, lol) but if all he has is one bottle of water and chapstick, I don’t mind.
On several threads people talk about a “bus bag”, I thought it meant a bag they brought on the bus on travel days and wondered if we should share a bag or each have our own, dependent upon what people bring for the bus ride. I have a tendency to require more than my hubby. It sounds like a daypack for each of us is sufficient, no bus bag for him and a very small one for me. I did learn something I never thought of though, I never considered leaving my suitcase under the bus and throwing a small packing cube with the necessities in my bag for one night stays, good idea!
Again all, thanks for the input, decision made. Time to go back upstairs and whittle away at my packing list...

I’ve not seen a “bus bag” on all my many tours. Some folks get a few bottles of water and some cookies or such and bring that in a grocery sack. On your idea of leaving your main bag on the bus bringing what you’ll need for one night. Unless you are very, very good at this, including accounting for the glass of wine someone spills on you before dinner I would advise against it. Don’t over think this. Have your luggage which goes with you to the hotel and a daypack (or two) you’ll take while touring.

Tell him to carry his own stuff!!!

Perhaps he does! Perhaps he doesn't feel the need, like most men, to haul around a whole load of unnecessary stuff. The OP has already stated that her husband doesn't expect her to carry his stuff most likely because he can easily carry all that he needs.

Quite often my wife will insist on taking some muffins or pastries from the breakfast buffet at the hotel if we're having one so that the kids can eat them later. To this day we have always returned to the hotel with them uneaten. Every time I tell her not to waste her time but she insists. If the kids are hungry they can wait till lunch or dinner which invariably they do, if not there's always something more tasty and attractive where we are than a tired, stale muffin or pastry wrapped in a paper napkin and produced from her handbag.

She also carry books or colouring sets for the kids (14 and 11 now). My argument is that if they want them (usually to occupy themselves at lunch or dinner) then they can carry them themselves, they both have backpacks. Water is another issue. There's no need to carry around bottles of water when we're visiting a town or city, there will always be somewhere to buy water or another drink. If we're not walking around we're either driving somewhere so it can stay in the car or we're lounging around a resort.

As usual men are being lambasted by some women who choose to lug unnecessary stuff around despite the fact that most men don't insist on their wife carrying any of their stuff!

Men's clothes have something that, sadly, many women's clothes do not.....pockets. I utilize them for most of my stuff.

I rarely carry a bag. If I'm wearing a jacket I use those pockets. If it's really hot and I don't have a jacket, and what I need doesn't fit in my pants pocket, then I may carry a small foldable bag. But it's rare and only if rain is in the forecast or I am in the UK (umbrella).

Men's clothes have something that, sadly, many women's clothes do not.....pockets. I utilize them for most of my stuff.

All my wife's jeans, trousers, shorts, capris and even some of her skirts have pockets. I can think of several of her dresses that don't but they would not be what she would wear whilst travelling and there's nothing unique about her clothes.