Big & Tall Packing

You don’t have to take a carryon case. On every tour I’ve been on there are people who have bigger bags. Nobody cares or judges. You just need to be able to handle your own luggage and I’m guessing that won’t be a problem for you. Pack what meets your needs. Have a great time!

Yes, dont worry about it. Suggestions, I'm not big or tall, but I only take one pair of shoes - the ones I wear on the plane. Shoes are real space hogs. Second, since you are big and tall, dont let other people expect you to help with their big bags 🙂

You have to be able to handle the bag yourself. As long as you can do that, you can bring any bag you want.

There are no luggage police. Well, at least no "official" luggage police.

It looks like tour veterans have provided some solid feedback to help you with your packing anxiety.

I have not been on a Rick Steves tour. While my husband (not quite your altitude, but a rather beefy gent) and I now check our bags for various reasons, we took several 3 week+ European trips with carry on only. Here are some suggestions for reducing your packing bulk.

Shoes are a space hog. Wear your larger shoes (boots perhaps) on the plane. Limit yourself to only one pair of shoes to pack or better yet, do not pack any shoes and simply bring the shoes on your feet. I pack shoes individually in plastic grocery bags. I then loosen the laces and place another plastic bag inside the shoe; I then fill up the bag in the shoe typically with socks and underwear.

When we traveled via carry on only, we each had a carry on suitcase and a back pack. I have been known to pack one shoe in the back pack (stuffed as outlined above) and one in the suitcase. Tetris skills are helpful.

It terms of clothes, do not pack anything that does not pull double duty - all tops must match at least 2 bottoms (if not all) and all bottoms must match at least 2 or more tops. Thin layers are your friend in several ways - providing warmth (or less warmth if you need to remove a layer) and by taking up less space in your luggage.

Unless you need to for health or personal reasons, do not bother with packing: shampoo, conditioner, soap and a hair dryer.

The forum owner has a packing list - if you look over it, you will see how little clothing you really need. Likely, everyone else on the tour will be wearing the same thing over and over again and no one will be paying any attention. If the weather is cool - pack 2 tops (or more for layering) and 1 pair of pants - it will be sufficient.

Purchase compression cubes - they make a difference if you pack them correctly. I recommend the kind that zip to create compression rather than relying on a vacuum to compress the cube. Toiletries (toothbrush, deodorant, comb, etc.), cords, adapters, etc. while preferably these go on in their own pouch with similar items, if space is a massive issue they can be loose in your luggage in the crevices of space (or in your shoes).

May sound crazy, but start your packing list now and then do a practice pack. If it is too much; you have time and some options to get your luggage to a point that you are comfortable with it. Be brutal and if you pull an item out, do not replace it with anything. You can get by with 2 pair of pants (one on your person and one packed), and 2-3 tops (one on your person). You can also pack fewer pairs of socks and undies and embrace sink washing - just allow time to dry.

Since you're doing Alps My Way, I assume there will be at least light hiking. In these circumstances, it's a mistake not to have another pair of shoes. You can wear your hikers on the plane to save that space in the bag and for your second pair, something light and squishy like Crocs or Oofos or even Tevas or Birkenstocks if that's your thing. You shouldn't need a lot of fancy clothes on that tour, I shouldn't think. Most on the Forum plan to do laundry during a two-week trip (either nightly in the room or, like me, at a laundromat or in my accommodation if there is a machine). I am also big and tall, and I lived out of a rolling carryon for 7 months. As others have mentioned, you don't have to do that. You can bring a larger bag, but I encourage you to pack as lightly as you can. Choose your clothes carefully, opting for the lighter weight, less bulky option where you can. Layering is crucial, for the Alps especially. See if you can do 5 days worth of clothes to start. You'll want a rain jacket, right? Choose a lightweight, packable one. A puffer jacket is a great item to have because it squishes down to nothing. I use mine as a pillow on the plane (doesn't go in the suitcase at all). Skip the jeans, cotton tees and flannels. If you check your bag, whatever size you decide on, you can bring a travel backpack as your carryon. Loads of recommendations on the Forum for these. In fact, here's one for just $100:
https://www.sierra.com/osprey-sojourn-porter-30-l-travel-backpack~p~14rn6/?filterString=s~osprey%2F
30L is a bit small. You should be able to attach the Daylite 13L or Daylite Plus 20L daypack to this bag.

Rick straight up says in some of his videos that everyone on his tours is limited to carry-on only. I don’t know if it was ever enforced, but with my limited experience (2 tours) and according to many comments on these boards, it’s not enforced now. The material provided after you sign up for a tour says they “strongly recommend“ carry-on only, not require it.

On our tours, my “big & tall” husband and I each had a carry-on, a “personal item” (that goes under the seat), plus one medium checked bag (probably 24”) between us that was mostly his stuff but had a few of my things. It also gave us a little extra capacity to bring back a few souvenirs. He did have to carry it up a few flights of stairs at a couple of our hotels. His carry-on is a backpack (Cotopaxi 35L size) which makes carrying two bags easier.

When traveling on the bus on tour, they normally get a full size “coach” bus that can seat almost twice as many people as the RS tour max of 28, so there is PLENTY of room on and under the bus. As far as I was aware, no one noticed or cared that we had an extra bag.

If you haven’t travelled internationally much, do be aware that different airlines have different limits for carry-ons and personal items. And unlike US airlines, there is usually a weight limit too, and I’ve seen as low as 7 kg!

Excellent advice above. We always do carry on only. Rick Steves just put out a new video showing everything he packs in his carry on, right down to and including his underwear. Perhaps watch that and match him item for item and see how it goes. Everybody on my Rick Steves tour packed this way. Nobody dressed fancy, so no worries about that.

My husband, who wears a size 13 shoe, always wearing hiking shoes on the plane and puts sneakers in his back pack along with medications and toiletries (in case forced to gate check bag).

I know lots of people do but I would never have only one pair of shoes.

I do one pair of trail runners for hiking and walking, which I wear on the plane, and pack a pair of Chacos. We just bought tickets on a european airline with an eight kilo max. That will take some doing!

All very helpful. Thanks everyone