Long-time travel writer and TV host Rick Steves is your man for all things European travel. Not only can he tell you where to go and what to do there, but he can also give you tips on anything from health and hygiene to safety when traveling. And out of his entire library of travel wisdom, there is perhaps one piece of advice that he considers most important: pack light. In a video posted to his TikTok (@ricksteveseurope), Steves says you’ll be better off if you can limit all of your belongings to a carry-on-sized bag—that's 9x22x14 inches.
@ricksteveseuropeYou'll never meet a traveler who brags: "Every year I pack heavier." With only one bag, you're mobile and in control. When you carry your own luggage, it's less likely to get lost, broken, or stolen. Lengthy delay or quick, last-minute flight change? No problem—your bag is with you. You can also save money by bringing less. Read the fine print when you are choosing flights to understand add-on fees for checked (and sometimes even carry-on) baggage. In Europe, you'll walk with your luggage more than you think you will. Before flying to Europe, give yourself a test. Pack up completely and walk around your house or block. Or practice being a tourist in your hometown for an afternoon. Fully loaded, you should enjoy window-shopping. If you can't, stagger home and thin things out. Watch the full one-hour "Rick Steves Experiencing Europe" special on public television stations across the US (check local listings for airtimes), streaming on PBS Passport, or on our website. #ricksteves #ricksteveseurope #traveltips #traveltip #packingtips
Yes, he means everything. This includes your toiletries, shoes, chargers—try to get everything into that one small bag. The reason for this is that travel, especially international, often requires walking long distances (sometimes in the heat or on uneven terrain) while lugging your baggage, and doing so will be a heck of a lot easier if you pack light. Steves makes a good point by saying, “You’ll never meet a traveler who brags: ‘Every year, I pack heavier.’” As a former world traveler myself, I can’t attest enough to the truth of this; you will never regret packing less.
Related: We've Got Your Vacay Covered With the Ultimate Packing Lists for Every Type of Trip
Tips for Packing Light When Traveling
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Although it may give you peace of mind to bring anything you could ever need and more, the reality is that you won’t end up needing or using most of it, and it will just add extra pounds to your bag that you’ll wish you didn’t have to carry around. What about a small bag and a personal item? More bags still mean more space taken up, whether that’s when you’re pulling your luggage through tight, crowded city sidewalks or storing your stuff on the floor of a hostel room. It’s best to have everything kept together in one spot. If you prefer to bring a carry-on-sized roller bag, that’s okay, but Steves carries it all in a backpack. I, too, have always found backpacks to be best for serious traveling.
To test out your limits, Steves recommends packing up everything you think you need in the size bag you think you need it in and either walking around your house carrying it all with you for a while, or even going into town to carry it around for a few blocks. It's very likely that at some point on your international travels, you'll have to spend some hours carrying your luggage around in between flights/hotel check-ins, etc. If it's not comfortable to have it all with you while sightseeing, you should scale back your belongings.
Related: 45 Travel Essentials, According to Flight Attendants, Professional Packers and More
What you absolutely need to bring will depend on where you’re going and when, but it’s always best to stick to the bare essentials. Creating your own sort of travel capsule wardrobe is helpful for this; bring clothing items you can mix, match and layer instead of bringing multiple full outfits. Of course, having fewer clothes means you’ll need to do laundry more often, but this is not the end of the world. Pro tip: bring a travel laundry bag to separate your dirty clothes from the clean ones and easily tote your laundry to the laundromat. The same goes for cosmetics and toiletries; the reality is that you can often find what you need once you get to your destination, so you don’t always have to bring everything with you from home.
Bringing only a carry-on also reduces the risk of your luggage getting lost or stolen. And, of course, you’ll save money! “It’s not a hardship to pack light, it’s a sort of enlightenment,” Steves states.
Related: I Traveled the World for 2 Years With This Backpack and It Still Looks Brand New
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