This year my partner Kole and I have decided to travel to Portugal. We will be visiting for two weeks, one in Lisbon and one week on the island of Madeira. So I will need to pack for both city sightseeing and outdoorsy hiking.
Typically when we visit Europe, we pack large backpacks. This helps getting from airport to hotel a bit easier. Sometimes rolling a suitcase over cobblestones gets tricky. We also pack carry on only. I find it less stressful overall to pack less. I personally don’t like to worry about how I’m going to transport multiple large suitcases on public transport.
I do think there is a time and place for packing a checked bag. If we are going to rent a car at our destination I would consider checking a bag. I also don’t like checking bags if there are multiple plane connections. I find that the more connections you have, the more room to lose a bag or have it not make it on your flight. I personally have been stuck in Europe with no extra clothes for days when a bag didn’t make my connecting flight. That was a challenge! Cheers to hotel sink laundry (I do pack a couple of laundry detergent sheets now for this very reason).
This is my favorite backpack, the Mother-lode by Samsonite. It holds up to 42L, which I find to be more than enough room. It does have zippers to expand the bag, and straps inside to compress clothes. There is a laptop sleeve on the outside and several other pockets.
When packing for travel I start by researching the weather at the destinations I plan to go. Sometimes it even helps to google clothing ideas by season and location.
Portugal in the spring can vary in temperatures. We are going to Lisbon where it’s about 70-75 degrees F.
Madeira temps don’t fluctuate a ton throughout the year. It is called the island of eternal spring for a reason. However it’s a bit cooler in Madeira, especially when hiking in the mountains.
So I am packing a mix of pants, short sleeved shirts, light cardigans, a lightweight rain jacket, tennis shoes and walking/hiking sandals.
I like to pack Merino wool items when traveling. Merino wool is temperature regulating, and resists odors. I find I can wear my merino wool shirts for a few days without them smelling at all. This comes in handy with socks as well. Merino wool is more of an investment fabric, reputable brands are often $40+ for shirts. This brand on Amazon has sales and the long sleeve merino wool shirts are so soft!
Linen is another good option for travel as it is temperature regulating. If you are worried about linen wrinkling in your bag you can hang in the bathroom while you shower to gently steam your linen. There are also sprays you can buy to release the wrinkles, and most hotels will have an iron. You could also look for a linen blend fabric with at least 50% linen to retain the temperature regulation properties.
I love the brand Quince for linen clothing. They are reasonably priced and I find the quality of their clothing to be wonderful.
Quince also sells cashmere tops and cardigans. I love their lightweight cashmere cardigans for travel. They also have some great active wear or sweats for travel day comfort. I love the cloud comfort line of sweats for travel day.
When packing carry on only I stick to 2-3 pairs of shoes max. You usually will want a good pair of tennis shoes that have already been broken in. I also love to pack hiking sandals because they can be worn as a dressier shoe option but still be comfortable to walk in all day. Try to wear your bulkiest shoes on travel day to minimize the amount of space taken up in your carry on.
When packing toiletries I won’t bring shampoo or conditioner. Hotels and most Air B&B’s supply this. This leaves a bit more room for my liquids. I also don’t ever pack hair tools. I will bring my heatless curler set, hair clips/ties and use the blow-dryer at our accommodations.
Packing solid versions of your liquid products can also be helpful. They make good solid shampoo and conditioners, as well as solid makeup items like foundations.
I also will only pick out a few jewelry pieces that match with the majority of my outfits, so that I’m not trying to keep track of a lot of jewelry while traveling.
The less you pack, the less you have to keep track of and less likely it will be to leave something behind. A good rule of thumb that I follow is that all my tops can be worn with all my bottoms and shoes. I don’t pack items that can only be worn once, unless you have a special occasion you are traveling for (wedding, party, etc) If this is the case I will bring the special item as my one extra item. See my post on the 5,4,3,2,1 packing method
For this trip I’m packing about 6 tops, 4 pants, 2 shoes, undies and socks, one swimsuit, one dress, and 2 cardigans. We will be doing laundry at our second destination. The rental we booked has access to a washer and dryer.
I’ll bring my toiletries in my personal item bag, along with my mirroless DSLR camera, first aid kit and my plane cabin bag.
Happy Travels
links not affiliated, all opinions are my own
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