Packing for Domestic Travel

A posh family whisks their nanny and her best friend away to a snowy chalet in Montana for an impromptu ski trip. Sounds like the premise for a great novel, right? WRONG. It’s real life - MY real life!

I’m the best friend in this scenario, and I’m incredibly thrilled to visit another beautiful state out West…and in the snow! We don’t get much snow here in Georgia, so this might be the most snow I’ll ever seen in my life. I’m slightly worried to see how my southern-raised self is going to handle the cold, but I’m so excited for the sights. The only thing standing in the way of this adventure is my giant suitcase and one of my least favorite parts of taking a trip -- packing.

I LOVE to travel, so I’ve learned a few things over the years. My mishaps and mistakes in packing have been great teachers, and I’ve learned to hone my skills with a suitcase. I’ll share a post on how to pack for international travel soon, but here are a few of my best tricks and tips for DOMESTIC travel:

- Figure out the number of days/nights you will be gone - super obvious, I know.

* Look at your weather app a week out, and plan your outfits for each day. TRY THEM

ON! TAKE PICTURES OF THEM! This is a huge time and space saver. It ensures that

you only bring what is necessary for each day, you know you’re going to look

awesome, and it all matches (not all hotels have full length mirrors). You can pack

each outfit together so you don’t have to dig to assemble the pieces, and you know

your outfit will be weather appropriate. All you have to do is open your phone, find

your picture of your outfit for the day and you’ll be ready in no time. Trust me, this

will help you immensely.

- Pack clothes you can mix and match to reduce the amount you need to bring.

- If you are checking a bag at the airport, make SURE you pack a few essential items of clothing and other essentials in your carry-on. I’m talking some extra undies, a coat (which can double as a pillow – you’re welcome), shoes, contacts/glasses, pills – ANYTHING you can’t easily replace when you get to your destination. Trust me, I’ve learned from personal experience that your checked bags don’t always arrive when you do, if at all, so you want to be prepared.

- You can have a quart bag with separate containers holding up to 3 oz. in your checked luggage. Go ahead and put those liquids somewhere easy to access for when you have to pull them out at security. Do the same for electronics.

- Packing socks and shoes – stuff your socks into your shoes to save space.

- Pack extra underwear – just do it.

- Packing a cute hat that you don’t want to be squished? Stuff the inside with socks, underwear, or anything that fills it up. Put it in your suitcase upside down, creating a indention for the top and pack other clothes around it until the brim is sitting flat on top of everything. I did this for our Paris/Scotland trip, and it worked perfectly!

- Buy a digital luggage scale on Amazon and bring it with you! That way you can rearrange your luggage on the trip back to make sure you won’t be charged extra for more weight. Make sure you are at least a few pounds under the 50 lb. limit so you have room for those souvenirs you know you’re going to buy!

- Wear your bulky items on the plane to save space and weight in your luggage. I usually wear my large coats and hiking boots to the airport since they are bulky and heavy. You can always take them off when you get on the plane, and the coat can double as your blanket!

- Don’t forget your electronic chargers – these are so easy to leave behind.

Hopefully you found these tips helpful! If you sign up for my newsletter, you’ll receive a printable packing checklist. What are your best packing tips?