How to Pack for Two Weeks in a Carry-On
Okay, okay so full disclosure we’re only cruising the Rhine for 10-days. But before you angrily close the tab because of click-bait, back in April on our Grand European Tour we did, in fact, pack 16-days work of clothes and accessories into a carry-on.
So we know what we’re talking about.
In this post we’re going to cover what to pack, how to pack and what to pack it in. We also have a travel packing list for you to download just to make your life a little bit easier.
How to Pack Carry-On Only
The easiest way to explain how to pack two weeks in a carry-on is to tell you exactly what we packed. We’ll provide links to the products we use (or similar products) and then share some tips and tricks on how to shove it all into a 22"h x 14"w x 9"d suitcase.
For PANTS we packed four pairs of Walmart jeggings. You may be thinking Walmart jeggings… that’s weird. It might be, but hear us out. These jeggings are affordable, so we were able to get them in a few different colors (army green, teal, black, and mustard). They’re lightweight, which means they pack nicely. Plus they’re super comfy but look more stylish than just plain leggings. The only downside is that, since they’re so light, that means they’re pretty thin and with snow in the forecast, we knew that we couldn’t get by with just them. That’s why we also packed two pairs of Old Navy’s new built in warmth jeans. These are supposed to hold in more heat than your average jeans (we’ll report back later). They’re extremely comfortable and cute. We brought black and dark-wash blue pairs.
That’s it for pants! This kind of brings us to tip number one, which is that pants are something you can re-wear for a day or even two. People won’t notice they’re the same, so if you’re worried about being an outfit repeater, you’re all good! This also saves you from packing a pair of pants for every single day. That gets too bulky when you’re only bringing a carry-on.
Now for shirts. This was a little bit trickier because the weather is cold, snowy and rainy all 10 days. That means t-shirts won’t cut it. We packed five light-weight long sleeves from Zenana (all in different colors). These rolled up perfectly and they’re so comfortable! Tip two is that rolling your clothes saves space, but you already knew that, right?
We also packed three bulkier sweaters from Target (one, two, and three). These didn’t roll up as well, so it’s a good thing we saved space with the pants and other shirts! We also packed one additional shirt. It’s just a basic winter-y sweater to wear to the Christmas market!
For shoes we kept it pretty simple. We have a pair of Skechers slip-ons that we’ll wear in the airport. Then we have a pair of chunky Skechers boots for the actual trip. These ended up in Joanie B.’s personal bag because they were a little too big for the suitcase. Whoops!
We’re not going to talk about undies. You do you when it comes to that…
Tip number three is to lay out everything you plan to back BEFORE YOU PACK IT. This will help you visualize your outfits and ensure that you have everything you need and nothing that you don’t.
Tip number four, and the final tip, is to wear your coat (or other bulky items) on the plane. We’re bringing a pretty large coat, which would’ve taken up our entire suitcase. Instead, it’s a nice blanket for the plane!
Best Luggage for International Travel
We partnered up with ROAM Luggage for this post and video. They sent us two of their Jaunt carry-ons in exchange for some content.
It’s the first luggage brand that allows you to full customize your suitcase. You can pick the colors of everything from the shell to the zippers, wheels and more. There are nine total customization options, 11 colors and endless possibilities!
This will be our first trip with our Jaunt, and so far it seems like it’ll be amazing! It’s water proof and has the smoothest wheels we’ve ever had on a suitcase. When we get back from our adventure down the Rhine with Viking we’ll let you know if it’s the best luggage for international travel.
We hope this helped inspire you to travel carry-on only! It may take a little more prep, but it saves you the headache of losing your luggage.
Let us know in the comments below if you’ve traveled for more than a week with just a carry-on! And don’t forget to check out our carry-on essentials for travel bloggers.
If you want to customize your ROAM luggage, visit their website. Our link will save you $50 off any piece of luggage from the site.
A very special thank you to our Patron, Sylvia Vasquez Plexus, for supporting us on this wild ride! If you’d like to become a Patron, we have some awesome reward tiers. Sometimes we even pick up little gifts for you along our travels.
Pin this post with the graphic below: