If you’ve come to this blog post then that must mean you’re thinking of jetting off and packing a bag. Trust me, I know the stress of making sure you’ve got everything before you leave, worrying about which backpack to buy and how many pairs of socks you should take! So I’m going to make this super simple for you. Here are my top tips and tricks, as well as a cheeky little printable checklist for you.
Buy everything, pack and then re-pack
Once you’ve printed off your list, bought everything, and organised all your clothes. Lay it out next to your backpack, then pack it.
Let me guess, it didn’t all fit in? Ok, now what you do is illuminate things. You do not need 10 pairs of shorts and no, you will not read that book, take it out. Then what you do is pack again, you might fit it all in this time but really evaluate if you need 3 different styles of shoes. Illuminate some other bits and bobs and pack them again.
Doing this allows you to take things you need and will illuminate the random bits that you will end up resenting or throwing away. When it comes to clothes, I ended up wearing the same outfits on repeat and I also bought things along the way so you’ll thank me later for having that extra space.
Which backpack should I buy?
I bought this backpack, but you do not need to spend a crazy amount on one. The reason I went for osprey was that I wanted it to last me years. I’d also heard raving reviews about them, so I decided to purchase one.
What liter should you buy? I bought 80L and traveled for 7months, you do not need 80L. I regret buying such a big bag because it ended up being super heavy! 65-70L will be fine.
TIP: Look on a website like sports direct if your budget is low, there are some great deals you can grab.
Divide your things
Trying to find things in your backpack can be a pain so my top tip would be to organise and separate things. For this, you can buy packing cubes or do what I did and use different supermarket bags. 1 bag for outfits, 1 bag for toiletries, 1 bag for dirty laundry.
You can buy things out there
In Asia everything is cheap, clothes are cheap and easy to buy (although come up quite small so always size up). You can grab yourself toiletries if you run out, there’s always a 7/11 around the corner so don’t panic and take 7 bottles of shampoo with you.
Links to things that are handy to take
Micro fibre/quick dry towel – this is the exact towel that I took with me traveling and it worked wonders. Really compact and very light.
Padlocks – Any padlock will do, but these are the ones I purchased.
Neck Pillow – I decided to buy an inflatable travel pillow because it would take up less room. Not as comfy but still does the job.
Adapter – You’re best buying an adapter that has all countries all in one, they might be more expensive but they are more convenient.
Face Suncream – This sunscreen is more on the pricey side, but it totally worth it. If you’re like me and have acne-prone skin then this will work wonders. It also lasted a very long time as you don’t need loads for each application.
I took Revolut and Monzo with me to Asia, but I still use Revolut today as you can receive perks on the app.
If you’re looking for a good pair of comfy and versatile sandals then I bought some similar to Birkenstock’s from office. As much as I would have loved to have been able to buy Birkenstock’s, unfortunately I couldn’t so this was they were the next best thing.
I’d love to hear from you guys and your adventure’s in the comments.
Forever wandering
Danielle
Follow my adventures/
The Wandering Wilson 
I love this 😍
Thank you!
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Thank you ☺️
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