Say goodbye to overweight suitcases, leaking toiletries, broken bottles and wrinkled clothes. Any of these can add unnecessary stress to your trip. Rather than sweating the small stuff, it's best to fully prepare ahead of time. In this article, we’re addressing how to pack a suitcase easily, to improve your vacation experience.  

Before we jump into tips on how to pack a suitcase, let's explore why it's so important that this task is done properly. No matter if your jetting off for a business trip or an extended holiday, a well-packed suitcase eliminates worries.

You might be thinking about the importance of packing a suitcase. Does it really matter? Well, the short answer is yes. If you are able to take less belongings away with you whilst still having everything you need, you’ll make it so much quicker and easier to pack and unpack. Travelling light and organized also means that you’re less likely to forget essentials.

Some travelers are so concerned that they’ll forget something important that they take more than they’ll ever need with them. So many travelers neglect the guidelines of what you can and can’t take with you to your chosen destination. They don’t research the liquid limitations and instead take too much in their hand luggage. Not properly wrapping their liquids in a plastic bag is another common mistake. Avoid these rookie mistakes with our tips below.

Let’s take a look at our top tips for how to pack a suitcase. All of these are created with practicality and ease in mind. As a result, you’ll travel lighter and more efficiently.

One of the best ways to learn how to pack a suitcase properly is to write a list of your belongings in advance of your travels. We recommend starting this about a week before your first vacation to make your life easier. Grab a piece of paper and pen and create several topics, including: Clothes, accessories, essentials, toiletries and electronics.

By doing so, this’ll help to organize your suitcase and spark your memory so you don’t forget important belongings. When creating this list, consider your normal daily routine. How do you usually start the day? More importantly, what do you use? Add these items to your list as you go.

Remember to add these items under each category to help organize your thoughts and suitcase. It’s important that you keep this list to hand, and even out and about with you. This is so that you can add things to it as you remember. Guaranteed as you go about your day, you’ll see certain things which will remind you.

So many of us are prone to taking too many belongings on a vacation, and so often, we don’t even use the items we pack. However, you need to start with everything you think you need to then narrow it down. Traveling light might be scary because you think you’re going to forget something. However, there’s much more room left in your luggage for souvenirs, not to mention, it’s more comfortable to carry around. When you arrive home, it’ll be quicker to unpack too.

Begin with all your clothes and accessories and lay them all out of the bed or floor. Observe what’s in front of you. Will you really wear what you see in front of you, or do you not even wear them at home? If you don’t wear them at home, you’re probably not going to wear them on vacation either. Take a look at what you can erase from your large collection to limit how much you take with you. For example, are there items of clothes you can mix and match rather than taking so many things?

You might think that taking a large suitcase is a great idea because you can pack more belongings in it. However, this is a trap to then take too much of what you don’t need. Rather than opting for a large suitcase, reduce your luggage size. As a result, this will make it easier to transport around the world and prevent you from taking too much of what you don’t need. We recommend buying a hard-sided suitcase with a structured shell. This is because you can’t squeeze in any extras and there’s less temptation to take things you’ll never use/wear.

There are other ways to avoid an overweight suitcase too. For example, buy toiletries at your destination, as many places are often cheaper than from home. This also means that you don’t need to worry about spillages in your luggage on the flight. Another great tip is to pack your heavy items on your checked luggage and carry them on board with you. You don’t need much whilst you’re on the airplane journey, so use that additional space for your heaviest items. Also, we recommend buying travel-sized toiletries to create more room in your luggage and prevent you from taking more than you need.

If you’re looking for other ways on how to pack a suitcase, think about how you organize your clothes and belongings in your suitcase. For example, instead of rolling your clothes and placing them in your luggage, try another strategy instead. An idea is to fold the clothes up to prevent them from creasing inside your case. By doing this, you’ll also provide more room for other clothes and so that your belongings don’t get too squashed. Garments can easily become smelly if there’s no room for your materials to breathe.

We also recommend tucking your underwear in your bra cups as there’s additional space in here. Not to mention, this strategy also helps to keep your suitcase organized in categories so things don’t get misplaced. When packing shoes, you can place them in a shower cap to prevent dirt from transferring to your clothes. If you’re taking any breakable items with you – such as perfume – place them inside socks for a protective barrier. This will prevent them from breaking as they transfer on and off your plane.

We hope you enjoyed reading about suitcase tips to make your life easier and prevent you from taking too much away with you. These are the most important and achievable tips for beginner to experienced travelers.

We'd love to hear about your advice. Therefore, feel free to share your experience, thoughts and any products you recommend, in the comments below. Share this with the frequent fliers in your life to help them travel with ease.