How to Take Off on a Trip with Carry-On Baggage

Is it even possible to travel with a single piece of carry-on baggage for a few days, or even a week? Well, if you like to sit down for a cup of coffee while lugging around your carry-on bag that exceeds the baggage allowance, then it’ll be quite a challenge for you. I also advise against going over the top with baggage on your first solo trip if you’re a beginner traveller. You should also think about where you’re travelling and with what purpose – are you going on a short city break that requires little organisational skills, since you’ll spend time mostly walking around the city, exploring museums and treating your taste buds with local gourmet cuisine? This requires only carry-on baggage and is totally doable. But if you plan on spending time outdoors, the cheap ticket option could be somewhat less doable because you’ll probably need an extra pair of shoes and at least an extra set of all your clothes, plus some extra space for some snacks and water to get you through a whole day. If you’re travelling in a rainy season, keep in mind that you’ll have to make some extra room for an umbrella and/or a raincoat. You should also answer the following questions: What are your sleeping habits? Do you wear pyjamas to bed? Are you travelling in the warmer season, which requires you to pack less clothes and the ones that are lighter, or are you travelling in the cold and rainy season? Do you want to take your camera with you? Do you need to pack any other, slightly larger item? Low-cost airlines are really strict when it comes to the cheapest travel fare – 1 item means 1 item. In most cases, they won’t allow you to board with a small suitcase or a backpack in addition to your carry-on bag. They won’t allow you to carry baggage that exceeds the allowance. They also won’t allow you to take another duty-free shopping bag. Personally, I haven’t come across a situation where travellers would have to squeeze their baggage into the bag-checker stand and try to fit in those extra centimetres, but complaining at the boarding gate because of an extra item of baggage never works out – you either pay for the extra baggage or you don’t get to board the plane.

The following tips are for beginners who are still contemplating whether taking the trip with one item of baggage is even physically possible:

Choosing your carry-on baggage

You should definitely choose a backpack instead of a box-like mini suitcase with a hard exterior. A backpack is practical and gives you a free hand (literally), it has lots of small compartments and pockets, and it’s shape can be adjusted, making it much more suitable to be carried around. If you’re travelling with a suitcase, you’ll have to lug it around in (wet, dirty?) streets, one hand will always be occupied with pulling the suitcase and there’ll be less space for your hard objects, not to mention how inconvenient a suitcase is when you’re visiting museums or restaurants, plus you only get a single space to squeeze in everything etc. You also have to keep in mind that carry-on baggage allowance differs from one low-cost airline to another and that can make a difference of a few centimetres. Airlines also change the carry-on baggage allowance every few years (usually reducing them). You can always shrink your backpack a bit and squeeze one side inwards for a few centimetres, which is something you can’t do with a suitcase.

(Not) allowed items in your carry-on

Beginner travellers often ask for help with the “100ml max each and 1000ml in total” rule. Where can you get those special bags? Can I pack this or that? Smokers often have trouble with this because they can’t pack their lighter in the carry-on baggage. Women often struggle with cosmetics and personal hygiene items that usually exceed the allowed liquid volume of 100ml, so they have to pack them into smaller containers. It’s worth noting that creams also belong to this limited volume category. Personal care scissors aren’t allowed. Files with sharp edges are also out of the question. You can get zip-lock bags at the household aisle at every grocery or cosmetics shop. They’re also available at airports, specifically in the area just before the security checks. Ordinary plastic bags that you can buy at the fresh fruit and vegetable aisle aren’t allowed. I suggest buying a slightly larger bag (with a volume of more than 1 litre), so you’ll be able to put in various items – but you also need to pay attention to their pack size and form of packaging. If you travel multiple times per year, you can buy small 100-mililitre bottles at a cosmetics shop and fill them up with your favourite shampoo, body wash and the likes. But to make things easier, I recommend buying smaller packaging of, say, sun lotion, toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, body wash, contact lens solution, hand cream and disinfectant. You can pack soap instead of body wash, saving yourself some space for some other type of liquid you deem important. Also, don’t forget about the essential medicines and some paracetamol, band aids and throat lozenges. You should also pack a portable folding mirror and a very small comb, whereas a tooth brush doesn’t fill up much space to begin with.

Which items to pack for the journey to save up as much space as possible?

A very small wallet that contains your travel/personal ID, your debit and credit card, your health insurance card and some change. You can leave all your discount cards at home as they take up the precious space and add to the overall weight of your baggage.

Don’t forget to charge your phone and also pack your charger. Save the copies of your travel document and travel insurance on Gmail. You can access your boarding pass, booked accommodation and transfer as well as the locations of the places you want to see, tourist spots and all kinds of maps through your apps and Gmail. If space is an issue, this is the way to go if you want to avoid printing out all these documents. If you’re travelling around Europe, there’s usually enough free mobile data for you to use, so you can access all the information you need with a few simple clicks, plus there are also enough Wi-Fi spots available. Some apps also allow you to use them without needing mobile data, and you can save your documents directly on your phone.

You can take your pocket digital camera with you (if you’re not content with photos taken with your phone), but I’m afraid there won’t be enough space in your carry-on for the DSLR. There won’t even be enough room for a book. You can pass time on short-haul European flights by doing crosswords or reading a magazine, both of which take up way less space in your backpack, or you can have some small talk with the person sitting next to you. That is, if you’re not lucky enough to get the window seat. And since you’re carrying your phone with you, why not download an article or a game?

What about the rest?

It depends on the purpose, time, place and your chosen accommodation. A towel will usually be readily available at the hostel (check in advance whether you have to pay for it), and that’s already a massive amount of space saved. Pack a limited number of underwear and t-shirts – you can wash it all in a sink and leave it on a chair to dry regardless of the type of accommodation you’re staying at. If you’re leaving for a few days, 1 pair of shoes should be enough (make sure the footwear is light and suitable for all occasions) as well as 1 pair of trousers, but there’s always some room for extra leggings and shorts. Choose clothes which are light, don’t wrinkle easily and take up as little space as possible. Leave your favourite items of clothing at home. Wear the clothes that take up the most space while travelling. Clothes should be rolled, as they take up way less space than they would if you folded them, like you usually do before you put them in the wardrobe. Put the clothes in a bag to protect them from rain, but also to keep the dirty ones separate from the clean ones. Put on your sunglasses and store your phone in your pocket. You can even pack a spoon, depending on your accommodation and eating habits – that way you can easily enjoy your breakfast (yogurt with cereal or fruit, rice pudding, or your usual milk pudding) or warm meal in a park.

When you start thinking about whether you’re ready to set out with only carry-on, I suggest to test yourself: check the carry-on allowance in centimetres and make a physical limited space (you can use a box or a backpack with the same dimensions as allowed by the airline) and make a list of things you need. Put items you think will need on your trip on the table. Try to put them all in your testing space. If there are too many items, try to get rid of them systematically, until you reach a sufficient volume. Leave some space for a souvenir, your favourite snack and a bottle of water you’ll buy at the destination (or even better, get a collapsible eco-friendly and reusable bottle). The important thing is to think it over thoroughly, prepare yourself well for the journey and only take with you the essentials. The “I’ll take this just in case” motto sadly won’t work here. Since you’ll be travelling mostly around Europe with your carry-on, you’ve got nothing to worry about because, in most cases, you’ll be able to buy almost everything you might’ve forgotten at home.

Do you need any other tips for travelling with carry-on baggage or would you like to share your own experience? Join us on Instagram or Facebook and give us your feedback. We look forward to your thoughts!