The golden rule of packing is to lay out everything you think you might need and cut it in half. What you take depends on what you’ll be doing and how long you are going for. If you plan to move around a lot, less is definitely more. There are plenty of definitive/place specific packing guides on the net and in travel guides.
These are some handy tips gleaned from the above, as well as from friends and personal experience.
Turtle power
- Keep your pack as small as possible. There are some travel gods who suggest that your pack should be small enough to fit under a bus seat. It’s great advice if you can manage it, but some of us like to change our socks and underwear.
- Line your pack with a heavy-duty bin bag to keep things waterproof. It can always be used as a raincoat if necessary.
- A backpack with zips on the side (like a suitcase) makes it easier to find things than one that opens from the top.
- Leave essential items near the top so you can find them.
Make like MacGyver
- Take ziplock bags for underwear and other bits and pieces such as cameras and toiletries.
- Gaffer tape is king. Use it to tape up torn sleeping bags, broken shoes, stick up a mosquito net and so much more.
- A few self-driving screws and string. Handy for hanging up your mosquito net or for a makeshift washing line.
- Other useful items include an alarm clock, mult-ipurpose tool (with can and bottle opener) and a small LED torch.
Fashion victim
- The best way to pack clothes is to roll them; don’t fold.
- Dark clothes don’t show dirt (and that includes your underwear). Make sure they are lightweight and can dry overnight.
- Shoes take the most space, so limit them to one pair for walking and slops (also good for wearing in dodgy showers). To pack shoes, compress them back-to-front and one on top of the other. Tightly wind a piece of string or thick elastic bands around them to compress them further.
- The sarong is a many splendoured thing that can be used as a beach mat, towel, skirt, headdress, sun protector and more. It also dries quickly and takes little space.
- Thermal underwear is lighter than an extra jersey and you can sleep in it.
- Sleeping-bag liners are a godsend in dirty dorms and dodgy hotels with dubious bedding.
- Guide to taking a gap year
- Great gaps: what are my options
- Planning your gap
- Where in the world to go
- Gap year stories
