Imagine for a moment that you could reduce the size and weight of you luggage by half. Consider just how much easier it would be without the heavy cases and bags. Perhaps it might even mean that you could do without a suitcase and just have a carryon bag that could be kept with you at all times. That would certainly speed up the whole process at the airport.



It isn't too difficult to put this into practice, but it does need a little more planning than the average holidaymaker tends to carry out. There are three simple stages that are required in order to achieve this considerable reduction.

The first step is to consider the actual case or bag you are planning on using. If you automatically head straight for your largest suitcase, then mentally you will be collecting together and packing the quantity of items which will fill it. You will allow yourself all the extra luxuries that you wouldn't take if you didn't have such a monumental volume of space. So, instead, try to limit yourself to a small suitcase, a holdall or carryon bag. Once you start to plan to use a smaller bag, you will find yourself thinking along much tighter lines, and as a result, your luggage will immediately begin being reduced in your head.

The second stage is to think about clothing, since this is what tends to take up most of the space in the average tourist's luggage. People often think about combinations of clothes they usually wear, yet this may require you packing items which can only really go with one or two other items of clothing, or requiring you to take a very bulky or easily damaged item of clothing. Instead, think about clothing that won't damage by being rolled up tightly, and think about the weight and size of each item. For example, woollen clothes are very bulky, whereas cotton is much less so. Rather than a big bulky woollen jumper, a couple of layered cotton tops with a light jacket will prove just as warm, more flexible with use, and far smaller and lighter to carry. In fact, you are taking more clothes, with more possible combinations, yet taking up less space and weighing far less!

The third thing to consider is your toiletries. Very often people just hurl the cans and bottles they use each day into their case. These bottles are usually very large, and sometimes much of their volume is empty space! Instead, buy a set of small, tester sized bottles with screw caps, and transfer your toiletries into these, not forgetting to label them all. By doing this, you will find that most of your toiletries will fit into the space in your shoes, thereby saving you a tremendous amount of space. The liquids and gels in toiletries are very heavy, and by reducing the number and volume of these you will save considerably.

These are the three top tips to reducing your luggage, and put into honest practice it really is possible to halve the amount you take. But, it does require planning and preparation. The further in advance you plan to be more economical, the more successful you are likely to be.