You are about to go on a trip and you have some doubts about what to take and especially what not to forget to put in your suitcase. Preparing your backpack, your bundle... it's already being on a trip. This is a crucial step before any departure but is often subject to countless choices and head-on decisions.
What to take? What to take with you? What to leave? Beyond the standard travel list (t-shirt, tap shoes, hat, swimsuit, sunscreen etc...) you have already thought of, Trace Your Route bloggers open their backpacks to share with you their little tips and essentials. We're like that on Trace Your Route, we like to share.
Whether on holiday, trekking, walking or round the world, we all have a checklist of the minimum subsistence level to take with us everywhere. Our little tricks, our little tricks, our cuddly toys, we reveal to you what makes up our globe trotters backpacks. A few tips that we hope will help you in your preparations.
Light travel, the first of my tips
During my first trips, I used to take my house with me (except the fridge and TV) but I quickly understood that the luxury for a backpack traveller is to travel with the essentials while avoiding carrying the superfluous. Easy for you to say, but for me it's pretty hard to do.
For clothes, I walk by 7: 7 T-shirts, 7 pairs of socks and 7 boxers. I add this to 3 pants/shorts and 2 pairs of light and easily transportable shoes. It allows me to change my top and underwear every day (a question of hygiene, well... of sweating) and therefore to do one laundry per week.
I compact all this in my 70-litre backpack, I add a plastic or fabric bag to put the dirty laundry in. The rest of the place is therefore devoted to practical or recreational things.
The nomadic geek stuff
I am often connected, like many of us, which makes it difficult for me to do without my smartphone and laptop (I only take my laptop if I leave for a long time). Besides, without them, you wouldn't read this article 😉 I don't forget to take my Olympus digital camera in my backpack (I might even change it...) and recently my GoPro (with which I'm looking forward to making beautiful videos to share with you!).
Comfort and practical tips
I never leave without my Victorinox Swiss Army knife. In addition to being a gift from my friends, it's also really practical in any situation: unblocking a good bottle, cutting small wood, repairing a bike, cutting a piece of meat, etc. If there's one thing I recommend you take with you, it's this one!
When we travel, we go crazy, we do a lot of activities and bang we make a hole in our clothes! Yes, it happened quickly (especially in the evening). So I take black thread and a needle with me. And recently I have learned to use it (the total class) whereas before I used to ask others to help me. Long live autonomy!
I also use a flashlight that works with LEDs and is charged by crank. I get them at Decathlon, it's cheap and useful! I also invested in a Petzl headlamp that has the advantage of being placed on your head and therefore freeing your hands to play biniou for example. And then they last a very long time and are solid.
The last thing I have to take on a trip is my flat bag to put on the shoulder strap under a shirt or a t-shirt. I put my important papers and my credit card in it when I'm between 2 destinations. I also put most of the money I withdrew before. I find it quite practical because it can't be seen under clothing and there are 2 pockets that prevent you from mixing money and stuff. And from a security point of view, it's very practical, it avoids putting everything in your backpack. Backpack which, I remind you, often attracts all kinds of interest.
Ah and I never forget one or two sets of earplugs!
Tips for not getting bored
When we travel we can be quite often in long or even very long transports. If you have no one to talk to or play with, you can get pissed off quickly. So I always take a couple of nice notebooks to write my adventures, to keep track of practical information and to hang with my imaginary friend. I also always carry one or two books because life is hard without reading. Finally, I make playlists of crazy people that I put in my smartphone to cut myself off from the world if necessary or to fall asleep pleasantly.