Traveling over the summer can bring lots of joy and lots of hassle. Who hasn’t experienced that sweat of anxiety as you rush from the parking lot or shuttle drop-off into the terminal with heavy bags dragging behind you, draped coats slipping, and various things with straps hanging off of you at all angles?

You want to have a good time and don’t want to lug around a lot of heavy stuff. The goal of organized travel is to make the stuff you bring efficient & light so you can focus on the experience of your vacation. According to Rick Steves, guide book author and travel TV host, “On your trip you’ll meet two kinds of travelers: those who pack light and those who wish they had.”

Picking the right suitcase for you

Your luggage is going to be the heaviest thing you bring with you.  Choose one that suits your needs.  If your kind of travel calls for HERMËS bags, you can save yourself some time by skipping this post. You probably already have a valet to handle all the details.

For those of us who have to schlep our own bags, get one that is suitable for the location.  Wheeled bags may not be ideal in all cases, dragging a bag on the cobblestone streets of Italy isn’t too much fun.  But, most of the time, you’ll probably be dragging your luggage through an airport and have transportation to your hotel… so get a bag that you can manage.

if you’re planning on hiking or using a train to get to your destinations, here’s an ideal kind of bag; it has shoulder strap, tote handles and backpack straps.

In the suitcase

Within the suitcase, organization is all about saving space and reducing weight. That means both planning strategically to bring less and/or packing in a way that maximizes the space.

Travel-friendly clothes are wrinkle-free, can be worn to different types of events and are made of material that dries quickly so you can rinse out and re-use if needed.

Shoes. If possible, avoid multiple shoes for every occasion. If planned activities demand a variety (probably not a good idea to wear running shoes to the cocktail party) limit yourself to 1 sport, 1 dress, 1 casual. Wear your bulkiest shoes while in transit.

Numerous packing products such are available to keep items sorted within the suitcase and help keep items unwrinkled. Travel Smith and The Container Store are both good sources for packing organizers. Rick Steves’ site also has helpful packing lists.

Next week…tips for the carry-on and what NOT to pack. Have a favorite travel product you love? Share it here!