Judy_Rosa

Are packing cubes worth using?

We are visiting London/Paris and driving through France, ending our trip in Nice and am wondering if using these cubes will help make our luggage more organized.

Thanks!

jane1144

I think they do keep you more organized, depending on how you pack them. Personally, I think they add a bit of weight and take up a bit of space. I always stuff my underwear and socks into those little nooks an crannies that are always available, and feel I can get more in my (carry on only) bag that way.

adrienne

I like my smaller bags (they're not really cube size) for undies, scarves, hair bands and other small items so they don't get lost in the luggage. I used the larger ones a couple of times but thought they took up more space than they were worth in terms of organizing. And all my shirts did not fit in one bag (without scrunching them) so I didn't get a lot of organizing from them.

Guenmai

I never leave home without mine. I bought them over a decade ago and am more than happy with them as I take them out of the suitcase and just toss them into the drawers at either hotels or apartments overseas. Then I never have to totally unpack everything.

Happy Travels!

jaja

I like mine. Nice to put undies, socks and tees in different ones and know they won't all get jumbled up together. Contrary to the usual advice, I leave my big bag in the car boot at the B&B and carry in a duffel so it's nice to pull tomorrow's clothing from the different cubes. I usually tote everything inside about halfway through the trip to repack and reorganize.

cafegoddess

"We are visiting London/Paris and driving through France, ending our trip in Nice and am wondering if using these cubes will help make our luggage more organized."

Yes, they are wonderful. Makes packing a lot easier.

DeborahAnn

I love my mesh packing cubes. My husband uses a rolling duffel and everything stays in place using the cubes. I use a small one on the plane to keep together things I will need and they don't get misplaced during a long flight. My husband uses a small cube for all the electronic chargers and his personal care items. If I have to shift things between suitcases to stay within the weight limitations I can quickly and easily transfer a packing cube. I use the Rick Steves ones that are mostly mesh, I think they add so little weight compared to the benefits I get from them. Deborah

michele_d

I love em. Never travel without them.

Sassafrass

I love them, especially the smaller ones. Mine are super light weight mesh: Eagle Creek and LL Bean. Some are heaver plastic - don't like those. DH prefers luggage that has pockets. I forget which pockets things are in, but can easily see what is in the cubes.

joannyc

I don't use packing cubes but love compression bags! Doesn't make my luggage any lighter but I can fit more in it. And, you could pack each day"s outfit (top, bottom, and undies) in separate bags.

jgg

We always use the packing cubes and envelopes from Eagle Creek. Helps keep everything so organized and less wrinkled and I think you can fit more in with them. Check out what my daughter fit in her rollaboard (carryon) with her cubes and folders:
http://www.fromhometoroam.com/2012/0...carry-on-only/

lincasanova

nice blog.. thanks for posting it.

tahl

YES. I assume you are talking about the Eagle Creek Pack-It system's packing cubes, and maybe also their packing folders (for shirts, shorts, slacks)?

I absolutely LOVE these and have used them on every trip, long or short, for more than ten years. They are particularly brilliant on trips when you are going to be going to multiple locations. It's much, much easier with them to just take one item out without turning everything else into a catastrophic mess. Also, as others say, you can pack more densely with the cubes than without. I've given starter sets of cubes as gifts to many friends.

Here's what I take on almost every trip, of almost every length (longest so far was a bit over three weeks). I use a 22" carryon (made by Eagle Creek).
- One full-size folder (for jeans, slacks, skirts, buttoned shirts)
- Two full-size cubes (one with T-shirts/turtlenecks rolled up across the short width; one with lingerie/socks)
- Hanging toiletries bag from Eagle Creek(fits in 'vertically' just below top handle of bag)
- Two pairs of extra shoes (in Eagle Creek shoe bags, usually)
- Empty foldup Baggalini bag (bought from eBags) plus empty full-size cube (both to carry & organize acquisitions from trip)
- In interior space between struts of handle, Eagle Creek Tube cube to organize small items, plus permanently-packed small cosmetic case with health stuff (bandaids, antacids, ibuprofen, etc -- nothing sensitive but stuff I'm often glad to have with me).

Separately, I carry a backpack with my electronics and papers, and a second Baggalini-type bag very very lightly packed with anything fragile I need to transport plus my fleece jacket for the plane.

With the weight of my bag and a few extras (umbrella in outside pocket, for instance), my suitcase usually weighs 31-34 pounds.

tahl

By the way -- my Eagle Creek carryon suitcase is the same one as jgg's daughter's!

adrienne

jgg's daughter must have the tiniest feet on earth to fit all those clothes and 5 sandals. One pair of my sandals takes up lots of room; 5 pairs would take up the entire suitcase!!

lincasanova

you would not be able to fly many airlines with a 30-35lb carry-on in Europe.

tahl

Adrienne -- I find shoes the hardest thing to fit in, too! Always annoyed suitcase manufacturers typically leave them out when they're showing how much their bags can hold.

Forgot in my own packing list:
- Small LL Bean Touring Healthy Back bag to use as my 'daily purse' on travel
- Rain jacket (also LL Bean)
Both of those fit in the mesh pocket that covers the full inner side of the suitcase's lid.

adrienne

tahl - which LL Bean rain jacket did you buy. I bought one last year but returned it as the fabric was noisy and I knew the sound would bother me.

Southam

I'm with the compression bag group. While they don't prevent wrinkling -- nothing does, except a personal valet -- the bags do reduce the squish. Because they are transparent, border security can look at them easily. A cheaper, if flimsier, version may be found in the Storage section of some department stores. They're for under-the-bed storage. Just be careful to get the ones that roll shut rather than requiring a vacuum cleaner.

tahl

lincasanova: re: the bag's weight. I fly to & from the US, and sometimes between points outside the US, and so far the weight has never been over the standard checked-bag weight limit (with no additional fee for weight). I check weight limits each time, as airline regs do change. I don't think I've been on anything other than major carriers in the past two years since weight restrictions really tightened (United, KAL, Lufthansa, Delta, American, plus some of their regional affiliates in the US).

I do take it carry-on as well, but generally in the US and not on overseas travel or travel between two non-US points. I've never been questioned on within-US flights about its weight that I can recall.

The backpack that I do always take as carryon is often very, very heavy with books, laptop, and other electronics. Not once has anybody ever asked to weigh it, anywhere in the world. Ditto for my carry-on Baggalini bag, which has borne all sorts of stuff, including marble bookends. Do intra-European airlines ever weigh any carry-ons other than suitcases?

Adrienne: I think I have the LLBean Women's Trail Model Rain Jacket (bought two or three years ago). I like it a lot. The fabric of almost all waterproof jackets is a little noisy, but it hasn't been a problem, and the jacket is quite comfortable and packs up nice & small.