TC

Have done it many times - two weeks and longer. Some of my tips: Use one color family so everything coordinates with everything else. Mine is black, black and more black. Pack for events - not days (something for casual daytime, dressy evening, hiking/biking ...whatever - but just one outfit for each KIND of event, then use it more than once). Dress up casual outfits with jewelry or scarves. Layer for warmth -- sweater and raincoat instead of a large heavy winter coat. Cashmere sweaters are extremely warm and very lightweight. If you pack in color families, you only need two pair of shoes in one color -- one casual, one dressy (of which you'll wear one on the plane). Wear your bulky things on the plane. Only take one purse. Pack sample size cosmetics. Get an easy haircut that doesn't require a lot of hotrollers, hairdriers, etc. Take light weight lingerie that can be easily hand washed. To keep wrinkles to a minimum, pack in large ziplock bags and squeeze all the air out. And last -- don't worry too much about how you look. Unless you have traveling companions, no one will know that you've worn the same outfit twice -- and even if they do, who cares?

Carry-on is especially good for train travel in Italy.

DRJ

Piece of cake. I've done it fourteen times in the past six years. Although I check my baggage, its carry on size.

luvtotravel

Definitely doable. I don't mind checking luggage on the return trip, but I want my stuff with me on the outbound portion. I use a carry-on size suitcase that unzips to add about three inches to the width of the suitcase for coming home if I've done a lot of shopping. I also carry a large satchel as my purse and switch to a small purse once at my destination.

As TC noted, I also bring lots of black--lots of solid colors. You can do wonders with accessories.

I stick to the rule that I must be able to carry all my luggage up a flight of stairs at one time. If I can't, I start taking things out of the suitcase until I can.

mari5

It's possible if you have the courtesy to take on a SMALL carryon. If everyone tried to carry on a 20 or 22 inch suitcase there would not be room in the overhead bins. I don't understand what people have against checking their bags, even smaller ones!!! I've seen people try to carry on way too much..which makes it difficult for those who abide by the rules and just store a small carryon overhead.
There is a way to pack light, as others have said so not to be encombered by too much to carry around once get to Europe. Polyester, ....etc..I even do it in the winter,,with a 24 " which I check!
The % of losing your checked luggage is VERY VERY low,,,,!

bc_canuck

My wife and I spent a month (June) last year travelling from Greece, Italy through to Germany and only had a carryon each. It is amazing what you can do without. We did a laundry every few days in the hotels/pensions. We did take some nylon clothing that was quick drying as cotton can take a while. We flew Lufthansa and Aegean Airlines and passed through Frankfurt, Munich,Athens and Santorini airports without anyone checking weight or size. We just said we had carryon.

tracilee

Yes, nbbrown, if I can do it, anyone can. My husband and I also flew first class on British Air to London, then business class to Venice, each of us with only a 22" roller board. We went in late September so we didn't have bulky winter clothes either. I bought several items from Chico's Traveler's line. They were very versatile and did not wrinkle. We did laundry one time, in Rome, about 10 days into our trip. My husband wore his sportscoat on the plane, as it is men's underwear takes up so much room, he would not have had room to pack it. We brought an extra bag which folded up in one of our bags and used it to carry home all of the things we bought on the trip. That bag we checked on the way home. Have fun!

nbbrown

For goodness sakes, I have nothing against checking our luggage. We usually do! This time, however, we just decided to try something different so we, for one, wouldn't have to hassle with and waste time checking and picking up our luggage. Another reason is that we have a very *small* window of time from when we arrive in Rome to when we need to be at our hotel, and I didn't want to stress out waiting for our luggage, wondering if we were going to make it in time before the front destk closes for the night.

I have always checked our luggage, and rarely carried anything on, other than my purse, so I don't feel bad about trying something new this time, even if I chose to carry on the full size limit of 22"!

nbbrown

Thank you, all, for your help. You've certainly given me some great ideas to consider!

kswl

Those heavy-gauge plastic zip bags with the valve to let air out are really fantastic. If you fold your clothes very carefully and slide them into a bag, zip it, and roll out the air, they will still be beutifully "pressed" when you take them out. Bags come in varying sizes. I found the medium to be the most versatile, and packed each outfit in a separate bag. They stacked like thin packages in my suitcase.

Magellan has a grezt clothesline made of braided rubber that doesn't even require pins to hang garments. But, at the end of a day of sightseeing I am usually too tired to do laundry in the bathroom sink. Italian laundries are wonderful, although expensive, and everything will come back clean, fresh, pressed, and looking brand new. Sending the laundry out is a luxury well worth the cost, in my opinion.

suze

kswl and others re ziplocks and vacuum pack clothes:

just remember although you can fit much more stuff neatly into a suitcase, that also means it is heavier!

the first time i packed using large ziplocks and sitting on them to squeeze the air out, is the first time i was forced to check rather than carry-on because the exact same suitcase i always used was now aLOT heavier than previous trips.

montyw

Some tips we have after our 3 week honeymoon in Italy last May with a single carry-on each.

Make sure you have one set of toiletries for the 2 of you - no need to have 2 of anything. We also each had a very small backback/back sling bag that we put any medicine in, contact lens, glasses etc...so that if we had to check we could. No extra purse for the wife, it went in her back sling.

We brought multiple sizes of ziplocks, it is amazing how many pairs of underwear fit in a quart bag rolled up and all of the air pressed out!

Gallon sizes fit shirts etc...

For items that wrinkle a tip I learned is to roll up t-shirt first and fold the other garment over the rolled t-shirt.

We had room in our bags on the way over for extra items, plus we brought a bagalini in case we needed it for shopping or on return. Also with the extra room in our bag if we were ever hassled about having an extra bag due to our very small back bags we could stuff them inside.

janis

I always use either a 19 inch or a 21 inch rollaboard - even when flying on airlines where I will have to check it (Virgin, Ba, etc) because of light cabin weight limits. It isn't hard at all - some people roll their garments, but I prefer to use the "bundle" method because I find nothing wrinkles except maybe lightweight silks or linen.

And even IF you do get wrinkles, they will either hang out in the steam from your shower, or you can borrow an iron from your hotel.

One thing about the vacuum bags - I do take 1 or 2 -- but I take them empty. You can get all the clothes in a 19/21 inch bag so you don't need to cram more in vacuum bags. But coming home I use them to hold my dirty clothes, or even clean stuff, and that leaves tons of room to get all my new purchases in the sam suitcase.

Boodja

While working as a guide/assistant in Europe I have had to live out of a carry-on for three and four months at a time, so it is entirely possible. Clients can bring luggage galore, but the company I worked for specified that we could not bring more than a 22x14x9 roller.

Having clothes that travel well is important, but so is being able to pack light in toiletries. This is the one thing I would most strongly recommend. If you can get along without bringing your favorite shampoos and creams, cotton swabs and soaps, it's likely that something sufficient can be found in a local store.

If this is how you choose to travel, plan on bringing (or buying) another duffel or tote to bring home the souvenirs!

ldh

I would like to add a point about using the ziplock bags to compress your clothes so they take up less space. This works beautifully but you have to remember that they still weigh the same so even tho you can pack more, you'll also have a heavier bag to carry.

I like the bags for keeping things neatly in the bag, sorting without refolding etc. And for security checks, they are rifling thru the bags, not messing up the neatly packed clothes.



I use a 19 inch carry on, and my husband a 22in. We then have a small tote bag for the flight necessites, cameras, film etc. (I also pack my film in ziplock bags, know the big thing is digital but I'm partial to film). On two separate trips I've shipped home the second pair of shoes we packed as they weren't worth carrying the extra weight.

As for needing more room for bringing things home, I pack a small expandable duffle bag. We check one carry on for the trip home and use the other and the duffle for items we want to keep with us.

My husband now laughs about how careful I am to keep the luggage light. The first trip we took to Europe 25 years ago I packed 2 mediums size suitcases, an overnighter and a hatbox type---and he did most of the carrying. Live and learn. Good luck!

ldh

I would like to add a point about using the ziplock bags to compress your clothes so they take up less space. This works beautifully but you have to remember that they still weigh the same so even tho you can pack more, you'll also have a heavier bag to carry.

I like the bags for keeping things neatly in the bag, sorting without refolding etc. And for security checks, they are rifling thru the bags, not messing up the neatly packed clothes.

I use a 19 inch carry on, and my husband a 22in. We then have a small tote bag for the flight necessites, cameras, film etc. (I also pack my film in ziplock bags, know the big thing is digital but I'm partial to film). On two separate trips I've shipped home the second pair of shoes we packed as they weren't worth carrying the extra weight.

As for needing more room for bringing things home, I pack a small expandable duffle bag. We check one carry on for the trip home and use the other and the duffle for items we want to keep with us.

My husband now laughs about how careful I am to keep the luggage light. The first trip we took to Europe 25 years ago I packed 2 mediums size suitcases, an overnighter and a hatbox type---and he did most of the carrying. Live and learn. Good luck!

SalB

We just did six weeks in France and Italy with a carryon and a backpack each. You don't need half of what you take and you can always do a laundry . . . although I'll admit it's easier to find an automatic laundry in France than in Italy. We did find laundries in Italy where a nice lady does your clothes for you and it didn't cost much more than an automatic laundry.

Huitres

Certo! It is the only way to travel each and every time!

granbury

We did 3 weeks in Italy last year with only one small rolling duffle bag each. I read everything on the travel forums about traveling light. I ended up leaving half of my clothes in a hotel room in Sorrento just to lighten my bag. Lugging any bag around Italy is a chore, much less a heavy one!

stefanaccio

Looks like it is unanimous. Have done it on several occausions myself. Especially helpful if you are flying Air France in which case it is extremely difficult to make connnecting flights. My advice is to take old clothes with you, thrown them away at the end of the trip. This will give you some room to return with a gift or two.

Casale-Abruzzo Villa
http://www.angelfire.com/film/casale

Ann1

Like everyone, I do it all of the time. The one thing to remember is that anywhere you go people that live there have the same problems you have like......headaches, the "runs", hair to shampoo, bodies to wash, clothes to wash, athletes foot, rashes, etc. etc, etc. I don't bring shampoo because most hotels (even cheap ones) have shampoo. We have run into some of the above problems and pharmacies have always had the perfect cure. A lot of times they are even better. We purchased an itch cream for mosquito bites that was completely natural and worked better than anything we have ever purchased in the States. Once we ran into a B & B in Bruges that didn't have soap or shampoo but the shops nearby had it. Spo pack light.