janisj

>>Bill's wife takes more stuff than can be put into a carryon. It doesn't matter why. It doesn't matter if most women can travel with less. Of course Bill's wife could take less if she wanted to, but she doesn't want to. All that really matters is that Bill and his wife are happy with the amount of stuff they take and that if they choose to take trains, they can handle their own luggage.<<

That is absolutely fine. No argument from me. It s all Bill's generalizations that women need more crap/stuff/whatever. They don't .

And BTW - I DO take more than one handbag. One on my shoulder boarding the plane and one <u>inside</u> my carry on sized suitcase. And I take at least 3 pairs of shoes. And dressy clothing as well as casual things. And toiletries. I take more than many of the light packers posting on this thread. But it all STILL fits in my 21 inch rollie bag plus handbag - with room to spare.

I spend a lot of time in major cities and like to dress up . . . all from a carry on.

greg

I have a Gedankenexperiment to differentiate cannot from don't want to for this type of case. Suppose a wealthy relative comes to you offering a fully paid trip you design yourself and offers to fly you on business class. But there is a catch. You can only take one 22-inch carry-on. Will you take the offer? If you can take the offer, then the luggage issue was a matter of motivation in the first place.
Is this purely hypothetical? Not at all. While I did not offer a business class flight, I have given an offer to my usually overpacking daughter that I would pay for flight to travel with us, but she could only bring a 22-inch carry-on and not her usual 26-inch. She could magically fit her stuff in a smaller bag, and she did not use even a half of what she brought.

november_moon

janis - I pack the same way you do basically. And I pack lighter than my husband

Who knows - maybe Bill made the generalization because it makes him feel better to think that all husbands have wives that over pack and was looking for a little of the "yeah. Women. What can you do, right?" Type of response ;-)

thursdaysd

greg - that experiment only works if the testee can't afford the biz class themselves. Since the OP is asking elsewhere for recs for five star hotels I doubt he's a suitable subject.

BillT

You pay our way on business class and I'll travel with just a belly bag! The wife is not high maintenance- she is just fine with what she needs/wants to take and I accommodate her wants- that's what keeps our 26 year marriage going. Knowing what not to sweat!
OK now lets get some people really upset- the older women get the bigger their purse!

simpsonc510

Now, Bill.... don't go there!

A bigger purse is too hard on my shoulder. This is where I can and do carry something small when travelling.

janisj

>>the older women get the bigger their purse!<<

Nope

centraleurope

I will assume you know how much stuff you need. Congrats to all who travel light.

I take this train all the time... Whenever I need to schlepp a lot of luggage, I buy a first class ticket.

For this route, it will cost nominally more... The service is not much different (bigger seats). But since few people sit there, you will have lots more luggage room.

BillT

Thanks- when I was checking trains from Prague to Dresden there was only second class indicated. The bus seems to be a better option- no worries about luggage storage and its the same time which is only about 2.5 hours and much cheaper. Any experience on taking the bus?

spaarne

<i>BillT on Jul 3, 13 at 7:06am
Thanks- when I was checking trains from Prague to Dresden there was only second class indicated. The bus seems to be a better option- no worries about luggage storage and its the same time which is only about 2.5 hours and much cheaper. Any experience on taking the bus?</i>

I have not taken this particular bus but I have taken international buses in other parts of Europe.

Find out exactly where the bus stops to pick up passengers. Bus stops are not always clearly marked or jumping out at you. There are usually several bus companies which may use different terminals near the train stations. You probably need a seat reservation. Be early because there are only so many seats. The buses look huge but the seats are tiny. You are going to feel cramped. Luggage is stored in a compartment under the bus or in a trailer. When the bus stops at intermediate points make sure that your luggage is not off-loaded. Luggage does not get a destination tag as on the airlines. Sometimes the bus will stop to let off passengers in the middle of nowhere.

thursdaysd

If I'm given a choice beteen bus and train I take the train. You have more room, plus the freedom to move around (and use the toilets) and maybe a restaurant car. Also, you can keep an eye on your bags, I am always a little nervous with my bag under the bus unless there are no stops. And the train is a lot less likely to be involved in an accident.

spaarne

<i>thursdaysd on Jul 3, 13 at 9:48am
If I'm given a choice beteen bus and train I take the train. You have more room, plus the freedom to move around (and use the toilets)</i>
Very good point regarding toilets. The bus may or may not have one, and if it has one it may or may not be operational. You may need to drain the bladder in a hurry when you arrive at your destination but you will first need to get a local coin to enter the WC. Getting coins anywhere in Europe is a PITA.

BillT

Good points - yes I am a bit concerned about where the bus picks up - trains don't have that concern. Oh well I have plenty of time to resolve this issue - bus or train- thanks all for your feedback!

suze

OK now I am curious. Why would an older woman have a larger purse? I'm not offended, just can't figure out why.

I do think part of the importance of packing light for me is because I travel solo so don't have a nice understanding husband like BillT to carry my luggage around!

november_moon

"OK now I am curious. Why would an older woman have a larger purse? I'm not offended, just can't figure out why."

To balance out the bags under their eyes, of course Otherwise they will fall over.

BillT

suze:

Ok at the risk of getting beat up here goes:
I notice over the many years that young women- 20's - seem to carry small purses- and as they get older their purses grow in size as they do. Ok one reason could be that they tend to need more stuff- make up, hair things, etc. Women in their 20's - in my humble opinion- don't really need much of that but alas as one ages (men age as well) they require more stuff to maintain shall we say that youthful look they had in their 20's. Proof of this no doubt is the billion dollar cosmetic industry and every drug store has a dedicated aisle for women's hair care products.
There may be other reasons as well but that is what comes to mind.
OK I have my bullet proof vest on, I'm ready to take the hits that are surely coming.
Guys...Words that I have come to live by regarding shoes and purses:

Its not about need its about wants- understand that and you will save yourself a lot of grief!

suze

I'm not going to clobber you. I just think your theory is completely incorrect.

All the 20-something women I know wear a LOT more makeup and cosmetics than the 50, 60, or 70 year old women do. As women age usually they wear less make up, not more.

BillT

suze:
We can agree to disagree- perhaps there are other reasons all I know is what I have observed over several decades.
Shall we get into shoes and purses?

simpsonc510

Well, my travel purse is very small. My day-to-day purse is much larger. There really isn't any makeup in it... I've cut down on that, to bare minimum. I do have checkbooks (and don't flame me here because I (still) write checks!!). I also have to carry reading glasses. I have a heavier wallet (not necessarily more money...haha) because of more cards for various hotel/airline/store clubs, etc. Then there are the credit cards and ATM cards for several accounts. I also carry note paper and pens/pencils, so I can keep notes. I might have a small crossword puzzle book or Sudoku book to keep me entertained during down time. I could go on........

Yes, my purse has gotten larger as I've aged. But my travel purse has gotten much smaller... to help my shoulder.

november_moon

OMG simpson!! You still write checks?!? What century are you in?

Just kidding - is it the weekend yet? I want to go home and start celebrating this great country of ours. And CLEARLY I have other things on my mind today besides work

Happy Independence Day everybody!!! And for the non-Americans (un-Americans? ) celebrate with us. We celebrate everybody else's holidays, you guys should celebrate ours too.