On our first adult trip to the UK with our school age children many years ago, we each had a daypack for our regular clothes, toiletries, etc. and a joint hanging garment sleeve for all of our dress clothes. We changed into these clothes at night for dinner and for church on Sunday, so in a week they got 7-10 hours of use and were relly pretty fresh even by the time we took our weekly trip to the laundromat.

I find it so refreshing to go out in casual clothes when I travel that I have completely given up dressing up at home as well. Nice going out to dinner outfits and matching shoes? Not since the last millenium.

And I can't be the only one- I never feel out of place, most people are dressed casually wherever I go.

I consider packing light to be a 19" carryon rollie and a 22 inch checked rollie. You can get a lot in there. 5 pairs of trousers and ten tops for only 10 days seems excessive though - and three coats? Three pairs of shoes aren't, though. If you are taking hiking boots, you need two other pairs of regular shoes.

I pack with the thought in the back of my head that "I might get caught out in the rain some time" and I better take an extra pair of shoes, pants, etc - just in case they need to spend a day drying.

I'm also going to Paris in May, for 8 days. I'm thinking two pairs of pants, two skirts, 5 tops, a cardigan or two, scarves(!) (oh, how i love scarves), something waterproof, and under garments. Oh, and two pairs of shoes.

I am dead-set one only traveling with a carry-on, so I'll cut these back if I need to.

Eliza, you can do it too! I think having undershirts is key to keeping the tops feeling fresh.

Our starting point is one outfit to wear, one to wash, and one to dry. That gets slightly adjusted up or down depending on destination, diversity of planned activities, and trip length.

Our 22 inch bag is half empty on departure, leaving room for purchases.

The system works for us.

I usually take multiple pairs of shoes - last summer for a 2 weeks trip I had ballet flats, loafers, regular sandals, and hiking sandals. But then I wear size 5, so I can get away with it.

My girlfriend who lives in Europe "airs out" her clothes. She rarely washes them (outer garments). I follow her lead.

After a day of touring Paris, I also would want a shower and fresh undies, but could easily put on my clothes from the day before, or some mix & match combo. I don't need a full frseh outfit of actual clean clothes to feel good. I do travel with 3-4 pair of shoes. Because if something goes wrong with your feet/footwear that can really ruin a trip!

Rainy day and suze-

You are my kind of travel mates. I carry-on. Undies and turtlenecks can be hand washed, and mix & match and pretty scarves can go a long way. When I have made a mess of something, every neighborhood has a dry cleaner. You'd send it to be cleaned at home, why not on vaca? Wear the heavier shoes on the plane and stuff your jacket pockets.