LLBean has a great bag - "Travel Touring Bag" in 2 sizes. I have both and use both. The small is the size of a medium-sized purse. The large is as big as a small backpack. Just got a catalogue yesterday and they are on sale right now....

I carry the kind of bag that is sort of flat that has a long strap that you put over your head. The bag rests at my waist (or where ever) and requires no hands. I have Kipling and Tumi models. When touring in a large city, I carry the following:
-Cash, ID and cards in a small zipper wallet.
-4 or 5 paper towels
-Antibacterial gel
-Chapstick
-Hand lotion (Little bottle from hotel)
-Soap (the little bottle of bath gel from the hotel)
-Phone
-Itinerary, planned out by destination on the note pad from the hotel
-Pen
-Eye Drops
-Toilet Paper (a foot or two, folded up)
-Excedrin
-Map, torn from Where magazine
-Camera
-Glasses and a soft leather case (takes less room and is lighter)
-MiniMints or gum because it can help quell hunger and that raunchy taste in your mouth from walking around all day
-Wish list with colors and measurements... this may be stuff for me or family.
-4 chewable PeptoBismal tablets
-4 or 5 individually packaged HandiWipes
-Cushioned bag handle. This thing velcros around the handles of shopping bags and makes them easier to carry.
-TINY Umbrella if it is sunny or rainy.
All this sounds crazy but it is lightweight and does not take much room. My bags have multiple pockets, so it is well organized.
I have used everything and been thankful that I had it!
The worst thing about hiking around the city all day to me is getting dirty. I carry things that help me stay clean and comfortable.
It's all little and lighweight, so the bag does not look stuffed. You would never know I have all that stuff!

I know what you mean about wanting to check out places -- but some of the best places I've ever found were recommended by locals that I asked because I didn't have a guide book along. Its a wonderful way to converse with residents and frequent more neighborhoody places. After all, if you only go to places listed in the guide book, you'll most likely find a whole lot of other tourists there.

Toilet paper? NYC is not a third world country. I live here and am out and about all day long. Aside from the camera and the guide book, I manage from day to day without carrying hand sanitizer, toilet paper, wipes, soap and paper towels.
If you feel dirty, just go into any hotel lobby and wash up in the bath room. Need a bandaid or 2 excedrin, there is a Duane Reade on every corner. Why would you try to carry around every single thing you 'might' need? If I worked on that theory, I would be toting an umbrella, binoculars, ipod charger, hairspray, tweezers, and assorted other junk on a daily basis. You can buy an umbrella at the Duane Reade for 6 bucks if it starts to rain.

Well, the toilet paper has multiple uses. Call it a tissues if you want, but TP works fine too.
I have severe allergies and need tissue and as a matter of fact, several of the bathrooms we finally found did NOT have TP. You act like NYC is a potty-friendly town and it is not.
As far as an umbrella goes, I have to use one if there is direct sunlight so I have invested in a really good one that folds to almost nothing.
If it is sunny or rainy I need one... so I might as well carry it.
I always carry stuff to clean my hands.
Why would I want to stop and buy stuff when I have tiny quantities available to me at the hotel... besides it take up very little room.
Using your philosophy, why carry chapstick? Why carry anything at all? You can buy it right when you need it.
Well, that's just silly.
I carry what I traditionally need. It's not what you need maybe... but it is what I need.

Backpacks are usually too heavy - as well as not safe - since anyone cann get into it without you'r knowing - esp on the subway and the bus when people are constatly brushing past you.

You need to get a very lightweight bag (like a Sportsac) that is sturdy, expandable and can be worn on the shoulder or bandolier style across the chest - so the bag is always in front of you - where you can see it. On the street wear however you want - but bus or subway when it's busy do bandolier style and keep one hand on the bag while you hold onto the subway pole or handle with the other.

Sorry -

Mine is about a foot long with a bunch of outside pockets for maps, sunglasses etc - and the inside compartment can expand to hold wallet, guidebook, umbrella, jacket if needed, water bottle etc.

Have had a couple of them - one for at least 12 years - they're indescrutible and just wipe clean.

txtravelpro - sorry if it sounded like a personal attack on you. i just wonder why people who are perfectly content walking around with minimal 'supplies' at home, have to take the kitchen sink in their bags when touring. If you don't need soap while you are in your hometown running around doing errands and whatnot, why would you think you need that while walking around the city? If you NEED an umbrella or tissues, then, by all means, that is what you should take. But to take a bunch of things that you might need, that is another story. The OP does not want to schlepp around a backback. Unless she cannot get through the day without all of the items or similar items on your list, she can make do with pockets or a small purse.

Such different philosophies of what to bring along! We once went on a birding trip with a guy who carried all kinds of stuff in one of those large-ish lower-back packs, including duct tape, and he visibly struggled with the weight of it. We asked why he didn't offload some stuff, like the duct tape, for the shorter hikes, and he replied that the whole point was having it on hand when you need it, and you never know when you're gonna need it. Myself, I try to pare down to essentials because carrying less makes me feel more free and on-vacation--of course, the essentials vary according to locale, weather, etc.

I said it in another thread, I'll say it here.

New York is a city, not the wilderness. If you all-of-a-sudden need something to eat or drink, or an aspirin or whatever, there are a zillion places to get them.

If it doesn't fit in your pockets (male) or purse (female), you don't need it.

No problemo
You should see all the stuff I carry at home! My minimal 'supplies' when I am a tourist represent real discipline.
I often travel with groups of people and I am the person everyone goes to when they need a needle and thread, Immodium, etc...
The girl can't help it

Ok... I agree that if it does not fit in my purse I do not carry it.
The bag I carry, WITH all my stuff, weighs less than 1 pound if I am not carrying water. It is about 7x10 and has several pockets, as most Kipling bags do... it is on a cotton strap that I wear bandolier style. It lays flat against my body.
I would say that it is MUCH smaller and MUCH lighter than what many people carry. The only weight is from water and the phone. Think of all the junk people carry. My purses have always been 1/2 the size of most women, if not smaller.

TxTravelPro, your post made me laugh because I have lived in NYC for over 15 years - and I carry pretty much everything that you do! And in the proportions you do.

I have a small zip Walker bag that fits inside my purse with: advil, lip balm, pen, nail file, hand sanitizer, tiny perfume bottle, comb (and probably more stuff I can't remember). I also carry cell phone, small wallet, sunglasses, mp3 player (recently made obsolete by my new cell phone), small camera (not obsolete because it's much better than the crappy cell camera!). In the outside pockets, there are Metrocard, keys, etc. I often carry a slightly larger bookbag too, which includes a great tiny umbrella in its own little bag with a strap - a savior for our unpredictable weather!

If you saw me on the street or the subway, you wouldn't think I was lugging the kitchen sink around with me. And I will say having something like advil on hand without trekking to a drugstore is worth every extra ounce. (At work, there's a DR 1/2 block away. But that means down 2 elevators, cross Madison Ave, go in store, wait in line, pay, back across avenue, through security, up 2 elevators... LOL. And no, my department never has that kind of stuff on hand for our use!)

I would agree that large, bulky backpacks are definitely a no-go. If you must carry one, PLEASE take it off before you enter the subway! Or for that matter, while you're on the plaform!! Awareness and sensitivity towards your fellow riders is paramount.


Pisces, if you need to distribute the weight, I'd suggest looking for a smaller backpack that fits your needs. If you don't mind the style, try looking in sporting goods stores (REI, EMS, Campmor, etc.) for packs that have ergonomic straps and padding: they make them this way now even for smaller bags.