Ultralight principles to (airplane) carry-on luggage?

[Dochartaigh]

I'm just wondering if anybody is as insane as me to to apply their ultralight hiking principles to their carry-on luggage when they're flying on a plane?

I'm planning a trip to a couple countries in Europe next summer and wanted to see if I could fit everything I need into a carry-on size bag (which for domestic flights in Europe is a very small 21x13x8", albeit 22 pounds). This is a city to city type trip (i.e. no camping). Getting a LOT more luggage over there from the U.S. is easy size and weight wise (with many airlines still not charging extra for checked luggage), but those smaller country-to-country flights inside Europe are where it can cost 50 Euros (about $55) to check a single bag (and most flights are like $30...), and is why I wanted to try this out (plus I already had most of the stuff I needed so why not?)

With the appropriate size bag (I picked up an Osprey Porter 30-liter bag for cheap), I found it's a tight fit but completely doable. Used the same hiking clothes I always wear (which are light, compact, and stain/smell resistant: 3x shirts, 1x pants, 1x shorts, 2x socks and underwear, some backup sandals, froggtoggs and jacket; along with a quick dry towel and Coccon travelsheet for the hostels). Even used some of my larger bottles to repackage toiletries in. Computer, Kindle, 1-pound camera and all accessories, travel books (~2 pounds right there), USB battery pack, plug converters, sunglasses, water bottle, first aid kit - all picked out with ultralight in mind. Everything is coming out to 17 pounds!

...just wondering if anyone has done similar.

[bigcranky]

Yup, every time. My carryon pack is not much smaller than my hiking pack, and I don't need to worry about tent, bag, cook kit, etc., so I have plenty of room for everything I need for an indefinite trip. My carryon is smaller than the max so I never have to worry about checking it even on smaller regional jets.

I wear travel pants and a light wool short sleeve top, wool socks, wool boxer briefs, hiking shoes, and a lightweight jacket. I pack a single change of clothing, just like when hiking -- long sleeve wool shirt, second pair of travel pants, spare socks and underwear. Something to sleep in on a train, toiletries, and personal items. We're headed to Ukraine in January for 11 days and the only thing I will add is warm clothing which I will wear (fleece, down parka, hat, gloves). My small camera bag fits inside my carryon so I have only one bag which easily fits under any airline seat, even in the smallest planes -- no anxiety about overhead space because I don't need it.

Like in ultralight hiking, once you get past all the things you think you "need" for travel (like a change of clothes for every day, and multiple pairs of shoes), and get into the mindset of "everything fits in this little tiny bag", travel gets a lot easier. I can wash out my base layers in my room and hang them to dry. I can buy extra toilet articles at my destination. I don't need a giant camera bag, just a single camera and lens. (I like the Fuji X100 series.)

I even do this when I travel for work, which is pretty often, though mostly for a single overnight. I put my suit, shirt, socks, and shoes in my carryon, and pack my camera kit (which is why I am going) into a shoulder bag. Fly to the destination, go to the hotel, put on the suit, go shoot the event, the next day I can put on my previous day's travel clothes and get back on the plane. All carryon, all small bags, no worries at the airport.

Now if I can just apply the ultralight principles to my house and all my crap. Working on it. :)

[JustaTouron]

There is probably more websites and blogs dedicated to this style of travel than to ul backpacking.

Check out onebag.com

Sent from my SM-T110 using Tapatalk

[Dogwood]

Not insane, but when done well, smart. As said, many a savvy in the know travelers have learned to pack light which is that communities way of applying UL philosophy. Many benefits to traveling UL and LIVING LIGHT. Huge proponent of LIVING LIGHT. For some of us UL does not begin and end at the TH.

[garlic08]

One of the more helpful tenets of UL packing is to be able to wear all the clothes you pack at the same time as part of a coordinated layering system. Applying that to airline travel greatly reduces the pack volume.

[colorado_rob]

My wife and I are doing a 3-week UK trip next May, including 100 miles of hiking (west highland way) and we will both have only carryon luggage. this is the only way to travel in Europe, UL that is, IMHO, makes it so much easier to get around on trains, buses, subways, etc. I did 6 weeks in France this way. We basically will both have 40 liter backpacks with all of our gear and "civilian" clothes, wearing our hiking boots on the plane.

[Odd Man Out]

I try to do the same too. Getting my wife to go UL, however - easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle... She has had her carry on rejected for being overweight a couple of times now. I think she finally got the message when I showed her that about half of her carry on weight allowance was taken up by her carry on bag when empty! She finally agreed that it would make sense to buy a smaller bag (since it is too heavy when full anyway) and a lighter bag (so she can cut less stuff). Not really UL, but we are using UL principles. Too bad the checked luggage limit is 50 lbs. Fortunately her checked bag is still a carry on size - just heavier. Even though we (well she) over packs, it is easy to ID our bags when they come out on the luggage carousel - they are the ones that look tiny compared to the monster bags everyone travels with.

[Heliotrope]

I have been doing this for 3 or 4 years now. It makes traveling way more fun even if there is no hiking on the trip. Sink washable and quick dry clothes are essential. I usually wear street shoes and carry trail runners fir gym workouts or hikes. I also indulge in one pair of jeans plus nylon hiking pants. Carrying hiking type food is a must for me. Chocolate, nuts, jerky, bars, cheese, crackers, even granola and dried milk for hotels.

I like Bigcranky,'s idea of going ultralight on all of the crap at home. Perhaps it can make preparing and launching trips smoother and more enjoyable. [emoji2]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[JustaTouron]

Of course there are extremists rtwblog.com

Sent from my SM-T110 using Tapatalk

[Tuckahoe]

Nice thread. Planning my own trip to Dublin and England as well. Looking at the Porter 30 and keeping it light weight as well.

[rickb]

My wife and have done only one "group" trip abroad-- something like 10 days.

When we all got together at the airport, the leader singled my wife and I out for wisdom traveling with only a couple small carry ons, as he and the others waited to check thier luggage.

His is complements were a bit over the top-- even took a picture. Not sure if he was sincere, but while I didn't feel like we were traveling especially light it was kind of crazy how much stuff some people were lugging.

The best part was on the reaction we got second day in when we joined the group in our wet suits and fins. I think the fact that we had them was beyond on woman's comprehension.

Some people need a clean pair of underwear and new shirt every day, and others can find a sink and soap and water...

[v1k1ng1001]

I bring a small bottle of woolite for sink washing merino. Nylon and other synthetic items are even easier as shampoo will do in a pinch and they'll dry faster.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Dochartaigh]

Looking at the Porter 30 and keeping it light weight as well.

I've been playing with the Porter 30 for a few days now and overall I like it. The only thing I don't like is the size - which it's constrained to because of the required carry-on sizes. This means it'll never fit my large torso properly. But with around 17 pounds in it, it'll be fine for an ~hour walk from the airport or train station to the hotel (any longer and it would get uncomfortable).

I also found I don't need any of the 20 little storage compartments on the large outside pocket. The large laptop pocket is fine for my MacBook Air 11", but the others are just wasted space since all my smaller items are in two small travel storage cubes. You might be able to find a bag more simple and cheaper if you likewise don't need all those pockets

[Siestita]

Kudos to you ultra lite folks who manage to travel internationally comfortably with just 30 liter packs. For folks like me who sometimes want to take a bit more while staying "carry on" most of the time, there is the Porter 46. It's 45 linear inch dimensions comply exactly with the major airlines' carry on size rules. Porter 30 is smaller, reportedly totaling 41 linear inches.

During the past five years my Porter 46 has served me well for three trips to Mexico, of three weeks each, for a family vacation, and for travel to a professional conference or two. On two of those occasions I had to gate check my Porter 46, when planes literally had no overhead space available to store bags of any size.

For me, there are times when being able to travel with 46 liters of stuff, rather than just 30 liters, can be helpful. I did a little trekking between mountain towns during one December Mexico trip, so I carried in the Porter 46, in addition to warm clothes and "town stuff", a summer weight down sleeping bag and a Neoair. Having that bag and pad along made it possible for me to accept an invitation to sleep for two nights on the floor of the municipal building of a small village that was celebrating its patron saint's fiesta.

No, the Porter 46 is not as comfortable for me to haul for long distances as carrying my old Colin Fletcher style Trailwise external frame pack would be. And, for my aging back, 18 pounds is my personal comfort limit for the Porter 46. But Osprey deserves, I think, credit for applying know-how garnered from their development of wilderness backpacks to design of that Porter line of travel packs/duffels. I like the fact that there are pack straps and a hip belt, and I appreciate having the option of stowing those conveniently inside the pack.

Here is a Thorntree thread about good travel packs, some of which are slightly larger than the Porter 30:

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/forums/activities-gear/topics/for-all-you-light-travelers-what-single-carry-on-backpack-do-you-use?page=1#post_18194925


And, here are links to photos of mine of from Mexican village fiesta (and nearby hiking areas), and to a video of the fiesta made three years earlier by someone else:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/chris0daniel/albums/72157629877854091

https://www.flickr.com/photos/chris0daniel/albums/72157629140751240

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhVrD1QZDeo

[Marta]

This brings back memories...

When I was 14 I went to Germany for the summer on a chartered flight full of high school students. No weight limit on baggage. My mother masterminded my wardrobe and the packing. The suitcase weighed 76 pounds at the Boston airport. The handle broke as I was wrestling the bag onto the train in Frankfurt. Can we say miserable experience?

The next summer I went with my grandparents for a month in the "old country," Portugal. I brought two reversible wrap-around skirts and three or four polyester crepe blouses (all of which I made myself) which could be washed in the hotel bathroom sink, a bathing suit, and some easy wash & dry underwear. Baggage weight at Logan Airport: 21 pounds.

As has been noted above, there are websites--and travel clothing companies--devoted to light and easy travel. Allison Tilley (of the Tilley Hat family) wrote a little pamphlet on lightweight travel. For a woman, a basic black dress (crush-proof fabric) with a couple sets of costume jewelry will cover most situations in a stylish manner. A three-piece coordinated (all black works for me) outfit of top, slacks, and skirt, can be even more versatile. Unless you are part of a sports team, or going on a backcountry expedition, it's probably best to dress up rather than down, especially if you're heading someplace where clothing really matters--the UK, as a symbol of class, or Italy, just because.

Every time I board a flight (which has been frequently this year due to illness and death in the family), I goggle at my fellow travelers with their mountains of baggage, checked and especially carry-on. The amount of energy it takes to deal with all that stuff...I marvel at their willingness to do it.

I will probably never reach the simplicity of travel I have seen in some other people--who traveled in the clothes they were standing up in plus, maybe, a toothbrush in the shirt pocket. (There was a guy going by train from Siberia to Moscow. His "luggage" was a small paper bag, the principle contents of which were a bottle of champagne.) It's quick and easy, but one does end up smelling like a thru-hiker, so I don't want to go there when I'm not thru-hiking.

Best wishes for a great trip!

[colorado_rob]

Kudos to you ultra lite folks who manage to travel internationally comfortably with just 30 liter packs. For folks like me who sometimes want to take a bit more while staying "carry on" most of the time, there is the Porter 46. It's 45 linear inch dimensions comply exactly with the major airlines' carry on size rules. Porter 30 is smaller, reportedly totaling 41 linear inches. Good tip. Awesome pack, we were lusting for it at an REI recently, so we're actually buying a pair of them, the 46's, next spring (using our REI coupons and dividends...) just before our next trip (Scotland).

[Coffee]

I used a ULA CDT in Europe this past summer for hut to hut style hiking and exploring a couple of cities. I'll probably never go back to lugging large suitcases. One downside: like in certain parts of the US, it seems like "backpackers" are not treated as well as conventional tourists especially in fancy places. But that's a minor downside.

[bigcranky]

We have the Tom Bihn Tri-Star bags. They are about 32 liters. Some advantages: they are smaller than max carryon, so they fit under the seat on any airplane. I've never been asked to gate check it, nor do I worry about needing overhead bin space on a crowded flight. The Tri-Star has built in backpack straps, which are comfortable up to the max carryon weight of 8kg, but which zip away and the bag suddenly looks like a nice piece of high end luggage -- so when I arrive at the hotel, I'm not a "backpacker".

One advantage that doesn't get noted very often is the ability have all your stuff with you all the time. With a noon checkout and a 7pm train, there is no need to find a place to stash the bag, same with staying in a sketchy place.

The main downside to the Tom Bihn stuff is the price, but it's handmade in Oregon.

[Dogwood]

Here's Matt's Gear. http://expertvagabond.com/travel/

IMHO, an even moderately advanced UL LD hiker can find ways to cut some of the bulk and wt from his typical traveling kits. Good place to start though when considering UL travel. .

[Dochartaigh]

Kudos to you ultra lite folks who manage to travel internationally comfortably with just 30 liter packs. For folks like me who sometimes want to take a bit more while staying "carry on" most of the time, there is the Porter 46. It's 45 linear inch dimensions comply exactly with the major airlines' carry on size rules.


I would love to have more room! But the problem is when I looked at the 20ish budget airlines across Europe (think companies like RyanAir and EasyJet), the ideal size seems to be 21" tall x 13" wide x 7.87" deep to qualify for carry-on (they don’t do linear inches). Sadly, the Porter 46 is over that size in every dimension.


They even love to make you shove your bag into these metal pre-sized cubes to make sure it's EXACTLY under their spec, or they charge you the ~$50+ luggage fee! Pretty harsh…

[Bati]

Consider taking a train instead of a plane to travel between countries. Ferries and buses work too. On both trains and some boats you can get a sleeper, saving the cost of a room for the night. If you're traveling to a lot of places, look into a pass.
Be warned (especially if you're leaving from an airport that profiles): carrying too little can get you pulled for extra questioning by multiple people. Allow extra time to catch a flight in these cases.

[Dochartaigh]

Consider taking a train instead of a plane to travel between countries.

I'll take trains for destinations maybe a 2-3 hour train ride away, but for distances farther than that flights are almost always cheaper and faster (you can literally get a round trip flight from Dublin to Paris for $20 including taxes for example). And when you're only there for 2 weeks I like to get where I'm going as fast as possible!

[fiddlehead]

I didn't know international flights had baggage fees.
Mine never does: Asia to North America. No matter what airline I fly.
But, I still use only a carryon just so I don't have to wait for the baggage claim.
and it's easy.
Carryon's are pretty big anymore and I can get more than i need in there

I go back next week and am allowed 2-50 lb bags for free.
Who the hell takes 100 lbs of stuff with them?
Anywhere?
PLUS carryon

[Dochartaigh]

I didn't know international flights had baggage fees.
Mine never does: Asia to North America.

To Europe from the USA it's quite common lately which stinks. The cheapest airline to Norway is Norwegian Air which charges for any checked luggage for example (unless you upgrade your ticket). But more so I've been talking about the airlines between the countries inside Europe. All the cheap ones (Ryan Air, EasyJet, SAS, etc.) also charge you for anything beyond that small carry-on size (and is why I embarked on this project to begin with).

[Heliotrope]

I didn't know international flights had baggage fees.
Mine never does: Asia to North America. No matter what airline I fly.
But, I still use only a carryon just so I don't have to wait for the baggage claim.
and it's easy.
Carryon's are pretty big anymore and I can get more than i need in there

I go back next week and am allowed 2-50 lb bags for free.
Who the hell takes 100 lbs of stuff with them?
Anywhere?
PLUS carryon

My wife!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Coffee]

EasyJet in Europe is best compared to Spirit Airlines in the US. If you're comfortable with the nickel and diming on Spirit, you'll be used to Easy Jet and similar carriers as well.

[mkt42]

I would love to have more room! But the problem is when I looked at the 20ish budget airlines across Europe (think companies like RyanAir and EasyJet), the ideal size seems to be 21" tall x 13" wide x 7.87" deep to qualify for carry-on (they don’t do linear inches). Sadly, the Porter 46 is over that size in every dimension.



That's why I got an Osprey Farpoint 40 instead of the Porter 46. Smaller, lighter but still has a supportive suspension and hide-able straps and hipbelt. It's listed as 21 x 13 x 9. It probably is that thick when filled completely, so one would have to remember to not fill it. I have not flow on any budget Euro airlines but it should work for all but the most persnickety airlines. I have not yet had to check it on any US airline.

[colorado_rob]

Consider taking a train instead of a plane to travel between countries. Ferries and buses work too. On both trains and some boats you can get a sleeper, saving the cost of a room for the night. If you're traveling to a lot of places, look into a pass.Yeah, this. Train travel in Europe is a blast. It does take longer, of course, though there are those 180MPH trains in places (like the TGV in France....). Good thread and tips. I'm going to look at those Tom Bihn Tri-Star bags for travel when we're not hiking at our destination.

[squeezebox]

Hostels. My experience with hostels is from "81. And pretty much limited to England,Wales, and Switzerland. Hilter developed hostels so his youth group "scouts" would have a place to stay for the night. One of the few positive things he did. Hostels seem to be still aimed at that group. ie teenagers. If you are older than 18-20 you will probably find hostels pretty draconian.
But the feather bed I slept in in Switzerland in the high mountains was quite an experience. It was cold so I pulled the mattress next to me on top. A group of scouts pulled in about 10 pm, but were bedded down in about 10 minutes. the place was probably built as one of Hitler's original hostels from the early 30's maybe even a converted barn.
If you stay at a hostel expect to be treated like a 15 yr old child.
That's what happened to me.

[Coffee]

Hostels. My experience with hostels is from "81. And pretty much limited to England,Wales, and Switzerland. Hilter developed hostels so his youth group "scouts" would have a place to stay for the night. One of the few positive things he did. Hostels seem to be still aimed at that group. ie teenagers. If you are older than 18-20 you will probably find hostels pretty draconian.
But the feather bed I slept in in Switzerland in the high mountains was quite an experience. It was cold so I pulled the mattress next to me on top. A group of scouts pulled in about 10 pm, but were bedded down in about 10 minutes. the place was probably built as one of Hitler's original hostels from the early 30's maybe even a converted barn.
If you stay at a hostel expect to be treated like a 15 yr old child.
That's what happened to me.

I spent three weeks staying in mountain huts and hostels in Switzerland, Italy and France this year. They are NOTHING like American hostels - very fancy in comparison especially the meals, but be prepared to pay anywhere from $60-75/night. For this reason, the people were usually older than the typical hostels in the US. Younger hikers tended to hang out at these places during the late afternoon and then stealth camp nearby (camping is discouraged or illegal in many places and I didn't want to risk it in a foreign country not knowing the language, etc... )