While travel is a welcome reprieve from the day-to-day grind, it certainly has its own stresses. In addition to flight delays, missed connections and crowded flights, luggage is often a primary source of anxiety. Anyone who has frantically transferred items between bags at check-in, pleaded with gate agents to accept a carry-on bag or waited nervously at baggage claim for their belongings can attest to this fact. The root of this stress is often financial, thanks to the increasingly high cost of schlepping your belongings from point A to B.
Having what you need during your travels is the impetus for packing as much as possible. However, when faced with an overweight baggage fee of $100, or the cost and hassle of renting a locker to store your stuff after hotel checkout, many travelers find themselves asking the same question: “Why did I pack all this stuff?”
With summer travel well underway, there’s no better time to explore the pitfalls of overpacking, and the inherent perks — both monetary and mental — of packing light.
[See: 12 Frugal Ways to Save on Vacation.]
Pitfall No. 1: Checked Bag Fees
According to reports from the U.S. Department of Transportation, airlines collected just over $3.8 billion in checked bag fees during 2015, the highest ever recorded.
If that figure isn’t enough motivation to downsize your packing habit, consider the savings enjoyed by Alyssa Ramos, travel writer and blogger for MyLifesAMovie.com. “I use a carry-on because of how many times I [could] get charged for checking a bag,” she says, referring to the 10 flights she’s already been on this year. Ramos says she’s saved $1,000 this year alone by packing light and avoiding the average $25 price tag for checking a bag. Her advice for travelers seeking packing simplicity? “Pack what you think you want … and once you’re done packing, take half of it out.”
The cost to check bags is especially high for families. Lu Ann Kaldor, author of “The Angels on My Tree,” says she and her family save over $100 per trip by packing minimally. She recently returned from a 10-day sailing trip in the Virgin Islands with her husband and two kids, and only packed one duffel bag for the whole family. “We were ultimately unplugged on this vacation,” she says. “We had no electronics [and] we didn’t carry anything with us. It’s amazing how little you can be happy with.”
[See: 10 Money Leaks to Shut Down Now.]
Pitfall No. 2: Specialty Items or Sporting Equipment Fees
Since summer is a popular time for outdoor activities, travelers seeking adventure will pay a premium to check specialty items and sporting equipment. Scuba gear with a tank, for example, costs $150 to check with most major airlines, including United, Delta and American Airlines.
“Living in a sharing economy allows us to own less and carry less with us,” says Timo Way, travel blogger at TimoWay.com. Way is a certified diver but only brought his scuba mask and a laptop bag’s worth of stuff with him on a recent two-week tour of the Virgin Islands. “I rented scuba gear … for an original fee of $35 plus $6 a day after that … without having to pay for the crazy airline fees for packing specialty equipment,” he says. “It’s much easier on the mind.”
Pitfall No. 3: Budget Airline Add-ons
Budget airlines like Spirit and Frontier are better known for their endless fees than their affordability, yet those who pack light can actually benefit from the bargain-basement fares. “The only way to take advantage of those budget prices is to not carry much baggage with you,” Way says. Plus, packing light opens up more time to focus on your travels. “When you’re not worried about your stuff, you can be more open to the experience,” he says.
Jema Patterson, founder of travel blog HalfTheClothes.com, agrees. “Packing too much is almost like bringing a toddler to take care of on your trip,” she says. “Your bag has all these special needs when getting in and out of transports. Everything takes longer when you take a bag.”
Ramos reminds travelers that forgotten items can always be purchased. “How easy is it to buy something where you are?” Plus, Ramos adds, “you can bring it home and have a souvenir at the same time.”
Pitfall No. 4: Limited Transportation Options
Interestingly, more luggage often results in higher transportation costs once you reach your destination. “If you have a lot of stuff, it limits you to taking a taxi or an Uber,” Way says, adding,”$50 is the normal price to pay from any airport to the center of the city.” Packing light gives you more access to lower-cost transportation alternatives. “If you just have your backpack, you can take a bus or the light rail; $2.75 is a lot less than $50,” notes Way, referring to the price of a Link light rail fare from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to downtown Seattle. Moreover, having fewer bags is just more polite than forcing other travelers to squeeze into small transport spaces with you and your four pieces of luggage. “Some people won’t even let you on the bus if you pack too much,” Way says.
Patterson was thankful to have only a small bag during her time in Italy. “Everyone in Italy drives teeny, tiny, itty bitty cars,” she says, and the family who picked her and her travel partner up from the airport was no exception. “Us and our bags could not have fit in their car had we packed heavily.”
Pitfall No. 5: Theft Potential
Patterson reminds travelers that their risk for theft can rise if they’re hauling big bags everywhere. “Keeping [a small] bag with you allows you to be more secure in international places,” she says. People with large bags are “identified as having a lot of things [that] must be valuable if you’re carrying it around,” she continues. Having everything you need attached comfortably to your back or otherwise with you at all times allows you to move quickly and “makes you less of a target,” Patterson says.
[See: 11 Ways to Save Time and Money.]
Pitfall No. 6: Lost Time
The last and likely most painful pitfall of overpacking is lost time. “The time you spend on managing your luggage is robbing you of the time you spend experiencing your travels,” Patterson says.
In fact, packing light offers a great life lesson for both adults and kids. “For me it’s not about saving money,” Kaldor says. “We all think we need so much stuff … [but we can] carry less, own less and rely on our own resourcefulness.”
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The Monetary and Mental Pitfalls of Overpacking originally appeared on usnews.com
