How much stuff does a family of three need for two months’ travel?

Well, you can’t pack 65 changes of clothes, so the question is really: how often will you be able to do laundry? With a washing machine in most of our lodgings, and a little bottle of laundry soap for hand washing as needed, all we need for luxurious living is a week + a day of clothes. Summers here have been hot, so heavy clothes like jeans and multiple jackets aren’t needed.

Likewise, voracious readers can’t pack enough books for two months, so there’s no point in packing any. It’s e-readers all the way.

The heaviest items are shoes (five pairs among the three of us) and toiletries. The heaviest acquisition has been a tube of Voltaren.

Most unnecessary item in my supplies: I prepped for chilly evenings by packing two pairs of leggings to wear as needed under light cotton trousers. I am often cold on planes, and as it turns out, that’s the last place I wanted them. It was so warm in Heathrow that I peeled them off at the first loo, and haven’t worn them since. Oh well, at least they’re light.

Two of us have birthdays during our travels, and we all promised not to give any gifts that would need to be schlepped. Nothing bulkier than a necklace, which is what I bought Joy in Murano. And of course, a nice meal in a restaurant weighs nothing . . . well, it depends how much one eats.

For me, intellectual / spiritual activities require a journal, sketchbook, array of pencils / pens / sharpener / eraser, and wool and knitting needles. I am going to acquire a couple more balls of wool and pairs of needles this week, but hey, that’s only another 200g or so. I have not touched the magazine of logic puzzles I tossed in my suitcase at the last minute.

Comically or sadly–you decide–the three of us brought three laptops. I was going to leave mine home, and borrow M or J’s when I wanted to blog or do some other writing for which my phone or notebook wouldn’t suffice. In the eleventh hour, though, I panicked–I wasn’t done with work tasks, some things I needed might be on my hard drive rather than in the cloud–and brought mine along.

Result: a 22-inch rollie each, plus a small backpack each as our “handbag” for carrying whatever we need around town each day. (Joy brought a small shoulder bag as well.) Two-plus weeks into our trip, we know it’s working out well. The sum total, easy to tote from lodging to lodging and load in a train’s overhead rack, is pictured here.

How do you pack? Do you err on the side of too much or too little? How has it worked out for you?