If you are keen to go on a vacation with your brood that is a little bit different to the usual two week sun, sand, and sangria at an all-inclusive resort, you might be eager to do a spot of self-touring. Traveling without the backing of a tour company or a package holiday can be daunting especially when you have a young brood in tow. However, by self-planning a backpacking trip to some far flung shore, you can educate your children about new cultures, tolerance, new cuisine, and how to become a responsible traveler.
While you might be used to traveling with your hardback designer wheeled suitcases to all-inclusive resorts never to leave the four walls of the hotel, you now want to go off exploring and hot foot it off the beaten track. To do this, you need something lighter and more mobile rather than your unwieldy luggage. When you commit to traveling light, a whole new travel world can open up for you. Take a look at how you can travel light to travel well.
Backpack
Rather than opt for the designer clobber with wheels and massive dimensions, opt for a front loading backpack instead. Ensure that everyone in the family has their own backpack. The littlest members of your brood can have smaller backpacks to ensure comfort and mobility. You and your partner should go for a forty liter capacity backpack to help you pack a week’s worth of essentials. When you head off on an elongated trip, there’s no point packing everything plus the kitchen sink. You will end up traveling with an aching back and spinal issues. Instead, you need to pack light and wash your clothes as you travel, or buy essentials as you hot foot it from destination to destination.
The backpack you choose should be front loading so you can access all of your belongings in the same way as a suitcase. This means that you don’t have to rifle through your clothes in an effort to get to your valuables at the bottom of your bag. Go for a backpack with front and side pockets to hold your iPod, your camera, and your smartphone.
By choosing a backpack of forty liter capacity or even less, you can also make your travel arrangements so much simpler. Rather than having to check your luggage into the hold of a plane and queuing up for hours on end in departure lines, you can head straight through to the gates with your backpack as it will have the dimensions necessary to take your backpack straight onto the plane. This means that you can keep your bags with you at all times. This increases the security of your belongings, you don’t risk your baggage getting lost, and you will have so much more freedom and less stress when you go traveling.
Create A Capsule Wardrobe
A capsule wardrobe, like the ones mentioned at https://www.travelfashiongirl.com/ is an excellent way to ensure that you don’t have to travel with loads of clothes. By taking essentials, you can create a range of different outfits. A couple of pairs of skinnies, some shorts, some tees, and a top or two can make a whole host of different outfits. Bring the basics along, like one 925 sterling silver bracelet or one watch. You can do this for the entire family. If you are venturing to trek the Inca Trail in Peru in the height of summer, you won’t need fleeces and overcoats. Instead, you should opt for lighter clothes. If you are heading to somewhere colder, such as Iceland in the depths of February in an effort to hunt for the Northern Lights, you will need thicker attire. This can be challenging to pack. However, by considering layers such as thinner thermals, thin fleeces and windbreakers, you can be more comfortable as you travel. If you do want to take a larger duffel coat, you can wear this on the plane.
When it comes to packing your clothes, you can maximize the space in your backpack by using certain strategies. Teach your kids to roll instead of fold. Folding doesn’t only cause creases, but it also gives you more capacity to cram in more stuff. Put your socks inside your shoes and always keep your valuables close to hand.
Forget The Extra Shoes
Kids go through shoes like rabbits go through carrots. Rather than packing lots of different footwear for your little darlings, keep your packing space to a maximum with one pair of men’s or women’s sustainable shoes and enjoy hunting for shoes in the places where you travel. The chances are that you will find plenty of different pairs of shoes in airport lounges, in beachside shops, and in markets across the globe.
You might want to consider purchasing sandals or jelly shoes if you head to the beach. Walking shoes are perfect if you are heading to the mountains, a national park or to a rugged off the beaten track sort of area. There are plenty of great family-friendly hiking trails across the world that you can enjoy. Don’t scrimp on your walking boots and opt for those that have a goretex layer to ensure that they are waterproof.
Toiletries And Medication
When you consider the sorts of things to pack, medication and toiletries are high up on the list. The inhalers for your asthmatic little daring are a must as are your essential moisturizer and cleansers. However, there will be some parts of your usual beauty regime that you can forego. The anti-wrinkle eye cream, the bronzer and the whole host of makeup that you usually apply won’t be needed if you are taking a jaunt to Goa, to Thailand, or to Cambodia.
Ensure that you have a spare pair of glasses if your kids wear prescription lenses. Getting caught short without spectacles if they accidentally leave them on public transport means that a vacation can be ruined. Take the stress out of sourcing a spare pair by heading to www.eyeglasses.com and picking up one of their affordable complete packages of lenses and frames.
You don’t have to take the full bottles of your regular shampoo either. Transfer some of your shampoo, conditioner, creams and moisturizers to two or three ounce clear see-through containers. This means you cut down on the bottles and tubs you are taking, and you will also meet the criteria when heading through airport security.
Go Travel Size
Any electrics that you want to take can be sourced in miniature. If you love nothing better than taking snaps of your family on the beach, you adore heading off the beaten track with your GPS, or you like listening to music when on the train, consider finding a range of travel-sized version to help you to travel light. Some of the best travel cameras now have awesome zoom features and can capture the finest landscapes, foodie shots, and incredible portraits of the kids playing in the sand.
Smartphones can range from the palm sized to the gigantic tablet-esque varieties. Stick to the former and you won’t have anything so cumbersome. Take a fully charged up battery pack wherever you go and you will never be caught short without any means of communication.
Traveling light might seem like the solo-travel thing to do, but more families than ever are saying goodbye to the traditional package holiday in an effort to go on life-affirming adventure. There really is no better way to spend time with your family. Follow this guide and you can travel light to travel well.
