Do you mind wearing a backpack? If not, then a backpack without wheels weighs less (for the bag), can hold more, and can squish into “1cm too small” overhead bins more easily than a wheeled bag.
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I always travel light and I love this thread for all the great ideas I’m finding here!
I travel with a small, 2-wheeled Briggs & Reilly carry-on bag that can be expanded if needed (at that point, it won’t pass as a carry-on for most airlines). Between that and a Longchamp folding tote (which I like since if I don’t need it I can easily pack it) I’ve been able to travel for a week up to a month overseas.
My little tricks:
- Take one pair of dress shoes and make sure that all nice outfits match those shoes. (I usually take ballet flats since they take up very little room and often choose black shoes and clothes that work with them).
- Wear your larger pair of shoes (Tennis shoes for me). I take an older pair that can hold out a bit longer, then leave them behind on the last leg of the journey.
- As for toiletries, take only what is truly necessary and take the smallest amount you need. Buy travel size toothpaste/deodorant/etc. Soap leaves are useful on long trips (several weeks long) to hand wash items.
- I take my coat/jacket on board and use it as a blanket if it's cold on the plane.
- I use Eagle Creek folders and cubes that fit my luggage perfectly. It really helps to keep things organized.
- Ziplock bags are great.
- Use layers for different climates (a sweater, jacket, and a light waterproof shell together are a better option than a winter coat unless you know you will need the coat).
@Pizzagirl - the suitcase I mentioned above worked as a carry-on on most overseas flights. I think we have 2 sizes, but both are really small and met the requirements for several carriers.
Dang iPhone. It is easier to type a new post than to edit the one that the phone ate.
Backpacks and business dresses/heels are not a great looking combo for a business traveler.
BB-fortunately my business travel is almost always smart casual, not skirts/heels.
Ucb - it’s not that I object to a backpack, it’s just that I already am using a big tote-cum-briefcase so I need a wheeled thingy, not another thing to schlep over my shoulder.
Having to wait at the baggage carousel to claim & recheck a bag cancels the joy of Global Entry when u reenter the US.
I’m greedy w my cabin allowance and travel w a rollaboard AND a backpack. Backpack goes on floor under seat in front of me and doubles as a footrest for int’l flights in cattle class.
Android phone is easier to open to change SIM cards abroad.
Exactly. the whole point of global entry is when you aren’t checking a bag.
And yeah, a backpack is not a substitute for a rollaboard. A backpack is a substitute for a briefcase or tote. I think ucb is male so he doesn’t get that!
“As for toiletries, take only what is truly necessary and take the smallest amount you need. Buy travel size toothpaste/deodorant/etc. Soap leaves are useful on long trips (several weeks long) to hand wash items.”
Of course this is good advice, but if someone reading this advice is still at the stage of “oh, I guess I should bring travel size deodorant and toothpaste instead of full size, what an insightful idea,” they aren’t anybody I should be taking packing hints from! Lol
Wonder if the pillow case works as well with men’s clothes? I might consider taking an extra pillowcase to start rolling your dirty clothes into separately. However the trick is not only getting stuff in the bag but staying under the weight limit. More is not better for a carry on. I’m still in the “leave it at home” camp. Pays to have a light bag though so you can put more clothes in and still be good weight-wise. And put it up in the overhead bin by yourself.
I like the spinners because in crowds I can keep it right next to me and if your bag is heavy you aren’t carrying it’s weight. The bag is self supporting. And much easier to get down skinny airplane aisles. True that the capacity of the bag is smaller. And some need better wheels. But if you buy one take a tape measure with you–I’ve seen 22" spinners labeled that are actually 24" (they don’t count the wheels and won’t fit in the bin).
I don’t see what men’s or women’s clothes has to do with it, though admittedly I am thinking casual clothes, not suits. The roll-the-whole-stack seems less useful than rolling each piece individually - I don’t want to have to unroll everything to see what’s where.
My problem with weight of bag is more in the paper I carry for work - not clothes.
Ucbalumnus, you are so right about the allowable weights being different on international airlines! I went on a 2 week trip to NYC-Europe and was determined to do all carry-on. Followed minimalist blogs, read all the packing tips etc.
While my return trip to the US was on Delta, my outbound intl flight was on KLM where I was only allowed a total of 26 lbs for EVERYTHING I brought on board. My rolling bag, tote, electronics etc. Luckily there was a huge scale in JFK to double check weight. And they are very strict about meeting that requirement. I made it, but man, it was tough. I got by though for all that time and learned there were some clothes I could have left behind after all.
It was a great exercise though and has changed the way I pack/travel forever going forward. The ONLY downside was that I was extremely limited in souvenir shopping 
Not sure my husband saw that as a downside…
I don’t think men’s clothes would fit on a pillow case–just larger. I’ve tried rolling individually before and it’s time consuming to me. I think rolling in one fell swoop would be less taxing and easier.
That’s why I keep a folded empty Ziploc BigBag in my rollaboard. (It weighs nothing)
If I need space in my rollaboard to haul back souvenirs, I shove my dirty laundry in the Big Bag and check it as a piece of luggage. I have yet to have someone steal my stinky laundry from baggage claim.
Re checking a see-thru ziplock “big bag” of dirty underwear:
No, just no.
It’s not just my own sense of personal dignity. I wouldn’t want to tempt fate. The minute I did that I just know that my most persnickety client, the judge on most difficult case, my most lecherous co-worker, the mean girl from high school and my ex-husband’s girlfriend will all show up on my flight.
No, just no.
I love Omnisax which are really nice nylon fold (roll) up bags. Fold to nothing, weigh nothing, and made so the handle is part of the bag so nothing breaks. They hold up to 40 pounds. I stuff them in my purse and used them every trip for shopping, bringing back souvenirs, grocery shopping (where you don’t get bags–which was the original idea I think). Really pretty designs. Washable. I have a bunch of fold up type bags but these are the ones I’ve settled on. I buy them for stocking stuffers. No, I don’t own stock!
We have a cloth laundry bag that we’ve checked on the way back. Bit less visual than the big zip bag. And no, it doesn’t say LAUNDRY on it…just a plaid cloth thing. But if it came over in a suitcase it can go back in the suitcase–we’re talking traveling light which means avoiding luggage carousels and baggage fees.
Lol, I don’t think I ever take that much underwear on a trip. I’m still laughing at the mental picture of it.
Re the backpack question. There are ultra light weight carryon 20-21 inch bags that do not have wheels but have straps that can be used to carry the bag like a backpack. They have more interior space since no wheels carriage. The straps usually fold up into a zipped pocket on the bag. That could be a better solution if you are in older cities, many steps, uneven streets where the heavier rolling bag would be awkward.
Backpacks that are the external size of rollaboards (and have hip straps and more internal room than rollaboards) are available. Being male or female does not change that.