Backpacking Essentials and How to Travel Light

It is important to have a checklist of backpacking essentials before you go on travel. This is to avoid unwanted incident of forgetting some important things to bring. Just imagine you are half-way to Batanes for a much-needed vacation when all of a sudden you realize you forgot to bring the battery charger of your camera or cellphone. Isn’t it a hassle? It might cause you stress along the way instead of enjoying every minute of your vacation. 

To avoid it, here are some lists of essential things to bring. Make sure you have them in your bag before you walk out the door for that much anticipated trip. I also included some very important reminder each item in order to travel light.

• Clothes- only the ones that you will actually wear or else you’ll spend hours walking with some kilos of your not-so-basic clothes which you will not actually wear. I once made a mistake of carrying a lot of clothes once when I went to Baguio (for two days and one night). I thought I could wear it all. I ended up carrying about 4 kilos of unused clothes. A very bad idea. And so I learned from then on.

What if it is a long vacation? Add the days of your vacation and try to analyze how many clothes you will wear each day. If it is too many in a backpack, then better choose multi-purpose and easy-to-wash clothes. An example of multi-purpose cloth is the sarong – you can use it as a wrap (to keep you warm), towel, blanket, skirt or dress (for women), scarf and many more. It is a very practical item to bring if you want to travel light.

Remember it is really a smart move to travel light aside from the airline's baggage savings.

photo from wholesalejewelryfinding.com

• Backpack- It is preferable to use a backpack instead of duffel or suitcase if you are to travel light. 
• Slipper & shoes – Again choose something that you will actually use like slipper if you are going to a beach or hiking shoes if you plan to go hiking. You can also bring casual shoes which you can use when wandering around the tourist’s spots.
• First-aid kit with some basic medicines. Common medicines (like paracetamol, antiseptic and loperamide) and some bandages are basic emergency things you need to to bring especially if you are on a long vacation.

photo from justworkgloves.co.uk

• Toiletries- such as toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, comb, nail-cutter, deodorant, sunblock and some cosmetics (it’s a basic need for me, how can I be chic without it)
• Some food and bottled water - It’s a smart idea to bring some biscuits, coffee or chocolate bars in order to save money rather than buying in the convenience store or hotel which we all know offers higher prices in its commodities. It is also very convenient coz you don’t have to go find some grocery store just to satisfy your hunger anytime of the day.
• Cellphone, camera, charger
• Money belt – from Wikipedia –

A money belt is a belt with a pouch attached to the front which is worn under a shirt to protect valuables from thieves and/or pickpockets. Money belts are often worn by tourists as a precaution against theft. Items typically placed in a money belt would include passport, travel tickets, driver's license, credit cards, cash, and jewelry.

            Better be safe than sorry. Nowadays, I think this is an essential item for travelers.

photo from globaltravelproducts.com.au 

• Other items such as sunglass and hat to protect yourself from scorching heat of the sun.

That’s it. I hope I was able to give you some common but very important reminder.

TCB