The Purple Passport

Seasoned advice for British Travellers

packing

A Beginner’s Guide for Packing

by

Whether you’re headed on a three-week expedition, or a cheeky two-night romantic getaway, packing is a big part of the planning that you’re going to put in beforehand. The better your packing strategy, the more you’re going to get out of your time away, and the less stress you’re going to bring with you in your suitcase or hand luggage.

In this short piece, we’ll help you get to know the secrets of the travel pack and help you learn travel hacks that’ll make packing a breeze each time you go away.

Pack Luxury Clothing

As you are nowhere near home, this is your perfect opportunity to try something new, and in this case, you should pack luxury clothing. After all, it’s not every day that you get to experience a trip away, so use this opportunity to pack more luxurious clothing and feel like a VIP star every moment of your vacation. Use the Cash Lady product sliding scale tool to find luxury travel goods that will be perfect for you. Be sure to wear something just as stylish on the plane to help kickstart the vacation feeling and stand out amongst the rest for all the right reasons. You can be certain that by packing luxurious clothing as well that the items will remain intact for years to come.

Your Case

Whatever case you take away with you needs to be smart for travel. If you’re expecting to hop from place to place throughout your vacation, a backpack is often the best bet for your trip. These cost around $100 for a mid-range pack, replete with pockets in which you can store different clothes, accessories, and equipment.

Meanwhile, the beach-goer, or those headed to resorts, should instead consider a more robust, wheelie case that’s perfect for getting to and from the airport alone, like those shared by luxury website T3. Here, you’re looking for a case that’s strong and well-protected from break-ins in transit. You should also look out for those cases that have nets for different types of clothing and packed essentials so that you can separate your things out into sections within your bag.

Travel Essentials

There are some things that you simply cannot imagine doing without during your time abroad. These include sun cream, cosmetics, and grooming products, and those creature comforts, like a smartphone and a watch, that you’d be loath to leave at home. All of these should be packed (or bought), ready for your trip.

The tip here is simple: look to providers of travel essentials and buy their additions to your suitcase or backpack. Travel wash kits are particularly useful, as they mean you’ll not have to decant fluids that you take through airport security. Meanwhile, a travel charger can be the difference between a night in a bus station and a night in a hotel bed, helping keep your devices charged and your connectivity up for the duration of your trip.

These three main areas are crucial for your packing. They can help you to fill your suitcase right for your next sojourn abroad.

Pack Like A Pro and Painlessly Navigate Your Last-Minute Shopping List

by

A celebrity touches down flanked by two assistants, one bodyguard and ten suitcases, whilst a team of personal assistants has covered everything else like insurance and transfers well in advance.

For most of us though, one or two bags have to do, whilst scrabbling around last minute for everything else as we’re just too busy. Bearing in mind that most airlines have decreased baggage allowances, packing smartly is critical. If you’ve left your packing to the last minute, here’s how to make a manic task a little more manageable.

Source: Pixabay

Insurance

Hopefully, your travel insurance is the one thing you’ve already got in the bag, though it’s likely you’ve just not found time to do it yet. Luckily there are a wealth of comparison sites available to use which will allow you to book travel insurance valid from as soon as the following day.

Travel insurance is fully tailorable to your needs, whether you’re travelling all inclusive to a sunny resort in Spain, or going skiing in Switzerland, and you’ll easily be able to cover the value of your luggage and potential risks quickly.

If you have a European Health Insurance Card you can also benefit from reduced, or even FREE, health care in EEA countries. Also, some bank and building societies offer free insurance with their accounts, you could already qualify for this too.

Sunglasses

What is the climate in the destination country like? What kind of trip am I taking? This dictates what kind of eyewear you will need for your trip – not forgetting that winter sports trips will also require eye protection of course.

If you’re travelling outside of the usual holiday season, you may be able to find last minute reductions in many high street outlets, it could be worth a quick browse to see, this stock is usually at the front of the store, or most visible to everyone so they can sell it. Peak season may be a bit tougher however, perhaps a quick search online could tell you when your next retailer is having a sale? After all, nobody wants to be paying airport prices for such a staple accessory!

Just because your destination is sunny doesn’t mean you should neglect your general eyecare however – retailers like Vision Direct offer the facility of ordering contact lenses with no prescription at short notice, allowing you to plan this last minute purchase around your last frantic days at work before your holiday. You can actually order by 8pm to receive by tomorrow, so you have plenty of time to forget before remembering again last minute.

Health and pharmaceuticals

This is an important but often overlooked category. If you’re not comfortable on your trip, it’s money wasted. Did you pack your prescription and allergy medication? If not, have you mailed a copy of the prescription to yourself? What about your energy supplements, painkillers, your contraceptives and feminine hygiene products? This is when online stores come in handy, so you can get a toothbrush, moisturizer, sunblock, mosquito repellent and other must-haves in a hurry.

Clothing

Bearing in mind the climate and intended activities, dress yourself mentally from the bottom up. That way, you can’t forget socks or T-shirts. Multifunctional clothing is best and sensible made-for-walking shoes are mandatory. If you’re going to a cold place, layers of clothing rather than big, bulky jackets that take up space and don’t allow you to undress as it gets warmer are best.

Packing the practical items

Source: Pixabay

bestbest

In most cases, these include a torch, water bottle, extra pair of cheap sunglasses, your camera with a spare battery if needed, your charger, voltage adaptor and extra memory cards. Also, buy a phrasebook or download a language app for your host country, a universal charger, clear sealable bags and waterproof anything as required.

Food

YWhen you’ve remembered again that you needed to buy travel insurance and have finished buying clothes and other essentialslenses online, but what about food and snacks? Are there any staples you can’t dispense with? If you’re gluten-free, have you packed dried fruit and your favourite crisps?

There’s no need to panic if you’re packing last minute – categorize what you need, spend a few minutes researching the practicalities of your destination online and remember the virtues of online shopping.

How to pack for a long weekend away

by

Packing for a long weekend away is not always easy, on the one hand you need enough stuff for four days, and on the other, you want a bag that is going to be small enough for you to comfortably carry around. If you are flying to get to your weekend destination, it makes so much more sense form a time perspective that you just take carry-on luggage so that you can get out of the airport and start enjoying yourself, as soon as you land.

I go on about 6-8 weekend breaks per year and I usually take advantage of the holidays to ensure that I can turn it into a long weekend. Because of this, I have got my weekend bag packing down to a fine art and I wanted to share with you some tips on how to get it just right.

Bag

To choose your bag based on what you want to take with you, instead, base what you take with you on the size of your bag. Weekend travel may involve you taking your bag from A to B, a lot more than if you were heading off on a two week break with a hefty suitcase in tow. With this in mind then, it is important that you select a bag which is lightweight, as spacious as possible and most importantly, compact.

Shoes

Shoes really do take up the majority of the space in any bag and if you have thoughts about taking all of your heels, then think again. I like to take two pairs of shoes with me, and wear some trainers to travel in. I ditch the tall heels in favor of some kitten heels and I always take black pair of flats with me. Flats look great in any occasion and they take up next to no space in the bag.

Tech

Unless you absolutely have to work, I would recommend leaving any tech at home, and rely solely on your phone for the next few days. Tech and chargers can really fill space and add weight and for the sake of four days, it is far better to leave that kind of stuff at home.

Clothing

When it comes to clothing, really make sure that you are planning smartly for what you will be doing. A pair of jeans can easily be worn twice or three times, underwear is obviously needed for each day, jackets you can either give a miss if it is warm, or wear it when you are traveling to avoid putting it in your bag. Try to take only what you need and not what you might need. Remember that for the most part, if you desperately need new clothes, you can buy them in your destination.

Make sure that if you do take a towel with you, that you take a small and compact microfibre towel. Usually you will not need a towel as the hotel can provide, and even if you hit the beach you can always buy a cheap towel to use and then discard of.

To get your packing right for a long weekend, plan exactly what you will need and place your focus on keeping that bag light and easy to carry about.