Top 10 things Gadling readers always forget to pack

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To help make travel and packing less stressful, I keep a list in my suitcase of everything I packed for a previous trip and have crossed off the list everything I did not use or was not needed when I returned from that trip. Then I use that list to pack for my next trip. Of course, the list will change at times due to changing airline restrictions, length of trip, weather conditions of your destinations and other factors. I also carry a photo taken before leaving for the airport of my checked luggage and keep it in my carry-on just in case the airline misplaces it. A picture is worth a thousand words when you are looking or trying to describe " a needle in a haystack" at the baggage claim office. Now, if I could just get that parent to quiet the screaming kid sitting behind me kicking the back of my seat all the way from Los Angeles to Seattle, I would have a wonderful vacation !

10-21-2010 @ 4:18PM

sadie said...

Wow, Larry - I do all the things you metioned when I travel as well. I travel a lot (we lived overseas for a long time) and so I have what I call my "brainstorm" list which is the master list of every possible thing I can imagine wanting or needing for a trip to anywhere. I have this on my computer. Then, before a trip, I print it out and put checkmarks by the items I think I would need on that particular trip. When it is time to pack. I just pull out the list and pack only the things I need for that trip. (So, for example, even though passport is on the master list under the "document" category, if not traveling overseas, it doesn't get a checkmark). Sounds obsessive, I know, but I. too, have repeatedly bought traveling essentials I forgot over and over and over until I started this list thing. This has really helped me becasue I travel for different reasons. For example, we used to go on 14 hour flights with our two small children. Then it was remembering al their stuff. But I would also find myself traveling alone on business. Different things to pack! There are a few things that I have bought seconds of so I don't have to remember to pack them at the last minute. For example, I have a hairbrush that stays at home and another one that is permanently left in the suitcase. Not only does this make it a sure thing that I won't forget my hairbrush at the last minute, but it alsoo means that when I get home (usually a late flight and maybe tired or jet lagged), I don't have to immediately unpack my suitcase to find these essential items for the next morning.

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