Somewhere in your home, you have Ziploc bags. They’re probably under the kitchen sink, next to the trash bags and in front of the green and yellow kitchen sponges. Ziploc bags are handy, but it wasn’t until my recent trip that I realized that they had uses outside of the kitchen.
In packing for Iceland, I really wanted to try to pack light. My goal was to fit everything I’d need for a 5 day, 4 night trip into my 45L carryon backpack, since I hate dealing with checked bags. Because the trip included swimming in hot springs (swimsuit), a nice dinner (a nice shirt and good shoes), and excursions (plenty of warm clothing for the cold), this wasn’t going to be easy. I considered getting packing cubes, but those seemed more for organization than for compression. I also considered getting compression bags on Amazon, but they cost a little more than I wanted to spend. (Full disclosure: I also waited too long to order them and they wouldn’t have gotten here in time anyway). But I found something that’s almost as good. 2 gallon ziploc bags, sold at Target for $5 for a box of 10.
Fold your clothes and put them in a bag. For reference, you can comfortably fit 3 or 4 long sleeve shirts into a single 2 gallon bag. Zip the bag most of the way, but leave a 1/2″ section open. Start rolling the bag from the bottom, thoroughly squeezing all of the air out as you go. When you get to the top, zip it shut, and unroll the bag so it lays flat. It’ll be about 1/3 of the original thickness. It’s like magic, if magic was practical and boring.
I’ve read about compression bags online before as a travel tip, and I never really took it that seriously. I mean, how much air can be in clothes (puffy jackets notwithstanding)? Apparently a lot. You can get the same effect by pushing your clothes into your bag and zipping your bag shut, but this worked a lot better and make packing a lot easier. Underwear and socks in one bag? Check. Shirts in another? Done. Swimsuit in a smaller bag? No problem. Everything was nice and organized and a lot smaller than it would have been otherwise. Wet swimsuits or dirty clothes are no problem for the return trip, since you now have ziploc bags to put everything in.
I was able to pack everything I needed, plus a few extra things that didn’t get used into my backpack and I still had space to spare. I picked up a few things while I was there, and I had plenty of space in my bag for it all. My backpack was smaller than anyone else’s luggage on the trip; most people packed more than twice the volume of what I did. I know I packed light, but I think the ziploc bags helped a lot, too.
One thing I noticed was that I had to hang my clothes when I got to the hotel. Folding and compressing them puts more wrinkles in than you’d normally get. Not exactly surprising, I know. But I hung everything up, and it was all presentable within a day or two. I could have gotten the wrinkles out faster if I’d steamed the shirts in the shower, but that wasn’t necessary.
So with a little extra effort in the packing process and when you get to your hotel, ziploc bags are a practical and cost-effective way to optimize your luggage to help streamline your travel.
* I am not a paid spokesperson, but if someone from Ziploc corporate wants to send me some cool Ziploc swag, I’m totally game.
