THE SUITCASE LIFE DOESN’T HAVE TO SUCK

DEFINING WHAT WAS ESSENTIAL FOR ME

I’ve never traveled continuously for more than 6 weeks before, so crafting my packing list for 16 months was a bit intimidating. I spent a lot of time reviewing existing lists but found them all a bit overly utilitarian - they seemed efficient but also to lack individuality or joy. For me, they were lacking a focus on personal style, hygiene preferences, leisure, fitness, or wellness. While I’m definitely happy to have 80% of my bag be hyper-utility-focused, I wanted to make sure I was able to maintain the lifestyle I love.

So, I tried to define some areas of my life that I felt important to maintain that sat on the outskirts of pure necessity and landed on four: (1) I needed to maintain a fitness routine, (2) I needed resources for when I’m lonely, run-down, and anti-social, (3) I wanted to maintain my current hygiene routine, and (4) I wanted to add enough statement pieces that were fundamentally me that I could feel like my clothes reflected me, even if they were repetitive. In addition, I decided to bring as many of my maintenance medications (and harder to find hygiene items) with me as I could to avoid the hassle of refilling on the road as much as possible.

I’m planning to track how often I use everything I packed to evaluate what was a good choice at the end of the 16 months and come back and revise at the end of the journey. I expect I’ve made some mistakes.

CHOOSING A BAG

It seems like most round-the-world traveler blogs chose the pure backpacking route - a very large backpack for everything. I didn’t think this seemed like the best approach for me personally, so I opted for the Travelpro 19-inch overhead suitcase and a small backpack. For me, I wanted to have a bag designed for airline overheads, be able to wheel my heavy items most of the time, pack in a more structured bag, and carry a backpack in addition to my main bag.

DESIGNING A WARDROBE

For me, picking what clothes to bring was the hardest part. I tried to balance mostly packing high-utility clothing (so anti-microbial, lightweight, quick-dry, dark-color, fairly neutral) with statement pieces, trying hard to pack light to leave room for quality of life items. Overall, I packed about 80% high-utility, and limited myself to one week worth of clothing. Because I’m planning to avoid the cold as much as possible, my wardrobe is designed to layer for chillier temperatures but not to withstand a true winter.

Underwear and Socks

This was the easiest for me as I was comfortable going almost entirely utility focused and bought the recommended travel brands I saw on most blogs - although I got some fun colors.

7 pairs ExOfficio Men’s Give-n-Go 3” Boxers
6 Pairs Darn Tough No Show Tab Running Socks

Pants and Shorts

For the most part, I stuck with my go-to pants and shorts wardrobe which is comfortably my style, and added a high-utility pair of pants from Lululemon that could flexibly be more dressy if I ever need.

2 pairs St33le 5” inseam shorts (grey and green)
1 pair Barbell jeans (indigo)
1 pair Lululemon ABC Pants (grey)

Shirts and Jackets

Luckily for me, the shirt I wear most days (an Airism Uniqlo T) was already high-utility. I added in two statement pieces to wear over fairly basic t-shirts and one statement piece to go out in.

4 Uniqlo Airism Mesh T-shirts (Blue)
2 LuluLemon Metal Vent Tech T-Shirts (Blue)
1 Lululemon Metal Vent Tech Long Sleeve (Blue)
1 Long-Sleeved Flannel Button Up (Red)
1 Short-Sleeved Express Floral Button Up (Black with Red Flowers)
1 Lightweight Rain Jacket (Red)
1 Vintage 1980’s Nylon Jacket (Bright Pink)

Fitness Clothing

I decided I was comfortable hand washing my fitness clothes every other day, so I went with two lightweight workout outfits. I also packed a statement speedo for the beach.

1 Pair Lululemon 6” inseam Lined Shorts
1 Lululemon Metal Vent Tank
1 Under Armour 6” Lined Shorts
1 Tech Tank (custom from a race)
1 Speedo (Floral)

I packed my towel for showering in my fitness cube.

Shoes

For shoes, I wanted one really good pair of sneakers (for walking and working out), a pair of sandals (for the beach and hostile showers), and a pair of nicer shoes (that could comfortable walk and also be stylish for going out).

1 Pair Diadora Running Shoes
1 Pair Noah Italian Vegan Boots
1 Pair Flip Flops

Jewelry

Last, so that I could style myself some, I packed four necklaces that I wear often.

Fitness

I knew I wanted to maintain a fitness routine on the road without having to go to gyms (which can be expensive when buying one-day passes). With my running shoes, I could go jogging, but I also wanted to be able to add in strength and mobility work. My final three choices did take up quite a bit of space in my bag, but I know for me fitness is critical to my mental health, so I wanted to prioritize it.

Resistance Bands (for traditional strength training)
Sliders (for strength training mostly on the legs, with added balance and mobility work)
A Knee Pad (for me to do yoga or core exercises, I need padding for my lower back and knees. While this takes up a lot of space, it allows me to do floor exercises anywhere).

I packed my resistance bands in the bag my towel originally came in. I have a set of about 12 bands so I have a lot of range for potential weight.

Electronics, Downloads, and Subscriptions

When planning for this trip, I knew I wanted to be able to explore creatively, like writing this blog, and do research on the road (like picking locations and learning languages). I also knew I’d hit stretches when loneliness, exhaustion, or anxiety hit hard, so I wanted to be prepared to enjoy a few quiet days sheltering in place from time to time.

Electronics

The big question for me was whether to bring a laptop or a tablet. Because I wasn’t doing any consulting work, I decided the new mouse-compatible iPad would meet any of my laptop needs, and the advantage of being a tablet meant I could easily draw or watch movies. I also made a slightly non-traditional choice and packed a Nintendo Switch, deciding that when my mental health lags spending some time in a fantasy world is likely to pick me up.

iPad Pro with Keyboard and Apple Pencil
Nintendo Switch
Kindle (because I generally love to read, and expect to always carry it with me)
2 iPods (to listen to music like walking; I happened to have two pairs, so I packed both to always have one charged, and in case one dies or gets lost)
Trekz (to listen to music while running)
iPhone (for day-to-day use)
Chargers & International Power Adapters

Subscriptions

I suspect some of my decisions here will change over the course of the year, as I decided to keep my current entertainment subscriptions, and I will likely cancel some of my TV offerings. I wanted to leave myself the option of comfort TV on the road to start and see what I use. In addition, I purchased travel insurance and language apps.

Safety Wing Travel Insurance (This was recommended for nomadic lifestyles in several blogs, and I found the price to be unmatched for the number of referring blogs. It covers accidents and sickness, and also emergency evacuations or repatriation of remains)
Babbel Lifetime Subscription (I love to learn languages, and have historically liked Babbel. I bought a lifetime subscription so that I could learn any of their languages on the road)
Mondly Lifetime Subscription (This language app offered a steep discount and more languages, so I bought it for options that Babbel didn’t cover, like Portuguese).
Headspace (I have an daily meditation practice, and a lot of free resources don’t have a download option. Headspace allows me to download meditations in advance in case I find myself without service or wi-fi).
Apple Entertainment Bundle (Music and TV. I listen to music as I walk more often than not, and I plan to spend most of my time walking around new cities, so it felt very important to maintain this. In addition, I like to listen to music when I’m working out. The marginal cost of Apple TV on top of music is minimal, so I’m likely to keep it.)
HBO Max (which I’m really only keeping because my parents use my account)
Disney Plus / Hulu Package (which I’m likely to cancel)

Downloads

Before I left, I also downloaded a lot of digital content for any stretch without service or wi-fi, including:

Kindle Books
Audio Books
Music
Movies
TV Shows
Meditations
Video Games (Zelda and Pokémon)

These are comfort items I always have on hand at home, and wanted to make sure I had access to them on the road.

Laundry

Only packing one week’s worth of clothes means I’ll be doing laundry at least weekly. Because I’m staying in hostile, I decided I didn’t want to limit myself to washing machines - and wanted to be able to do it on the go if needed. So, I packed:

A Lightweight Washing Machine Bag (for hand washing two days worth of clothes)
Laundry Detergent Strips
A Sing Stopper (for hand washing single items in the sink)
A Bungee Clothes Line (to hang dry clothes)
1 Laundry Bag (for dirty clothing)

Whenever I can, I’m going to use a laundry machine or laundry service. This is definitely a chunk of my packing I’m going to be monitoring to see how much I actually use it. (After all, no one actually likes hand washing their clothes).

HostEL Comfort

Out of everything on my trip, the part that worried me the most is staying in hostels consistently (at least through Europe). I am generally not good at sleeping in busy spaces and am a bit of a light sleeper. I also really value my privacy and time alone . . . So hostiles have never really been my thing. But, to make this trip work financially, I couldn’t swing private rooms throughout, so I packed:

A Sleeping Liner (in case the sheets aren’t particularly clean)
An Eye Mask
Ear Plugs (Silicon)
Sleeping Pills (Costco Brand)
2 Pad Locks (for Hostile Lockers)

Fingers crossed I surprise myself and adjust well naturally to the hostile lifestyle. Odds are that I won’t keep it up while in cheaper parts of the world.

HYGIENE AND HEALTH

Backpackers have a bad reputation for being unkempt and smelly . . . And this was really not something I wanted to fall into. I wanted to come as close to as I could to maintaining my regular routine with my regular products. I knew I didn’t want to be on the lookout for restocking brands I like, so for anything I’m particular about, I packed a year supply.

Electric Toothbrush & 5 Replacement Heads (I prefer the clean of an electric toothbrush, so I decided to splurge on the added space and electrical charger)
4 Bottles of Nuud (A deoderant alternative)
3 Bottles L’Occitane Face Scrub
2 Bottles L’Occitane Divine Face Serum
2 Bottles L’Occitane Divine Eye Cream
1 Bottle Face Lotion
1 Electric Razor (I opted for electric to avoid having to stock shaving cream, even though I generally prefer a safety razor)
1 Container Concealer (which I use when my bags are bad)
1 Body Groomer with Attachments (for both personal grooming and DIY haircuts)
Reusable Ear Swab
Nail Clippers
Tweezers
Bar of Soap (to otherwise buy on the road)
Washcloth
Quick Dry Microfiber Towel (for hostiles that don’t provide towels)
Bamboo Floss & 3 Replacement Rolls
Zyrtec
Flonase (4 Bottles)
PreP (One month supply - all I could get)
15 Inhalers
Contacts (11 each eye)

There are some things I decided to buy on the road. These are items that I want in larger containers and wouldn’t fit well in a carry-on for a flights, and things for which I’m pretty brand-ambivalent:

Contact Solution
Contacts Case
Toothpaste
Bar Soap

I only packed liquids that were carry-on ready (both for container size and overall quantity)

Other Miscellaneous

I packed several other items that don’t easily classify.

1 Metal Tupperware (to store leftovers)
Bamboo Utensil Set (to eat on the go)
Water Bottle (to carry around)
Glasses
Sunglasses (prescription)
40 Single-use Glass / Screen Wipes
15 K95 Masks
2 Cloth Masks
Pens

PAPERWORK AND FINANCES

Last, I packed my identification, cards, and other important information to keep on hand.

Passport
Driver’s License
Student ID (for student rates)
US Cash (about $1,100 hidden in reserve)
Debit Card (which I use to take out local currency, and then hide)
3 Credit Cards (All without foreign transaction fees)
Vaccine Cards
Insurance Documentation (both a card and a Visa Letter)
4 Passport Photos (because some countries require them for Visas)
Paper Prescriptions (for my inhaler and PreP, so I can refill on the road)
Glasses / Contacts Prescription (in case I lose mine)

Generally, when I’m out and about, I keep the following in my wallet: about $100 cash, 1 credit card, 1 student ID, Driver’s License. I store the rest in a locker.

How To Craft a Round the World (RTW) Packing List