Confessions of a Recovering Overpacker: 5 Smart Packing Choices That Changed How I Travel
Packing Essentials Series — Part 1
Let me tell you who I used to be.
I was a chronic overpacker. Not the cute kind who “likes options.” The kind who packed the night before a flight — okay, fine, sometimes the morning of — standing in front of my closet in a full panic, throwing things into a bag like the house was on fire. And when you pack in panic, you pack everything, because your brain has decided that a third denim jacket is essential to your survival.
Here’s what I finally figured out: overpacking isn’t a suitcase problem. It’s a decision problem. With a little intention, you can cover all the what-ifs of travel without hauling your entire closet through TSA.
Now, full transparency — I’m recovering, not reformed. I still pack a TON. But it’s a controlled ton. It all fits in one bag now — but trust, that bag is heavy. Ten days out of a carry-on roller and a tote, baby. The only time I check a bag is for an extended stay or winter weather, because coats and boots demand more real estate than I’m willing to argue about. Everything else? Overhead bin. (Pray for whoever’s seated near me when I lift it.)
These five smart choices are how I got here.
1. Check the weather — but don’t let it intimidate you
The forecast is a guide, not a threat. I used to see “30% chance of rain, lows in the 50s, highs in the 80s” and pack like I was relocating. Four climates’ worth of clothes. An umbrella AND a raincoat AND a hooded jacket — as if rain requires a committee.
Now I look at the overall pattern, pack for the trip that’s most likely to happen, and keep one adaptable layer for everything else. The weather app’s job is to inform your choices — not to talk you into a second suitcase.
2. Build around one coat and one pair of going-out shoes
This is the rule that did the heavy lifting for me. Before anything else touches the bag, I decide: one coat and one pair of shoes for going out. Then sandals. And if they can fit — one pair of tennis shoes. That’s it. That’s the lineup. No alternates. Nobody’s coming off the bench.
The real point of this rule? It cuts down on the accessories. When you commit to one coat and one going-out shoe, everything else has to work with them — which means fewer bags, fewer belts, fewer “options” that were never getting worn anyway (we both know that fourth purse was riding for free). One anchor decision quietly fires ten smaller ones.
3. Be realistic — stop packing for every scenario
You are not attending a gala, running a 5K, hiking a mountain, AND getting invited onto a yacht on the same trip. I know. I’ve packed for all four anyway. On a beach trip. Where the itinerary was — and I cannot stress this enough — the beach.
Be honest about the trip you actually booked, not the fantasy trip your suitcase believes in. The what-ifs worth packing for are the practical ones. The imaginary ones can stay imaginary. And if the yacht invitation actually comes? That’s what shopping is for. A new outfit is a better souvenir than a keychain anyway.
4. Pack pieces that pull double duty
Multi-purpose is the whole game. The dress that’s dinner tonight and daytime tomorrow with a shoe swap. The beach cover-up that moonlights as a blouse. When every piece can show up at least two ways, your bag gets lighter while your options actually multiply.
Every item in my bag has to earn its spot now. This is a meritocracy. If it only does one thing, it better do that one thing spectacularly.
5. Categorize and lay it ALL out before it goes in the bag
This is the one that broke my last-minute habit for good. Before anything gets packed, everything comes out — organized by category: tops, bottoms, shoes, toiletries, the works — laid out where I can see all of it at once.
Because there is nothing like seeing everything laid out across your bed to face the reality that you ARE, in fact, being ridiculous — and it’s time to refine or scale back. The bed doesn’t lie. That third pair of jeans immediately looks unemployed. The gaps reveal themselves too — the missing charger, the medication you’d have remembered somewhere over the Atlantic. Midnight-panic packing hides all of that in a dark suitcase. Daylight, a flat surface, and a moment of honesty? Undefeated.
The recovering part is the point
I didn’t become a minimalist — let’s not get carried away. I became intentional. Ten days, one carry-on roller, one tote, heavy as my ambition — and every single thing in that bag was a choice, not a panic. That’s the difference between overpacking and packing well.
This is Part 1 of the Packing Essentials series — because trust me, we are just getting started.
Your turn: are you a recovering overpacker too, or are you still in your throwing-things-in-a-bag era? Tell me your packing vice — no judgment, this is a safe space.
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Work hard. Play harder.
— Cori
