Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# traveling with only a 7-kilo backpack wherever you go? Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea
jirikoo 00:46 UTC 02 Jan 2011 | on my last trip to indonesia I met an elderly kiwi couple who let me to the idea of traveling only with a small backpack, weighing maximum of 7 kilos. These guys travel a lot, being staunch travelers; and wherever they go, or however long they spend in the particular country, each of them always takes only one 7-kilo backpack with them. Their philosophy is quite clear. They do not drag so much luggage with them, taking only unnecessary things while, they buy some other stuff along their way if it becomes urgent (applicable chiefly in countries with a lower cost of living). This ensures they do not have to check in their luggage, too. I was then wondering if any of you have ever tried to realize this on a regular basis. cheers |
5waldos 16:01 UTC 03 Jan 2011 | Not a 7-kilo backpack but do stick to a small sized roll-on, no matter where or how long. Never have to check it and little fussing with stuff. Rarely buy much unless I am someplace like Turkey where I went intending to buy a couple of rugs, and went prepared for that. Don't know if this counts but I do look at what some people drag with them and wonder what on earth they could have- or if they are moving someplace for good. | 1
bowneline 21:07 UTC 04 Jan 2011 | I've done both heavy bag traveling and light bag traveling and prefer the latter. The easiest thing to get rid of is the extra clothes and extra books. Basically, regardless of how long I am traveling, I try to get by with 4-5 shirts, 2 pairs of pants/shorts, one waterproof jacket and 5 pairs of underwear and socks. It basically means that you will have to take some time out of your trip to arrainge for laundry every 5 days, you will not have anything nice to wear should you want to hit the town at night, and you will probably find yourself rewearing some dirty cloths on occasion. For some, a lighter pack are not worth these sacrafices, but for me they are. With books. I purposely choose a few tiny paperbacks. With guidebooks. I will often just rip out the pages that I will need. Being a guy, it is easy to get by with just a few bathroom things (toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo). My wife usually needs to travel with more stuff. Throw in a small camera, and I don't find that I need much else. During our last trip to Vietnam, we had to stop a few times to send souvenirs home because we didn't have room, which was pretty expensive and took time finding a post office. It also risked having the stuff lost in the mail. But, I guess that is part of the downside of traveling light. For me, the light back seems to really pay dividends when traveling. This is in no large part due to the fact that I like to really move around when traveling, not spending more then a couple of nights in one place. This means lots of time on buses/trains and walking around trying to find my hotel or hostel. A light pack makes a big difference. A small pack also creates a lower profile, whereas a larger pack makes it look like you have lots of stuff and might be a good target for crime. But, I also understand why people would want to pack more, and recognized that some travel locations probably require more stuff (due to weather, or more opporutnity to need diverse clothes). I also don't see packing heavy vs. light as some sort of litmus test for "experienced travelor vs. newby tourist," and I get a little chided when it does not appear that people are seeing the benefits (and disadvantages) to either way of traveling. | 2
thurstonhowell4th 06:40 UTC 08 Jan 2011 | i usually overpack in both hot and cold places, and then buy souvenir tshirts along the way, im just back from a week away and just went to the local kmart for a cheap few changes of clothes and undies, jamming everything into too small a bag frustratres me so with the minimal extra cost of it going checked in I'll do that and if I do find something large I want to buy atleast I can usually pack it in a larger bag/pack | 3
ozziegiraffe 10:46 UTC 09 Jan 2011 | I could never get to Solomon Islands with only 7kg of luggage, because I am always carrying things for my friends there. (everything from flannel shirts to books to babies' nappies (someone is always having a baby, and the Chinese cloth nappies available there are too thin.) However, if it wasn't for the case of tuna I usually bring home, I could go home with a 5kg bag. Otherwise, I carry as little as possible. Managed to include a kettle and a toaster (birthday gifts) in my 7kg allowance on my last trip back from Sydney. | 4
laurenohoui 12:56 UTC 17 Jan 2011 | I did both,but I like my comfort and enjoy my thermos and mug to get hot water in a restaurant in the evening and be able to get my coffee late at night or very early in the morning in my cheap guesthouse,I love to read and bring books (one for every five days about)about the country I am traveling,and shoes...I need hiking shoes,city shoes for an elegant restaurant or an evening at the theater,sandals for the beach,tongs for the shower and I enjoy a pair of pantoufles for the evening...So except for a short trip (less than 2 weeks)I usually carry 20 kilos with me! | 5
h2ooh 22:23 UTC 09 Feb 2011 | My wife and I have been using light backpacks (intl carry-on specs) for SP trips since having to check our overweight roll-ons in 2003. In addition we each have a smaller pack that we take as a "personal item" allowable on most intl flights. The smaller pack also zips onto the larger one and you can carry the combination as a normal backpack if you need to. The biggest challenge for the 7Kg carry-on is the weight of the bag. Our old roll-ons weighed in at 10 lbs. A standard roll-on weighs in at 6-10 lbs (7Kg = 15.5 lbs) so that's easily half the total weight. I find that we get weighed about 1/3 of the time, especially by ANZ. So we give up the wheels for more payload. Our packs weigh about 2.5 lbs. The lightest roll-on I've found to date weighs around 6 lbs. I take 3 pr of nylon zip-off trousers, 5 synthetic T-shirts, 5 pr socks, 5 underwear, a shaving kit,1 pair sandals or reef walkers,1 pair amphib shoes, a lightweight rain jacket, a travel towel, a hat and a fleece pull-over. I wear as much of the heavier clothes as I need to to get the weight to 15.5 lbs. I use the small pack for cameras, binoculars, electronics, etc. They never weigh the personal item. My wife takes cosmetics, liquids, etc in her small personal bag. All the clothing is synthetic, no cotton or wool to save weight and synthetics dry quickly, especially in the tropics. This has been our total luggage for stays of up to 8 weeks for AUS, NZ and the SP islands since 2003. When we want to take extra fishing gear, knives, food, gifts, etc. we pack it in a cooler (chilly bin) as checked luggage. When we're done we give the cooler away as a gift. Every time I see a fellow tourist dragging a roll-on suitcase through the sand at their destination I feel good about my choice of luggage. | 6
ozziegiraffe 11:01 UTC 10 Feb 2011 | Interesting: I've stopped taking roll-on cases when I go to Solomon Islands, like you, due to rough ground and weight. I tend to take sports bags, which I leave behind with local friends. (I don't use back packs due to a frozen shoulder). But I did take a roller bag to Europe. I've also been known to pack things in a cooler, and leave that behind too. | 7