How much luggage?

[beachbum6264]

Thanks for all the replies. We will be driving (Idon't fly, had a terrible experience once :eek: and that was enough for me). We'll drive from Tennessee to DC to spend Christmas with our dd, then down to Ft. Lauderdale. The reason for the "conversation" is that our oldest DD came to visit and took one of our large suitcases back with her - to Oregon. Now we have 1 large bag and 2 smaller carry on size. One carry on will be for the traveling part, the other for the cruise. DH thinks we can pack everything we need (including formal wear, our snorkel equipment, and let's not forget my shoes :D) in the 1 large bag. NO WAY! We filled that sucker up for a 5 day cruise last month and he could hardly lift it. Now that we've seen the answers I'm going shopping for luggage! :D

[Vict0riann]

Good decision!

[Randyk47]

Two 26" suitcases, two wheeled garment bags, and three carry-ons is our standard load. The one and only time we could drive to a port (Galveston) I couldn't see out the back window of our SUV. Would have been easier to put wheels on my wife's triple dresser. :eek::D Even for short like three or four day getaways we only get it down to the two 26" suitcases and two carry-ons. :) We're just one of those couples who look like they're moving instead of going on a vacation.

[PathfinderEss]

For 3 weeks or longer we take 4 medium size bags and 2 small carry ons. Under 3 weeks it is 2 medium size bags and 1 small carry on.

[legalslave]

The longest we have been gone is 14 days. We each take a 26" checked roller suitcase and have 1 garment bag checked. I take a carryon that has a removable backpack attached to it (we both love that bag). It won't fit in the overhead so we seperate the two so the roller can fit in the overhead and the backpack will fit under the seat. He has to take a roller computer bag because of work. I know I could get it down to not taking the garment bag but DH insists on taking it.

 

Diane

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

Oh I had a good laugh over your post..;):D

 

DH is the same as your DH & I'm the same as you..Never ever let him pack his own bag! DH will forget half of the things..When he traveled for business he was better, but I still had to check his bag as he might forget a change of socks etc.. If not he would say to me You Forgot etc etc...:(

 

DH wears his plain black shoes with his TUX & I don't think anyone has ever noticed..If they did, they were polite..

 

Only once on a formal night an inebriated younger man made fun of DH in his TUX when he got on the elevator..DH laughed it off, but I was a bit upset..:(

 

Betty

 

Yes, it is amazing.....what on earth would these men do without us?? :rolleyes: If you told mine to pack his bag to go somewhere he would just stand there with a helpless look in his eyes like "Say what...??" Then again, I pick out and shop for his clothes because "he is not a shopper..." and doesn't have the patience for it. I may drag him along to help pick out colors he likes but he generally looks bored through the whole process. I swear if I didn't buy his clothes, he would go out the door buck naked. I always say that I have never had any children, but somehow I ended up with an 8-year old that I married! Ha Ha. :D

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

Two 26" suitcases, two wheeled garment bags, and three carry-ons is our standard load. The one and only time we could drive to a port (Galveston) I couldn't see out the back window of our SUV. Would have been easier to put wheels on my wife's triple dresser. :eek::D Even for short like three or four day getaways we only get it down to the two 26" suitcases and two carry-ons. :) We're just one of those couples who look like they're moving instead of going on a vacation.

 

I sympathize greatly......I have to fight the urge to take the entire house with me when we travel.....:)

[Randyk47]

Yes, it is amazing.....what on earth would these men do without us?? :rolleyes: If you told mine to pack his bag to go somewhere he would just stand there with a helpless look in his eyes like "Say what...??" Then again, I pick out and shop for his clothes because "he is not a shopper..." and doesn't have the patience for it. I may drag him along to help pick out colors he likes but he generally looks bored through the whole process. I swear if I didn't buy his clothes, he would go out the door buck naked. I always say that I have never had any children, but somehow I ended up with an 8-year old that I married! Ha Ha. :D

 

I, for one, would never think of having or letting my wife pack my bags. Heaven forbid!!! :D I'm pretty fussy about what I pack and how I pack it. Probably comes from having had to travel extensively for business during my working career and having owned a part of a men's clothing store. Heck, one of our first dates was a trip to the outlet malls near Williamsburg, VA. We shopped 'til she dropped and we'd pretty well filled the back of my Explorer SUV. :D

[kazu]

I, for one, would never think of having or letting my wife pack my bags. Heaven forbid!!! :D I'm pretty fussy about what I pack and how I pack it. Probably comes from having had to travel extensively for business during my working career and having owned a part of a men's clothing store. Heck, one of our first dates was a trip to the outlet malls near Williamsburg, VA. We shopped 'til she dropped and we'd pretty well filled the back of my Explorer SUV. :D

 

You are not alone:D DH is very fussy about what is going to be packed. He chooses and I pack as I am a better packer than him. I would never ever dare choose his clothes:eek: Life is too short as it is - I don't want it to get any shorter:p

[mamaofami]

We take one large suitcase each, one to share, and two carry ons. No matter how I try to get it down from that, that's what we wind up with. Oh, and DH carries a backpack and I have a purse. When we first started cruising, it was more.

[pbnjrockette]

For anything over a week we take 1 26" and 1 carry-on each. Have finally found light-weight large suitcases (mine weighs in under 6 lbs, DH's is about 8) that have the 4-way rollers. We usually manage 40-44 lbs of "stuff".

 

Use the mesh packing cubes to keep everything organized. I usually take 4 pairs of shoes (sometimes 1 more in my carry-on with meds, electronics, ALWAYS a change of clothes after airlines lost luggage for 3 days while we were in the Amazon!!)

[puppycanducruise]

The longest we've been away was for an 11 day cruise out of Rome. We stayed 2 days in Rome before the cruise. We each had a 26" checked bag and a carry-on. DH's carry-on was his camera bag. None of the bags were too full and we take formal clothes too. I even had a jacket that I didn't need as it was too warm. It's a challenge to pack light, so far no one's complained about me wearing the same outfit more than once.

[iancal]

After many years of business travel there is no need for DW to select what I take or pack it for me. DW starts a few days in advance of our departure date. I pack the night before or the morning of departure depending on how early in the AM we leave.

 

And this is the mystery to me. I can be packed in 20-30 minutes tops-for a week, a month, or an extended trip of several months. DW seems to mull it over for days. I do not view it a particularly difficult or taxing task.

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

I, for one, would never think of having or letting my wife pack my bags. Heaven forbid!!! :D I'm pretty fussy about what I pack and how I pack it. Probably comes from having had to travel extensively for business during my working career and having owned a part of a men's clothing store. Heck, one of our first dates was a trip to the outlet malls near Williamsburg, VA. We shopped 'til she dropped and we'd pretty well filled the back of my Explorer SUV. :D

 

You are one in a million, believe me.

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

After many years of business travel there is no need for DW to select what I take or pack it for me. DW starts a few days in advance of our departure date. I pack the night before or the morning of departure depending on how early in the AM we leave.

 

And this is the mystery to me. I can be packed in 20-30 minutes tops-for a week, a month, or an extended trip of several months. DW seems to mull it over for days. I do not view it a particularly difficult or taxing task.

 

The reason it takes so long for us is it seems to require a lot of decision making. A woman may wear several more pieces of clothing in one outfit than a man does.....it is the question of what-goes-with-what......and what accessories and jewelry go with the outfit, then there is the shoes, etc.....it goes on and on. Requires a lot of pondering and you don't want to leave anything out or the whole outfit becomes "rubbish"!;)

 

A man's wardrobe is so blissfully simple........it is easy to pack!

[iancal]

Ya but!!!!

If I told DW that I just booked a vacation or whatever and we had to pack and be out of the house in one hour, or even 30 minutes, to get to the airport I know with absolute certainty that DW would be all packed and ready to go.

There might be a few words of frustration but she would be all packed and my guess is that nothing important would be left behind.

[RedmondCruiser]

[SIZE=4]We go on three week cruises and always take two medium suit cases, two fold overs and two carry ons. At the FLL airport someone looked at us in amazment so I chimed in " can you believe this is for a two day cruise ? - I just can't stop her" The persons jaw was now on the floor.[/SIZE]

[janmcn]

2 (50 pound) large, two Rick Steve's rollaboards…no matter how long…45-days is longest.
When cruising, we know it isn't the same as home…so everything is washable or cleanable in the ship facilities…(we use their laundry). Much of our carryon stuff is photo equipment…cameras, lenses, tripods, computer, hard drives, iPad, Kindles, etc.

I don't remember what you wore yesterday, and I'm assuming the same with you. ;-)

PS…we MUST be able to handle it ourselves…that's our rule…so one suitcase (rolling) and one roll-aboard each (plus my purse)

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

[quote name='iancal']Ya but!!!!

If I told DW that I just booked a vacation or whatever and we had to pack and be out of the house in one hour, or even 30 minutes, to get to the airport I know with absolute certainty that DW would be all packed and ready to go.

There might be a few words of frustration but she would be all packed and my guess is that nothing important would be left behind.[/quote]

I might be able to make it in that time frame but I'll guarantee that some new swear words would be minted and I would need a Vodka Martini intravenous line started to calm me down.........:eek:

[iancal]

...we have the same rule. You pack it, you carry it. The rule worked wonders with our children, especially our daughter.

And we have to be able to hoist it on to trains by ourselves, carry it up a flight of stairs to a hotel room, pull it along cobbled streets, drag it onto a ferry or somehow stuff it all in the trunk of a small Fiat/Hyundai/Ford.

For us, that is a big motivator to pack efficiently and pack as lightly as possible.

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

[quote name='iancal']...we have the same rule. You pack it, you carry it. The rule worked wonders with our children, especially our daughter.

[B]And we have to be able to hoist it on to trains by ourselves, carry it up a flight of stairs to a hotel room, pull it along cobbled streets, drag it onto a ferry or somehow stuff it all in the trunk of a small Fiat/Hyundai/Ford. [/B]

For us, that is a big motivator to pack efficiently and pack as lightly as possible.[/quote]


You all are a lot more ambitious in your undertakings than we are. I find myself wanting to go and relax, not get a workout!;)

Seriously, we are getting older and we did a lot of those things when we were younger. Now we just take cruises or some kind of relaxing land tour where they handle the luggage for you. We have physical restrictions now.

[iancal]

Everyone is different. Except for a last minute Alaska cruise that happened to depart from our home city, I cannot remember a cruise that we did not tack on at least a week of pre or post travel.

Since retirement they have been considerably longer. But we prefer not to take extended cruises for now. We will do an independent land vacation interspersed some 12 or 14 day cruises between-especially when the cruise is departing and arriving in different locations as is common in Europe and Asia.

[Irish Eyes Are Sailing]

[quote name='iancal']Everyone is different. Except for a last minute Alaska cruise that happened to depart from our home city, I cannot remember a cruise that we did not tack on at least a week of pre or post travel.

Since retirement they have been considerably longer. But we prefer not to take extended cruises for now. We will do an independent land vacation interspersed some 12 or 14 day cruises between-especially when the cruise is departing and arriving in different locations as is common in Europe and Asia.[/quote]

Sounds great, I am happy for you that you can take the time (and $$) to accomplish all that in your vacation...:). Wish I could!

[Marigold252]

[quote name='Irish Eyes Are Sailing']Yes, one suitcase each and one carry on each plus my purse. It has worked so far..........however, I would never allow him to pack his suitcase.....I do all the packing. Otherwise he would travel with one pair of cutoffs, an old ratty t-shirt, two pairs of underwear, and a pair of jeans for formal night :eek:..........no thank you! I make sure everyone is presentable as required! ;)[/QUOTE]

Irish Eyes, you gave me a laugh! DH usually fusses about how much I pack for him, but he always compliments me when he discovers I have packed something that he needed like a windbreaker on a hot weather trip that turned cool.

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[oofroggie]

I will be taking for my 120 day cruise 1 large checked bag, 1 carryon and 1 very large handbag. As a 5 star mariner I get free laundry. Could not do without the free laundry.