Packing Cubes?

[ReneeFLL]

Looking for info from people who have used packing cubes. I never thought that they would be very useful, but I finally bought some and I really like them. I bought this cheap set from Walmart to try them out. They are flimsy and don't hold their shape, but they worked well. It looks like most of them are all flimsy. Three isn't enough so I want to buy more. I found the Hyper-Lite Packing Cubes and they look like they would hold their shape, but are they worth the extra money? It looks like they will take up more space. 

 

What have you used in the past and what do you use now?

 

I know about rolling clothes , etc to save space and other packing tips, but I'm only looking for info on the packing cubes.

Thanks

 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Am-Tourister-Royalty-American-Tourister-Pack-Cube-Asst/202609805

 

https://www.ebags.com/product/ebags/ultralight-packing-cubes-super-packer-5pc-set/309406?productid=10408193&cartItemId=2

 

 

 

[BNL1213]

I have been using packing cubes for the past couple of years for both work and pleasure travel and I’ve found them to be a game changer. I’m looking forward to using them when we travel to our cruise next month because I figure they will also be helpful as storage on shelving in the cabin. Makes for faster unpacking!

 

I know you mentioned you’re not interested in hearing about rolling clothes but that’s how I use the cubes. I roll everything and line things up in the cubes to prevent wrinkling. Works great! 

[crystalspin]

Hi! I have used packing "folders" in the past, but now use some parts of four sets of cheap Chinese packing cubes and zipper bags from eBay. 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/6PC-Set-Luggage-Clothing-Travel-Storage-Bags-Pack-Cube-Organizer-Waterproof-US/362622377395?hash=item546dfa5db3:m:mhz-fuP-NpXjNrhM1dO-wJg

I have four different colors, two each for DH and self. This is because certain sizes turn out to be so useful I wanted more than one of the size per person. Speaking of sizes, we travel carry-on only and it seemed the "good" brands tend to larger sizes than are good for us. (This is how the packing folders came to be UNused.)

 

They are very good for shorter trips and cruises where whole outfits can be packed in a cube. When that is the scheme, it then becomes super easy to cross pack an outfit or two in each other's suitcase, just in case of separation from the bags even though the idea was to carry them on. That's where the color-codes come in. 

 

At about $7.50 a set of 3 cubes/3 flat bags, the four sets came to $30. They are not super strong materials, but have held up for a number of trips, with no blown out zippers or anything. They do NOT hold their shape empty, but I'm not sure any of them do. 

 

Another alternative, that I used on our first TransAtlantic (before I found the eBay cubes) is ZipLoc BigBags (2- and 3-gallon) along with regular quarts and gallons. You may have to buy them on line, they were short-lived in physical stores at least near me.

 

ETA: Agreeing with BNL, some cabins (as well as travel trailers!) are lacking in drawer space, and cubes help to keep shelves organized and neat. Even if they don't hold their shape, they keep the clean clothes organized (and the color-code helps there too).

Edited May 25, 2019 by crystalspin

[Casino Comp Chick]

I love mine and use different sizes for different items, one for bathing suits and coverups, one for undergarments, a flat one with a hard cardboard insert for pants and shorts to keep them wrinkle free, another for shirts. It makes life so easy when packing & unpacking. I have the mesh on one side version which is great because you can see what is in each.

I highly recommend them.

Edited May 25, 2019 by Casino Comp Chick

[er345]

I just checked the brands on mine. I have a set of three from LL Bean and a set of three from Sharper Image.  Whatever they cost at the time was well worth it.  I have used them multiple times a year for over 10 years. I especially LOVE the LL Bean ones. I went to check the price on the LL Bean ones for you and they are back ordered until July 18th. 😔 

I’ve seen so many out there.  For me the key is making sure the large one is big enough.  I don’t need many tiny bags for socks and underwear.  But I love having my cruise clothes sorted and just slide the bags right on the shelves or in the drawers. so I use multiple large ones.

 

Although I like Crystalspin’s suggestion of using smaller ones to pack a complete outfit for cross packing.  We usually take a carry on with first day clothes for everyone for our pre-cruise hotel. This would be a good way to separate them.  

[Surfguyxxx]

I use mine on longer trips and love them.  Rolling isn't a problem because you actually get a lot more into the cubes than one would think.  A couple of wrinkles here and there but who cares.  Bought some for DH and he likes them too. 

 

[breezy_carol]

I just got these in February and have used once.  I really like them and am thinking of getting more of the small/medium size.

Shacke pak

[BND]

We haven't traveled without them in about 5 years.  I especially love the fact I can pull everything out and put it all back in without having to completely repack so when we have an overnight before a cruise and aren't unpacking we can still easily find everything.  We have 5 sets and a couple of additional medium sized ones.  We don't use them all, even for a two week trip, but it gives us options when packing.  We each pack two or three per type of item and them cross pack by putting the same type of clothing into each bag.  We roll most clothing items.  The only things that don't go in them are shoes, DH's slacks and dress shirts and my capris and "formal" dresses which all go into dry cleaner bags and are folded and put on top of everything in the suitcase.  Another great deal is we don't even have to put clothes (mainly underwear and socks) directly into the drawer. We just unzip the cube and put it in the drawer.

[jkgourmet]

These:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B005LXPSFI/ref=sspa_mw_detail_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyRDQ3S1JNVDdGU0QyJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMDE2NjYyWU1UTkYxUTlLU1lTJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA1MzMzMzMyWU1PNllSVlNNVzZYJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfcGhvbmVfZGV0YWlsJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZ

 

also available from ebags.com

 

I've used those things for 10+ years, use and abuse them frequently, and they still look like new.  Lighter weight than most others (which is a big deal for me because I never check luggage, regardless of the length of our trip.)

 

PS several years ago, I bought some extras from the Amazon Basics brand.  BIG mistake.  They were heavier and stiff.  I should have returned them. Only time I've been disappointed with the Amazon Basics stuff.

[cft8]

I have the eBags “classic” ones. I’ve bought a couple of different sets and also singles of some sizes I find useful. https://www.ebags.com/product/ebags/packing-cubes-6pc-value-set/288518

 

I originally bought them because some Royal Caribbean ships have wire shelves in the closet, and so they allow me to put my stuff on the shelves without getting lines in the bottom item. 

 

Now I use them for all trips - I can keep my clothes neat and organized, and unpack quickly. 

 

If we are doing a multi-stop trip, I can sort out what I need for each place and not be digging through my whole suitcase looking for the one thing I need. 

[brillohead]

I do like a previous poster mentioned -- put all of my undies and socks in one, swimsuits and coverups in another, t-shirts in another, etc.  

When I get on the ship, I unzip and place on a shelf or in a drawer.  Unpacking takes a couple minutes.  (Anything that goes on hangers, I pack on a hanger -- then just pluck it from the suitcase and hang it in the closet.)  

At the end of the cruise, anything still in a cube is clean and separated from the dirty clothes when I put it in the suitcase (I keep an open suitcase under my bed and use it as a dirty clothes hamper).  Upon arriving home, cubed clothes get put away and dirty clothes go to the laundry room.

I don't see any benefit in expensive cubes or cubes that hold their shape.  Mine were super-cheap on ebay and they get the job done.  

I don't think that packing cubes help you pack more in a suitcase, but they DO organize your items and make it easier to find things in your suitcase and unpacking and repacking is easier/faster if you just leave clean clothes in the cubes.  

[Bernie by the sea]

I have 2 sets that i got at IKEA.  Not super expensive, but I would do without them now.   Small is good for undies, med for T-shirt’s or pj’s, swimsuits.  Large for just aboutanything- polo shirts slacks, non hanger items.  

[mongo59r]

We bought two sets of these and have been quite happy with them.

Packing Cubes

[crystalspin]

16 hours ago, er345 said:

Although I like Crystalspin’s suggestion of using smaller ones to pack a complete outfit for cross packing.  We usually take a carry on with first day clothes for everyone for our pre-cruise hotel. This would be a good way to separate them.  

Just to clarify, by "outfit" I really mean one trouser or legging and two shirts/tops that coordinate. If I were figuring on an overnight pre-cruise, I would pack for each person: pants and one top, but also undies&socks and possibly nightwear, just to keep things together and easy-access.

 

Y'all got me looking, and when our cheap eBay sets give out, I might go with these sets of one large, THREE medium, two small-but-long. The smalls in the Chinese sets are REALLY SMALL; these look more useful. I haven't decided between the multi-colored or all one color yet!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XQYP4XC/ref=sspa_dk_detail_3?pd_rd_i=B010HBWE5A&pd_rd_w=XVnmv&pf_rd_p=8a8f3917-7900-4ce8-ad90-adf0d53c0985&pd_rd_wg=IQkCo&pf_rd_r=YQFHYQBQHNKBCBXD0AG1&pd_rd_r=c6c8dda8-7f29-11e9-aef3-91e0c1ba0bc6&th=1

[Joebucks]

What is the point of these for a cruise?

[brillohead]

9 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

What is the point of these for a cruise?

 

Did you read the thread?  People talked about the various ways they use them when cruising.

[cruisegal40]

This is a great idea.   The only thing is, DH and I bring one suitcase and one garment bag.  Boy, if only I could get him to give up his suit we'd be all set.

[crystalspin]

1 hour ago, cruisegal40 said:

This is a great idea.   The only thing is, DH and I bring one suitcase and one garment bag.  Boy, if only I could get him to give up his suit we'd be all set.

All the more reason to get two colors of packing aids, to keep things separate in what I assume is your SHARED suitcase! A small or small-and-long cube might fit at the bottom of the hanging bag. But, people develop a system that works for them! If it's working for you, no need to change!

[cruisegal40]

We have it down pretty much, but I think there is always room for change/improvement. I will order some closer to our next cruise and see if they work for us. I am always up for new suggestions.!

[MamaFej]

We now use a combination of cubes and folders. It may seem as thought you can't pack more with them, but I think I do, as smaller groups of "stuff" can be separately compressed. I do a combination of packing what I'll need on land by outfit in one cube, and like items I will unpack and put away onboard in cubes and folders. We like to travel light: one carry-on roller bag, and one backpack each. This has worked fine for 3-4 week trips.

 

However, our next trip is for five weeks, including Iceland at the beginning of June, southern Italy, Croatia, and Montenegro in late June, and northern Italy in early July. That's pretty diverse weather to consider. I hope we can still do it without having to check bags. I'll find out very soon, as it's almost time to pack.

[panoramaofthepast]

I have several that are semi-permanent:

•  electronics [charging cords, extra batteries, small extension cord] - oh yes, dry erase markers too
• first aid kit/OTC meds
• cleaning [handiwipes; laundry soap and fabric sheets
• cosmetics 

At the end of a cruise, we check to see what needs replenishing, then put them on the shelf for next time. It cuts down on prep time when getting ready for a cruise and I know everything is there. 

[cruisemom42]

7 hours ago, crystalspin said:

 But, people develop a system that works for them! If it's working for you, no need to change!

 

This is definitely true in my case. A few years ago I did a trial pack with packing cubes (borrowed) -- it took me a lot longer to pack and in the end I wasn't able to pack as efficiently and get as much in my suitcase. (I travel with a relatively small suitcase wherever I go....)

 

Recently I was getting ready to pack for a land trip where I'd have a lot of 1-night and 2-night hotel stays. I thought maybe having the packing cubes would be worth it, since there would be so much "in and out" of the suitcase. I even bought a couple of sets. But.... I have to admit that after spending about a half hour trying to pack my case, I gave up and went back to my "tried and true" packing methodology.

 

In terms of packing without wrinkles and in packing the most in the least space, I think my method is superior to cubes. It does take time to do the packing, but then, I found that it takes time with the packing cubes too -- figuring out what can fit where, avoiding empty space, rolling and folding in different ways, etc.

 

It's just not for me. 

[quakershaker]

I like eagle creek. The specter ones are extra light weight. They’re on sale now at the container store.

[c-boy]

e Ba gs hyper lite work great  👍

[ldubs]

Mrs Ldubs uses cubes.  She is very organized.  

 

I on the other hand, use one big cube.  It has wheels on the bottom and a handle on the top.  😀😀😀