BootsnAll Travel Community

I know there are tons of these "what to bring" topics, but I failed to find one specifically about my situation, so please forgive me if there is one and I missed it!

I'll be going to Europe from approx. May 13th to July 15th (so about 3 months) with a girlfriend of mine. This is my first big trip like this! We'll be spending time in (tentatively) England, Denmark, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, Czech Republic, Croatia, Sweden, and maybe another stop or two along the way. Our primary method of transportation will be train. We'll be staying in hostels mostly, but we'll hopefully be staying with friends while we're in England, Denmark, Italy, and Germany, at least for some of the time.

We're thinking that backpacks will be our best bet to bring stuff, and we'll also be bringing a small day bag. Besides that, we're having a hard time deciding on what to bring! Here's my personal list so far. What can stay, what should go, and what should be added? I'd really really appreciate the help!

Electronics:
- iPhone (for emailing NOT calling - this will save me $ on internet cafes as I can email and send photos from wireless hotspots for free)
- iPhone charger
- international pack of outlet converters
- small digital camera
- camera charger
- extra memory cards for camera

Toiletries:
- toothpaste & toothbrush
- small travel-size bottle of mouthwash
- deodorant
- sunscreen (all-in-one face & body)
- eyelash curler, blush & brush, and foundation
- emergency supply of tampons
- face wash
- shampoo & conditioner
- small first aid kit
- hand sanitizer

Clothes:
- 5 pairs of shorts
- 2 bikinis
- 1 pair black cotton yoga pants/PJ bottoms
- 12 pairs of underwear
- 2 pairs of jeans
- 5 tank tops
- 5 t-shirts
- 1 cotton black dress
- 5 pairs of socks
- 2 bras
- 2 sweatshirts
- rain jacket
- light everyday jacket
- 1 baseball-style cap

Shoes:
- 1 pair good sneakers or Merrell-type shoes for everyday walking and hiking or biking
- 1 pair sturdy flip flops
- 1 pair of wedge heels for dressing up

Misc. Stuff:
- sleep-sheet
- 1 towel and 1 hand towel
- spork
- cheap wristwatch with alarm
- clothesline
- earplugs & eyemask
- sunglasses
- 4 Ziplock baggies of various sizes
- a few safety pins
- pocket flashlight
- small clutch evening bag
- copies of paperwork
- small notepad & pens
- VISA debit card, credit card, and cash
- a few travel books

If you need to cut down on space you could reduce the amount of clothes. e.g. jeans are really heavy to carry around (and take ages to dry when you wash them too), so you could cut that down. I question the underwear situation too - 12 pairs of underwear but only 2 bras? I'd reduce the first and increase the second. And 5 tank tops as well as 5 shirts? Surely that's a bit of over-kill? Are they not reasonably interchangeable? (I'm not much of a tank top girl, myself)

Anyway, you can also leave out the mouthwash. My dentist is convinced that commercial mouthwashes are actually bad for your teeth and highly recommends using salt water instead (and you can get salt everywhere). You could do that for the trip, but it tastes pretty grotty :/

Thanks for the reply!

I've been thinking about downsizing the underwear and upping the bras too. Maybe 6 underwear and 4 bras would be better? I don't sweat much and I can go wearing the same bra for 2 weeks at a time sometimes.

I've also been question my jeans. Originally I thought one pair would be my everyday sort of pair, and the other would be for dressing up. But since I'm bringing a light dress (packs very small), I don't think it's neccessary to bring 2 pairs of jeans, especially in the summer.

And I think you're also right about the amount of shirts I'm bringing. I'll downsize that to about 3 tank tops, 3 t-shirts, leaving me 6 shirts instead of 10.

Are 2 sweatshirts going to be excessive for May through July? I'm mainly concerned about May.

Also, I'm thinking that to save room and lighten each of our backpacks, my friend and I will share certain things such as toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, outlet converters, sunscreen, and books that we will divide up between the two of us.

Ditch:
- mouthwash
- eyelash curler, blush & brush, foundation (seriously, who are you trying to impress?)
- 2 pairs of jeans -- they are heavy. Plus, if you are in the need to hand wash them, they take forever to dry. If you have to pack up and leave and they're still wet, they'll get stinky (moldy smell) pretty fast. Substitute with 2 pairs of travel pants (light weight, quick drying)
- hand towel (just use your regular towel -- packtowls or similar are great, dry fairly quickly, and pack down small)
- small clutch evening bag (substitute with a small wristlet, unless your clutch is really small)

Reduce to:
- 2 or 3 pairs of shorts
- 1 bikini
- 5-7 pairs underwear
- 3 tank tops
- 3 t-shirts
- 1 sweatshirt (maybe)

Add:
- rather than having a few safety pins, add a small travel sewing kit, just in case.

May can be chilly in the Nordic countries, but not cold enough to justify having two sweatshirts. Especially since you live in CT, you shouldn't have a problem. I'm a warm blooded southerner (where it was 86 degrees today) and was in Norway and Sweden in may, and got by with a fleece jacket. Depending on how resistant to the cold you are, you may be able to get away with a fleece jacket (and may be able to ditch the sweatshirt).

The good thing is that you can always buy stuff on the road if you forget or need anything!

My suggestions:

Toiletries:
- toothpaste & toothbrush
- small travel-size bottle of mouthwash
- deodorant
- sunscreen (all-in-one face & body)
- eyelash curler, blush & brush, and foundation
- emergency supply of tampons (they do have these in Europe. Maybe bring 1-2 to give you time to get to a store...)
- face wash
- shampoo & conditioner - Get an all-in-one or switch to conditioner only washing.
- small first aid kit
- hand sanitizer

Clothes:
- 5 2 pairs of shorts - if that. many places won't allow you to wear shorts inside and you'll stick out as a tourist in them. if you MUST bring shorts, maybe only one pair and bring an additional pair of capris or a sarong if you go to the beaches.
- 2 1 bikinis
- 1 pair black cotton yoga pants/PJ bottoms
- 12 3 pairs of underwear (they're easy to hand wash and dry quickly)
- 2 pairs of jeans - jeans are horrible to travel with. bulky, heavy and hard to clean. Bring 1 pair of semi-dressy black pants and one pair of neutral colored capris
- 5 2 tank tops
- 5 3 t-shirts
- 1 cotton black dress
- 5 3 pairs of socks
- 2 bras
- 2 sweatshirts - only if you *really* want to look like a tourist! What about 1 long-sleeve shirt and one lightweight cardigan sweater? Layer for warmth.
- rain jacket
- light everyday jacket - Can you combine the jackets? I don't really see a need for 2.
- 1 baseball-style cap

Shoes:
- 1 pair good sneakers or Merrell-type shoes for everyday walking and hiking or biking
- 1 pair sturdy flip flops
- 1 pair of wedge heels for dressing up

Misc. Stuff:
- sleep-sheet
- 1 towel and 1 hand towel
- spork
- cheap wristwatch with alarm
- clothesline
- earplugs & eyemask
- sunglasses
- 4 Ziplock baggies of various sizes
- a few safety pins
- pocket flashlight
- small clutch evening bag - see if you can get something small you can carry over your shoulder. I have a black bag that is just big enough for my passport, credit card and flip phone. I carry it across my body which means I can go dance and not worry about holding a purse, i can wear it under clothes or wherever.
- copies of paperwork - scan them and email to yourself as well.
- small notepad & pens
- VISA debit card, credit card, and cash
- a few travel books - bring one book for your first country or just bring the sections you'll need for each country. don't bring a stack of books. you can get books there.

Also, I think this is really a LOT of countries to see in such a short time. That's almost one country/week with some distance between several of them. I'd personally cut that in half. I lived in Europe for 14 months and didn't visit that many countries.

I have a black zip up sweatshirt from Old Navy that I love. I wear it most days that I travel and it actully doesn't take up too much space.

Also, if you want the jeans, bring them. I would worry about the shorts though. Not a lot of people seem to wear shorts in Europe.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Marisa:
Ditch:

- eyelash curler, blush & brush, foundation (seriously, who are you trying to impress?)

May can be chilly in the Nordic countries[/QUOTEMarisa,


It snowed on May 5 in Moscow last spring. We are well south of Scandanavia.....

Woman, let her bring the makeup, I insist. Forget the eyelash curler though. We need our foundation and blush. They are necessities.

I would say that the feedback has been good because your original list would have weighed 100 lbs. Honestly take a minimum of stuff from home because anything you need you can get in Europe.

Couple pants, some underwear, a few shirts, swimsuit, makeup, 1 jacket, walking shoes, flipflops, maybe a pair of upscale sandals, dress. You don't really need all that other stuff, and if decide you do you can buy it later.

Suitcase with wheels?

quote:

Originally posted by Sophie9:
Woman, let her bring the makeup, I insist. Forget the eyelash curler though. We need our foundation and blush. They are necessities.

Necessities..hehe. I guess I should be fortunate that I don't need foundation or blush

I don't need foundation or blush, but give me mascara or give me death!

yeah after my time in spain i will definitely be sure to bring something that can be considered "going out" material when traveling... and a little makeup. but no foundation - eye makeup yes and colored lip gloss.

Thank you for all the replies everyone! I've downsized my list by A LOT thanks to your suggestions! Here's my new list:

Electronics:
- iPhone (for emailing NOT calling - this will save me $ on internet cafes as I can email and send photos from wireless hotspots for free)
- iPhone charger
- international pack of outlet converters
- small digital camera
- camera charger
- extra memory cards for camera

Toiletries:
- toothpaste & toothbrush
- deodorant
- sunscreen (all-in-one face & body)
- blush & foundation
- emergency supply of tampons (just a handful)
- face wash
- shampoo & conditioner
- small first aid kit
- hand sanitizer

Clothes:
- 1 pair of shorts
- 1 bikini
- 1 pair black cotton yoga pants/PJ bottoms
- 1 pair capri's (probably black or navy)
- 5 pairs of underwear
- 1 pair of jeans
- 3 tank tops
- 2 t-shirts
- 3 light cotton dresses (pack small)
- 3 pairs of socks
- 3 bras
- 1 light sweatshirt/sweater
- rain jacket
- 1 baseball-style cap

Shoes:
- 1 pair good sneakers for everyday walking and hiking or biking
- 1 pair sturdy flip flops
- 1 pair of nice wedge heels or sandals for dressing up

Misc. Stuff:
- sleep-sheet
- 1 towel
- spork
- cheap wristwatch with alarm
- clothesline
- earplugs & eyemask
- sunglasses
- 4 Ziplock baggies of various sizes
- a few safety pins
- pocket flashlight
- small wristlet purse
- copies of paperwork
- small notepad & pens
- VISA debit card, credit card, and cash
- pages from travel books that I know I'll use, binded

And I'm bringing a backpack. Probably the Eagle Creek Explorer LT.

duck tape?