Which clothes are appropriate for travel

So, if packing is a challenge, I invite you to read these few tips and maybe get some helpful advice. I travel a lot, but still I’m sometimes facing the dilemma, what to pack. I’ve travelled for business and adventure and got quite some experience with both. At first I always wanted to take my whole wardrobe with me, but I forgot the things I needed the most.

It’s true, you need some experience to realize, what you need to take with you. Some say it’s good to make a checklist of what to pack, but that depends from person to person. I never make checklists – just maybe a reminder of one or two essentials that really shouldn’t be left at home. However, if you do prepare a list, I suggest you make a universal document you can use for each trip – and keep optimising it every time you learn something new.

Let’s start with clothes. We’re travelling mostly to enjoy and learn the world, gather experience and get to know ourselves and the world around us. Travelling we gather life experience and test ourselves in different situations. It’s all about building personality and that does not include wearing new, latest fashion, trendy clothes every day. Imagine yourself on a 30 day journey, where you need new clothes every day! You’ll not only need extra luggage, but also extra people to carry it. But with some imagination you can use limited wardrobe and still look more than presentable.

My first rule is – clothes must be dark or very colourful. This way possible stains won’t be so apparent (and you can’t avoid them sometimes). We can use dark clothes longer – no one will notice those few drops of the morning coffee you’ve spilt. White clothes are a whole different bag of trick to ruin your morning. Also – use worn out clothes, ones which you wouldn’t mind throwing away after coming back home. This way you won’t care about finding a clean seat in a bus full of locals with their pets or (possibly) tomorrow’s lunch with them. And at the end of your trip you can even throw them away, or give to charity, to make room for the things you bought along the way. The only thing you should not be too selective of is underwear – have a lot of it with you. It’s the clothing that really does need to be clean every time.

Use materials that don’t need ironing to look good. There are many low quality clothes today, which start wrinkling after being worn for a few minutes – so they won’t be useful after spending a few hour wrinkled in your bag. This is very important when you travel for business and you need to look the part. It’s good to think about this when you’re buying your clothes already – but to get better quality, you also have to pay more to begin with.

Clothes should be above all comfortable and should not stand out. In warm summer days and especially at destinations with very high temperatures, it is ill advised to expose your skin. You should have light and loose clothes made from natural materials that dry fast and cover your body without causing you to sweat. For cold winter days I suggest a good winter jacket, which is warm even though it’s not heavy or thick. It will protect you against cold and wind without taking up much space in your bag. Again, it will cost a bit more to buy, but it’s worth it. Avoid tight clothes, for they can prevent the normal blood flow. If the journey involves long rides on planes, trains, busses… you should not feel bad about wearing a tracksuit – tight jeans will only be uncomfortable.

It often happens we join business and pleasure so we try to explore the country we went to on business. In such cases you should be a bit more inventive while packing, for you’ll need leisure and elegant clothes. But since there’s a lot to choose from today, we can combine elegant with fun in many ways.

Dark clothes can be quite boring, but we can liven them up with accessories – especially girls (jewels, scarfs,…). But not to drag all of this with you, you can buy locally when you arrive. You’re sure to find many things by local artists or craftsmen. Let these also be practical souvenirs, to bring back memories of the journeys you’ve made.

Footwear must be comfortable too, and from natural materials. This will help you avoid blisters and reduce sweaty feet. But never forget flip-flops. They’re especially handy in the summertime and in hostels with a common shower. You can avoid infectious skin disease this way.

And last, but by no means least, you should have a bag with important items with you – always close at hand (for passports, tickets, money, phone, toothbrush, hand cream…). It should have as many pockets as possible, so you can fit everything in it systematically and avoid frantic searching for the ticket just before boarding. My advice would be a messenger bag (like postmen have), so you can have it over your shoulder and on your hip. You get a good overview of the things you need with a reduced possibility of theft.

Have a nice trip!