Prevue’s Top 10 Packing Tips of All Time

By Barbara Scofi dio

Who better to share their best packing tips than Prevue’s editors and meeting planner readers, who are always on the road?

Here are our top 10 packing tips of all time:

1. Purchase packing cubes to separate your clothing: underwear in one, workout clothing and PJs in another; pants, shirts and dresses folded and compressed in a flat garment folder. Then you can use the packing cubes for drawer organizers in the hotel. 2. Limit yourself to two pairs of shoes, and coordinate your entire wardrobe around those. Wear your workout gear and sneakers when you travel. Sneakers take up too much room! 3. Organize your tech. Rather than take various adapters for all your laptops, phones and chargers, buy yourself a 4- or 5-way socket board (also called trailing sockets). You then only need 1 adapter and instantly get the 4 or 5 sockets you’re used to. 4. Rolling your clothes helps maximize space and minimize wrinkles. Or pack everything on hangers with dry cleaning bags on each item and they’ll be smooth and ready to hang in the hotel room. 5. Sign up for monthly makeup samples (Ipsy) that you can bring when you travel. You can set your preferences for everything, from lipstick to skincare, as well as the brands you prefer, and you will receive products from small, independent makers, as well as the brands you’ll fi nd at Sephora. 6. Look for clothing that never needs ironing. Chicos has a line of clothing called the Travelers Collection that is easy to care for and won’t wrinkle and for more casual clothing, REI and Orvis use fabrics for both shirts and pants that don’t wrinkle. 7. Pack shoes in drawstring bags and keep their shape with socks or other items rolled up inside them. It takes up less space. 8. Keep a lightweight pair of walking sneakers, workout leggings and a top in your suitcase so you always have something to exercise in or just walk around in if there are travel delays. You don’t want to end up with only dress clothes and heels. 9. Put some dried fruit and nuts in a small plastic container, which is then useful for bringing back the occasional chocolates you may get in a hotel without having them melt or break. 10. Soak one cotton ball per day in perfume, wrap them tightly in Saran wrap, then roll them in a Ziploc bag—instead of bringing the bottle. They are so small and fi t anywhere, and it eliminates the liquid issue.