My grueling 13-day Euro trip on which we (technically) touched six countries convinces me that ultralight travel is a feasible alternative to traditional approaches, such as stuffing a maximum-size carryon and a personal item to the gills or packing half your earthly possessions in a rolling case. Nothing I experienced on this trip negated any of the positions I put forth in the Ultralight Manifesto (which I’ll break down point by point).
Ultralight travel is not for everyone (#1). This is still true. Cosmetics and personal care items may be a bigger barrier to most travelers who try to go ultralight than the problem of minimizing clothing bulk. My wife puts less time into her hair and makeup than most but she still had a large quantity of stuff in her checked suitcase that would have never fit in a 3-1-1 bag. She’s done a 5-day UK trip before with no checked bag, but it was tough for her. There are many excellent suggestions on this site for minimizing personal items. I’ll try to group them together in a category soon so they can me more easily located.
Ultralight travel is not just traveling with one suitcase (#2) and Ultralight travel means carrying 15 pounds or less (#3). This is the key if the true benefits of comfort and mobility are to be realized. Sans netbook my load could have been as light at nine pounds for this trip. Switching to a pack cloth bag might have gotten me near seven pounds. Without the netbook I could have taken one more change of clothes. This extra pound or two would have made the laundry issue less pressing and would have still left me with a 12-pound load or less. A bag this light means you can hop a train, roll into a town without reservations, and if you have to carry your bag all day until you check into a hotel, who cares? This is simply impossible with the other approaches. It is reason number one to go really light.
Traveling anywhere outside the US amplifies the need to go light. Our wide sidewalks, smooth pavement, widely-available laundry facilities, and large elevators make traditional travel styles much easier.
More to come…
Frank@OBOW