Writing from the UK my wife Carole and I have recently returned from a 10 day holiday in San Diego, transiting through Houston. I have been reading the posts on OBOW for some time and it was the fact that we had to change planes in Houston both ways that first prompted the thought of using just one carry-on bag each. The airline (Continental) allowed an additional small bag for personal items and this was also allowable at Gatwick (unlike Heathrow which limits you to one bag, total). I got an ebags Weekender bag for myself and a Jansport Euro bag for my wife. Carole also took a satchel-style handbag and I had a small rectangular bag with a shoulder strap that I bought for a few pounds from our local market.

Now, for the packing. We decided right from the start that we would take our tooth brushes but include no toiletries in our packing. -The hotel provided soap/shampoo/moisteriser and the rest (deoderant/toothpaste/disposable razors/shave foam) we bought at destination.

The main bags contained almost exclusively clothes and shoes. I won't detail the quantity and types as that is largly a matter of individual tase, but we both concentrated on the 'layers' principle and used mainly pastel shades so that what we had could be mixed/matched. Before we went we tried vacuum packing, but that was not as sucessful as I'd hoped because although it compressed clothing into smaller packages they in turn were uneven-sized lumps of packing. We found that ironing everything absolutely flat made better use of bag space. As for underclothes and socks we used a one on/one off/one washed and drying/one spare rule. Washing items through each night in the hotel was no problem and everything just about dried overnight.

Carole's satchel-handbag contained her mobil/lipstick/hairbrush/purse/books/sweets.
My small under-seat bag contained all our 'electrical' items: mobile chargers/adaptor plug/beard trimmer and charger/camera and charger/, and also spare glasses and cases/small pair of binoculars/book/sweets. A side, zipped, compartment held all our travel docs/insurance etc..
Going 'one-bag' for the first time proved very sucessful, and we had no problems at all on our journeys, so thanks for all the posts and helpful tips on OBOW.

As for any lessons learned or observations, I'd like to include the following:

I travelled in a smart pair of trousers and packed my jeans. Jeans are the heavier of the two and apart from the travel to and from San Diego the smart trousers were unworn. Next time I'm wearing the jeans and not bothering with the second pair of trousers. Similarly I wore a really good pair of leather walking shoes but packed a pair of trek-type walking shoes. As our destination was urban I didn't need both, so for a similar destination I'll just stick with the leather shoes and use the packing space for an additional pair for Carole if she needs it!

Our really indispensible items though were micro-fleeces; a zip-up breathable, lightweight, and waterproof jacket each, and two nylon (drawstring)type mini backpacks that laid absolutely flat in our cases for packing.

I mentioned that I put all our 'electrical' items in my small under-seat bag. This was because I thought that if I was asked to open anything up it would more likely be for these items showing up on the x-ray equipment, rather than the case full of clothes and being all in one place would make for much easier for access and inspection, although as it was we didn't have to open anything. There's one very small tip I'd like to pass on though as I did use a form of cube-packing here, both to save space and protect the items. I used the small cardboard cartons that packet soups come in. Two mobile phone chargers and the adaptor plug went in one, the camera charger in another.....you get the picture. -The beard trimmer was padded inside the foot of a thick trainer sock with the end folded over!

We are both 'seniors' and managed very well with what we took. Carole carried both the smaller bags and I managed the Weekender and Euro bags comfortably.

Once again, thanks for all the posts and tips and here's to future light travelling!

John B.

Great post, John. Thanks. Did you use the backpack straps on the weekender? What are your general impressions of that bag? I think it looks quite interesting and functional. A backpack carry-on is missing in my collection. ;)

I have used the weekender for multiple trips and have always found it to be more than adequate. It has been my only bag for trips up to two weeks. The back pack straps are good. My main complaint would be the lack of a shoulder strap and connection points for a shoulder strap. Given the price of Tom Binh and Red Oxx bags while certainly conceding the quality of the product, I've found the weekender to be an excellent choice.

Thanks for the input on the weekender. I think it should not be a problem to have strap attachments sewn to the bag by a competent luggage shop or boot maker. Using carabiner hooks one could certainly skip that part and use the handles and hardware that's already in place.

Why didn't you try out the warranty? Too much hassle?

I had a weekender. Good bag, used it once, sold it on Ebay. Now use a Rick Steves convertible. Looking forward to upgrading soon. Possibly to the Tom Bihn Tristar once it's available.

I'm hearing the Tristar is not far off. I'm to have at least a prototype of it and the Compass by May 28. And according to Tom's Twitter (http://twitter.com/tombihn) he's been showing the Tristar to customers in Seattle.

Good for you John and Carole! Isn't it a wonderfully liberating feeling.

I finally managed to talk my husband into carry-on only for our last trip in December....he is now converted, or as he put it..."I've been assimilated, resistance is futile!" I'm relieved because he has a hernia and I was the one hauling his case off the baggage carousels.
We are in our 50s, comfort has become the main priority for us when travelling, it gives us great peace of mind knowing our bags won't be 'lost' and we never have to hang around airports any longer than necessary. It opens up the choice of public transport too, now we can travel in rush hour without getting in the way of commuters. We can manage lots of stairs without any thought to hefting heavy cases and breaking our arms in the process.

Thanks for the report John. I was interesed to see your thoughts on the vacuum packing. At one point I tried some of those vacuum bags that you roll tightly to squeeze out all the air, and I too didn't see that much benefit from them. Maybe for packing something wet? I like the Weekender bag fine for a few days' easy travel.

Thanks very much for the replies to my post. In answer to the questions on the Weekender, I'd tried out the backpack straps after packing but had stowed the straps for our travel to Heathrow as Carole and I went by coach and it was virtually door-to-door from our house. Once at Heathrow I used a luggage trolley for both of the cases, so didn't need to deploy any straps/slings for either of them. Throughout the journeys, both ways, on the small amount of walking between the different transit terminals I carried the Weekender and the Euro as suitcases, one in each hand. I wouldn't try that through a city, but from coach to terminal and arrivals to a taxi it was quite managable. -Nice to know we've got the straps in reserve though.

As for the build quality of the cases, as we were only going to one destination and were not continually on the move I wasn't to worried about that. -However, we did put a luggage strap through the handles around each case, not just to add a bit of extra compresssion to the shape, but also in the event of a major zip going we could put both straps around the affected case and at least hold it closed! (These were the same coloured straps with our names on that we used to put round our checked luggage, so we could easily identify them at the collection carousel. But despite always being checked in together, one would invariably arrive quite quickly and then there would be a very anxious wait whilst the other (usually mine!) would be in amongst the last bags to arrive. -Excellent motivation to go one-bag)

Ebags are no longer trading in the UK, they were closing down their operations here when I looked on the website at the Weekender. So what was already quite an inexpensive option was reduced further in their Sale to around £14 sterling. The site had closed by the time I'd received and inspected my bag, so I couldn't go in and order another for Carole! I'd identified the Jansport Euro bag as a similar item and www.yorkbags.co.uk were including one in a promotional auction they were running on ebay. They retail at £40 sterling in the UK, extremely reasonable for the very good quality if anyone is interested in checking it out.

Now we are retired we are hoping on 2-3 overseas trips a year (notwithstanding the world banking crisis and our health holding up) as we work our way through Carole's 'bucket list'. We'll stick with the bags we've got, but its so tempting to look elsewhere as well when I read some of the gear reviews here!
Some recent posts have mentioned the possibility of going smaller yet. You know, I quite fancied the Berghaus Mule 40, because you can carry it as a bag and the carrying handles also double as haversack straps. Now there's a thought. No I musn't.........Carole won't let me buy any more bags, .....yet.

Once again though, thanks for all the posts and tips on OBOW. It is really apreciated and so helpful in the planning of our trips.
Our next journey is to the South of France in June/July. This really will be a one-bag (total) journey, because we are going with the UK budget carrier Ryanair. Still, it'll be summer time and most things in the cases should be lighter, in theory anyway.

John B

Congrats on going one-bag! Yay! Add two more to the one-bag army. I've gone one-bag for vacations and for business, and I would encourage you to keep experimenting with each trip. If you get a good idea, don't be afraid to try it, but keep your "core" packing list. Don't try too many ideas on a single trip, just in case. It sounds like you've already trimmed that packing list just from a single trip's experiences!

on the vacum pack things I use them but ONLY for really bulky stuff like a sweather for example. I find they really help to reduce the amoutn of room but I would only use them sparingly.

Thanks Brad.
Going ultralight the first time was a real epiphany for me, it has also become quite an addiction to see how light I can go. I enjoy reading other people's ideas and ways of travelling light (hence finding this invaluable site).

John, checking out carry-on bags is something you can't help but do (even if you're not going to buy any). I have several, the last one I bought right after our December trip. This too becomes an addiction but don't fight it, consider it a hobby! ;-)
Travelling in warm seasons is so much easier for less packing, especially the South of France, lucky you. Going to the UK in winter was a real test for me but I managed to pass......even though I must have repacked at least 20 times to get it right.

Paula - I do rather like the fact that clothes don't have to be washed quite so often on winter trips - just hang up the wool and let it air out. I'm not sure my London-in-January bag weighed much more than my regular kit. I find packing for warm weather more stressful because if you make a mistake you can really end up uncomfortable.

......"I find packing for warm weather more stressful because if you make a mistake you can really end up uncomfortable."

Hmmm, that has made me curoius, could that be the difference between men and women packing for different seasons? I have no problems packing clothes for warm/hot weather. During our hot, humid (albeit short) summers, I have a handful of clothes and footwear that get me through the nasty heat and help me stay fairly cool. Those are my tried and true friends that I pack if I'm going to visit a foreign blast furnace. Mind you, these days I try to avoid travel in peak seasons, airline and hotels rates are rather cruel in that respect.

curoius?? Sorry , do excuse me.......curious.