A month ago I travelled to Lefkada, Eptanisa and Athens with only the essential travel items. Needless to say that all the islands were beautiful places with mountains, full of trees and crystal clear waters. If you love these kind of places or want to get an idea of what they look like then check out the video I uploaded. For now catch a glimpse.

The Life Upgrades - Lefkada beach

Now back to the article. Since I started living a more minimalistic lifestyle in general I decided to start travelling with less items too. So my travel packing checklist was narrowed down to the most essentials items. Some of you might be thinking – ‘But why? What if you need also this and that?’ Trust me, I used to think like that and by changing my mind-set to carrying less stuff it has provided me with many benefits. Some of the top of my head:

  1. Less material possessions to carry with you, therefore less load on your body
  2. Less stuff to declutter when you leave from places you visit and reduced mess in general
  3. More organisation and easier access to the items you have with you
  4. Less worrying about things you might have forgotten to take with you
  5. Less worrying about things you need to protect from thieves while travelling
  6. More space for souvenirs etc. and no extra expenses at the airport

Thinking in this way will benefit you in many ways but the above reasons should be enough to convince you.

The Life Upgrades - Essential travel items

Time to move to the fun stuff. Here’s the list of essential travel items:

  1. Passport, ID, travel insurance and any other documents you need
  2. Wallet
  3. Mobile phone and charger (no need for more electronic devices, you are on vacation)
  4. 10-kg carry-on bag
  5. Backpack if you need some extra space
  6. Small shoulder bag for carrying your everyday carry around towns
  7. Locks
  8. Underwear & socks = the number of days you will visit and include at least extra 2 to be on the safe side
  9. T-shirts and/or tank tops = same as above
  10. Pants and shorts = again it depends on the days, you only need 2-3 of each per week
  11. Lightweight jacket which easily can be folded in a bag
  12. 1-2 pair of shoes and 1 pair of flip flops
  13. 1-2 towels if you are not staying at a hotel which can provide you these
  14. Swimsuit or swim trunks
  15. Sun spray
  16. Mosquito spray or wristband
  17. Travel pillow for long distances
  18. Sleep mask
  19. Hat
  20. Sunglasses
  21. Travel wet wipes and tissues
  22. Reading glasses
  23. Book or Kindle
  24. Headphones
  25. Medications

Extra note: I didn’t include toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo and other liquids on purpose. They are cheap and can be bought in any country. No need to bring along the ones you have at home since most of them will probably be taken at the airport anyway.

On a final note I want to say that the above list was designed according to my needs and interests. Of course the first 16 items are mandatory for everyone, in my opinion. However the rest can be optional and for each specific person other stuff can be more important. So mix and match and pack your bags (actually it should be just a bag :)).

The Life Upgrades - Bags

Share this article to inform more people and tell us your thoughts in the comments below: What are your mandatory essential travel items? What does your list look like? Do you have any more suggestions for everyone?