I’m not afraid to admit it: I’m a bit of a bag junkie. No matter how many roller boards, sling bags, backpacks, and camera bags I have, there’s always a few things missing from the bags I have to choose from. I’ve spent hours upon hours surfing the Web for bag reviews, combing the stores for a discontinued perfect find, and asking random people in airports if they’re happy with their cool looking bags. All of this effort because I know that the easier my luggage is to deal with, the better my trips are going to be. Whether I’m going to the local coffee shop or a client meeting halfway around the world, the utility and ease-of-use of the luggage I bring has a strong influence on how easy the trip is.
Sure, I’ll always be in pursuit of the perfect piece of luggage. After all, the easier it is to get around with the bag I’m using, the less I focus on the trip itself, and the more I focus on the book I’m going to read on the way there. Now that I have a few bags I’m pretty comfortable with, the question I ask myself has less to do with what bag to buy and more about what to do with the bags I have. As any Digital Nomad can tell you, the small improvements add up to better experiences.
Here are a few of the tips I’ve picked up to make using my luggage that much simpler:
Avoid checking bags at all costs
Checking your bags at the airport seems like such a smart idea. Hand it over the clerk, make your security checkpoint visit easier, avoid dragging it all over the terminal before your flight, and skip the process of finding overhead bin space. What’s wrong with that? For starters, the extra 20-50 minutes you have to wait for your bag to come off the conveyer belt at your destination. Assuming they make the flight with you. There’s nothing worse than showing up to a client meeting in yesterday’s clothes or a scratchy set of unwashed replacement clothes you bought at the hotel gift shop. Bringing your bags with you ensures that you never find yourself searching for them. In addition, this has the added bonus of making you think twice about what you really need to bring with you.
Every ounce counts
Every trip I leave for, whether down the street or the other side of the country, I do a quick audit of what I’m bringing with me. Can I leave an extra pen or an extra client document or that gadget I’m likely not going to put to use. These small removals seem pointless, but these ounces add up to pounds as you figure out what your “travel kit” really needs to include. More than any other travel tip I’ve discovered, less weight equates to better trips. Besides, the less you bring with you, the less you have to lose along the way.
If you want to get really hardcore about travel weight, check out Eagle Creek’s ultra-light roller board.
A carry-on for under the seat
When I’m on a plane, I know I’m going to need a book/magazine to read during the banned gadget windows, my reading glasses, my iPhone stand (for watching movies without holding the phone), and maybe some snacks. Even when I carry on all of my luggage (which is nearly every trip I go on), I hate futzing with my roller board to pull out the things I know I’m going to want at my seat. I’ve found a small laptop bag that perfect slides under an airline seat vertically so that all my seatside goodies are accessible but it doesn’t block me from stretching my legs. When I sit down in my seat, I just grab this bag out of my roller board, knowing that everything I need is in there.
Use the luggage hook, not the handle strap
Many smaller, briefcase or laptop type bags include a strap of material that slides over the telescoping roller board handle. While this is certainly handy, I’d recommend using the luggage strap that many roller boards come with. This strap is removable and has a hook attached to hang smaller, non-rolling off the roller board itself. While it’s not as tidy (it may bounce your bag around a bit more), it does a much better job of locating the weight in a better place. When you put your heavy laptop bag near the handhold part of the telescoping arm, the center of gravity is thrown off, putting much more weight directly on your arm. After a few hundred feet you can already feel the burn in your forearm and shoulder. But using the luggage strap puts the center of gravity back in the right place, using the wheels as a rotation point. To your arms, it doesn’t feel more different than not having the bag there at all.
Trade up your wheels
I can’t take credit for discovering this tip - it comes entirely from my dad and is absolutely brilliant. The wheels that come pre-installed on many bags are not only the cheapest option available to the manufacturer, they’re poorly designed for heavy usage. My expensive TravelPro Crew4 roller board, for instance, had bearings that weren’t sealed, allowing dirt and debris to easily get into the bearing housing. A trip to the local sporting goods store netted me 8 new wheels and fantastic, sealed bearings for $35. A quick turn of a wrench and the factory wheels were history. Now my bag rolls more easily with less pulling on my part, has a “softer” feel rolling through the airport, and is vastly quieter.
Use a series of small bags
The trouble with using carry-on bags exclusively and cutting down the weight and number of the bags you bring with you is that your undershirts and your magazines are all mixed together. I’ve had several embarrassing moments where I open my bag in the waiting area to grab a power cord, only to answer the question “Boxers or Briefs” for my fellow travelers. I recently picked up a handful of Eagle Creek’s packing cubes and have been impressed with how much they’ve helped me not only better organize my luggage, but how much room they are saving me along the way. Using a collection of these cube mini-bags, you’re able to better utilize the space in your bags and locate things faster and easier.
Bring your Bag o’ Cables
Perhaps my most important Digital Nomad bag tip is to create a “Bag o’ Cables” that includes all the power cords, adapters, and other supporting tech that you would need for a client, an overnight trip, or a brainstorming at Starbucks. I grab the Bag o’ Cables when I leave the house and I never have to think “Do I need an extra cable?” I just have them all in that bag. Here’s my bag, and here’s the contents.
(If you’re interested in more business travel tips, check out my post from earlier this year at CommunityGuy.com)
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[...] a post by Jake McKee on Dell’s new DigitalNomads blog that suggests some great tips for business travellers to think about when planning a trip, especially concerning your [...]
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[...] you may remember, Jake wrote a post for Digital Nomads awhile back on the challenges of ‘baggage’ while traveling. Jake’s working on another post that will appear here on Digital Nomads on his new Amazon [...]
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[...] - bookmarked by 4 members originally found by rarwes on 2008-12-03 Baggage: It Affects More Than Just Relationships http://www.digitalnomads.com/2008/09/01/baggage-it-affects-more-than-just-relationships - [...]
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Nomad Contributors
by NewssyLee / September 5, 2008
Thanks to you
by Pedantic / September 26, 2008
Pedantic, but it made it hard to read: It’s “roll aboard” not “roller board”.
by Barb Chapman / November 12, 2008
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