How-To: Packing a Carry-On Backpack for 3 Weeks in Cambodia and Thailand

It's official - I have finally become an amazing packer.  It's taken me years, and a TON of overweight baggage charges, to perfect but I feel as though I'm a professional.

Every trip I take, I've been trying to pair down my items/necessities.  My most frequent trip, Mexico in October for one week, I packed only one little carry-on which included a ton of dresses, rompers and even a pair of heels.  The challenge this time was the amount of time I'm gone for - 3 WEEKS.

I should begin by saying that I prefer dresses and rompers to shorts.  I prefer short dresses and short rompers to long dresses.  Given this, I also wanted to ensure I had enough mix and match items to make outfits for the daytime and enough "going out" outfits for the evenings.  I find that I change my clothes rather often, as I get warm, so the outfits I wear during the day are not typically what I wear in the evenings.

Here's an itemized list of what I'm bringing to Cambodia and Thailand:

Packing Cube #1 - Rompers, Bathing Suits and Bathing Suit Covers
4 x bathing suits and one extra black bathing suit top
2 x bathing suit covers
5 x rompers

Packing Cube #2 - Dresses and Underwear
3 x bandeau bras
Undies not shown!!
6 x dresses (two are maxi dresses)
1 x belt

Packing Cube #3 - Shorts, Tanks, Skirts and Leggings
2 x shorts
1 x pull-on skirt
5 x tank tops
1 x black leggings

Extras - Not In a Packing Cube
1 x day purse
1 x beach bag
2 x sandals (one pair of flip flops)
1 x wireless speaker (no beach day is complete without music)
1 x makeup bag (Beach Please!)
1 x jewellry bag

Yes, I used packing cubes and actually found these on Amazon.ca for next to nothing.  I like the organization when using cubes - everything has a specific space and you can pull out one cube at a time instead of disrupting the entire bag when pulling out an item.

Now, on to the backpack.  After doing extensive research I found this carry-on backpack from eBags.com.  I selected this one specifically for its numerous compartments, space and the various secret pouches.  After backpacking for a few months in Southeast Asia before, you realize what comes in handy and what doesn't.  Plus, the price - the price is phenomenal for this bag.  The one I selected is called eBags Mother Lode TLS Weekender Convertible.  You can check it out here

NOTE:  As you can tell, I have not discussed my Makeup/Hair Products bag, carry-on liquid bag, carry-on purse or my jewellry bag.  I will be doing this in a later post.  I will also do a later post on my travel outfit!!

Happy Thursday Glossers!