How to be an Organized Traveler

I think it is safe to say most of us enjoy traveling, it is the planning for a trip that can be pretty stressful. You have to plan the trip, everything that needs to go on the trip and get your home ready to leave and be ready to hit the ground running when you return. The saying goes “When you play, you pay.”

Here are some of my organization tips to make your next trip a little more organized and less stressful. I mean, after all, we are taking a vacation to get a break not to create more work.

• Plan ahead & be prepared

Being prepared for vacation is key. There is nothing worse than scrambling at the last minute to make sure you have everything planned, packed and coordinated. You can download our travel checklist and packing checklist for free! Use these lists to help stay organized.

• Pack realistically

Don’t waste a ton of time for packing things you don’t need or won’t use. When traveling you will wear half of what you pack. Here are some things to consider before packing:

• Make sure you have good travel organization supplies. When we travel with the kids, I use lots of the containers from the container store to store snacks, toys and other things we will need. These containers stack nicely in the back of our SUV and I can find what I need quickly with the clear containers.
• Shoes are bulky and can take up a lot of room. You really only will wear 2-3 pairs.
• When it comes to clothing, pack things that can be worn several times or layered. Your goal on vacation is to have a good time!
• Pick out your outfits and lay them out on your bed before putting them in the suitcase. Then evaluate what you really will wear and what you plan to do on your trip. I will pair 2 shirts with 1 pair of shorts or pants to wear the bottoms couple of times on a trip.
• View our packing checklist to make sure you don’t forget anything!

• Unpack immediately

As soon as you get home start putting stuff away immediately. I take the suitcases straight to the laundry room and wash everything (even if I didn’t wear it). The following week is always crazy when you come back from vacation so don’t procrastinate and make coming back miserable.

An organized vacation will allow you to relax and enjoy!