a road trip packing recap

Sunset as seen from the terrace of the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, 2024.

I asked in my last post if anyone would be interested in how I packed for my road trip last week and some folks said yes, so this one’s for y’all.

Last week I drove six hours from my home in Virginia to Asheville, North Carolina. I was gone seven days and six nights; the first two nights were spent with my aunt and uncle and the other four nights were with long-time friends in an Airbnb. All of my planned activities were casual/dressy casual, so I didn’t have to worry about packing clothes for a fancy event. I also had access to a washer and dryer if I needed them.

If I had wanted to, I could have pulled out my largest rolling suitcase and just dumped in half of my closet. However, I intentionally forced myself to pack less for a few reasons:

1. The less I pack, the less I have to deal with.

2. I wanted to test out a new backpack — the Osprey Arcane XL daypack, which is about 30 liters — and it performed beautifully. This one is a keeper, for sure.

3. I’ll be traveling to Portugal in April and wanted to test some specific clothing items to see how I felt about wearing them on repeat and also how they would fit in the aforementioned backpack.

Here’s what I ended up packing:

• 2 dresses (1 merino jersey knit, 1 not)

• 1 pair of leggings (merino)

• 2 shirts (both merino)

• 1 pair of pants (also merino)

• 2 sweaters (both wool)

• 2 pairs of shoes

• socks, undergarments, pajamas, scarves

This was, all things considered, a lot of clothes for me. I once went to Portugal for 12 days with only two outfits — one in my bag and one on my body.

I have also participated in both the Wool& 100-day dress challenge and the shorter 30-day challenge. The second time we went to Portugal, I was in the midst of my 100-day challenge, so my packing was very, very light. What I’m saying is that I really don’t need a lot when I travel.

Here are some photos of my packing:

packing for a 7 day road trip

About the canvas tote bag: I was bringing gifts for my family and friends, as well as books, knitting, and other miscellaneous items.

Not pictured: I also had a small cooler with snacks and drinks for the road, plus I tossed a full-sized umbrella and a trench coat in the backseat. Oh, and I had my laptop, which fit perfectly in the Osprey bag’s laptop pocket.

So yes, I packed more than I usually do but not excessively so.

How do YOU pack for road trips?