Packing Cubes – For all your packing needs

Three Reasons to Buy Packing Cubes for Family Travel

Packing cubes are very handy to help you and your family organize your clothes, gear and travel accessories. They are essentially drawers inside your luggage, and allow you to quickly take a cube, unzip it and find your item (no need to dig under piles of folded clothes anymore). Another benefit is that everything stays in one place and does not shift when the luggage gets rolled or thrown in a car or plane.

1. Organization

Ideas on how to organize your packing cubes:

– by item type

This is usually how we pack as a family of 4. I used it for the first time when we went on our family road trip last year, and am happy to report that I will not be traveling again without my packing cubes. I used one packing cube for shirts, another for shorts/pants, and a small one for shoes. For families with small children, you can use them not only for clothes but for baby/toddler supplies. An idea could be using one packing cube for diapers, wipes and cream, another for small toys and books, and maybe a little one for snacks. In reality, the possibilities are endless!

– by outfit

This is great when you travel for one-night stays. For the four of us, we used two medium cubes and a small one. We put our 4 bathing suits and day outfits in one, our pyjamas and day 2 outfits in the next, and our sandals in the little one.

– by family member (colour)

This method could work if you buy packing cubes of different colours. That way you assign a colour to a specific family member and they pack their items in the assigned colour. The idea is that you would all pack your cubes in one large suitcase. When you arrive at the hotel, each person has their “drawer” of items that are easily identifiable and neatly organized.

2. Maximizes Space

Packing cubes save space in your luggage! As a matter of fact, I believe it doubles it… I have used the same carry-on suitcase for the last 5 years. Since buying my 2 sets of packing cubes, I am positive that I have been able to fit more items into the same amount of space.

Here’s what I did… I laid out all of the clothes I was going to pack on my bed and sorted them into tops/bottoms. Then I rolled them neatly (trying to smooth out any wrinkles). By rolling my clothes, it saves space and allows me to fit more items into the packing cube. Once it seems pretty full, I zip it up and see if there is any unused space. If there is, I open a corner of the cube and stuff in another rolled up item or a pair of socks/underwear (maximizing even more space). I have also found that it minimizes the wrinkles in your clothes.

You could also use packing cubes when backpacking. I have never done it, but essentially you could use 2-3 cubes and organize all of your clothes and gear to help you maximize space in your bag for the length of your trip. Since you should always try to pack light when backpacking, using packing cubes should help you save plenty of space.

3. Easy to use and worth the cost

Packing cubes are just another way to help organize your family’s travels. Some people may feel that it is unnecessary to spend money on an organizational tool. To me, they are an easy and inexpensive way to organize your family’s travel gear. They have a number of benefits and a variety of uses. Are they worth it? Absolutely! For about $20 you get about 4 or 5 cubes. Best of all, there is no right or wrong way to use them! It is all a matter of preference and functionality for your trip.

This is a guest post written by Margie from https://www.dqtravel.net/

I’m Margie… a teacher turned family travel blogger. Since I got married 12 years ago, my husband introduced me to the joys of traveling. With our two kids, we have travelled around the USA and our goal is visiting all 50 states before they graduate high school. I started the blog to keep a record of our travels and share with others how we travel so frequently on a budget and any other useful family vacation tips.

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