Practical Things To Pack For Your Backpacking Trip

15 necessities you need to consider packing when backpacking

One thing remains constant when you’re travelling: the importance of packing right. We’ve done our fair share of travelling now, and have been able to whittle down the most significant things to squeeze into our bags that we wouldn’t ever travel without, including our secrets to packing efficiently and being able to get away with hand luggage only and thus avoiding pesky baggage charges.

Without further ado, and in no particular order, here is our ever-growing list of unforgettable travel items:

1. Vacuum bag for clothes

If you are planning to pack small, and only take hand luggage like we do, having a way to compress your clothes is the way forward, as they are likely to be the heftiest part of your pack. There are many different options to choose from; I opted to have a single 25L robust bag which has the benefit of a special air-release kind of valve which helps remove more air, turning the bag into a compressed brick. Jess, however, chose a selection of roll up travel bags, which are not as compressed as the air just gets pushed out, but they are beneficial for being able to segment items in a more organised way.

2. First aid kit 

This was initially an annoying item to pack, as we thought it was so unlikely we would need it and it would just be taking up valuable space in our (my) backpack. Turns out, it has come very much in handy. For example, when I sliced off half my finger in Malaysia, or when we had to surgically remove pine needles from Jess’ leg after she slid ten feet down a mountain, or when I got run over by a bus in India, or when I broke my toe surfing in Sri Lanka. The main components we found useful were: alcohol wipes, plasters, some thicker gauze, a bit of bandage, pain killers, and some hydration tablets (for those hangovers).

3. Manicure set

Excluding the tiny scissors if you plan to take hand luggage only. Jess' bag still got flagged at the airport on numerous occasions because of our manicure set though, much to her dismay. It wasn’t confiscated however, given the blunt, but useful components: nail clippers, tweezers, nail file, and a few other tools of which I will never know their true purpose.

4. Spare bank cards

You never know when your bank card is going to get swallowed by an ATM and not have the foggiest idea how to get it back, or even know which ATM you used after your big night out in Thailand.

5. Sewing kit

You are certainly going to buy low quality, trendy, and hippy clothing from markets, so you will also certainly need to sew up the seams at some point. Jess’ lightweight day bag is also on it’s third bout of wear and tear, so that will need stitching again soon.

6. Menstrual cup

For those people who menstruate, getting a moon-cup or a menstrual dish, etc, is not only environmentally friendly, but it also means you will always have it available when needed. We’ve heard recommendations to pack a shit ton of tampons, as they are hard to come by in some places, but that sounds wholly unhealthy and impractical to us.

7. Dry bag

Whether you're an avid beach-goer, or enjoy water-sports such as paddle-boarding or kayaking, a dry bag is pretty essential to keep everything safe, and obvs dry. My phone and other electronics also appreciate the lack of sand granules sneaking into their every crevice. You can buy these pretty much everywhere (and cheap!) in Asia, especially by the beach, so not necessary to purchase before you go.

8. Quick-drying towel

We have lightweight quick-drying towels, which are so convenient for the beach, but also when accommodation doesn’t provide towels, which happens. I have a microfibre towel, which is quite large, but packs up quite tight in a little case (which I then put in my compression bag to make it even more backpack friendly).

9. Additional day bag

On top of our main bags, we also have small day bags to take on day trips to places, or when we know we’ll be out for a long time and have activities planned. You can acquire lightweight pack-away bags cheaply from most outdoor-sy type shops.

10. Power-bank

We never go anywhere without our power banks! We have two power banks which can also be solar powered, which comes in handy when we’re camping or staying anywhere particularly off-grid. We’ve also found in certain (mainly eco-friendly) places, the power is turned off for long periods of the day; cue, the power banks! 

11. Sleeping bag liner

Jess has a sleeping bag liner, which is a thin layer designed to be used alongside your sleeping bag for extra warmth. But Jess has other uses for it, and wouldn’t travel without one anymore. They pack smaller than the average jumper or hoodie, so it acts as a nice layer to wrap around yourself when feeling the chill, particularly on long journeys where the air conditioning is cranked right up. Kuching airport, in Malaysia, deserves a shout out here for being the most baltic airport in the world relative to the outside temperature. As expected, they are also ideal to use in bed, particularly when no bedding is provided(!), or when the cleanliness of the bedding is questionable. The pillow wrap around feature is also appreciated for the same reason. Lastly, Jess is sensitive to certain materials, namely fleece, so when we are provided with fleece blankets, which is all too often, Jess can sleep in comfort while I lie in jealousy having an allergic reaction to the dust that settles in them.

12. Incense

If you are going to a country where mosquitoes are rife, then carrying a healthy supply of incense with you to light in the evenings is not only a non-toxic way of repelling the mozzies, but also smells divine. The recommended scents are in the citrus family; citronella, lemon, etc, but we’ve found any scent does the trick as I also don’t think they like the smoke very much. You can stock up on incense all over Asia.

13. Deodorant balm

A more sustainable, eco-friendly, vegan, longer lasting, and a more compact version of a standard deodorant. I’ve found this style of deodorant doesn’t need to be applied as regularly as your classic roll-on, and also doesn’t get sticky - which is such a bonus when you’re travelling in a particularly sweat-inducing country! There are many brands which are aluminium-free, which I think is also the thing that stains your clothes, so another bonus. We’ve found you can only pick them up in health stores in Asia, and only a few staple brands (like Sure, Lynx, etc) in the typical supermarkets.

14. Shampoo bar

For almost all the same reasons as the deodorant balm, the shampoo bar was a must-pack for us. In places where there wasn’t any complimentary shower gel, it also doubles up as just general soap. Our shampoo bar lasted both of us six months (although we use shampoo less than most because Jess has dreads, and I’m just lazy)

15. Laundry detergent

We’ve only recently started to carry laundry detergent with us, as we typically utilise the laundrettes or laundry services. However, it’s stressful when you get down to your last pair of undies and there isn’t a laundry service in sight - this has been quite rare for us, but it has happened, and we’ve needed to resort to soaking a few items in the sink with some eco sheets specific for hand-washing.

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