Hey it’s Tara here – packing for holidays is part of the fun! I absolutely LOVE to pack two (even four!) weeks before holidays. Packing luggage gets me excited leading up to the big day. I usually pack for myself and the boys. As for Alfred my husband, he prefers the express packing style – checkout his lazy Dad’s 15 minutes packing list guide.

Note before we start: A typical travelling Asian family will bring just about EVERYTHING they own for a short trip (including chilli sauce, cup noodles, nannies and extended family members!). Remember you’re going away for a few weeks, not migrating to another country. Bring only what you need.

To keep your family’s luggage weight lighter than a baby cow, checkout our BEST PACKING TIPS TO MAKE FAMILY TRAVEL EASIER.

We usually travel for around 2 weeks and for this we would bring 2 luggages. Me and the boys will use up 1 and ½ of the luggage space. And whatever remaining space is for my husband! Each of the luggage usually end up weighing around the 23kg mark.

As for hand carry, we use 2 backpacks. The backpacks we need for long haul flights from Australia. Checkout our on board flight packing list below.

Step #1: Start packing early

Most Mums will forget or overpack items because they try to remember everything right before leaving. I do my packing up to four weeks before. My husband would do his packing one week before leaving. So his stuff sits at the bottom of the 2nd luggage, and my boys’ excess stuff will occupy the rest of his luggage.

Step #2: Go through packing list order below and bring only enough of each items

Below is my family’s packing list for a typical 2 weeks holiday.

NOTES:

We make sure EVERYTHING inside the luggage gets plenty of use during the family holiday. We wear the same clothes on multiple days. Picking neutral colours to make mixing and matching easy.

TIP #1 – Packing cubes

These little bags enable you to divide up your family’s clothes so they won’t be all mixed up inside and your clothes can be easily found without having to rummage through your luggage. I have one for myself and one for each child.

TIP #2 – Wash during the trip

I am not bringing 14 outfits for each person! That is just insane! So I would do a bit of washing (about halfway during the trip). I would wash especially underwear and some dirty outfits (think kids pasta stained tops and pants) and let them air dry.

WHEN TRAVELLING WITH LITTLE KIDS, I CAN NEVER TRAVEL WITHOUT:

  • A baby/toddler carrier. Definitely a must for long flights or when you have a long days of sightseeing. We used Ergobaby and Tula toddler carriers.
  • A good travel stroller. Your day to day stroller at home might not be best suited for family travels. Use a lightweight umbrella stroller or the cabin approved models. We love our Maclaren quest stroller.

This luggage packing guide can be used for family travel up to about one month – just add more clothing items as needed. For longer holidays you will eventually run out of luggage room. For such trips, do more washing or find a good laundry service.

For other places we have visited, checkout our website’s travel Destinations section. We buy our travel essentials online via Ebay