Everything I carried: 2 months in LATAM
In spite of the number of trips I’ve done this year, or perhaps because of it, pre trip packing has become my most dreaded part of long travel. So here is a list of everything I carried with me in excruciating detail. Practice makes perfect, hope this will make it easier the next time??
Weather conditions: I needed to pack for both summer and winter conditions. It was warm in Guatemala, Colombia and Panama (up to 30 degrees celsius). However, cold weather clothing was required for Peru and Bolivia (close to 2 degrees celsius). I also needed hiking gear for the Quarry Trail and appropriate light attire for the Amazon visit in Peru.
On this trip, I decided not to bring my laptop along. It became a toss up between bringing a laptop vs my camera as I wasn’t confident to carry too much tech with me - so the camera won out.
Also importantly learnings! In future:
To bring SG currency in small denomination. Particularly for countries that don’t get many tourists, some of them like collecting the currency if you give it as a tip, or people might just ask to see what it looks like
Bring a set of utensils or chopsticks (not the most important but easy to pack and helpful for last min cup noodles in the room without having to trouble others)
I left with my luggage at 15.5kg, and came back with it about 3kg heavier from all the stuff I bought back (including 1.5kg of coffee beans haha).
EVERYTHING I PACKED
Bags
1 x 24 inch luggage + luggage tag + 1 colourful luggage strap (for easy identification of luggage)
1 x 20L backpack (I used the Osprey Daylite Plus, it was just big enough for me to be able to use for the hike)
1 x Uniqlo pouch
In my luggage, I also carried: 1 x Osprey 15L dry bag (extremely useful! highly recommended) and 1 x foldable duffel (debatable whether needed but as I was travelling with a luggage it was handy to have for shorter day trips)
I travel with 3 air tags: 1 in my luggage, 1 in my backpack and 1 in my uniqlo pouch. My luggage also contained many many packing cubes + a few dry bags / ziplock bags which I could use when needed for the hike or other outdoor activities.
If I had a proper 60L bag, I might have used that instead of a luggage. I needed more capacity for this trip as I was travelling under a variety of weather conditions and was also bringing dance shoes. I wanted to have enough things to not need to do laundry every few days given the activities I was doing, and to be able to easily grab items from my bag, as well as to buy souvenirs back. I also wasn’t sure how often we would be able to wash clothing during 2 weeks of tour in Peru.
For reference, many travellers I saw were carrying backpacks of 55L and above, which seems to be more of the norm for long term travel. There are many videos online with regards to packing light and keeping it to a 40L bag - personally I think this is quite inconvenient if you need items for a variety of different activities. The argument that you can buy things along the way doesn’t necessarily hold since 1. You would need to carry these items with you eventually and 2. It may actually be more expensive to buy certain items overseas vs in your home country. On the other hand, if I were just travelling to a country for summer and didn’t need any particular equipment, then yes I think a 40L is very much doable.
In this case, travelling with a luggage was perfectly fine, other than making me feel slightly embarrassed while walking through the streets when shifting between accomodations. But if I were to go more off the tourist track, then yes it would have been easier to travel with a backpack.
Regular Clothing
5 x tops: 3 x dri-fit / breathable short sleeve tops, 2 x cotton short sleeve tops, 1 x turtleneck sleeveless cotton top (for dance / going out)
8 x pants: 2 x Uniqlo jeggings, 2 x tights, 3 x hiking pants (brought 2 and was given 1 more along the way), 1 x linen pants
1 x uniqlo shorts
1 x set of PJs: 1 x cotton shirt, 1 x fbt shorts, 1 x cotton pants (for cold weather)
Undergarments as required: 3 x regular bra, 3 x sports bra, underwear
10 x pairs of socks: 5 x pair of ankle socks, 2 x pair of long socks, 3 x pair of hiking socks
1 x gortex waterproof outer rain jacket
1 x fleece jacket
Warm Clothing
1 x packable down jacket
1 x light uniqlo long sleeve fleece top
2 x set of merino wool thermals
1 x beanie hat
1 x pair of gloves
Outdoor Clothing and Hiking Items
1 x Uniqlo UV jacket
2 x sets of arm sleeves
1 x decathlon long sleeve dry fit shirt (for Amazon visit)
1 x buff
1 x swimsuit
1 x cap and 1 x sunglasses
2 montbell bottles (1x1L and 1x750ml - for the hike otherwise 1 bottle would have been sufficient)
1 x pouch with: headlamp and spare batteries, carabiner, watch (not used), whistle (not used)
Shoes
1 x hiking boots
1 x decathlon sandals (double up as slippers for use in hostels)
1 x white dance sneakers (Fuegos - used for dance socials and also doubled up as casual white sneakers for going out)
1 x jazz shoes for dance classes
Valuables and Tech in Carry On
Passport
Wallet + 1 spare wallet
Extra Currency, Travel Vaccination Booklet (needed to show yellow fever vaccination), Passport photos in case needed for visa (not needed in the end as digital copy as used)
2 x files with key documents: e.g. passport photocopy, itinerary
1 x Camera + spare SD card and battery
1 x ebook reader
Earphones (lmao the one item I forgot and lost at a hotel)
Portable charger
1 x international travel adapter and wires (for my case, for phone and portable chargers)
Extra phone and extra portable charger (in future one portable charger is sufficient unless camping e.g. Namibia Africa)
1 money belt (not used tbh, I still haven’t figured out how to use this subtly)
Travel necessities
1 x journal + pen in ziplock
1 x decathlon microfibre towel
1 x inflatable neck pillow (decathlon)
1 x umbrella (UV blocking)
2 x foldable bags (1 for laundry, 1 for use in hostel, also handy to bring out for any shopping)
2 packets of wet tissue, 2 packets of dry tissue
1 x mini bag of hostel items: 1 small plastic hook, 2 metal carabiners, 1 extra TSA lock, 1 eyemask, 1 earplug
Good to have
1 x set of SG postcards (to give as cards to teachers and homestay hosts)
Spare ziplocks of varying sizes (e.g for phone, for toiletries)
Spare plastic bags
Snacks: 6 energy bars as emergency food + 8 packs of milo (although note they have milo there! also most hotels don’t have kettles, unlike in Asia) + 5 packs of pipagao
Medication
I took bringing medication VERY seriously on this trip, after falling sick on my previous trip. (this is not meant to be medical advice, please consult your doctor on what you should bring for travels!)
Medicine bag 1 in carry on: ibuprofen, panadol, charcoal pills, imodium / loperamide for diarrhea, altitude sickness pills, lozenges, bandages
Medicine bag 2: disposable mask, thermometer, more lozenges, ceterizine and chlorpheniramine for runny nose, cough suppressant, leftose for sore throat and serratiopeptidase for inflammation, extra paracetamol. I also carried doxycycline (for malaria pills) but did not use that for this trip.
As someone who often gets motion sick, things I always carry for motion sickness
Vicks inhaler or Thai siangpure oil
Dimenate pills (motion sickness medication)
Blackmore Stomach settler (impt!!)
Motion sickness patch Noovomit (tbh I’m not sure if this works or if its just a placebo effect, but I have it with me in case)
Small plastic bags
Sweets like Fisherman Wharf or Mentos
Toiletries
Basics: 1 x Dove soap bar, 70ml shampoo, tooth brush, tooth paste (I carried 50g - a lot to spare), 50ml face wash, 50ml moisturiser, paw paw ointment (for insect bites etc)
Sunblock: 1 x for face and 1 x for body
Make up: 2 eyebrow pencil (1 backup not used), 1 eyeliner, 1 powder, 1 solid perfume
1 x nail cutter, 1 x tweezer
2 x Hand sanitiser
2 x lip balm (1 with UV protection)
For hair: 1 x comb, 1 x extra hair tie
For eyes: 6 weeks worth of contact lens, eyedrops, 1 x spectacles and spec case
Period items: at least 12 pads, pack of panty liners, tampons, menstrual cup