30 Things You Should Be Packing for Travelling Europe
30 things you should be packing for travelling! Find a concise but full packing list for everything you may need for travelling Europe. Packing for a big trip can be daunting, but we are here to help you!
Scared you’ll forget something? I read what to take a lot before we went, and want to share what we took and things we wish I took. Read below to find our list of essential items to take travelling.
Where to Start for Packing for Travelling
Packing for travelling can be such a daunting process. What to take, how much and so many other questions. The way to start any task is a list.
By starting a list early you can add things as you go along before actually packing. This way you can be well prepared, but if you do forget something, you can buy stuff as you go along.
Also, read a lot! People have different ideas of what they think is essential for travelling. It may also depend on the type of climate you will be travelling to. Northern Europe has much colder weather, even in the summer, compared to other parts of the continent
A Backpack
Packing for travelling must begin with what type of bag to take. We thought about this for a while. However, it all depends on how long you’re going for.
We went for 3 weeks around Europe and took a 55l + 10 backpacks, and it was amazing. Lots of pockets to put in stuff like chargers, batteries, SD cards in the side, a backboard so nothing dug into my back, and a large amount of space inside which could be increased if needed.
We will never pack for a trip using a suitcase with thousands of items ever again. We also used the same bag for Iceland in 2018 and only 10 days we managed to fill it (to a point) again.
My point being, you always need less than you actually take!
My backpack looks slightly different now as I wanted patches on it where we’d travelled too! This backpack I know will last me a long time for multiple trips and I am literally in love with it.
Packing Cubes
We read a lot on how, and what to pack for travelling before we went and we came across packing cubes and had no idea what they were. They’re pretty much different sized wash bags in the shape of cubes with zips and an amazing way to organise your clothes.
We had a packing cube for tops, one for shorts or trousers, one for my socks and underwear and one for clothes which were dirty.
We were unsure about using them before we did but wow, they were a lifesaver. Organising what to wear in the morning just unzip the top of them, have a little look through and pull out something you want to wear without taking every single thing out of your backpack.
By having all items folded in packing cubes they don't get creased either. We found this much easier when travelling on night trains and had to find some new clothes without much space.
Packing cubes literally allowed us to pack for travelling with a breeze and we love them. If I'm honest, before going travelling we didn't understand the need for them, we took them due to the opinion of other bloggers and the fact they said how amazing they were.
Ed didn't understand it either, he thought they would be a waste of time. But they revolutionised how we packed and how we will ever pack in the future, so easy, so convenient and overall allowed us to be nice and organised.
Hiking Boots
I can’t describe how much we love our hiking boots. We bought our first pair’s in 2016 when going to the Peak district for Ed's birthday as we knew we would be walking.
We both wear our walking boots for all walking, hiking, city exploring and travelling. They're so comfortable and versatile
Considering we walked over 10 miles every single day when travelling around Europe, we needed something that would be comfortable and sturdy.
I used the same boots for normal walking and our Iceland road trip, but when we did our road trip around Scotland, we bought a new pair because we were wearing them all the time!
They’re our favourite pair’s of shoes out of everything and couldn’t imagine travelling anywhere without them. Ed
Ed has had so many pairs of hiking boots because cheaper ones just don’t last that long, especially if you’re wearing them a lot. Ed has Scarpa boots which he loves
Walking Socks
Along with walking boots, you must have walking socks. They’re thicker and protect your ankles from rubbing against the boots all day.
Usually, you can get pretty good deals such as buy one pack get another free etc. I have around 20 pairs of walking socks.
Day Bag
When packing for travelling, a day bag can take up a fair amount of space. But with squishing down you can fit one into the top of your backpack, and you will definitely need one, who wants to carry around their big backpack continuously?
You will need a small bag to carry around your daily essentials when exploring! Or in our case, camera equipment, and snacks!
We use a small rucksack to carry camera equipment, an occasional jumper, a power bank, bottles of water, and often a packed lunch.
The only thing was when it was really hot, especially in Rome, no one wanted to carry it but better than not having a bottle of water to drink.
Our more recent day bag has a curved back. There is then a gap between your back and the bag. You don't get as sweaty!
It became essential when travelling on trains and putting our bags up above, we put our kindles, headphones, crossword books, and more into the day bag and had that under our seat and much more accessible. So definitely a must when travelling on public transport and out and about
It quite easily squished up and sat in the top of Ed's bag when we had our big backpacks back on when travelling
A Power Bank
When sitting on planes or trains do you sit and play games on a device? Or what if your kindle ran out only halfway through a journey?
Using a power bank we could charge it at home and take it on journeys or out during the day to make sure we could charge something if we ran out.
My kindle ran out a lot when travelling around Europe. I sometimes forgot to charge it and didn’t want it to run out halfway through a chapter of harry potter! Therefore would definitely include it in your packing for travelling list.
5-10 Tops
I think the number of tops and trousers you pack for travelling can be one of the most difficult parts. It depends a lot on how long you’re travelling for
How often do you have washable facilities? And how often would you wear one thing? Some people wear things once, others twice.
I took 10 different types of tops. Some vest tops, some floaty tops, a nicer top, mostly things we would be comfortable in as we knew we would be walking a lot.
We had a washing machine when travelling in Krakow which was 10 days into our trip and therefore could wash all of our stuff.
5 Bottoms
Is it going to be hot? Cold? Unsure? I took a pair of shorts which I knew were comfortable, ones I had either wore abroad before, or I wore them at home so I knew they were comfortable.
I didn’t want to take a pair of shorts to turn out they were too short, or uncomfortable, or weird when I sat down.
I took 1 pair of denim shorts, 2 pairs of patterned lace shorts which were fairly loose and 2 pairs of harem style trousers which I didn’t know were so amazing until I wore them nearly every single day. When travelling to somewhere we will be hiking, we also have hiking trousers which are great. They often zip into shorts too so save some space!
Ed and I nicknamed them ‘floaties’ and will remain that name forever!
1-2 Dresses
You might want a way to dress up in the night time for going out for meals or drinks and a good little dress if perfect. I took a floral material dress which I wore multiple times on a night.
Underwear
You need to think how long it is till you have a washing machine, ours was 10 days and therefore we took 10 pairs of underwear.
If staying in hostels there is often a launderette, but I wouldn’t leave yourself with not enough, and you don’t want to spend every other day washing your clothes instead of exploring the newest city outside!
Charging Cables
Charging cables for all of your devices. Phone, laptop (if you take one), camera, smartwatches/Fitbit. I only had 3 cables, one for my phone, one for my Fitbit, and one for my kindle. They fit nicely into the side pockets of my backpack too.
You can often get one cable which fits into many different devices and we would definitely recommend buying one. Less space is taken up when packing for travelling.
Plugs
Where are you travelling too? If travelling to Europe have to remember UK have different plugs to the rest of Europe. The USA use different to those again. Make sure you take plug adaptors to be able to use your electrics abroad
1 Pair of Nice Shoes
When reading other travel bloggers, many others took 2 or 3 other pairs of shoes such as flip flops or sandals. We knew we only wanted to wear our walking boots every day, even when it was hot (my feet weren’t as hot as I expected), therefore took a pair for night times.
I took my trusty 9-year-old Topshop red sandals which I wore on a night time. I knew they would be very very comfortable as I’ve had them for that long and they didn’t take up too much space in my bag either.
Ed took a pair of trainers. He only ever wears trainers at home, however, regrets taking another pair of shoes. Ed’s nighttime attire consisted of his hiking boot laces only done halfway up… a running joke for a long time.
We would, therefore, suggest you think about what you wear at home. What are the most comfortable other shoes? Will we need more than one? How much space will they take up in my bag? Are they heavy? All things to consider.
A Camera
Course you need something to take amazing photos right?! I used to use a Nikon Coolpix camera but bought myself a DSLR camera in May 2019 which is the Nikon D3500 which is so much better.
These days, so many phones have amazing cameras on. So if you're not too bothered about the photography, and can easily get good snaps with your phone camera, then it’s easy to save on space.
PJs
I often sleep in just a small pair of shorts and a t-shirt and this was fine as we stayed in hotels or an Airbnb. However, if you’re staying in hostels you have to remember you’re sharing a room with lots of people and need to be decent! Unless not being decent is your thing…
If you're travelling on any night trains, you have to think of what you would wear on these too. I wore my floaty trousers which were just fine and comfortable, but don't want to forget who your audience may be.
Basic Makeup
If you’re anything like me, I barely wear any makeup when away due to not being bothered, being tired a lot, it’s hot, and I also don’t care
It also depends on how much liquid you take on planes (if flying) and how much space it takes up in your backpack.
With most airports and airlines, the limit is 100ml per item, often limiting to 10 items and security can be pretty tough on this.
A Hat
I love wearing hats. Any kind of hat! But maybe something to protect you from the sun in hot weather?
Shaving Equipment
You could go the whole 9 yards with shaving equipment, a shaver, shaving cream but it isn’t needed! Venus does a travel shaver. They fit in the palm of your hand, and a good bit of lathered shower gel works a charm. I find this is easier instead of shaving gel or can buy small shaving gels when travelling.
For men it could be more difficult. Electric shavers for beards can take up a lot of room but take the one you use the most and the charger for it. Ed didn’t take one however often lets his beard grow a bit and just shaved it before we went.
A Towel
A towel isn't provided everywhere, especially in hostels and campsites. We bought some microfibre towels which take up next to no room at all and dry really quickly in comparison to a normal towel. They work really well when travelling but even in our camper van too
A Sleeping Bag
Where are you staying on your trip? Hotels? Hostels? Trains? Airbnb? Campsites? You may need a sleeping bag! We didn’t take them interrailing around Europe but we took them to Iceland.
You may need a sleeping bag for hostels or night trains. However, you may not need them. Bedding may be provided. Check first!
Washing Tablets
When we got to Krakow and we went to do my washing we thought we could just go and buy some laundry detergent in the supermarket. Which we did do.
However, I could only find powder in a box. We should have taken about 4 washing tablets from home which would have taken up much less room as we didn’t want to throw out an entire box when we’ll need it again in 4 days time.
I would recommend taking some little washing tablets that you just throw in the washer. We couldn’t find them in Europe and the box – although small, took up more room in my backpack then they would have.
A Kindle
When packing for travelling, you must remember entertainment! Those long journeys of just listening to music can become very boring very quickly.
Ed and I both read the entirety of Harry Potter on our separate kindles and was a race to who could finish first (ed won, boo). A kindle was amazing and I asked for mine as a present as I knew I would use it on this trip.
I used to always find it so stressful sorting out which books to take away, am I taking too many? Am I not taking enough? Will I finish them in the first week? With a kindle, all the stress was gone!
Although I love a good book and turning the page, it was amazing. We both love our kindles. We use them mostly for trips and we couldn’t imagine not having one now.
Although it is extra to have a build-in light this came in very handy if ever lying in bed and the other didn't want the light on, or you're travelling and the lights are off in the carriage, or on a plane.
Ed's kindle didn't have a light when he first got his, and he found this so inconvenient whereas I could read my kindle with a light anywhere and made me pretty smug. We definitely can’t travel anywhere without our kindles.
Passport and Travel Documents
Seems pretty obvious, but when you’re stressed trying to remember everything to pack, remember your passport and travel documents! You end up with so many reservations, plane/train tickets, hotel/hostel reservations, and execution tickets
More so these days, you can get paperless versions of everything, which can be excellent space savers and better for the environment too
Sun Cream and Aftersun
For hot weather and not burning! Always have to make sure you’re looking after yourself and your skin! I wrote about small travel bottles above, and can definitely take smaller bottles to save on space
If you’re travelling to a range of destinations and varied climates, you can always buy sun cream when you need it too
Sun Glasses
Something easily forgotten and easily missed if you do forget them!
Toothbrush and Toothpaste
I hate when you’re packing for literally anything and you don’t know how to transport your toothbrush. Sounds stupid really, but I’m sure many of you will think the same. I don’t want the head of my toothbrush touching anything else
We use compact travel toothbrushes which easily fold into one another. Saves space, and the head of your toothbrush won’t be touching anything either
Headphones
For those long journeys or blocking out the noise of others. I didn’t use mine too much if I’m honest but on night trains where we only had a seat, it was a god sent.
We then didn’t hear people getting on and off the train and we could try and sleep as much as possible.
Some headphones obviously take up much more room than others, try and find ones that fold up and could be added to a good side pocket. I have Sony wireless headphones which do take up quite a lot of room
Although now considered old technology, this is where wired headphones are the absolute winner. Roll/tie up and take up literally no space. You won’t be using them too much I imagine, so don’t want them taking up too much room
A Bum Bag
The bum bag, also known as a fanny pack by American’s. I cannot voice my love for these, enough!
A little pouch around your belly to store your purse, passport or anything important you may need in! I loved my bum bag and never understood why I didn’t use one in Britain before!
It would be amazing on nights out! I bought a small simple one can’t praise enough how amazing it is. When travelling to a new place I always kept the train tickets, passports, purse, phone, reservations and money in there and felt so much more secure.
Compact
A small waterproof coat in a bag becomes a lifesaver when it starts pour down with rain, especially in Hamburg when we were there and Iceland's bipolar weather.
Luckily it didn’t rain for long but by having the option of a waterproof that could fit in the palm of your hand and therefore didn’t take up much space in your bag was great.
Packing for travelling can be really daunting. However, by reading our list of what to pack, making a list of your own, and preparing in advance, you (hopefully) shouldn't forget anything.
But if you do, you can buy items along the way such as sun cream!
If there are any other items you’ve found absolutely essential, leave them in the comments below!
