Travel packing lists: what to pack for every kind of trip
Packr is a free travel packing list app for iPhone, iPad and Android that builds a list for each trip from your destination, dates, weather forecast and activities. The lists below are the starting points it works from — use them as they are, or let the app tailor them to where you are actually going.
What to pack for any trip
Seven things belong in every bag regardless of destination. Everything after this section is what changes.
- Passport, and a photo of it stored separately
- Travel insurance documents
- Any visa or entry paperwork the destination requires
- Bank cards, and a second card kept somewhere else
- Prescription medication in its original packaging
- Phone, charger and the correct plug adapter
- Offline copies of tickets and booking confirmations
What to pack for a beach holiday
Beach trips are the easiest to pack light for and the easiest to get wrong. The clothes barely matter; what ruins a beach holiday is discovering there is no pharmacy within an hour and you have no aftersun. Pack for the sun, the water and the evening, and everything else is optional.
- Swimwear — two sets, so one is always dry
- High-factor sunscreen, and aftersun for when you misjudge it
- Sunhat and sunglasses
- A cover-up or light shirt for walking back through town
- Flip-flops plus one pair of closed shoes for dinner
- Quick-dry towel — most hotels will not let pool towels leave the grounds
- Reusable water bottle
- Dry bag or zip-lock for your phone on a boat day
- Insect repellent for the evenings
- One warm layer — coastal evenings drop further than people expect
What to pack for a city break
A city break is a walking holiday in disguise. Most people pack for the photographs and then cover fifteen kilometres a day in the wrong shoes. Pack one comfortable outfit you can repeat, and spend the saved space on the things that make a long day on foot bearable.
- Broken-in walking shoes — never new ones
- A layer you can take off indoors and put back on outside
- Compact umbrella or packable rain jacket
- Day bag that closes properly
- Power bank — navigation and photos will flatten a phone by mid-afternoon
- Portable charger cable and the right plug adapter
- One smarter outfit if you plan on a restaurant booking
- Blister plasters, bought before you need them
- Refillable water bottle
- Printed or offline copies of any timed tickets
What to pack for a business trip
The goal of business packing is to arrive without needing an iron and without checking a bag. That means choosing fabrics that recover from a suitcase, keeping the whole trip in a carry-on, and carrying anything irreplaceable — laptop, passport, presentation — on your person.
- Wrinkle-resistant outfits, one per day plus one spare
- Laptop, charger, and any dongle your meeting room will demand
- Phone charger and a spare cable
- Travel plug adapter for the destination
- Notebook and pen — laptops die, meetings do not stop
- Business cards if your industry still uses them
- Shoe bag so shoes do not touch clean shirts
- Compact toiletries within your airline liquid limit
- Gym kit if you will realistically use it, and be honest
- Any receipts folder or expense app set up before you leave
What to pack for a ski trip
Skiing is the trip where forgetting one small item costs you real money — resort shops know exactly how much a forgotten pair of goggles is worth to you. Layers matter more than any single garment, and cotton has no place anywhere in the system.
- Base layers in merino or synthetic, never cotton
- Mid layer fleece or light down
- Waterproof ski jacket and salopettes
- Ski socks — tall, thin, and two pairs
- Gloves or mittens, plus a thin liner pair
- Goggles, and sunglasses for the lunch terrace
- Helmet, if you are not renting one
- High-factor sunscreen and lip balm — altitude burns faster than the beach
- Neck gaiter or buff
- Après-ski boots with grip, and something warm for the evening
What to pack for a hiking trip
Hiking packing is a weight negotiation. Every item has to earn its place, with one exception: the safety kit, which you carry precisely because you expect not to use it. Decide the route first, then pack for the worst weather it could plausibly throw at you.
- Broken-in boots and proper hiking socks
- Waterproof jacket, even on a clear forecast
- Insulating layer for when you stop moving
- Map and compass, plus offline maps on your phone
- Headtorch with fresh batteries
- First-aid kit including blister treatment
- More water than you think, and a way to refill
- High-calorie snacks
- Sun protection — exposed ridges have no shade
- Emergency shelter or survival bag for remote routes
What to pack when travelling with a baby
Travelling with a baby is the one case where over-packing is correct. The items you will desperately need are cheap, small, and impossible to buy at two in the morning in an unfamiliar country. Pack a day of supplies in your hand luggage independently of everything in the hold.
- More nappies than the trip length suggests, plus wipes
- Two changes of clothes per day, in the cabin bag
- Changing mat and nappy bags
- Formula, bottles and steriliser bags if you use them
- Familiar snacks — a new country is the wrong time for new food
- Comfort object, and ideally a spare identical one
- Infant paracetamol and a thermometer
- Pram or carrier, plus a rain cover
- Blackout blind for unfamiliar rooms
- Car seat if you are driving or taking taxis
Let the app keep the list
Packr turns these into a live checklist for your specific trip, adds items based on the forecast at your destination, and syncs across your devices.
