Checklist for Traveling Full-Time

It’s one thing to pack your bag for the average weekend getaway or a quick vacation across the country— but for many traveling full time is their everyday life, and deciding what to put in your bag can be a difficult decision.

While traveling full time, you’ll be in and out of different cities, states, countries, or even climates. Clothes suitable for Calgary aren’t suitable for Mexico City. So what do you do? Earth Class Mail has you covered with tips and tricks on how and what to pack for this full-time traveling lifestyle. First Step: Understanding Economic Complexities First of all, traveling full time isn’t all piña coladas and toes in the sand — it’s a lot of hard work. Before you decide to take the leap into the digital nomad lifestyle there are a few things you’ll need to understand. First you’ll need to figure out how much money is needed to travel full time. Most people don’t have enough money saved to travel full time indefinitely. If that’s you, you’ll need a way to finance this new lifestyle. One suggestion is to work while you travel. figuring out what skills or career path you have that can allow you to work remotely will be key to solving your economic issues. We have another blog post about managing a business while being a full time traveler here. Second Step: Choosing the Right Luggage A solid piece of luggage is key when traveling full time. It’s something to put the majority of your belongings in, so finding something that is conducive to your travel style is essential. That’s either a heavy-duty, large rolling suitcase, or for most a large backpack. The most efficient backpack type for traveling full time is a luggage-entry style. A luggage-entry style of backpack fits the most and unzips all the way around to reveal everything in your pack. This allows for a more easy way to find your things when traveling through airports, hotels, and other various transportation hubs. Where to find one of these backpacks? We did our research and found the top-rated, luggage-entry style backpack. It’s the Osprey Farpoint 55L back rated 5/5 stars on Amazon with over 1,000 reviews. Third Step: How to Pack for Different Cities and Climates Traveling full time has its positives, but living out of a suitcase is difficult. It’s hard to lug around items of all kinds around the world for every type of climate, here’s a few tips on how to “hack” the system. Choose multi-purpose items. Go with basic solid colors, and always think about layers. When traveling from Alaska to Southern California, you’re going to need to change your style of dress to adapt to the different climate. For women, a long skirt is a great example that does well both in warm and cooler climates, but for the girls the real winner is leggings. They have so many uses, wear them under pants for warmth, or wear them by themselves for everyday wear or exercising! A comfy solution to a lot of climate-related clothing problems.

For men, try buying shorts that double as swimming shorts. Look for pants that can either be zipped halfway off or can be rolled up to create a stylish ¾ length pant. Anything lightweight and able to dry quickly is vital for traveling full time, never pack for a specific scenario. This wastes space, and only works for one specific destination. Keep in mind you can always purchase items out and about as you see fit. You can donate or sell items you are finished using wherever you end up! Final Step: Get Your Pack on! These packing tips and tricks are just some of the many ways you can go about traveling full time, but you’re almost there! Hopefully we’ve helped steer you in the right direction. Always remember, every full-time traveler does something a little different. We recommend doing your own research and finding solutions to any problem that may arise BEFORE you hop on that plane, bus, or boat to wherever you desire. Whether you’re traveling around different cities in the same country, or traveling the globe — Earth Class Mail has you covered with all your basic tips and tricks to thrive in your new on-the-go lifestyle. Go out and seize your day! And from us, safe travels!