The questions those who are planning a trip should ask themselves are the same ones a journalist who is about to write a full article would ask: Who? What? When? Where? Why?

Have you finally decided that the time has arrived to have a break and leave?…good!!!

Are you going to spend a weekend in a European capital city? A week by the sea? In the mountains? Or have you decided to take a trip around the world with no definite destination?

Every type of trip deserves to be planned well, as it is a really important experience in the life of each of us.

Travelling enriches us with new knowledge and increases our cultural experience.

Choosing the right time to go on a trip is fundamental in relation to your chosen destination.

Another essential aspect concerns the choice of possible travel companions: Are you planning to go alone? With your family? With your children? With your children and their friends? With your boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife? Any travel companions will surely influence the choices you make and may determine the success or possible failure of your holiday.

Your choice of travel companions is closely tied to the reason for your trip: Do you want to escape (better alone than in bad company!)? Discover new worlds? Have fun? Relax? Study?

Some people decide on the destination of their trip only after having clarified the first three points (When? Who with? Why?) Then there are those who choose the destination first, irrespective of the rest, or those, instead, who choose the destination when they decide to go on a trip and exclude places that have an unsuitable climate.

All this shows us that choosing a trip or a holiday is something that involves us even more than we can imagine, and it should be taken seriously!

We will shortly consider other related interesting aspects!!

There! You have finally solved all your doubts and have decided when, where, why and with whom you will go on holiday.

It is now time to switch to more practical details, which will involve you just as much as choosing the trip.

Have you already settled the bill at the travel agents, paid for your booking with an online tour operator, or simply purchased flight tickets on the website of the airline company that suits your needs and booked the first night at your new destination? In all these cases, there is just one important thing left to do, after having checked that all your necessary travel documents (valid ID card for leaving the country and/or passport, international driving licence if required, letter of consent for a minor going on a trip unaccompanied by a member of the family, but we will deal with this later) are up to date, which is? Wait for the crucial day of departure!!!!!

This crucial day follows one that is just as important: the day spent packing your fabulous suitcase! And this brings us to a whole new chapter!!!!

Basic tips for packing the perfect suitcase: How can you make the best use of available space? What do you really need to take and what is better to leave at home because it is not absolutely necessary? It depends!!!! But on what? On the type of trip or holiday you are going to have.

  1. Make a list of essential things: this list will also help you to mentally trace all the stages of your trip and all the moments that require appropriate things. For example: Are you going hiking in Nepal? You will surely need a pair of suitable hiking boots. Are you going on holiday to the Maldives with your boyfriend? Don’t forget to take an evening dress, well, an elegant one anyway, to wear on romantic walks along the beach!!! The list is also necessary for organising items and eventually finding other things you need, so that you don’t find yourself in the Sahara desert without sunglasses and don’t know where to buy a pair.
  2. Another essential aspect involves managing other eventual members of your family (particularly children) but this needs to be dealt with in a separate chapter.
  3. The “head-to-toe rule” should be taken into account, namely thinking about what you may need starting from the head right down to the feet: from a hat to sunglasses, anorak, sweatshirt, t-shirts, underwear and tights. And thinking about how many garments to put in your suitcase depending on the duration of your trip.
  4. It is important to choose accessories to match various outfits: How many bags should I take? Day bags or evening bags? How many pairs of shoes? Always remember to take a pair of flip flops for the shower or pool, a resealable transparent bag for liquids for shampoo or your favourite face cream, which you cannot always find at your destination, and the inevitable toothbrush and toothpaste. These are the basics we require to get by. Then we need to add, in order to avoid any problems especially if children are involved: various medicines (in particular, antipyretics, analgesics and broad-spectrum antibiotics), disinfectant wipes, Amuchina or similar product for hand cleaning without water (not always available), thermometer, health card and medical insurance, if you have it.
  5. A sun cream is an important item: depending on the type of trip, you may need specific sun creams, ranging from protection 50 down to one with lower protection to use from the second week of exposure to the sun. Sun creams are also very useful if you are in the mountains!! Don’t forget to put a moisturising after-sun cream in your beauty case.
  6. Put an empty shoe bag in your suitcase for your dirty laundry.
  7. And include a handbag umbrella, just in case.

But how do you pack the perfect suitcase?

First of all, we recommend not putting bottles or sprays in your suitcase with your clothes, as this could be dangerous. Put them in a beauty case instead or in a cosmetic bag.

The most important thing is choosing the right suitcase: each trip requires its own luggage.

A holiday by the sea or in the mountains by car: soft luggage is better!

A weekend trip by air: a carry-on luggage!

An adventure or sports trip: soft large upright suitcases to put in the hold of a plane, and an additional piece of hand luggage!

A one-week trip to a city: a large hard-shell suitcase and a handbag!

And so on and so forth, endless combinations are possible.

There are several schools of thought: Should you roll up your clothes or “pile” them? Whatever you prefer, we recommend starting from the bottom of your suitcase, where you can put your shoes (inside appropriate shoe bags). The gaps between these can be filled with various items: swimming costumes, belts, etc.

Now you are ready to pack clothes that can be rolled up to prevent them from getting creased, or carefully placed inside handy packing cubes, also suitable for underwear. Place a layer of packing cubes between folded trousers!

Compressible space-saving bags are very useful for packing the perfect suitcase!

Put your scarves, accessories and other small items in the internal pockets.

Once you have reached your destination, packing cubes can be very useful when you unpack your suitcase to put your clothes in a wardrobe or when you leave everything in the suitcase (without having to unpack it every time) if you are on a trip involving various stops in different places. In any case, the less time your clothes stay in your suitcase, the better. If your clothes are very creased when you take them out of the suitcase, hang them up in the bathroom and run the water in the shower or bath, taking care to shut the door for a few minutes: the steam will have the desired effect of removing any creases. In such cases, the best effects are achieved with clothes made of microfibre rather than cotton!

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