Travel & moving
Travel packing list by category, reusable for every trip
Five packing checklists, one each for documents, clothes, tech, toiletries and health, so you pack in short bursts instead of one frantic hour.
What’s inside
Packing: documents and money· 6 items
Passport or ID
Tickets and booking confirmations, saved offline
Travel insurance details
Cards, plus a backup card packed separately
Some cash in the local currency
Driving license, if you'll drive
Packing: clothes· 7 items
One outfit per day, plus one spare
Underwear and socks for every day, plus two
Sleepwear
One warm layer, even for a warm trip
Rain jacket or umbrella
Shoes for walking, plus one other pair
Swimwear or gym clothes, if the plans need them
Packing: tech· 5 items
Phone charger and cable
Laptop and charger, if it's coming
Plug adapter for the destination
Power bank, charged
Headphones
Packing: toiletries· 5 items
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Deodorant and skincare
Hair things
Sunscreen
Liquids in a clear bag, if you're flying with hand luggage
Packing: medication and health· 4 items
Regular medication for the whole trip, plus a few extra days
Copies of prescriptions or a note from your doctor, if you carry medication abroad
Glasses or contact lenses, plus a spare pair
Small first-aid basics
Why five lists instead of one
One long packing list is easy to abandon halfway, and you never know which half you finished. Five short checklists can each be done in one go, and each one shows up as its own task with its lines as steps. Packing tech takes five minutes; you can do it on a break and tick it off.
This list is about what goes in the bag. The trip prep timeline template is about everything that has to happen before then: passports, bookings, telling people. Use them together, and the packing lists slot into the last day or two of the timeline.
Make it your own list
- Remove what you never take. A list with things you skip every time teaches you to skim it.
- Travel for work? Add a business list: badge, presentation on a drive, the right clothes for the meeting.
- Weekend away? Apply only clothes, tech and toiletries.
- Bringing medication across borders? Rules differ by country, so check the destination’s official guidance and ask your pharmacist.
An honest tip
The step that makes this list better over time is the last one. Every trip, something gets forgotten. Write it into the right list the day you get home, while you still remember, and in three trips the list will be built around your own habits.