Packing your backpack or suitcase, it’s always a hassle. What do you all bring, what do you leave at home, and most importantly, how do you make sure it all fits? Therefore, below we share our backpacking packing list with helpful tips. The backpack Noelle uses is this one from Osprey. The backpack Leon uses is this one from Osprey.
Content of this blog:
Very important
- Passport
- Health insurance card/medical passport
- Driver’s license (international driver’s license if required)
- Copies of the above documents
- Emergency numbers
- Pin card (don’t forget to change it to worldwide)
- Credit or debit card (we use the Wise and Revolut debit cards! Highly recommended as there are no extra fees!)
- At least 4 passport photos for your visa
- Wallet
- 50 euros (or dollars) that you can hide in your backpack or daypack due to emergencies
Clothing
To save space (and because it’s just really convenient), we always use Packing Cubes to pack clothes. These cannot be missing from your backpack packing list. With these handy cubes, you save space and can easily fish a shirt out of your bag. You also have a better overview because you can put different categories of clothing in different cubes. We ourselves use these packing cubes and are thickly satisfied with them. They have been going for years and the quality is very good. These 3 cubes fit exactly all the clothes we take with us while backpacking, very handy! It’s a small investment, but then you have really good quality.
- T-shirts
- Long sleeve shirts
- Tops (without sleeves)
- Sweater/vest
- Good windproof jacket
- Thin long pants
- Sport leggings or track pants
- Shorts
- Thin pajamas for in your hostel
- Dresses / skirts
- Belt
- Underpants
- Socks + 1 pair of hiking socks / thick socks
- Bras
- Sportswear (if you plan to do so)
- Hiking boots (if you are not going to do extreme hikes, sneakers are also sufficient)
- Sneakers
- Flip-flops/sandals. Noelle is wearing these flip-flops from Teva and is very happy with them. They give good support to your knees, last a long time and you walk on them very comfortably.
- Poncho
- Bikini/swimming trunks
- Beach towel
- Small towel. This microfiber towel is light, folds small and dries very quickly.
- Cap/hat
- Sunglasses
- Daypack
- Linen bag for shopping or use at the beach
Toiletries
- Toothbrush + toothpaste
- Deoderan
- Perfume
- Toiletry bag
- Hairbrush
- Gel/hairspray
- Shampoo and conditioner
- Shower Gel
- Glasses/lenses + lens tray and lens solution
- Contraceptive pill
- Tampons/monthly pads
- Condoms
- Sunscreen
- Lip balm (regular and sun protect if your lips burn quickly)
- Aftersun
- Hand disinfecting gel
- Razor
- Nail clippers
- Makeup
- Hair Rubber Bands
- Bottle of hand wash
Electronics
- Phone
- E-reader
- Camera / GoPro
- Garmin
- Laptop (working vacation)
- Powerbank
- Headphones or earphones
- Chargers for all of the above
- USB flash drive for backup photos
- Universal travel adapter
Medical
- Mosquito spray
- ORS
- Diarrhea Inhibitors
- Paracetamol
- Ibuprofen
- Betadine
- Possibly malaria tablets
- Medication
- First aid kit
- Normal plasters and blister plasters
- Possibly vitamin tablets or other supplements
Other
- Pen and paper
- Card game or other game
- Pocket knife
- Snorkel mask. This is a very fine snorkel mask that will (almost) stop you from getting water in your eyes and nose while snorkeling. We have been traveling with this in our backpack for years and it fits just fine.
- Book/magazine if you don’t have an e-reader
- Headlight if you will be doing hikes in the dark
- Lock
- Flight bag and rain cover
- Moneybelt
- Earplugs
- Sleep mask
- Reusable water bottle (Lifestraw’ s water bottle filters water. This allows you to fill water from the tap anywhere into this bottle, then it is purified so you can drink it. Ideal!)
Do you take any other things or are you missing anything in this backpacking packing list? Please let us know below and it will be updated.
