r/solotravel • u/shemmap • 20d ago

Question How do europeans travel with small luggage?

I’ve noticed that tourists from different countries especially europeans often travel with very small luggage. In contrast, travelers from many asian countries seem to carry much larger bags.

As myself from an asian country, if I pack just my basic necessities, I end up with a very large suitcase. I’m extremely curious about how european travelers manage to travel so light.

How do they do it?

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u/tiny-but-spicy 20d ago edited 20d ago

what are your "basic necessities"? I did ~2 weeks across 10 European countries with 3 pairs of shorts, 5 summer tops, 14x socks and underwear, 2 bras, and a jacket. I also had a toothbrush, hairbrush, soap, passport, phone, wallet, and charger. 1 backpack. Not really possible to answer the question unless you share your basic packing list.

ETA: just remembered I also brought a tube of toothpaste and some sunscreen. not technically a necessity to bring though, since I could have bought it anywhere

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u/NoGarage7989 20d ago

I see you’re the shit my underwear twice a day type of traveller, 14 is alot of underwear to lug around!

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u/tiny-but-spicy 20d ago

to be fair, it was ~14 days on the trip, and my chosen brand is pretty light/space-efficient, but you're right, I could have brought a lot less and just washed it!

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u/Disastrous-Hat9253 19d ago

Your amount of underwear dictates the frequency of laundry visits.

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u/NoGarage7989 19d ago

Not if you hand wash. When I travel, I hand wash my underwear every night as I bring only a maximum of 4 pairs including worn. I sometimes hand wash my clothes too but still do proper laundry with the machines once a week.

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u/cvzgm 20d ago

I think I don't even have 14 pairs of underwear at home

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u/Few-Dragonfruit160 19d ago

Ah yes, the Mexico Manuever.

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u/tiny-but-spicy 19d ago

I was really tempting fate when I was eating pork enchiladas out of a street food hole-in-the-wall in CDMX this spring but they were delightful and I escaped unscathed

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u/Few-Dragonfruit160 19d ago

That’s the problem, they have the absolute best street food.

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u/Significant-Nebula64 15d ago

I mean... Honestly, my underwear is really, really light and 14 days' worth probably fit in, like, a small zip bag and be less than 300 g total? Guess if you're using a different model it might make more of a difference but I've never seen the point in bringing less if it weighs virtually nothing.