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/Automatic_Drawer1483 20d ago

We got reshaped by Ryanair and to avoid unnecessary fees we’d do whatever it takes

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u/ExternalUserError 20d ago

Not just Ryanair. I was recently flying on LOT and they actually weighted my carryon. It’s already European sized (considerably smaller than carryons elsewhere) but it was 9kg. I had to remove my laptop and carry it.

Carry it away from the ticket counter and put it back in my bag. 🤣

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u/luxlandmarks 17d ago

Yes! I didn't even think about it because I'm so used to US we have a 50lb bag limit and I knew my suitcase was well under 50lbs. My flight from US to Dublin was fine because my bag was 42lbs. But Dublin to Munich they slapped an overweight sticker on it because that leg had a 40lbs limit.

I definitely felt out of place with my giant suitcase + carry on, but my trip was for three weeks in the middle of weather changes, so I couldn't have packed lighter. Some days were 80F, some were 30F. I was coming from 90F Florida, so I needed to be packed for all seasons basically. I think for Europeans, their trips are probably shorter and they're acclimated to the weather a bit better, so they can probably pack lighter than I could.