I didn’t travel much as a kid. And even when I did, it was to visit my grandparents in China and my parents insisted on bringing everything possible on the trip. This led me to be an over-packer through most of high school and college (I brought every textbook with me, wherever I went and had a 25 lb + bag).
I started traveling more after starting as a full time office dweller. I’ve found that many times, all I needed was a single carry on bag for 1.5 weeks of travel time (as much as I can get from work without getting into too much trouble). I’m still working on reducing how much I pack overall, so this is a WIP list.
This page is not meant as a guide, obviously, but just a testament to what has worked for me. Every person is different and you should find your style through your own trial and error.
Every Day Carry (EDC)
This is what I travel as a daily carry when traveling for fun
- Tomtoc T33 sling bag (3.5L): preferred sling bag
- Passport (when abroad)
- Camera (see below)
- hand sanitizer
- tissues
- sunscreen
- chapstick
- Magsafe Power Bank: Small 5000 mAh power bank to snap to my phone and last me one extra charge.
- collapsible water bottle
- Wallet:
- Bifold for cash + transit cards when traveling in Japan: keeps my cash not folded and transit card handy
- Alphapak Zip Pouch Wallet: otherwise daily wallet
- AirPods Pro 2: I dislike the Pro 3
- iPhone 17 Pro: I’ve been an Android user for as long as I’ve lived before this, and in the past, iPhones could not easily handle 1 day of travel use. The improvements to the 17 series (along with an extremely underwhelming Android market in 2026) prompted me to switch. No complaints so far. Excellent camera. Acceptable (comparable) 1 day battery life to my 2 year old Motorola. Wide acceptance for Apple Wallet transit cards
Backpack
Tomtoc VintPack TA1: Also my main commuter backpack
- Laptop (either MacBook Pro 16 when bringing my work laptop or my Framework 13 for personal use)
- Optional: Book to read on plane
- Sea to Summit Inflatable Neck Pillow: Packs really small and is more supportive than most foam pillows
- Tomtoc T12 Electronics Pouch: stores a mix of medicine and electronics
- Anker 100w A2343 (now deprecated): Really nice and compact 100w USB-C charger for PD/PPS
- 2x USB-C charging cables
- USB dongle
- Costco Claritin
- Tylenol
- Tums
- Multivitamins
- Mini-deodorant
- Band-aids
- Generic mini-screwdriver (TSA safe)
Some things that just live in my backpack:
- some gum
- pack of tissues
- hand sanitizer
- Moondrop Aria 2 IEMs
- Mini travel pack umbrella
Rolling Suitcase
TravelPro Maxlite 5 2-Wheel International Carry On: International size for compatibility with international budget carriers. Incredible durability. 2-wheels is actually preferred for me since it actually handles bumpy terrain way better.
Clothing:
- Icebreaker Merino/Lyocell Sphere 125 shirt(s): Most influencers recommend something like unbound merino, but I find Unbound (and most other merino brands) to fit one body type only — skinny, tall, and narrow shoulders. Merino is also usually too flimsy of a material and I tend to go a little harder on my clothes. The lyocell gives this one a decent drape + maintains an even cooler feel
- Netdraw Viscose Bamboo blend shirts: alternative to the icebreakers. No Merino here, but the viscose keeps cool and dry.
- Pants: Kind of whatever you prefer, but I do like linen pants, especially during summer. People also like merino joggers etc.
- Underwear is purely your preference lol
- Darn Tough Merino Socks: will always get a recommendation from me, but any socks work
- 1 set of sleep/lounge wear
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