I have three changes of tops and underwears, a pair of beach shorts and a collared shirt shrink wrapped into this 1.5 feet x 1 foot x 1.5 inch package.
These double sealed giant “ziplock” bags are some of the best investments travellers can make. The only cost about SGD 2 (and an equivalent price for your country) for two of them at Daiso, a Japanese “dollar store” that you can find around Asia.
I have tried the single sealed bags but they do not seal well and air leaks into the bag very quickly. In contrast, these double sealed bags keep the air out for a very long time, at the very least until you arrive at your destination.
While I have also tried the rolling method, this vacuum packing was one of the factors that helped me downsize from a 60 L MEC backpack, to my 46 L Osprey. This meant that I was able to carry my pack as a carry on while flying and not have to worry about paying for check in baggage, saving money with low cost carriers.
On the instructions of these packages, they picture a vacuum cleaner.
“How on earth would I bring a vacuum cleaner with me while travelling,” you are probably wondering.
The answer is that you don’t.
- fold your clothes nice and flat and stuff them into the bag
- seal the bag about 9/10 of the way, leaving just a little gap for air to come out
- put the bag on the bed
- lie down on the bag and stay there until all the air is out
- seal up the last 1/10 of the bag
I found that putting the bag on the bed helped to force out more air as the bed wraps around and squeezes the corners that you won’t otherwise reach.
Now you have a lot more space in your bag for other things. And I wouldn’t recommend filling the bag with other things.
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Please share your answer in the comments belowHow do you pack your clothes? Please share with us your clothes packing strategies!