7 Day Packing List for International Travel
What I Packed for My Trip to Cairo
If you’ve been keeping up with Journey Unknown’s Instagram, you’ll know that recently I spent a day in Amsterdam and a couple days in Cairo. Below, you’ll find my packing list for international travel. When packing for any sort of travel, I prefer to pack as light as possible while still being reasonable about what I leave behind. If need be, I’ll purchase anything I need while traveling.
While packing for this trip in particular, I tried to keep the number of items to a minimum. At one point while pulling the straps on my stuff sack tight, I had to reopen it to make sure I had all the clothing I would need. Something just felt off due to the fact that I was traveling from a cold climate to a warmer climate for 7 days and that my bag + clothing weighed <15 pounds total. Having taken everything out of the stuff sack and spread back out onto my bed, I ran a quick inventory and thought about daily outfits to make sure I wasn’t leaving anything behind. Everything seemed good to go. Below is my 7 day packing list for international travel:
- 4x underwear (I recommend ExOfficio)
- 4x socks
- 4x short sleeve shirts – preferably light-weight & quickdrying
- 3x pants – jeans, chino, track pants
- 1x shorts for sleeping
- 1x long-sleeve shirt
- 1x long-sleeve shirt button up
- 1x jacket – for when I returned to Boston
- 1x gloves & hat – for when I returned to Boston
- 1x book – Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values
- 1x journal
- 1x stuffable daypack
- 1x 46L Osprey Exos Backpack
- 1x mesh bag for dirty clothes
- 1x iPhone, phone charger, & backup battery
- 1x Macbook & Macbook charger
- 1x passport, global entry, & wallet
- 1x quart sized bag of toiletries
While on the trip itself, I spent 2 overnights in Boston, 1.5 on an airplane, 2.5 in Cairo. Due to the overnight on the airplane, I wore the same clothes from the day before. Luckily, since I was sitting, inactive, on an airplane for most of the day, my clothes didn’t smell (at least I didn’t think so).
While writing this post on the flight home, forty-one thousand feet in the air, somewhere off of Newfoundland, I started to think about my packing list. I feel that this fit the trip perfectly. If you’re wondering how only 4 pairs of boxers & socks could have lasted me 7 days, I highly recommend Ex Officio branded items.
Hopefully my packing list above will help you evaluate what exactly you need for your next upcoming trip. If you forget something, just remember that you can most likely buy it wherever you are going.
