Laundry- if you look at the hotels websites (linked on the
ABD website) you should be able to search to see of there are guest laundry facilities. If not, it is still well worth spending the money to send laundry out (this is true even WITH guest laundry - you are on a once in a lifetime trip for two short weeks- why do laundry- pay someone to do it, and enjoy your time!
)
We always pack lightly and send out laundry...here are my tips:
1- ABDs have the advantage of being tightly scheduled vacations; due to this I make a list with the itinerary in hand for each day. What I will wear each day, down to the shoes and accessories. Take into account changes for fancy dinner, rafting trips etc
2- I wear one color family; it's worth buying more clothes that match each
other before you go. If you spill on one piece the whole outfit isn't sunk, you just change out that piece.
3- likewise, I stick to 1-2 pairs of shoes. Good walking shoes or boots that match everything, and sandals or a second, dressier ( but still comfy shoe) depending in the season (winter vs summer)
4-plan for layers with outer wear, coordinated light weight sweater or fleece with a windbreaker/ rain proof jacket. This gives you three options, lite, rain, or warm insulated jacket. For potentially cold weather or season trips, I tuck a lite fleece head band and gloves in the pocket of the rain coat (Lands End has super lightweight ones in every color in the rainbow!)
5-rather than pay for pack cubes, I buy 2 1/2 gallon zip bags at Target. For the children, I literally packed their whole days outfit in one bag ( refill after laundry day) I labeled the bags with the day of the itinerary, and this made it easier and much faster for the kids to dress in the morning, especially on ABDs with so many early starts. It also allowed (ahem
) Dad to help with out needing to distract me with a billion and one questions (ladies, I think you know what I'm talking about
)
I make them put the dirty stuff right back into the bag, and that way their clean and dirty isn't all jumbled up in their bag, and laundry sorting goes quicker too.
For ourselves (adults) I pack underthings in one, socks in another and shirts, etc, so it serves as a drawer system right inside my suitcase, or whole bags can be removed without unpacking individual items. This is especially handy, with all the frequent moves in an ABD, it's much better to " live out of your suitcase" rather un pack and repack.
6- don't overstuff your suitcase- because you'll be " living out of it" and all your luggage will be handled for you on an ABD- better to pick a slightly less full roomier case so that you can quickly and easily find your stuff with out the major un pack.
These are my tried and true tips...hope they help! Good luck and happy packing!
I purchased 2 sets this morning. I love organization and I think these are going to be great!
