Tote Boxes?

[momof3Disneykids]

I have been looking at luggage all over the internet and unless I get lucky and hit a good yard sale I dont really want to go out and spend that much money on a luggage set thats not even big enough for our needs, the biggest one I could find for under $100 was only 28 inches tall, and that was the "large one; in the set!! that is little!! so I was thinking about using plastic tote boxes for our clothes and our small suitcases for everything else, it would also save some space in our van to only have 1-2 large tote boxes than several smaller suitcases. has anyone ever tried this? If so how well did it work for you?

 

[BuzzandAriel'smom]

I was actually thinking of this for our drive down also. I was thinking how much easier it would be to stack and was mostly thinking of putting shoes and hats in it since those are hard to pack. I think it's a great idea and one of the pros to driving. Go for it! It will save you a lot of money to not buy luggage.

 

[quentina]

I have been looking at luggage all over the internet and unless I get lucky and hit a good yard sale I dont really want to go out and spend that much money on a luggage set thats not even big enough for our needs, the biggest one I could find for under $100 was only 28 inches tall, and that was the "large one; in the set!! that is little!! so I was thinking about using plastic tote boxes for our clothes and our small suitcases for everything else, it would also save some space in our van to only have 1-2 large tote boxes than several smaller suitcases. has anyone ever tried this? If so how well did it work for you?

If I drive, I use laundry baskets. I love it! I can use 2 of them for the entire family, minimul wrinkling etc. IF I am stopping along the way, I have my toilitries seperate and needed clothes on top.

 

[horseshowmom]

Those are some good ideas - never even crossed my mind. The extremely large suitcases are very heavy and hard to handle (personal experience ). What you're talking about would stack very easily on a luggage cart. The only real plus to the luggage (assuming it has wheels) would be in case there were no luggage carts available the suitcases would roll and make them easier to transport to the room.

 

[momof3Disneykids]

thanks for the laundry basket idea! I already have those, even though the totes are fairly cheap, now I have some options!!

 

[jessica52877]

I have seen it done before it worked out well! I wouldn't hesitate to do it myself at any point in time. We are going on a cruise shortly and wish we could do it for that. I assume that DCL wouldn't care for it much since the bags go out of our hands and are screened.

 

[Mic]

I learned when my son was in the Boy Scouts that campers are firm believers in Rubbermaid totes! I started packing one for every trip, and it fits nicely on the back of my Suburban on one of those hitch racks. I use it to bring dirty clothes home in, and the occassional fragile souvenir.

 

[singnring]

Years ago I realized that storage totes were awesome for traveling!

I don't pack clothes in them, but I ALWAYS pack groceries in them.

I have also used milk crates, laundry baskets (which makes it nice because you have it for dirty clothes), and now I use a lot of the reusable grocery bags as well.

We still usually pack clothes in our carry-on size suitcases, but everything else goes in the other items I have listed.

I really like the grocery bags because they are so much easier to carry.

Nice thing about all of these items is they pack away or stack inside each other when empty!

 

[lovemygrowingfamily]

I always use tote boxes when we go camping so that is what we are doing on our trip to Disney. I have 4 boxes. 1 for snacks, 1 for color books, toys ect, 1 for boys clothes and 1 for girls clothes. since I am packing for 7 for 10 days i am also using the space saver bags in the totes for daily clothes.

With the totes we still leaves room for the double stroller and single stroller in our suburban.

 

[tlh0726]

I use the pop up laundry tote things when we travel by car or MH. Each person gets their own. Once there we use them for dirty laundry.
Only time we use the luggage is flying.

I also pack things in a cooler for transporting and then once we are there we have a something to put sodas, water, and ice in.

 

[Melani]

Consider your floor space first.
We brought a large tote w/groceries/ At BWV it wouldn't fit in the closet. & at SSR it had to go under the sink.
Now I use several small onces that I can stash easier.

 

[akcire]

so I was thinking about using plastic tote boxes for our clothes and our small suitcases for everything else, it would also save some space in our van to only have 1-2 large tote boxes than several smaller suitcases. has anyone ever tried this? If so how well did it work for you?

Let's all go on a flashback to the 1980's when the X-Cargo was popular. That was the hard-shell carrier that was put on top of every suburban car for it's road trip, it always featured a nice decal of a snail. I believe it could only be purchased at Sears, but there were a few imitations. Any how my father-in-law, the good engineer that he is purchased one of these for my husband's family trip. After some measuring, it was decided that using suitcases was not the most efficient. Each family member was issued a box with their name on it, and they were allowed to pack their items into the box. The boxes were unloaded nightly on the journey from Michigan to Florida.

Now my husband is from a big family that does not agree upon anything, except that this was the single worst way to travel ever! To this day, from the embarrassment of walking into hotels with his "box family", he will only go to hotels with items in suitcases. If I lost my mind and decided to be become an in-room meal person, and wanted a rotisserie oven for the room, my husband would find a suitcase to fit the oven. If you have any teenaged family members going on your trip--I would run the rubbermaid tote idea by them first. You don't want them to be permanently scarred like my husband's "box family".

 

[DCLbrideSept2009]

i think it sounds like a great idea if you're driving! i don't know why i didn't think of it... of course, the last time we went to WDW and drove (in August - with 7 people!) all the luggage had to go on top of the car (Honda Pilot) since there was NO room inside the car for it. We have those soft-sided rooftop luggage things (2 of them) and would just have to be sue they fit in there. also would've saved our stuff from getting wet on the way there. we drove through A LOT of rain and upon arrival realized there must've been a SMALL hole in the luggage thingy and it soaked through some of the luggage... not terrible, but a lot of our stuff was damp. the plastic totes would be much better in that situation, i'm sure.

 

[disneymarie]

I have been looking at luggage all over the internet and unless I get lucky and hit a good yard sale I dont really want to go out and spend that much money on a luggage set thats not even big enough for our needs, the biggest one I could find for under $100 was only 28 inches tall, and that was the "large one; in the set!! that is little!! so I was thinking about using plastic tote boxes for our clothes and our small suitcases for everything else, it would also save some space in our van to only have 1-2 large tote boxes than several smaller suitcases. has anyone ever tried this? If so how well did it work for you?

So much easier when we drove back with the duffels. Some on wheels, THe hard plastic is unforgiving, the duffle is shapable. Also some extra ones from Walmart folded inside for extra stuff. I found great ones New at Boscovs.com well I got mine in the store....and a few at the Thrift store too.

I was really surprised how much I could pack in one and then wheel it too.
If driving too, we had the big XXL storage bags from Ziplock and had great uses for them. Anything from wet items, shoes, toys. easy to see through, and handles to carry. I had about 6 of them for the trip, just in case.

I did have a 28 inch suitcase on wheels and when flying, wow it was right at the limit.40 lbs. The drive back, we used a cargo bag on the roof and the case took up so much room compared to something soft sided.