Planning and packing...

1. If you’re not sure if you need it, you don’t.

2. If you’re pretty sure you need it, you don’t.

3. If you’re absolutely certain you need it, you probably still don’t.

4. Take more money.

5. Take more pairs of underwear.

6. Take fewer pairs of shoes.

7. If it can’t be worn for three days then washed and dried in a hostel laundry room, don’t bring it.

8. Your airline’s baggage allowance is a limit, not a challenge.

9. Shampoo, conditioner, shower gel. Pack small sizes.

10. If you can’t carry your luggage up a flight of stairs easily by yourself, it’s too heavy. See hints 1, 2 & 3.

11. Make sure your passport has enough pages and validity (> 6 months) to last your entire trip.

12. A little planning is good. For example, accommodation in Europe can be hard to find in peak season.

13. A lot of planning is not. The best experiences are often spontaneous – detailed itineraries don’t allow for that.

14. Aspirin, Band-Aids and Imodium. The traveller’s trifecta.

15. Contraceptives are not the stupidest idea in the world either.

16. Take another memory card for your camera. You’ll need it.