Our New Packing Method

We have adjusted our Road Trip Packing Method for this trip and it seems to be just what we needed to fit all of the necessary stuff for the five of us to be on the road for 17 days, into our car and to keep it organized.

What is the same as our old Road Trip Packing Method is that we pack for the day, not the person. This is really the key when we are only at each stop for a night or two. What is new -- packing in totes instead of suitcases. I am pretty sure I got the idea from a friend's post on facebook at some point, though I don't remember exactly who or when. Again, I have no doubt that others have been doing this for years but it is new to us.

The benefits are that we only have a few to carry in to the hotel each night, they stack well to maximize the available space, they were inexpensive (on sale for $4.04 and less), and they were easy to label (with removable adhesive labels) for efficient organization.

Car Packed for Our 17 Day Road Trip

We fit everything into eight 28qt totes, four 16qt totes, one 6qt tote, a small duffel bag, small cooler, the little storage are under the trunk space, and my command center bag. We will be doing laundry once during the trip, on Day 7, and we won't need to spend hours in a laundromat, thanks to our gracious friends.

Here's how it worked:

eight 28qt totes:

1. Toiletries
2. Clothes for all 5 of us for Days 2 & 3, to be washed and re-worn for Days 12 & 13
3. Clothes for Day 4 & 5 / 14 & 15
4. Clothes for Days 6 & 7 / 16 & 17
5. Clothes for Days 8 & 9
6. Clothes for Days 10 & 11
7. Swim Stuff
8. Jackets & Jeans for each of us

four 16qt totes:

1. PJs for all 5 of us for Days 1-6, to be washed and re-worn for Days 12-16
2. PJs for Days 7-11
3. Charging Station (power strips with all our necessary cords)
4. Kids Activities (3DSs, portable DVD player, activity books, and all the supplies for their As-We-Go Scrapbooks)

one 6qt tote:

1. Polaroid Film & Spare Batteries

small duffle bag:

1. Spare Pair of Shoes for each of us

small cooler:

1. Snacks & Drinks for our breaks

The storage area under the trunk was utilized for things we only need to get to once: stuff for hanging out waiting for fireworks on the 4th and stuff for the beach, as well as some plastic rain ponchos and car emergency supplies.

My bag, the "command center", has our all-important trip binder, the cameras, the phones, my laptop, and my purse.

We also have our picnic blanket, an old atlas for the kids to look at, and a trash can.

That covers it!