How to Use Packing Cubes for Family Travel

Using packing cubes is one of the most popular travel tips you'll hear from travel experts, such as travel agents and travel writers. Lightweight, reasonably priced, and easy to pack, packing cubes are a great idea for any traveler and are one of the best ways to keep things organized in both large suitcases and carry-on bags.

I resisted purchasing them for a long time but now can't go on a vacation without them. Once you use your first packing cube, you'll realize they really can help you stay organized and pack more items in your bag.

Whether you already own a packing cube system or are considering making a purchase, here's everything you need to know, including how to use packing cubes. If you are already a convert, let us know in the comments!

Once you try them, you'll definitely consider them an essential travel product, and they will be one of your favorite travel accessories and travel organizational tools.

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Why and How To Use Packing Cubes For Travel

What Are Packing Cubes?

Packing cubes are fabric bags you can pack with your clothes and easily store in your suitcase or carry-on bag. They typically feature a mesh top or panel for easy visibility and come in a range of sizes and colors.

Packing cubes are typically made of thin fabrics, are reusable, and can be washed between trips. They are also usually fairly inexpensive and can be purchased in a variety of places.

Once you pack them, you can easily add them to your suitcase. Additionally, you can usually take them directly from your suitcase to the dresser drawers in your hotel room. That way, your clothing will never directly touch the hotel drawers, and it's a big time saver.

Why Should You Use Packing Cubes?

This incredibly popular piece of travel gear is essential for a variety of reasons - whether you are checking a bag or just carrying on your luggage. You can also use them for road trips for the same reasons listed below.

• Standard packing cubes don't compress clothing the way compression cubes do, but they can make it easier to pack neatly and minimize wasted space. Not all packing cubes are compression bags, however. If you want that functionality, look specifically for compression packing cubes.
• Cubes are available in multiple colors. This makes it easier to separate clothing for different family members. Get a different color for each person in your family and designate that color to them.
• You can also use cubes to separate outfits for different parts of your vacation on long trips. For instance, we stayed in three hotels during our Adventures by Disney trip to England and France. I only pulled out the packing cubes I needed for each stay, which made packing and unpacking much easier.
• If packed correctly, packing cubes can keep your clothes looking wrinkle-free, so you won't have to worry about ironing on your vacation.
• Packing cubes can be taken directly from your suitcase and placed in the dresser drawers of your hotel room. That not only makes unpacking faster, but also keeps things more sanitary since your clothes aren't touching the drawers directly.
• You can also use a packing cube for dirty clothes, letting you separate clean from dirty laundry in your suitcase.
• You can store small items, such as power cords, in the small cube.
• The cubes themselves don't take up much space or add extra weight.
• Once you are home, you can wash and store them until your next family vacation.

How to Use Packing Cubes

Before you buy them, decide how you want to use your packing cubes. If you want to create outfits, you'll probably want to buy several in the same size.

Some of the best packing cubes, however, come in sets of different sizes. You may also want to get different colors for each family member so that everything stays organized.

Once you are ready to pack, prepare your packing list and start pulling out the clothes you need. If you have several different-sized bags, place larger items, such as pants, dresses, and skirts, in the largest size. Socks and underwear usually fit perfectly in the small packing cube.

For multi-hotel trips, pack outfits of tops, bottoms, and underwear in each travel cube. I got two to three full outfits for our Paris trip in each of the largest packing bags.

Rolling your clothing tightly before placing it in the bag is best. That way, the cubes act as compression cubes, letting you fit more into your suitcase and save space.

If you are checking bags, you may want to place one large cube with several outfits in your carry-on luggage in case your luggage is lost. Choose the packing cube that contains the outfits you need for the beginning part of your trip.

For bigger trips, I need about 4-5 packing cubes of different sizes. If we have more than one checked bag, I distribute the cubes evenly among the bags for each family member.

That way, if one bag is lost, everyone will still have clothing for more than one day. That has worked to our benefit on the few occasions our luggage was lost over the past few years.

Once I'm at my destination, I'll typically unpack and hang my dresses and pants. Store shorts, shirts, bathing suits, and underwear in the cube and place them in one or two drawers.

If your packing cube set comes with a shoe bag, pack more than a pair of shoes in the bag; otherwise, you'll waste space.

As items get dirty, I'll place them in a laundry bag. If there are laundry facilities at my destination, I try to go home with clean clothes.

Otherwise, I'll put the dirty items back in packing cubes for the trip home and keep anything clean in a separate cube. If I'm on a multi-hotel trip, I try to put all the dirty clothes in one suitcase so we know we won't need to open that one again until we get home.

Where to Buy Packing Cubes?

You can find a set of packing cubes at any store that sells travel gear. Look for companies that offer multiple sizes in one package, with the option to purchase additional quantities.

You'll also want to find some with different colors - at least enough colors for every family member to have their own. Most starter sets will come with at least a small, medium, and large cube.

After using packing cubes for many vacations, I've found that I prefer bags in one size. It's just easier for me to use a consistent size, but other people prefer different sizes.

Read reviews before purchasing to ensure the bags are durable and will withstand multiple trips. In general, you want something lightweight but that will last a while.

One of the most reasonably priced sets I've seen is available on Amazon. This Amazon Basics set includes four bags (in different sizes) and comes in six different colors.

There's also another set that is similar but with additional color options. Neither of these two sets are marketed as compression packing cubes.

Some sets include a laundry bag, and others include shoe bags. These are nice extras but definitely not essentials. You can always purchase these items separately if you need them.

More Packing Tips Resources: Looking for more packing tips and recommendations? Here are all of our posts including packing lists, product recommendations, and ideas for specific trips.