How to Pack for a Weekend — or a Week — in One Carry-On

Those of us who backpacked across any country, continent or region in our youth find it hard to understand the epic, Kardashian-style packing of our current travel companions. There’s a reason you can’t spell luggage without l-u-g. Who needs an army of rolling bags and a convoy of porters when you can pack for a week in one carry-on?

My own packing skills have been honed further over the past five years as I’ve regularly traveled halfway across the country to visit my aging mother. I’ve come to appreciate the flexibility my lone carry-on provides. If I’m running late, I can wheel it onto the plane. Or if it’s especially heavy — like the time I packed two stainless steel saucepans — I can always check it. These trips helped me figure out a system for packing that works just as well when I visit friends or go on business trips.

Now that we are venturing beyond our pandemic bubbles to see family, friends and favorite places, it may be time to adjust the packing strategy. Here are 12 tips to help you fit everything you need — not everything you own — into one 22- by 14- by 9-inch bag, the most common dimensions for carry-on luggage on U.S. air carriers.