What to stop packing this year
A subtraction list — seven items that left the carry-on for good in 2026, and the lighter, calmer trip that replaced them.
Most travel writing is addition. Add this organizer, add this cube, add this multi-tool. The genuinely interesting list every year is the subtraction one. Here are seven things worth leaving out, and the one item that earns its slot in their place.
1. The second pair of shoes
One pair of well-broken-in walking shoes, period. The "going out" pair was always overkill — and the airport security routine is half as bad with one pair. If a place demands real shoes, it is a place worth a small inconvenience.
2. The dedicated travel toiletries
A small zip pouch with travel-size everything was a comfortable hostage. The decision rule is simple: if it fits in 100ml and is easy to buy locally, buy it locally. The first hour after landing can start at a pharmacy, which is also a nice way to orient.
3. The just-in-case notebook
It mostly goes unused. A small Field Notes does the job at a third the volume.
4. The Kindle
A 7-inch e-ink tablet can replace both the Kindle and the second device some people carry for browsing. The reading experience is 90% as good. The volume saved is meaningful.
5. The dedicated camera
Phones got too good. The 24-hour-a-trip case for a real camera is gone for most travelers; the every-three-years case for a real camera is still strong. Buy then, leave at home now.
6. The compression dry-sack thing
Compression sacks were a 2010s product. The 2026 four-cube soft system does the same job with no compression mechanism, and the airport rummaging does not destroy your folding.
7. The "in case" cables
The full bag of "in case" cables and adapters. The new rule: one USB-C-to-C and one Lightning, period. Any other cable can be bought at the airport for about 15 dollars in the rare case it is needed, which it rarely is.
What earned its place instead
A 240-gram 100W GaN charger with four USB-C ports. It replaces a laptop brick, a phone brick, and the two-prong adapter that always ended up tangled. The trip starts faster because the charging setup is one piece.
The lighter trip
The subtraction work makes the trip feel different in two specific ways. Checking out of a hotel takes 12 minutes, not 25. The shoulder bag stops being a shoulder bag and becomes a backpack you forget you are wearing. Neither of these is a productivity claim. Both are quality-of-trip claims, and they compound over a year of trips.
The next candidate for subtraction is the universal travel adapter, which earns less of its slot every year as USB-C spreads. The pattern holds: the bag gets lighter by asking what each item actually does, not what it might.
