Why Packing Cubes Are Perfect for Plus-Size Travellers

Travelling on a regular basis means that you pick up little tips and tricks to make the journey easier for yourself and the rest of your party. From putting travel documents into organised wallets, to remembering to bring a seat belt extender, we have always felt like we were pretty on the ball when it came to making every journey a breeze – but when packing cubes came into our lives, we elevated our organisation game up to a whole other level. Here’s what we know (and love) about packing cubes.

Packing cubes are kind of a “does what it says on the tin” deal. They are smaller, zip-up cubes that are designed to go inside your luggage to help pack more neatly and efficiently. The zippable compartments mean that the things you are packing aren’t going to get mixed up when you’re on the go. We all know the struggle of looking for that one necessary item of clothing which happens to be at the very bottom of a densely packed rucksack, but using packing cubes means that you’re able to separate your luggage into categories – you can even label them if you want! – so that you can find what you need quickly, without making a mess. There are even variations that offer compression, which means that you are able to take a bit more with you when you go away. As plus size people, we all know how important having that little bit of extra room in a suitcase or backpack can be, right?

Personally, we recommend Eagle Creek packing cubes but if you need a more affordable options, these are also great.

How Do I Use Packing Cubes?

Before you start using your packing cubes, we’d recommend making a list.

Don’t all the best plans start with a list?!

Categorise the things you need to pack – you can do this in whichever way makes the most sense to you! – and then we would recommend laying out your piles of clothes so that you have a visual representation of how things are going to fit into your suitcase or rucksack. If you have different sized packing cubes, think about which categories are going to need to use the biggest packing cubes – jeans, hoodies and towels are definitely the hardest things to squish into small spaces – and then simply fill each cube with one of your piles. You can label the cubes if you want for those extra organisation points, and then the cubes simply fit neatly into your suitcase, making the best use of your space and ensuring you aren’t going to feel overwhelmed and frazzled by your luggage situation when you’re on the go.

Compression or Non-Compression?

Compression packing cubes offer a double zip, just like many suitcases do, so that you can press things down and zip them into place to make more room in your luggage. We love that doing this gives you extra space to pack more things, but it’s worth remembering that squished clothing means wrinkled clothing, and if you aren’t going to have access to an iron and don’t want to have wrinkly clothes, the standard packing cube is probably going to be better for you. Using the standard packing cube does also have its own benefits that save space, such as being able to stack things within the zipped-up cube and fill every natural gap in your luggage effectively. So while the compression feature is fantastic, it is certainly not essential to feel the space-saving effect of the packing cubes. 

Do you struggle to fit everything into your suitcase? Have you ever used packing cubes? We’d love to hear your space-saving tips for organised luggage in the comments.