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What is the big draw about packing cubes?

BrendaAnderson

No, don't laugh! I've seen you Tauck travel masters expound on them, but all I see when I look at them is another layer of zippers in order to get to my "stuff", plus I have to remember which cube the "stuff" I need is in. They are not transparent, so you can't see which cube has which "stuff". Please, sell me on these!

Comments

Smiling Sam

Brenda - My wife is the packing cube expert, but I know she puts a label on each cube with some sort of tape to help identify the contents, plus our cubes are see through mesh on one side which helps a bit as well.

I know the cubes do make it real easy to get things into the suitcase.

mfrancis

The ones I have are mesh so you can see what’s inside, I ordered them from Rick Steves, reasonably priced. They are very useful when taking a land tour where you aren’t unpacking everything at the beginning of a trip. You can just pull out what you need at the time.

BKMD

Brenda - I don't get it either.

British

It took me several years of reading about cubes here before I gave them a try when I saw some cheap ones in Marshalls as those in places like LLBEAN were really expensive. I also thought they were cube shape and they are not. Amazon has some lovely reasonably priced ones in all colors and patterns and sizes and they have mesh areas and they are lightweight.
My husband and I use ours in different ways. I tend to pack several outfits in one cube. One for all underwear, one for things like sunhat, scarf, swimsuit, odd and ends. My husband packs his with all shirts in one, all pants in another etc. we love them now. On Land tours we find them particularly useful when we are moving from hotel to hotel. We can pull them out of the case and get it out of the way straight away. We throw them onto the shelves in the closet but never unpack as such.
Another advantage is that if your suitcase does get opened or the zipper breaks or some other mishap, things are less likely to go astray.

Claudia Sails

On land tours, where you're living out of your suitcase, I've found they help me keep things organized otherwise after a day my suitcase looks like a bomb went off. I don't put everything in cubes. Usually just tops in one cube, small items like underwear in another, a small cube in my carryon with my just in case clothes. On cruises they aren't as useful.

My husband wasn't a believer either. For our first land tour I bought him an inexpensive ($10) set of 3 from a big box store figuring if he didn't like them it was no great loss. That was 6 tours ago and he still likes to use them.

There are plenty of packing cubes that allow you to see the contents either with mesh or clear vinyl. Amazon has tons to chose from. There's also lots of different ways to use them. Youtube is filled with videos of them and different packing/folding techniques -- rolling, army rolling, folding, Marie Kondo folding, bundling, etc. I use a mix of techniques depending on what I'm packing.

FYI, last year we bought the compression cubes with zippers. Big fail. They are harder to load than regular cubes because they didn't fully zip open, it took forever to zip the zipper that actually does the compression, and all it achieved was a cube humped up in the middle and thinner on the edges. The clear ziploc type bags might be useful for something like polar fleece that is light but full of bulky air.

AlanS

There are a lot of different styles with different features.

I have the type with two circumferential zippers and sides (front/back). One side is mesh, or in the case of a different brand, clear vinyl so I can easily see what it contains while the other side is solid.

The benefit is in how I use them and what makes them special IME. Mine have two zippered sides, divided by a solid but flexible partition that divides that the cube into two full-size pouches. I put similar articles in their own 'cube' (pouch), but only in one half, the mesh/clear side. I put soiled articles in the other side. That way each cube always stays the same thickness. I can easily see if I have clean articles (just not how many unless I open the clean side.) I usually do the swaps at night after putting on PJs. I get out the clothes for the next day from the clean side of the pouches and stow the used/soiled ones in the opposite side. I usually use only large size cubes/pouches (shirts, underwear, socks, slacks) that fit almost perfectly the full width of my suitcase. l've been using this method for many years now, and haven't seen anything better.

Note, the dual-sided cubes can be hard to find, but if you spend some time with Google or Amazon, you'll eventually find them at a fair price I'll post a link if I find them again. Two years ago I bought one that had three zippers- the third zipper in the middle was just for expansion. I would only need that if I had a lot of items in that cube to start with (usually the shirts go in that cube).

Not what I have, mine are thinner, but similar:

https://www.mumidesign.com/products/double-packing-cube?variant=30078441095239

kfnknfzk

Packing envelopes work better for us, but they can be difficult to find. The ones I like the most are those that come with a hard plastic rectangle that is used for making perfect folds of all your travel apparel. If you have a luggage store where you live, you might check there. I used the embroidery feature on my sewing machine to apply labels on some of them.

I also organize and place complete outfits with all the accessories into these envelopes. I just pull out an envelope and everything I need for one or two days is right there. This eliminates constantly searching for and opening multiple envelopes every day. Yes, it is a lot of work but I find it to be relaxing and fun to get clothing organized for a trip.

I found the mesh/partial mesh cubes to be too flimsy for my purposes, but the smaller ones do work well for socks, undergarments, accent scarves, ties, belts, et al. What really works well is to use those clear plastic cases that sheets and pillowcases come in.

Choc

Hey, Brenda. I started to use clear plastic sweater storage bags after 911. I pack like items, in each. That way I never unpack. I just open the closet door and remove all the bags and put them on shelves. My tops in one , my husbands in another. I take a couple extra so as I get soiled items I just repack by laundry colors. When we return home, I just open up the bags and do a load. All presorted. On bus tours I try to pack by days. A shirt, slacks, undies etc for each day. 2 or 3 days a bag. As these are completely clear , if my suitcase gets inspected, it’s easy to unzip and check thru the contents without spreading clothes everywhere. I can get 8 of these bags in a suitcase plus shoes and come in under 45 pounds. It’s easy to weigh these bags before you pack. Hope this helps.

Smiling Sam

BKMD
9:30AM
Brenda - I don't get it either.

BKMD finds it much easier to simply lose your luggage during transit and then buy all your clothes for the tour at your initial destination! 😂😂

Too soon?

For those that don't know BKMD was unlucky and lost his luggage on his way to the Egypt: Jewels of the Nile tour last fall.

gladysorlando984

I use the compression cubes and love them, have no trouble with having a middle hump and thin sides, the way I pack them they are even, I bring an empty one for soiled clothes, the ones I use (Eagle) have mesh on one side so I know what's inside.

BKMD

Thanks, Sam.

Speaking of my lost luggage, I got my suitcase back about 2 weeks after I returned home from Egypt. I opened it up and everything was just as I packed it. I thought to myself, "Gee, I did a nice lob of packing, didn't I?"

Seems there are two types of people when it comes to packing - OCD and not. And within those groups there are people who live out of their suitcase (eg., me) and those that feel compelled to unpack at every hotoel and put stuff in drawers.

Everyone does what they feel comfortable with. When this subject came up a year or two ago, I looked up "packing cubes" (I had never heard of them), and thought to myself, "I don't get it." To each, their own.

Smiling Sam

BKMD
Seems there are two types of people when it comes to packing - OCD and not.

I like your phraseology. People not in your group are OCD, whereas your group isn't.

Another phrasing might be,

Seems there are two types of people when it comes to packing - messy slobs that don't care how wrinkled their clothes are and not (aka - the people that use packing cubes)!

NancyCohen

I have been using the cubes for over 10 years. I pack the cubes by categories : short sleeve tees, long sleeve tees, ‘evening’ tops and bottoms, daytime pants, etc. Without this organization, I would be tearing apart my suitcase looking for x. Then I would need to refold and organize again everyday! . Too much work! After I wear something, it either gets put into a ‘laundry’ cube or folded back and placed into the initial cube to be worn again. If I’m in a hotel/ship for 1 nite or 10 nites, I still keep everything in the cubes. It make packing at the end of the trip quick and easy.. And I am definitely not an OCD type:-)

BKMD

It's funny. When I opened my Egypt suitcase, after being closed for a month, everything was nicely folded and not wrinkled. The suitcase itself has the compression straps and mesh that keeps everything in place.

Sam doesn't understand because he only brings two outfits with him for a two week trip, so the stuff just flies around inside his suitcase.

Smiling Sam

BKMD
...everything was nicely folded and not wrinkled.

Sounds a bit OCD to me! Especially for the one outfit you packed!

Claudia Sails

Brenda, hopefully you've gotten an answer to your question. Or at least learned that there is a range of thought and techniques used by this group.

Best recommendation I can give you is if you think they'd be useful to you, buy an inexpensive set and give them a try. You'll either be a convert or will find someone to give them to.

MCD

I bought packing cubes, but never used them. I use 2 quart Ziploc bags for clean clothes and 1 quart for dirty clothes and shoes. I keep the used bags in my suitcases and reuse over and over, because I am sensitive to the ecological effects of plastic. I also understand that much of sub-Saharan Africa does not allow plastic bags, but have no plans to travel there.

kfnknfzk

Another consideration is the type of luggage one has. Some are masterpieces with multiple built-in storage features, as well as removable garment sections for dresses and suits. But I guess this could be a whole new thread. Actually, I believe there is one on this topic.

We all have different methods; the only right one is the one that works for you! Great topic, however.

Marla526

Brenda….lots of great reasons for cubes on here. We love them, as it’s like carrying your own personal “chest of drawers”. We do put the cubes into drawers or the closets in various hotels as well.

OurTravels34

I am a huge fan of packing cubes and packing envelopes by Eagle Creek and by Tick Steves. The first time I used mesh see-thru packing cubes I was so organized and impressed that I never went back to traveling without them. I can’t understand how else people stay organized. I do not use the packing cubes for pants but I use them for lingerie, one for T-shirts and/or long sleeve shirts, and another for nicer clothes. There are endless possibilities instead of just willy nilly clothes unorganized in a suitcase which is analogous to finding a needle in a haystack when I’m looking for something without using packing cubes. Packing cubes are essential.

loves2travel2

I am a packing cube devotee for the reasons many have stated. Our carryon contains two complete outfits for each of us. We split our clothes between our checked luggage in case it goes missing. It is much easier to divide the clothes up if they are in packing cubes. Once we arrive at our first destination, I make his and hers suitcases. This has saved my marriage because of my husband's never -ending "where are my socks, where are my shirts, etc"!

BrendaAnderson

Oh my gosh, THANK YOU everyone for your insightful responses! This makes me realize what a great group of people you are. Thanks again! (You can keep the responses coming, I'm headed to shop for packing cubes!)

SGF

I also use 2.5 gallon ziploc bags in addition to the packing cubes. Great because they're see through, and I don't feel bad recycling when they get worn out. They also hold grimy hiking boots and dirty laundry. The original organizers!

MCD

I use 2 gallon ziploc bags for clean clothes and 1 gallon bags for dirty clothes and shoes. I use the quart size for washcloths and jewelry. I keep the used ones in my suitcases and use them over and over, because I do have concerns about using plastic. I bought packing cubes several years ago, but didn't see them as an improvement over the ziploc bags. (I have no plans to travel to sub-Saharan Africa.)