Travel Advice - 4 people, different hotel every night UPDATE

[bears]

How do you handle taking a road trip where you are staying some place different every night?  My family is going to Iceland and we are staying in a different guest house or hotel every night. Sometimes we will be in 1 room, sometimes 2. 

The logistics of clothing is exhausting me. How do we best pack everything so trying to get dressed every day/night is not a logistical nightmare? 

We are not restricted by luggage, but I don't want to pack everyone's entire wardrobe.

Edit: It should be around 55 F there most days. I anticipate that we may get wet, as it rains a bit and we will be touring waterfalls and the like. We do have a travel clothesline to help with wet clothes and bathing suits.

Update: It was way less exhausting than I thought it would be and I was able to help keep things organized.  THanks everyone for the advice! The following helped:

• Everyone had their own color packing cubes. This made rummaging around for something specific a lot easier
• We packed 2 large suitcases and 2 carry-on size. Most of the contents of one of the larger suitcases were winter jackets and hiking boots--things we needed constant access to. This meant that in the car, we were able to consolidate 1 of the carry-ons inside of the large suitcases, which helped minimize the chaos (if I were to do this trip again, I'd probably do a large duffle for this).
• I typically just chunked out 2 days of clothes for me and the kids (MH took care of himself), which meant that we would just bring one carry-on suitcases into the hotel.
• Suitcases went into the car with the zippers accessible. Dirty laundry put into a laundry bag in the trunk.
• Letting bathing suits dry didn't really happen much on this trip. Not a huge deal, since all Iceland geothermal pools/spas require you to shower before you put on your bathing suit.
• Kids were in charge of their own backpacks and they got really good at organizing themselves after the first 2 nights and quickly packing up.

[livinitup]

What’s the climate? I wore mostly the same clothes with fresh underwear every day.

Like, a favorite sweater or sweatshirt with jeans.

[bears]

Jun 30, 2024 19:35:29 GMT -5 livinitup said:

What’s the climate? I wore mostly the same clothes with fresh underwear every day.

Like, a favorite sweater or sweatshirt with jeans.

I just updated my post, but it should be in the 50s.

[kittywalker]

We did this last year in Sicily. Different weather; it was probably easier for us since it was all summer clothes. However: I packed everyone in packing cubes with entire outfits together. Shorts, shirt, underwear, socks. So each day, they could grab an outfit easily rather than having items packed in separate places. It meant we had to unpack less in each place. Once we were a few days in, I turned suitcase by suitcase into all dirty clothes and we didn't have to open that one again. We had carry on suitcases, no checked bags. Everyone had their own toiletries in their backpack, not in a suitcase. It wasn't perfect, but I didn't want everyone fully opening everything each night and having to find something to wear the next day.

[mccallister84]

Can you put everyone’s clothes together in a packing cube by day? So one cube for everyone on Monday, another cube for Tuesday etc.

[waverly]

I feel like you are looking for packing cubes or a ziplock bag system with an outfit each day.

Personally I’d just pack the 4-5 outfits that you would wear and rifle through my suitcase/ backpack. I feel like packing up after a hotel stay isn’t that big deal. We all have our own bag and just pack up our bag. It’s not the most fun ever but we are generally done in 15 minutes not counting showering and getting ready. We each grab our bag and put in the car. It’s easier than packing up at an air bnb.

Do you have younger kids where strollers, diapers and pack n plays are needed?

[devonpow]

I agree with packing cubes (or gallon ziploc bags) packed by outfit. I’m a weirdo and before trips will often plan out each days outfit in advance (when I know what tours/activities we are doing ahead of time) and put it in my calendar so I know on Monday I wear X outfit etc

Iceland is all about layers so I would re wear my rain jacket and fleece/whatever light outerwear you are bringing on most days and then just plan the rest of each day’s outfit. You will have a great time!

[Jalapeñomel]

Pack things in packing cubes.

[RockNVoll]

Ha, I'm deep in the throes of planning an Iceland trip myself and keep saying that the part I'm least looking forward to is having to move to a different hotel every night for like five nights. Based on stuff I've read I'm thinking I'll only need 2-3 pairs of leggings that I'll re-wear with waterproof pants on top of them. Then maybe 4-5 quick dry tops so sink washing is feasible if necessary, with a warmer layer on top that I'll just keep re-wearing. I'm usually a light packer anyway but am really going to try to bring as little as possible this time to minimize the hassle of constant repacking. And, yes, packing cubes are the best.

[lindyanne]

Definitely packing cubes. We had 3 people in four different hotels in Portugal. We used packing cubes and put everything for the first two spots in one bag and the second two in another. Extra shoes and overnight bags went in a third. (We are not light packers and had a lot of different activities and nicer dinners to pack for as well).

[jennistarr1]

Is this part road trip?

You could swing it so that instead of everyone having their own suitcase, you have one suit case per place, the rest stays in the car.

Definitely packing cubes, you can have outfits by person, and just a persons underwear/socks/pjs so its just overall easier to find

and then eventually, have a bag, cube, whatever to start to house the dirty stuff (so you don't have to bring that in to subsequent places)

[sent]

Pre-organizing and corralling outfits will help a lot. People love packing cubes but personally I'm a ziplock bag person. I need to be able to see what's inside everything to sort things quicker. I use lots of gallon sized bags but sometimes I use the even larger 2.5 gallon bags for stuff like this. Depending on the age of the others, I'd make each person responsible for their packets/cubes to get themselves at least ready each day. I'd have to help get the kids organize everything before packing and then help them put away the dirty stuff as they change. 

[ellipses84]

For road trips like that, I usually use 1 backpack per night with everyone’s clothes plus 1 for everyone’s toiletries, phone chargers, etc. That way we are only grabbing 2 bags out of the trunk per night. For your scenario you may have suitcases and packing cubes could create a similar setup. For Europe, we spent 2 nights in each location and we took 2 small carry on suitcases and 4 backpacks (1 per person). Iceland may be better if you have a car /4wd, but in most of Europe cars are small with limited cargo space so I’d never bring a big suitcase.

[erbear]

That is my nightmare. I try never to stay anywhere fewer than 2 nights.

In your case, I’d have everyone pack outfits in ziploc bags for each day. Then add jackets, sweatshirts, etc.

[sonrisa]

Will it be a road trip?

We drove Sf to Vegas to Grand Canyon to Santa Fe to white sands to carls bad canyons to Al uquerque back to Sf last summer. 10 nights. I packed three suitcases: one for the Vegas’s/Grand Canyon nights. One for the Santa Fe nights, and one for the last leg. With a few smaller,specialty bags that we would bring in for specifics - a swim bag, a hiking bag, and a soft cloth bag I’d nest in the main bag for the day and transfer as we went (toiletries, etc)

[midwestmama]

As others have said, use a packing cube or ziploc bag system, or even just roll one set of clothes (e.g., top, bottom, underwear, socks) together if you don't have packing cubes (and don't want to buy them) and don't want to use a million ziploc bags. Maybe have one bag for everything that will/may be used everyday (e.g., pajamas, toiletries, sweatshirt/jacket, etc.).

[SusanBAnthony]

Unlike many, I hate packing cubes because it's one more layer of hell sort through. What does pre-packing outfits do you if the weather changed or you were hot the day before and want to be cooler, or if you spill and want to change sooner, or want to rewear something?

I'd just get it all the suitcases every day, and not worry about it. We always just do backpack (or tote bag) plus carryon suitcases and I don't think it takes too good to rifle through a small suitcase, change clothes, and zip it back up.

[definitelyO]

we're headed to Iceland next week and we'll be there 6 nights and 4 different hotels/airbnb. We just pack like we normally do... we did similar in Alaska last summer. I wouldn't overthink it. and you may not know what you'll wear each day until you wake up. So either packing cubes - or roll the day of clothes together. Pants, shirt, socks, underwear, etc.. rolled into one "package" if you will.

for reference RockNVoll, I'm packing the same as you. My outer layers will be a fleece and raincoat. I'm not taking a long puffy coat or anything like that. I'm in CO where layers are standard. Hiking boots (low profile) -wear on the plane and 1 pair of tennis shoes if the others get wet and flip flops for lagoons. Happy to share itineraries as well bears

[orval]

I usually pack tops in one cube, bottoms in another. Pajamas, underwear and socks in another. That way I can pick what outfit I want for the day. Like mentioned above, sometimes you can't wear what you thought you might due to weather so I wouldn't want to be locked into an outfit.
This way I can mix and match tops and bottoms.
I just did three hotels in three days this past weekend and it was just fine.

[Roc A Bee]

Moving hotels sucks, but I don’t think I’d pack any different. I never really unpack myself at a hotel - just live out of the bag.
I would turn suitcases into dedicated dirty clothes bags as you accumulate enough and leave those in the car if possible.

[melmel4854]

Jul 1, 2024 7:57:04 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

Unlike many, I hate packing cubes because it's one more layer of hell sort through. What does pre-packing outfits do you if the weather changed or you were hot the day before and want to be cooler, or if you spill and want to change sooner, or want to rewear something?

I'd just get it all the suitcases every day, and not worry about it. We always just do backpack (or tote bag) plus carryon suitcases and I don't think it takes too good to rifle through a small suitcase, change clothes, and zip it back up.

I also hate packing cubes. I got them after seeing them recommended on here. I feel they stress me out more than help me. 

[thebreakfastclub]

I also was misled by this place about packing cubes. I do not enjoy having zip up pouches inside of zip up suitcases.
The only thing I do segregate is dirty laundry in a reusable shopping bag or pop-up hamper.

I also reject one person packing for an entire family unless this is somehow 1 adult plus 3 toddlers.

[georgeglass]

If you're a packing cube family, go cubes, but I wouldn't do it by outfit for Iceland. We rewore a bunch of stuff when we went, especially if the day's activities were similar. I would just pack light - leggings, athletic-y, layer-y clothes. And I'm super jealous.

[bears]

Jul 1, 2024 11:57:29 GMT -5 thebreakfastclub said:

I also was misled by this place about packing cubes. I do not enjoy having zip up pouches inside of zip up suitcases.
The only thing I do segregate is dirty laundry in a reusable shopping bag or pop-up hamper.

I also reject one person packing for an entire family unless this is somehow 1 adult plus 3 toddlers.

Lol. I pack for myself and my husband does also. My kids get a list and they put everything in a laundry basket and I review what goes into the actual luggage, since they make mistakes and I don't feel like Icelandic underwear shopping.

However, I will take on the organization of bags in a way that is logical and creates the least chaos for us all.

[bittybomb]

We did four different hotels in Ireland for 5 people. I used packing cubes and packed cubes per hotel for each person. I also tried to keep the suitcases organized by location rather than by person like I typically do.

[bears]

Update in OP

[livinitup]

bears Thanks for the update! Did you have fun? What was your favorite meal?

[bears]

Aug 3, 2024 14:14:10 GMT -5 livinitup said:

bears Thanks for the update! Did you have fun? What was your favorite meal?

It was amazing and the kids had such a good time! They ended up discovering the jumping pillows in many communities and loved geothermal pools (we went to Secret Lagoon, Lýsulaugar, and Laugarvatn Fontana plus 3 municipal pools). The weather wasn't ideal, but we were fairly prepared for that (thank goodness for waterproof pants!) and didn't let it interfere with too much of what we wanted to do. 

My top two places to eat were Messinn in Reykjavik and Efstidalur in the Golden Circle (you can see the dairy cows in the barn from a window in the restaurant). Everything we got at those places was top notch!

However my most enduring food memories will likely be all the pre-made grocery store sandwiches and skyr we ate for lunches! The cost of food in Iceland is no joke!

[bears]

Jun 30, 2024 21:17:00 GMT -5 RockNVoll said:

Ha, I'm deep in the throes of planning an Iceland trip myself and keep saying that the part I'm least looking forward to is having to move to a different hotel every night for like five nights. Based on stuff I've read I'm thinking I'll only need 2-3 pairs of leggings that I'll re-wear with waterproof pants on top of them. Then maybe 4-5 quick dry tops so sink washing is feasible if necessary, with a warmer layer on top that I'll just keep re-wearing. I'm usually a light packer anyway but am really going to try to bring as little as possible this time to minimize the hassle of constant repacking. And, yes, packing cubes are the best.

This is pretty much what I did, but I didn't end up sink washing. Typically the heating in Iceland is really dry, so when things are hung, they dry quickly.

I do wish I was able to minimize the stuff a bit more, but it's somewhat hard with my kids. DD is 12 and I keep on thinking she should be able to eat neater at some point, but it hasn't happened yet. I consoled myself that leggings take up realtively little space!

[bears]

Jul 1, 2024 10:34:30 GMT -5 definitelyO said:

we're headed to Iceland next week and we'll be there 6 nights and 4 different hotels/airbnb. We just pack like we normally do... we did similar in Alaska last summer. I wouldn't overthink it. and you may not know what you'll wear each day until you wake up. So either packing cubes - or roll the day of clothes together. Pants, shirt, socks, underwear, etc.. rolled into one "package" if you will.

for reference RockNVoll , I'm packing the same as you. My outer layers will be a fleece and raincoat. I'm not taking a long puffy coat or anything like that. I'm in CO where layers are standard. Hiking boots (low profile) -wear on the plane and 1 pair of tennis shoes if the others get wet and flip flops for lagoons. Happy to share itineraries as well bears

How was your trip?  

I would have loved to skip the jackets, but my family lives in NC so we definitely needed something warmer IN ADDITION to our layers!