Packing Your Carry On

I’m off to Thunder Bay, Ontario tomorrow morning so I thought I would share with you what’s in my carry on! It’s imperative to pack your bag with important items and to make sure you don’t have any banned items, which will make going through security a lot easier and faster.

The first step is checking with your airline to see what size bag is allowed to be a carry on. For the most part you’re allowed one carry on bag and one “personal item” such as a purse, or briefcase.

The next step is to check with CATSA or other air transport security authority in the country you are leaving from and traveling to, to see what items are not allowed in your luggage and the limitations on things such as liquids, gels, food, etc.

Should you check luggage or just take a carry on?

If I’m going on a shorter trip I usually try to only take a carry on. Checking a bag usually has a fee, and I like the convenience of not having to wait for my baggage when I arrive at my destination. It also has a very low chance of it getting lost! In some cases it’s better to check your bags. If you are flying a low cost airline, they will sometimes charge for carry on, and it could be cheaper to check a bag, check with your airline to see what they charge! Longer trips usually means more stuff, so in that case it’s easier to check a bag, rather than try to stuff everything into a carry on.

Here’s my list of what needs to be in your carry on/personal item:

Phone
Tablet/laptop
Headphones
Camera
Wallet
Passport or identification
Travel documents
Medications
Pen & Notepad
Change of clothes (if checking a bag, incase the checked bag gets lost!)
Book/ other entertainment
Snacks
Empty water bottle
Phone charger
Boarding pass
Gum
Hand sanitizer
Chap stick
Eye mask
Cosmetic bag
Scarf to use as blanket
Anything you desperately don’t want to lose.

For this trip I am just taking my carry on and personal item. So my larger carry on has clothes, shoes, jewelry, and everything I don’t need during my flight. I have a 2 hour flight from Halifax to Toronto, a short layover and then another 2 hour flight from Toronto to Thunder Bay! It’s my first time visiting Thunder Bay in good weather so I’m excited to explore some hiking and outdoor things! The blog will be a little quiet but you can follow our adventures on Instagram @willsavefortravel!

Printable version of my carry on check list available here

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