My Honest SE Asia Packing List

As a solo female-traveler on your first trip it is hard to know what to pack. There are countless blogs and lists out there that have recommendations and information, not to mention travel guides and agencies, websites, but that can be so overwhelming. I found very few fully compiled list of what was in a persons pack and so I decided when I left that I would document everything I took and write my reflections when I came home. Remember that learning curve I talked about earlier? Well packing was a huge one. My main pack weighed 12kg when I started and 15.2 when I left for my final plane home. My small pack the 32L weighed 7kg. This was way too much. If your planning to move as much as I did with as little rest as I gave myself I do not recommend packing as much as I did, but I will get into that later with all my reflections. Bare in mind while reading this, I am a chronic over packer and while its something I am trying to work on this was also my first solo trip. What I learned was exponential, and I am so thankful for it. For now lets jump in!

SE Asia Packing List

Carry on (Mountain Hardware Dry Commuter 32 Waterproof Backpack):

Make up:

Blush, Anastasia Dip Brow pomade, Covergirl 4 pc palate, physicians formula beige pearl highlight, mascara, felt tip liner, Maybelline age rewind, Rimmel Stay Matte Powder

Electronics:

Battery pack, MyPassport for mac, 2 pair iPhone buds (only took one, why did I pack 2 initially, ? No idea.), Selfie ringlite, 2 USB power ports, MacBook charger, 13” MacBook pro, GoPro Hero 4 Silver, Canon Rebel XTI 3, Extra lenses, Monopod, floating monopod, iPhone tripod

Toiletries:

Dove Dry spray deodorant, 1oz cold cream, 3oz spray bottle Sea Breeze, 90% isopropyl alcohol, Neutrogena pink grapefruit face moisturizer, Kiels hand solve, Garnier skin active cleansing towels, melatonin, women’s multi-vitamins, Pepto-Bismol tablets, Advil, Tylenol, Excedrine, travel mouthwash

Miscellaneous (Not Pictured):

Cocoon travel pillow, 2 pair compression socks, passport, wallet, shot records, social media cards, Grayl Water Filtration (Anti-Viral and Anti-Bacterial Water Bottle)

What’s in my Pack (Gregory DEVA 60 Liter):

Toiletries: Electric razor, pads wax strips, Steripod (2), OFF bug repellent, dove dry spray, 2 Nuun energy and electrolyte tubes, full size micro fiber towel, small microfiber towel, cotton pads, 5oz Tinted Red Conditioner, 3oz Organix Shampoo, 1 Intuition Razor and 4 razor blades, travel size Q-Tips, Travel First Aid kit, 1 Dove soap bar, 1 travel size bag misc. travel supplies (I take it everywhere and I never actually look to see what’s in it but I know it has what I need) *I left behind the sunscreen and the Castillo soap

Clothes:

3 pairs shorts, (1 Jean, 1 formal-ish, 1 everyday 6 inch inseam)

3 shoes (Nike Fitsol tennis shoe, 1 Dexter Sandal, 1 Merona ballet flat)

3 Long sleeve shirts (1 Denim * I wore this on the plane, 1 light sweater, 1 light button up)

5 shirts (1 plain black HM tank, 1 black HM t-shirt, 1 white HM t-shirt, 1 mint long sleeve crop top, 1 stripe long t-shirt)

4 dresses (2 short t-shirt dresses one burgundy/ one forest green, 1 mid-length tank top dress light pink, 1 long maxi dress black)

3 pairs of pants (1 royal blue light weight trouser *which I wore on the plane, 1

black light weight trouser, 1 white and gray linen trouser)

1 Set work out clothes (1 pair crop Nike yoga pants, 1 tank top, 1 Nike combat short, 2 sports bras)

Unders: 5 under wear, 2 wireless bralettes, 3 pairs short thin socks, 3 swim suits)

1 NorthFace Rain Jacket

Miscellaneous: 1 power strip with surge protector, 1 set of outlet converters, 1 collapsible to go container, 1 all-in-one reusable cutlery set, 1 MSR 2liter bladder, 1 hidden pocket scarf, 1 over the shoulder bag, 1 REI Pack Sack, DOT and DOT packing cubes, *also pictured is the mummy liner but a last minute decision I left it behind

Reflections

What I wish I would have left and why:

• Tight Dresses: I felt uncomfortable wearing tight fitting clothes and I brought 3 of these. Too many to begin with, but also not appropriate for a modest culture.

• Flats: I only ever wore sandals and my tennis shoes. For this trip that’s all I needed. My sandals were dressy enough to wear to a club if I wanted to go out, and wearable enough to walk around in all day.

• Sweaters: Emphasize the “s”. Um why? I have no idea why I thought I would need more than one soft long sleeve. Terrible idea. In my logically mind I knew it would be hot so why did I bring more than one sweater, I have no idea.

• Long Maxi t-shirt Dress: Never used it. Ever. It was heavy it was bulky and I never wore it.

• Make-up: I took very little makeup. But for the whole trip I did my brows once and put on mascara twice. Everything else would have melted off my face before I could have made it off the hostel property.

• Half of my toiletries: I never used half of this stuff. It really made me think my “beauty routine” from back home. Stick to the bare basics. If you absolutely need it bring it of course, but everything else that’s a maybe, you’ll find it there if you need it.

• Selfie Ring lite: enough said..

Thank goodness I did not bring more clothes. I did laundry twice during my trip. It cost me 4USD and everything was washed, pressed, and wrapped when it was ready for pick up. I never thought it would be so easy to find laundry services, or that I would utilize it, but I never struggled with clean clothes, even after sweating through two outfits a day! My key tip is bring items that are easily interchangeable, light, and appropriate for the climate. Take pieces that can be layered and are light weight to keep your pack weight down. The best part of my pack was my packing cubes. I have been using these packing cubes for years, in my suitcases and now in my backpack. You can find Dot and Dot packing cubes online at Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Dot-Medium-Packing-Cubes-Travel/dp/B00UBC6A2E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478760002&sr=8-1&keywords=dot+and+dot+packing+cubes

What I wish I would have brought and why:

• A book or my kindle: this would have been so nice on those long bus rides or on the plane. I could have been doing research without Internet or relaxing my mind with my favorite novels.

• Clothes line: A few time I noticed that girls in the dorms had small clothes lines attached to their bunks and used it hand wash and rinse clothes that would have been really useful between laundry sets.

• Mini Surge protector with 240V: I made a last minute purchase and bought one that was only good up to 120v. total waste of space in my pack, and I couldn’t use it.

• Flip Flops: These were very easy to find. And while I do kind of regret not just bringing them I didn’t even need them until I made it to the beach 2 weeks in. This is up to you. They are everywhere and they are cheap, but if you wear them bring them.

• More socks: I tried to rotate my tennis shoes and my sandals so I didn’t blow out my feet since I was walking countless kilometers a day, but I only took 2 pairs of socks. Not enough. I wish I had a couple more. And then washed them through out.

• Ear plus: I can sleep through anything. But when you're in a dorm with 12 other people these would have come in handy for getting to sleep

I hope this helps you sort through your pack, build your packing list, or shopping list. It will be a reference for the rest of my trips and something I can definitely learn from. Happy packing, and planning!

“IN THE END… We only regret the chances we didn’t take, the relationships we were afraid to have,and the decisions we waited too long to make.” - Lewis Carroll