There are two types of travellers in this world: those who pack for a trip with wild abandon, tossing in multiple outfit changes, their entire beauty and skincare regime , three hair tools and enough pants to change underwear three times a day. And then there are those like me, who will do almost anything to avoid having to check a bag into the hold, priding themselves on packing a tight edit of essentials into an even tighter space and investing in a clever underseat cabin bag . If, like me, you are adamantly against checking a bag into the hold, you know there are certain hacks you need to utilise to avoid a complete packing meltdown.
If you’re uninitiated, I can explain the secret travel accessory to mastering carry-on luggage in two words: packing cubes. The magic trick of this product becomes all the more magical when you add a third word: compression packing cubes. It might sound simple (or like the kind of thing your dad might get excited about), but a good set of packing cubes really is the only essential you need to embark on a hand luggage only trip.
Not only will a decent compression cube save you space, it will also keep you organised through security, the flight itself and beyond. We've handed out all the above packing cubes to our jetsetting editors as they put them to use on flights throughout the year. We've tried them at festivals, on long haul and short trips, to see whether they help keep our cases more organised, squeeze more clothes in, and protect our .
