Unnecessary expense. Completely unnecessary. They take up valuable space in a small suitcase (I travel carry-on only). I can put a LOT more into a space when I'm not "limited" by cubes.

I use them quite a bit. I bought my first set from Eagle Creek on sale. If you aren't picky about the color, look for the sales. Ebags is a good source too. I pack my underwear in one and roll up knit tops and pants in another for example and then compress. I know the TSA agents aren't pawing through stuff as easily when they open my bags.

Mine are eBags. I could get along without them, but they do help some in staying efficient and organized - the organization goes into the packing, not the dressing once at my destination. I'm spending a night or two a month these days in a hotel near my mothers retirement apartment. Not a flight, but a 170 mile drive. I am not one to like getting dressed and making up out of bags and resent that it takes me longer in the mornings, I like my closet, my bathroom storage ;0) I'm usually watching the clock, facing heavy traffic in a large city that I'm still familiarizing myself with, emphasis on getting her to appointments and taking her on errands while making sure she feels confident and comfortable.

Another little bag that does help is this drawstring cosmetic bag. I'm conditioned to pulling open a cabinet drawer and reaching in for anything I need. The bag doesn't quite equal that, but it does make things faster than reaching into multiple little zippered pouches for the right product.

I don't use them. Like chloecat, I can't see what value is added.

The best technique for efficient packing is to limit what you take and take only what you really need. Clothing choices while travelling are boring anyway. Travellers can resume the clothing variety they enjoy having when they get back home.

True. I have a "travel capsule wardrobe" that's my go-to for any trip. Limited colors, multi-wear items... and GO! The packing cubes are just a money-maker for someone else. lol

I adore packing cubes. I put my clothes in categories, such as tops, pants, underwear, etc. No pawing through the suitcase to find what I want. If I am only going for a night or two and staying in one place, I just pull out the cubes and put them on top of a dresser or whatever is available. If I am going from place to place, it makes packing and unpacking so easy. One time one of my bags was overweight at the airport. I just pulled a cube out of each suitcase, swapped them and voila, the bags passed the weight limit. Meanwhile, others with the same problem were having to pull out loose piles of clothes. I got mine at TJ Maxx, a set of three for about $18. They are mesh so I can see what's inside, unlike a plastic bag. I will never travel without them. They are actually space savers because you can squish more in them and since they are rectangular you can put them in any configuration in your bag to fill the corners.

Elmer, packing cubes and limiting what you take/taking only what you need are not mutually exclusive. As dedtired pointed out, they can be very useful to some in doing just that - minimizing what is necessary for some and actually making it easier to make those decisions. To each his/her own.

Another plus for me - if we're actually staying in one location for several days, I can take out the cube and put it in a hotel drawer if desired. My stuff is in my packing cube.

snidely, you must be related to my mom. I'll ask her if she's packed, and she replies "Yes. I have my bathing suit and toothbrush." If only that worked ;)

Ah Elmer and Chloe, you are two people whose opinions I usually listen to. Probably not this time. Just because I am usually so unorganized when it comes to my suitcase and finding items. Last year when we did Kyrgyzstan and Croatia I brought a full sized suitcase and could never find anything! So frustrating, and I think these will help with organization.

I'm also a big user of packing cubes so that my clothing and other items stay organized. I use Eagle Creek pack-it specter bags and EC pack-it specter compression bags. For really large items like a stack of 2-3 slacks I use Hefty 2.5 gallon zip-lock bags. I pack the bags by clothing categories so all my shirts are together, all underwear together, etc. that way it is easier to locate a specific item. It is so much easier to remove a couple bags to gain access to a shirt or slacks because you don't disturb the entire contents of the suitcase if you need to remove the bottom item. By packing shirts and slacks compactly in a bag they do not slide around and wrinkle. Another advantage is if your bag is searched by TSA the employee will not actually be removing and touching your clothes and he/she returns them to your suitcase they will not be a jumbled mess. If I am staying at a destination for a longer time I might want to place the bags in dresser drawers but don't always want my clothing touching a surface that may or may not be clean. Husband and I have lots of other bags of various sizes for electronics, first aid supplies, dirty clothes, shoes, laundry soap and clothesline, cosmetics, etc. Many of the bags are made by Eagle Creek but I also have some Tom Bihn bags.

If you're a generally disorganized person, I can see where they'd be helpful. However, I travel so much that I know exactly how to pack my case to maximize space, minimize wrinkles, and make entire outfits easily accessible. In fact, I'm writing a new blog post for my travel blog based entirely on "how to pack for 10 days using only a carry-on." Perhaps I'll link it here when it's live. :)

I also have about a dozen "packing lists" that I reference each time I pack; they are specific to each type of trip I typically take, ranging from an overnight to two weeks, ranging from beach to city to mountain to desert, both domestic and foreign.

I have one bag always at the ready: it contains my travel toiletries (in that quart bag), toothbrush, spare electronics chargers, outlet adapters, and "hotel pajamas" (which are the items I take with the intention of throwing them away as I travel to make more room in my bag for souvenirs). Yeah, you can take your old underwear and pitch them, but you're not gaining any/much space with that. :) I also have my "travel wallet" in the safe - ready to go at a moment's notice. It contains my passport, Oyster card, and MetroCard; I keep various foreign money in a box next to the wallet (right now it only has UK and Euro money in it).

I could literally buy a plane ticket right this minute and be on the plane and airborne within three hours. (I keep my laundry caught up, and a lot of my "travel clothes" are just that - only for travel, so they're generally clean/folded properly for perfect packing.)

I travel by bicycle, by car, and by plane. For each of those, I pack according to what I need.

Bicycle, I have one bag for clothing. EVERYTHING goes in there, besides the rain gear. I can always find what I need, cause everything has its place.

Same goes for car and plane travel.

When I open my suit case, I know exactly where my undies, bras, socks, shirts and pants are. They always hang out in the same corners. :)

No cubes needed, and no wasted space.

Moni

I use mesh bags for organizing my undies and socks in a suitcase. The mesh bags are handy to have at laundry time.

ebags for me too. I just use the smaller ones for undies and socks which get scrambled in a suitcase. You don't need for jeans, t-shirts or larger outerwear. The shoe one is nice to keep dirty shoe bottoms off your clothes. Graywings mentioned mesh laundry bags; they would work as well to keep small items from getting mixed in with other clothes so you have to hunt for that sock, or how many pairs of undies do I have left?, etc.

I'd meant to mention earlier that I will sometimes put an entire days clothing from the outside in into a cube, can grab that in the morning in an unfamiliar room, strange bathroom for dressing with no thinking required ;0) It's all there, no digging for the scarf that matches the blouse, the belt that sets off the outfit, and then, where's those socks....

I saw long ago that the people I knew and worked with who did the most travelling would show up with the smallest suitcases you could imagine. The more I traveled myself, the more I realized I was in the habit of taking way more than necessary and that I could get by with much less. I've taken enough plane-train-bus-boat-car trips in space limited situations to know that the lighter I travel and the more mobile I am, the better it works for me.

I'm not quite as organized as chloecat. The max I'll pack is one week's worth and for longer trips, we do laundry wherever we are. Toiletries are in a case and are ready to go from when last used. Electronics/cords and travel PC remain in a man bag which is always packed and ready to go, plug adapters are in one drawer from which I will grab the shapes I need when travelling abroad. I put like-things in corners as moni describes and larger items in the middle. Start to finish with everything included, I'm packed at home and ready to go in 20 minutes or less. I don't have to go digging through my luggage for items when away, the suitcase is rarely more than 3/4 full.

I just got home yesterday from a 5 day domestic trip. One smallish suitcase (maybe it's a small medium size, I'm a big guy and my clothes are large). Even with my minimalist approach, I came home with a couple of unworn items. Meaning, I took more than I needed. But my bag was small and there was only one.

I personally have no need for systems, containers, or other items to be an efficient packer and traveler with a minimum of baggage.

I use various sizes of Zip-Locks and compress the air out of them (not the type with the zipper tab, the air leaks back into those). The clothing items then take up much less room, and dirty items can ride in the same suitcase as the clean, if you have to repack for many stops during a trip.

Small does not work for us very often, because of the usual planned activities at the destination. Trail runners, packs for hiking, etc. for everyone in the group takes up a lot of room, unfortunately. And then there is my pillow, if I want decent sleep during the trip--not required, but Zip-Lock compressed pillow almost always finds a slot.

Link to the last discussion a few months ago.
http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/4461650/thoughts-on-packing-cubes-and-travel-backpacks?n=22

These are my favorite brand. Like them because they are very high quality, exceptionally strong, thin, lightweight & slippery. They easily slide around to fill spaces in bags.

Since using them I can pack so much more in my carry-on, I rarely check a bag. They seem to magically make more clothes fit in a smaller bag. Wish I tried them sooner.

Roll clothes and pack into the cubes, filling the cubes to capacity.

Recently used the medium sized one as an emergency "briefcase" to carry papers & files.

Chloe, I would love to read your blog. If you don't feel comfortable linking it here, you could send me a message.

I, too, use Zip-lock bags when I pack. I admit I am a light packer and haven't checked a bag in years. I consider my packing job a success when I don't bring any clean clothes home! Toiletries are the most challenging for me.

gyr falcon, could one of those (non-leakable) air-filled bags, slipped inside a couple of washcloths sewed into a tube ... double as the required air-filled pillow?

Could some folks consider that those who have a lot of little bags into which to put this and that ...

... may be a bit full o' themselves?

o j

Hi sleeperblues, I like packing cubes purely for organization (not compression). Ours have some mesh so that we can see what is inside.

Typically kids and I will share two carry-on sized suitcases for clothes when traveling so the cubes are very helpful for keeping stuff separate. I might have a couple of cubes each with "the next day's clothes" for the 3 kiddos if I do not want to have to take the entire suitcase to the room.

I also have used the cubes when helping pack DH or older kids for weeklong trips/school camp, they seem to like them.

Hope you have a fun trip on the horizon!

Sorry, didn't see the other thread and thanks for the link! I am going to try them this time, see if they help.

As someone mentioned, they can be used for compression, organization, or both.

Hope they help & work for you.