I stopped checking bags two years ago — here's everything that changed

Two years ago I took a three-week trip to Southeast Asia with a single 40-litre backpack and no checked luggage. I spent about three hours the week before convinced this was a terrible idea. I came back a convert.

I have not checked a bag since. Here's what actually changed — and why I think checking luggage is a habit worth breaking.

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The obvious bit: money

Airlines have made checking bags into a serious revenue stream. Ryanair charges £24–£40 per bag each way. Wizz Air charges between £15–£45 depending on when you add it. easyJet is similar. On a return trip with a checked bag, you can easily add £50–£80 to the base ticket price — which, on a £60 fare, is more than doubling the cost.

Over the course of a year, if you take six trips (not unusual for the kind of person who reads travel blogs), checked bag fees alone could be costing you £300–£500 or more. That's another flight.

Most budget carriers allow a personal item (small rucksack or handbag) free of charge and have a 20–40 litre cabin bag as a paid add-on that's still significantly cheaper than checked baggage. A 40-litre cabin bag fits into Ryanair's overhead bins and handles a week's worth of clothes for most climates.

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The less obvious bit: time

When you travel carry-on-only, you arrive at the airport later (no check-in desk queue), you skip the bag drop entirely if you check in online, you're through security in the same time as everyone else, and you walk straight out of arrivals the moment you land. No 25-minute wait at baggage reclaim. No chance your bag went to Lisbon when you went to Tallinn.

On a city break with a 6am return flight, not checking a bag means an extra 30–40 minutes in bed. That is not a small thing.

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What actually fits in a 40-litre bag

This is where people get anxious, and it's understandable — the idea of a week in Europe with only a cabin bag feels impossible until you actually do it. Here's a real packing list for a week:

• 5 pairs of underwear (merino wool if you can stretch to it — dries overnight, doesn't smell after one wear)

• 4 t-shirts or tops

• 2 pairs of trousers or shorts (one should double as smart-casual for dinner)

• 1 mid-layer (fleece or thin jumper)

• 1 lightweight packable waterproof

• 1 pair of shoes on your feet + 1 pair of lightweight trainers or sandals in the bag

• Toiletries in 100ml containers (buy anything larger on arrival)

• Phone, charger, power bank, documents

• Book or Kindle

That's a week in most of Europe, Spring through Autumn. For colder climates, swap one t-shirt for another mid-layer and wear the heavier clothes on the plane.

The trick is wearing your bulkiest items (shoes, jacket) on travel days, not packing them.

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Washing clothes abroad

The thing most people worry about when going carry-on-only is running out of clean clothes. The reality: almost every destination has laundry options, and the ones that don't have sinks. Merino wool and quick-dry fabrics genuinely dry overnight, and a travel laundry soap bar takes up almost no space.

In most places, a laundry service through your hotel or a local laundromat costs £2–£6 for a full bag. I typically do one wash mid-trip on anything longer than four or five days.

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The eSIM connection

This one is slightly tangential, but carry-on-only travel makes international data even more important than usual. When you're not checking a bag, you're often moving faster — no waiting, no delays, more time in the city. A good eSIM means you're connected from the moment you land: no hunting for SIM cards, no worrying about finding wi-fi to check your accommodation details.

Get your eSIM set up through Airalo before you fly. It takes about ten minutes, covers almost every country, and the data is pre-loaded on your phone before you've even boarded.

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When checking a bag still makes sense

I'm not evangelical about this. There are trips where checked luggage makes clear sense:

• Skiing or snowboarding trips (ski boots don't go in a cabin bag)

• Trips longer than three weeks where laundry access is uncertain

• Any trip where you're buying things to bring home (I've lost this argument with myself in pottery workshops)

• Winter city breaks to genuinely cold climates where the layering requirements defeat a 40-litre bag

But for most standard city breaks and warm-weather trips? The carry-on-only habit is worth developing. It changes how you think about packing, how you move through airports, and — in a slightly less tangible way — how you think about travel generally.

Pack less. Move faster. Spend the bag fee on dinner instead.

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