Baggage Strategies for European Flights?

[jgenie]

I generally wear a Patagonia better sweater, a scarf/shawl and/or a down puff on the plane and put a Baggu in my personal item in case I want to take them off and tuck them away overhead - totally depends on the temps on the flight itself.

I make everyone wear a coat on the plane. Once we’re on board, we stuff them in reusable bags and use as pillows or stuff on top of our roller bags.

[bisous]

We spent 2 weeks in Germany this past summer and traveled carry on only. We preferred that to the stress of potentially lost luggage. Half the time was in cities, the other half in the Alps so we needed cooler weather clothing. Three of us used a Monos carryon (7 lbs) and DH had a travel backpack he bought for traveling to off the beaten path places. No one ever weighed them though. I carried a crossbody bag and DH and the boys all had day pack sized back packs. Tips for traveling light:

Pack using a capsule wardrobe mentality so you can mix and match
Rewear your bottoms several times.
Rewear sweaters with a clean under layer
Wear layers on the plane
Wear your heaviest clothing on the plane such as your jacket
Only pack 2 pairs of shoes and wear the heaviest pair on the plane
Buy things as needed at your destination
If laundry is an option, do it, even early in your trip (I think you are at your in-laws at some point so maybe that's a good place?)
Wash an item or two in hotel sinks if needed. I've washed everything from underwear and socks to DS2's pants because we hiked in light rain and he ran through the woods more than the path. This year I bought a Dawn-equivalent dish soap at Aldi and used that but you could take detergent sheets.
Plan to check bags on the way home with the extras and souvenirs you bought. You won't be scrambling if your bags get lost the way you would on outbound flights.
Simplify toiletries

These are really good tips!

Guys, we already signed up to check a bag! I am hoping everything will be ok. Our flight out is direct to Zurich and we'll be staying within 1 hour of the airport for the first 3 days, and we'll have a car. I'm hoping that if there's a mixup with baggage that will be enough time to connect with our luggage! We'll see.

I think we probably have MORE space than we need with this extra bag. I mean, really the Motherlode Jr. plus a euro-sized carry on is exactly the right size when I'm planning it out. The personal item restrictions are just really making me nervous though! Also, I kind of want to have fashun on the trip. We're going to be everywhere from an alpine village to the Mediterranean. We do think we'll need space on the flight home to carry home souvenirs so I think we'll want a bag for the return trip at least. Hope it works out!