Lightweight Travel Tip #15: Medicine

In this Lightweight Travel Tip we discuss medications. Again, take just what you need with a day or two extra in case of delay. Medicines might not be easily available at your destination - what with different prescription laws, language barriers and different names for things. I prefer to carry the prescription notice in paper form just in case I'm asked for it - I don't really want to be searching on my phone when a customs agent might suspect I'm carrying illegal drugs. But, by carrying just enough it makes me look less like I'm trying to import anything.

Do be aware that prescription laws and legality of medications does differ. What's legal in your country might be illegal in another. For example some medications for mental health conditions vary in their regulations. I still think it'd be easier to convince someone of an honest mistake, or turning a blind eye to a minor infraction if the amount is tiny.

Oh, and it's just fewer items to track.

Lightweight Travel Tips is a series of short videos where I showcase the lightweight travel philosophy by discussing specific situations. The individual tips are gateways to the lightweight travel mindset.

I can recall my first trip overseas with overweight suitcases full of things I never used. Even though I have larger baggage allowances than ever, I take less. Less luggage makes it easier to move around, and I'm less likely to lose an item because I have fewer items to track. It's easier to move through crowds and over imperfect ground.

Lightweight travel tips combine my experience in travel and the outdoors to examine what I carry and if I could do without it. I'm not an ultra-light backpacking gram weeny - my outdoors philosophy is more informed by bushcraft, where I learned to make the most out of whatever I carry while keeping necessities and local conditions in mind. So, lightweight travel is a mindset of efficiency - that each item must be helpful or it should be left behind.

At the core of my philosophy is: Passport, Credit card, Phone - everything else is a solvable problem or a luxury item.

This isn't to say you shouldn't carry anything - decide what balances weight, size, convenience and comfort for yourself and where you're going! Figure out what is available where you're going - both free at your accommodation or what you can easily buy.

How do I start thinking through a pack list? First, learn about the trip: what about the weather when I am there? What activities do I expect to do? What can I obtain at the destination if I need it? What equipment must I take? These questions are the genesis of thinking through what to bring.

And the biggest tip: Start with a small bag. If you can't make your load-out fit, it's easier to get a larger bag rather than the other way around. People tend to think in terms of bag size: it's the airlines that make us weigh everything!

Do you have some lightweight travel tips of your own? Please share in the comments.

Until next time.