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Explain Packing Cubes


sbcatcher1
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Just now, sbcatcher1 said:

I don't understand how packing cubes help. Please explain.

I use them and it compresses the clothes that I put into them. It seems to make more space in the suitcase by the compression. 

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Packing cubes are a way to keep your luggage organized and your clothes less wrinkled.

I fill one packing cube with a complete outfit and put it in my husband's checked bag.  He puts a packing cube full of his clothes in my checked bag.  That way, if one bag goes missing (which has happened to us), we each have more clothing.

 

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I had a hard time understanding them to begin with.   I bought a set from Amazon and gave them a try.  To me, they are game changing.  You can pack so much more and be much more organized.  You don't have to completely unpack. You can just take them out if your suite case and put them directly into drawers. There are many good YouTube videos to get ideas. Give them a whirl. 

 

Edited by Butterbean1000
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I just keep the clear plastic bags that sets of bedsheets come in.  I put all my jerseys in one, undies in one, etc.  Nice square piece in the suitcase; when I unpack on the ship I just put each one in a drawer or shelf.

Not useful for large garments.  Many of those just get left on their hangers, and then hung as soon as we unpack.

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50 minutes ago, puppycanducruise said:

Packing cubes are a way to keep your luggage organized and your clothes less wrinkled.

I fill one packing cube with a complete outfit and put it in my husband's checked bag.  He puts a packing cube full of his clothes in my checked bag.  That way, if one bag goes missing (which has happened to us), we each have more clothing.

 

My DW swears by them for storage organization throughout the cruise and pre/post land trip. I prefer to spare the weight and do not use them.

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4 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

My DW swears by them for storage organization throughout the cruise and pre/post land trip. I prefer to spare the weight and do not use them.

 

Huh??? The packing cubes I have are almost weightless. Can't believe that 4 of them would be more than 6 ounces, and I'm being generous.

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7 minutes ago, Texas Tillie said:

 

Huh??? The packing cubes I have are almost weightless. Can't believe that 4 of them would be more than 6 ounces, and I'm being generous.

Yes, they are relatively lightweight. However, our cruises average 4+\- weeks plus pre/post cruise land stays. We try to pack for 10 days between laundry. But airline and transfer weight/size restrictions find me always trying to shave ounces and space use (since we invariably acquire stuff while away). For example, 8 ounces of cubes (DW uses hard bottomed ones) is a half pound, which can be an issue if it exceeds 50 lbs when your bag is weighed. Of course, when we fly bizclass, the weight is a non-issue.

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Years and years ago -- back in the 60's, I kept all my sweater bags, sheet bags and blanket bags.  I use them to pack all our clothes in.  Underwear goes in the smaller bags and those bags go directly into the drawers on the ship.  I don't think those drawers are clean.  And those smaller bags keep our underwear, etc., clean.

 

We split all clothes among 4 suitcases.

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It's the same with the 50 other necessities most people say you need you pack on your cruise. I don't see the use either. Apparently spending the time to organize it all before is a convenience factor vs doing it later. 

 

I hang up all of my clothes. I don't want to go through cubes when I want a shirt.

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It's like packing a truck for moving your household stuff, just on a smaller basis.  Pack like items in the same container, good for organizing and then unpacking.

 

But since I'm not moving my household when cruising, even on 21 day sailings, and I can easily fit all I need into a 21" carry on piece of luggage, packing cubes are just extraneous stuff for this cruiser.  I don't need to put my 7 tees or 7 briefs in a separate container inside my luggage.

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Packing cubes are like boxing household goods into a truck when I'm moving from one house to another.  Since I'm not doing a permanent move when sailing, and I can fit everything I need into a 21" carry on piece of luggage, even on a 21 day cruise, packing cubes are useless to me.

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I've done a side-by-side pack and I can pack better, more efficiently and with fewer wrinkles using my tried and true packing methods than by using packing cubes/folders.  I only use one, in my small carry-on (underseat size) to hold a change of clothes plus one extra top, just in case my suitcase goes astray. It's useful because it corrals everything and keeps it from getting mixed up with my other carry-on stuff.

 

But for regular packing I find them unnecessary.

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I"m with the totally unnecessary votes. 

 

Immediately after 9/11 some airports (not U.S.) opened all luggage and did a hand search. I used baggies for underwear and small things I didn't want lost as they tended to look at them and move on. Packing stuff in one container to then pack in a second container (the suitcase) was a pain. As time went by and the hand searching seemed to end so did my use of baggies. Not a chance I will go back to double packing just because someone has invented a money maker called packing cubes.

 

 Although wish I had been the one to invent them as it seems those of us that don't use them are in he minority!

 

 

 

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They are great to use. You can fold, or even roll up your polos, shirts, etc. and your clothes don't get wrinkled. I like to unpack my clothes, once onboard, then use the bags for my dirty laundry, ie: socks, underwear, shirts, etc. Happy travels! 

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You really won’t understand until you use them. Since I started using them, I never travel without them now. I roll most of my clothes, and agree with all the reasons others listed. I use a small one for all my electronic stuff, and pack in my carry on. It’s nice for things like undergarments, just to put the whole thing in a drawer or shelf.

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4 hours ago, sbcatcher1 said:

I don't understand how packing cubes help. Please explain.

 

They don't help to save any space in your luggage, but apparently they help some people stay organized when they unpack. They're certainly not my cup of tea and find them a giant waste of money. I've packed for a 6 month tour in the desert in one 42" Pelican Case, so if you know how to pack, you'll be fine. Lots of videos on YT on how to roll clothes to save space. The laws of physics mean it's impossible to add more cubic inches of material inside a suitcase and have it save space.

Edited by Sean_B
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4 minutes ago, Sean_B said:

 

They don't help to save any space in your luggage, but apparently they help some people stay organized when they unpack. They're certainly not my cup of tea and find them a giant waste of money.

 

 

They save tons of space. I can roll 10 T's in on small cube. We went to Europe for a month with a backpack and packing tubes.

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7 minutes ago, coevan said:

 

They save tons of space. I can roll 10 T's in on small cube.

 

It's literally impossible to roll 10 t's and then put them inside another container and have it 'save space'. If you roll those 10 t's and put them inside the suitcase without the cubes, it takes up less space than doing it with the cubes, as the cubes are taking up more volume. It's physics; the more cubic area of material you add to a given space, the more volume it takes up. That's also not including the wasted space not used between the cubes, which can be filled in with other items if you're not using the cubes, but it's difficult to do if you are.

 

IMO they're a gimmick designed to separate people from their money and make people think they need them. Sure they might be a great organizational tool for some people, but it's impossible for them to take up less space than not using them.

 

> We went to Europe for a month with a backpack and packing tubes.

 

I've done three months in Asia and three months in western Europe in the fall and I used a 30L backback without packing cubes and had lots of space.

Edited by Sean_B
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13 minutes ago, Sean_B said:

The laws of physics mean it's impossible to add more cubic inches of material inside a suitcase and have it save space.

It isn't about adding nonexistent space.  Compression packing cubes free up space that would otherwise be taken by clothes.  Compression cubes get rid of the dead space between clothes.  That freed up space can then be used to pack stuff that otherwise wouldn't fit in the suitcase.  

 

I can fit 10 days of clothes(10 2X t-shirts, 3 size 14 jeans, socks, bras, underwear, swimsuit, elegant night outfit) in one compression packing cube.  I don't put each clothing type in a separate cube.

Edited by Tiger0613
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