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How to Pack Smart for Your UK Holiday

With so many beautiful and interesting places to visit within the UK, it’s no wonder that for so many of us, our homeland still remains a top holiday destination. Whether it’s a weekend break or a long stay, the summer season sees many of us packing up our own cars and caravans, to explore more of the UK. We know that packing can be a stressful activity, but it doesn’t have to be! We want to help you stay relaxed from the very day you book your holiday onwards, and with our helpful packing tips, that dream can become a reality!

Make Lists

We recommend writing a list of essentials for every member of the family, as well as an overall list of things to pack. This way you can easily consider all the items you’re packing, and how to quickly make space if you need to. Take your list along with you to make sure you have everything before heading back home too.

Don’t Over pack Clothing

Squashing one too many ‘just in case’ outfits into our suitcase is something most of us will admit we’re guilty of, especially when travelling with children. When it comes to packing clothing, we recommend packing no more than one day and one evening outfit per adult per day. For children follow the same rule, and then pack one or two extra complete outfits as spares. Children like to get messy that’s a fact, but the likelihood that they’re going to need more than two complete outfits for every day of their holiday is very small.

Check Local Prices

If you’re travelling to a caravan or holiday park and you’re planning on taking your own food, toiletries or household essentials, scope the web for local prices first. For example If sun protection is inexpensive enough at your holiday destination, there’s no need for it to take up room in your suitcase. We know that on-site shops can be quite pricey. However it’s likely that the town or city you’re heading to will have the same selection of chain stores that you’re used to at home, where you can pick up more reasonably priced essentials.

Add Bulky Items First

When loading your car, add the heaviest and bulkiest items first. If you plan on taking sports equipment, such as bikes, kayaks or skiing equipment, we would always recommend fixing a roof bar to your car. If you don’t have any heavy sporting equipment, but still require some extra boot space consider adding a roof box to your car. Even if your car’s boot won’t be loaded to its full capacity, a roof box can still be a helpful travelling tool.

Plan Car Entertainment For the Kids

If you’re travelling a long distance with children, keeping them entertained can be hard work. Yet packing toys and games to keep them entertained can leave you with a messy and over-packed car or motorhome. Let your kids choose two of their own favourite toys to pack, such as a comfort teddy or blanket. Then create them an activity pack full of car friendly activities and games. As well as packing physical activities such as colouring and activity books, make a list of imagination games too, such as eye spy. Planning is the key to keeping kids entertained, so bringing along a simple list of imagination based activities and games will save you if you begin to run out of ideas. It’s also a good idea to bring along a CD with some of their favourite music or sing along songs added to it or even a lullaby or two.