My boyfriend and I spent last week in Tokyo and, admittedly, I didn’t pack until the night before. Packing is the biggest chore in any trip. I hate feeling like I’ve forgotten something but I also feel really silly when I over-pack, especially since lugging around too much stuff wrecks havoc on my neck and shoulders.  Luckily, I didn’t forget anything because I wrote lists of what to pack for 1 week in Tokyo for every part of my luggage  – my suitcase, my carry on, last minute things to pack in the morning (i.e. toothbrush and pillow) and for what to wear on the plane.

I expected the weather to be cool in late October, but the first half of the week was unseasonably warm – yay! As expected, we did loads of walking, so I tried to pack clothes that would be comfortable for walking around all day, yet wouldn’t make me feel out of place amongst stylish Tokyo locals.

Wear on the plane:

• Glasses – you’d be mad to wear contact lenses on a long flight!
• Black leggings
• Black long sleeve top
• Leather jacket
• Sneakers
• I wish I brought a scarf with me, I can’t believe I forgot one this time.

Carry-On: Purse

I’ve ditched my handbag recently for a little sling purse, in an attempt to reduce the daily strain on my neck and shoulders. I was surprised to find it makes international travel so much less stressful, because I can only fit a few priority items in my purse. No more rifling through my bottomless-pit handbag when I go to clear immigration!

• Passport
• Wallet
• Phone

Carry-On: Backpack

• Pants, top and spare underwear, in case my luggage gets lost or we have an emergency stopover somewhere
• Earphones
• Moisturiser and lip balm
• Mini hairbrush – not that I used it
• Notebook and pen
• iPad
• Waterbottle
• Jacket/Jumper for us both
• Phone chargers
• DSLR Camera
• Compression socks – I always wear them on flights longer than 6-7 hours, it saves me from blisters during the first few days of travel. Compression socks in conjunction with leg exercises and standing up frequently lowers your risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
• Contact lenses – Since they’re compact, I pack a box in my carry-on and my suitcase, since it would be a pain to wear glasses all week when I’m trying to use my DSLR

Checked Luggage:

I was only going for a week but I’ve been having some neck and back troubles recently, so I wanted to take my own neck-friendly pillow for the week. Without the pillow, I could have squeezed everything else into a smaller carry-on sized suitcase.

I also noticed on this trip that the pull-out handle for my suitcase is getting really jammy and the zips on both external zip pockets have broken. I’ll definitely need to buy a new suitcase before my next big trip! I’ve been looking on Luggage Direct for a new large suitcase – in the past, I’ve had soft, extra lightweight two-wheel suitcases, but I think my next one will be a four-wheeler so it’s lighter to push through airports. I really like this one.

• Underwear x 8
• Black jeans x 2
• 4-5 tops, incl. two t-shirts and one turtleneck – Autumn weather is hard to predict! It was like summer at the start of the week and much cooler by the end of the week, so I’m glad I packed for both seasons.
• 1 x casual day dress
• 1 x night time dress
• Heeled ankle boots
• Black stockings
• 8 x pairs of socks
• Pyjamas
• Toothbrush & toothpaste
• Shampoo & conditioner
• Walking Shoes – confession: I packed my white converse, black converse and a new pair of gold sneakers for this trip. I only wore the gold ones because I was too scared to break in my new black converse when we were walking 10-15km/day.
• Coat
• Make up & make up remover wipes
• Cleanser
• Tube of deep heat
• Camera charger & spare SD cards
• Japan-Australia adapter

Stay tuned for posts on where to find amazing food in Tokyo, our cute and ridiculously cheap accommodation, my favourite neighbourhoods in Tokyo, my budget for the week and photos from Mt Fuji and Hakone.

• Tokyo Photo Diary: Yanaka, Northern Tokyo

What have I missed in my packing lists? Have you been to Tokyo?

This post was brought to you by Luggage Direct, but as always all opinions are my own.

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