Luggage Too Heavy? Here’s What To Do
Packing for a trip can be an overwhelming task; you try to remember everything you need to carry while ensuring that your luggage is not too heavy. Sometimes, after packing for a trip, you may discover that the luggage is too heavy, which could cause stress.
If the luggage is too heavy, it is best to cross-check it to see how to reorganize it to reduce the weight. Look out for heavy items and replace them with lighter items that can serve the same purpose. Look out for excess items and anything you can live without and remove it from the luggage.
In the rest of this article, I will discuss what to do if the luggage is too heavy. I will also discuss how you can tell that your luggage is too heavy. Here we go.
What To Do if Luggage Is Too Heavy
As mentioned above, when going on a trip, you can discover that your luggage is too heavy after packing. Below is what to do if the luggage is too heavy:
Replace Some Suitcases With Lightweight Bags
Although your suitcase may be stylish, if it weighs over 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms), you might find it contributes too much to the overall weight. Suppose your luggage is too heavy and the culprits are the suitcases. In that case, you should get hold of any lightweight bags you may have in the house and rearrange your stuff in them.
The lightweight bags should reduce the weight of your luggage by a few pounds.
Leave the Toiletries Behind and Buy Them Later
If your luggage is too heavy, you could leave the toiletries behind; they can weigh many pounds, especially when traveling with your family. You can buy the toiletries later when you arrive at your destination. It is better to incur that extra cost than lugging around heavy luggage.
After all, you will use the toiletries when you return home. In addition, looking for products in a foreign place can make your trip exciting.
Remove Some Excess Clothes and Carry a Small Laundry Kit Instead
The clothes you take while going on a trip contribute a large percentage to the weight of your luggage. If your baggage is too heavy, remove some excess clothes to lighten your luggage. You will have fewer clothes during your trip, but you can always make up for that by washing some of your clothes during your trip.
You can replace the excess clothes with a small laundry kit. The laundry kit will help you launder some of your clothes during the trip; you can hand wash clothes during your trip to extend your wardrobe.
Choose the Right Shoes and Leave the Rest Behind
One of the things that can make your luggage too heavy is shoes; they tend to be weighty and bulky. If your baggage is too heavy, you should recheck the shoes in your luggage and choose the right ones. For instance, the right shoes for women for any trip are versatile flats, stylish walking shoes, and a pair of sandals.
If you plan to wear heels during your trip, carry one pair that can go with any of your outfits. Leave the rest of the shoes behind, and your luggage will be much lighter.
Replace the Heavy Crockery With Plastic Crockery
On a camping trip, you pack some heavy crockery, such as cups and plates. Such items can make your luggage too heavy, especially when traveling with your family. If you replace heavy items with plastic crockery, you can make your luggage lighter.
Those plastic cups and plates in your house weigh much less than the ceramic mugs and plates you might have packed, and they serve the same purpose.
Replace Heavy Electronics With Lighter Ones
Electronics are some of the items that can make your luggage too heavy. For instance, if you are carrying a laptop, it could be one of the electronics making your luggage too heavy. A laptop can weigh between 2 and 8 pounds (0.9 and 3.6 kilograms) depending on the manufacturer.
If you have a tablet, you can carry it instead of a laptop. That way, you will reduce the weight of your luggage and still have access to the internet.
Leave Behind Some Electronics You Can Do Without
There are some electronics you can do without, more so if they contribute to the excess weight of your luggage. For instance, if you have packed a hair straightener, curler, and hairdryer, these items could add several pounds to your luggage. You can, therefore, choose the more versatile one and leave the rest behind.
Stuff Small Yet Heavy Items in Your Pockets
Some small yet heavy items in your luggage can make it too heavy. For instance, if you are traveling by airplane and your luggage is too heavy, you can offload some weight by stuffing some small but heavy items in your pockets. Such items include smartphones, iPads, cameras, etc.
How To Know When Your Luggage Is Too Heavy
Your luggage can be too heavy whether traveling by car or airplane. Here is how to know when your luggage is too heavy:
If the Luggage Exceeds the Acceptable Airplane Baggage
If you are traveling by air, you can know if your luggage is too heavy by weighing it with luggage scales. Every airline has a luggage restrictions threshold; if your luggage exceeds the allowed threshold, it is too heavy. You will have to pay the airline a fee for excess baggage when this happens.
The excess baggage fee could range from a few dollars to tens of dollars, depending on the weight of your extra luggage. It is best to weigh your baggage before leaving for the airport to ensure that your luggage is within the baggage allowance threshold.
If Your Car’s Back End Is Closer to the Ground Than Usual
After loading your luggage, you can know if it is too heavy for your vehicle if you notice that the car’s back end is closer to the ground than usual. Each vehicle has an allowed threshold weight; the threshold weight combines the weight of the luggage and passengers. When your vehicle is overloaded, it sits ridiculously low.
An overloaded car can affect the tires, steering, and brakes, and poses a potential danger to you and others.
Conclusion
Before you set out on a trip by car or airplane, it is good to check whether your luggage is too heavy. If you discover that your luggage is too heavy, you should apply the weight-saving tips explained earlier. Luggage that is too heavy can be tiring to lug around, and it can also cost you extra baggage fees.
As a result, your trip could cost more than you had budgeted. In addition, too heavy luggage could damage your car and pose a danger to you and other road users.
