Archive for Travel
How to Pack for Your Next Trip Without Checking Any Luggage
As I write this, I’m sitting in a hotel near the airport in Atlanta. I wasn’t supposed to be here today but the winter storm that’s raging through the Northeast caused many flight cancellations including mine.
I arrived in Atlanta only to find that my connecting flight had been cancelled and that I would have to find a hotel room for the night.
I’m kicking myself right now because I checked my luggage!
I haven’t checked a bag since I flew from Jamaica to Tokyo for a TV appearance. My luggage was put on the wrong plane and I almost had to go on the air with a borrowed suit that was about two sizes too big for me.
It ended up getting delivered to the studio about 5 minutes before we started shooting in front of a live audience, but I vowed never again to check my bags if I could help it.
This morning I forgot that lesson and now I’m left without a change of clothes or decent toiletries or any of the work I was intending to do.
Don’t let this happen to you!
The only way you can make sure this never happens is to carry on your luggage.
I could have carried my luggage on the plane this morning, it was small enough to fit in the overhead compartment, but I didn’t. Maybe that was so I’d be inspired to write this carry-on packing list for you 
How to Pack for Your Next Trip Without Checking Any Luggage
1. Get luggage with a total dimension of 45″
Most airlines currently allow you to carry on 1 piece of luggage with a total length, width, and height of 45″. So the first thing to do is make sure you have a suitcase that maxes out this limitation without exceeding it.
2. Get a catalogue case
Most airlines also allow you to carry on 1 personal item like a purse or a laptop bag. I carry a catalogue case. Airline pilots typically carry these for their flight manuals. They are big enough to store your laptop in the outer accordian compartment and then fill the inner compartment with clothes or shoes or toiletries or whatever didn’t fit in your suitcase. Ladies can also stuff their purses into the center compartment of the catalogue case along with everything else.
This is what my case looks like.
3. Don’t overpack
Almost everyone packs far more clothes than they need.
No matter where you are going, you can probably get by with:
• a single pair of jeans
• a single sweater
• a white dress shirt
• a dark pair of slacks
• a pair of sweatpants or shorts
• a few t-shirts (you’ll buy more when you get there anyway)
• a dark jacket and tie for men or a little black dress for women
4. Only pack two pairs of shoes
Men – a pair of sneakers and a pair of dress shoes.
Women – a pair of sneakers and a black pump with a low heel.
Trust me. It’s enough.
4. Buy toiletries at your destination
They’re cheap. They’re easy to find. And not packing them will free up a lot of extra space in your luggage.
5. Only bring one book.
That’s all you’ll read anyway so why weight yourself down with a lot of extra paper. Enjoy the change of scenery and save the book for the plane.
6. Photocopy your important documents
Bring a copy of your Driver’s License, Passport, and phone numbers for your Credit Card companies and leave it in the safe at your hotel. It can come in handy if your purse or wallet disappears.
7. Bring a laptop, an iPod, and noise canceling headphones
OK, so not everyone will need all of these, but they’ve become a must for me. I never travel without any of them.
In one sense, they’re toys that help pass the time. A way to watch movies and listen to music while on long flights.
They also increase productivity. You can go through all of your email and respond to them while on the plane without interruption. You can listen to a seminar on your iPod a the double speed setting and take notes on your laptop. You can catch up on your work without your cellphone ringing or the Internet beckoning.
The noise canceling headphones block out most of the ambient noise and the drone of the engine too so you can really focus without becoming fatigued. (I have the ones by Bose and they’re amazing!)
If you have any of your own tips to add to this list, please do so in the comment form at the bottom.
Until next time, may your next trip be safe and fun and may you arrive with your luggage in hand.
Joshua Seth
NOTE: Comments were closed for a while. Here is what was posted…
Dawn
Hi Josh,
I too believe there are only two types of travelers – those who pack light, and those who wish they had!
One question though. Will the airlines actually let you bring both your carry-on bag and your catalog case? I thought they would consider your catalog case your carry-on? That would be great to be able to carry on both bags. No more baggage claim!
Joshua Seth
Hi Dawn
yep, I just flew to Dallas this morning on a tiny little plane and had no problem bringing both a small suitcase and a catalogue case. The suitcase had to be gate checked, but that never bothers me since it’s right there waiting for you as you deplane. Sometimes I get asked about the catalogue case but I just explain that it’s my “laptop” case and then it becomes a non-issue.
Barbara
Great Blog!
Just as I was wondering what that case looked like you added< “this is what my case looks like”. Now I am very eager to read how to relax on a plane even if you don’t like to fly (I don’t)! Very interesting and very helpfulIt takes alot of discipline to pack what you need versus what you think you’ll want, especially the one book concept. I always bring more thatn I need or use. Thanks for the tips!
Albert | UrbanMonk.Net
A very nice selection of tips. I tend to travel very light, but now I’m starting to see how some of these things you mentioned will be awesome. Especially photocopies. Cheers, Albert
Hi Josh, I know how much you travel for your fun job! We saw you on the Majesty in dec of 06 and flew to boston in the seats behind you in the plane. I always wondered how you traveled lite all the time,now I know!
We love the cd’s from the cruise and relax with them alot! By the way, we do walk alot like you do in the airport though we get some funny looks at times. Best regards and holiday season, George Thing
Popularity: 15% [?]
Getting Lost in Istanbul
Cruise Ship Speaker Joshua Seth - Getting Lost in Istanbul
As soon as I looked out of my cabin window this morning I knew that this port would finally provide the taste of old Europe that I’d yet to find on this voyage. Mosques and minarets dotted the landscape and bright red flags with the Muslin moon and star snapped briskly in the sea breeze. It was about 90 degrees already and it was only 8am.
The first stop of the day was at the Hippodrome, the site of chariot races in old Constantanople that attracted crowds of 100,000 people. The Egyptian obelisk that still stands at it’s center is over 3,500 years old and I suddenly realized that I’d never before seen anything older than a few hundreds years that wasn’t locked up behind glass in a museum. This massive sculpture was standing right out in the open, just steps away from the equally impressive Blue Mosque.
Men are forbidden to enter mosques with their knees exposed in Turkey and this is why I was now sweltering uncomfortably in my jeans as the temperature topped 100 degrees. It was worth it though, as again I’d never seen anything like it, not just in terms of size and age but in detailed adornment too. I took a great many pictures of the same domes and columns, trying to stitch together some semblance of the scope of the place.
Afterwards I went to a rug making demonstration which was actually quite a bit more interesting than I’d anticipated, and not just because the place was air conditioned! Mustachioed men kept throwing rugs out onto the floor, one after another, bam bam bam, for about 45 minutes, saying as each one unrolled “This rug took 4 years to make. It’s silk on silk. All hand woven”. Bam! “This one took 5 years to make. It has over 600 stitches per square inch and is over 100 years old.” Bam! And they’d throw another one on top of that until there were dozens of carpets piled all over each other, covering the floor completely.
Finally I entered the Grand Bazaar, home to over 7,000 shops and easily twice that many merchants trying to aggressively coerce passersby into sampling their wares. I used various accents and attitudes with the vendors and had a great time pretending to be from different parts of the world. I even posed as a Turk several times and tried to outsell the shop’s vendor, enticing the tourists it with Borat like enthusiasm. It was great fun. Eventually I just dropped my Turkish accent and did a flat out Borat impersonation. I’m sure the Turks don’t know who Borat is but they loved it just the same and invited me back behind the counter for green apple tea and Turkish delights.
I got lost in the bazaar for hours and picked up a few oddities, like a bookmark made of woven Turkish carpet and a bunch of “evil eyes”. When it was time to go back to the ship, it took me nearly half an hour to figure a way out of the bazaar and back to the street where I’d started! I’d gotten entirely turned around in the never-ending maze of merchants and only managed to find my way back again because I’d noticed the particular design on the ceiling where I’d entered.
It was an exciting adventure! I highly recommend getting lost every once in a while. It’s a great way to find yourself
Popularity: 2% [?]
Cruise To Italy
I just got back from performing on a series of cruises to Italy so here’s everything you need to know about the Italian ports of call (just in case you ever take a cruise there):
* Venice – It’s beautiful, it’s small, it’s sinking, and contrary to popular belief it’s not stinking. Water smells nice actually, still I wouldn’t drink it.
* Naples – birthplace of pizza, the mafia, and Sophia Loren. That’s everything you need to know, now get out of town and go see Pompeii or Capri. Did I mention they have great pizza though!
* Pisa – Skip it. Just photoshop yourself into a picture where you look like you’re holding up the leaning tower. No need to actually go there.
* Florence – It’s a big indoor / outdoor sculpture museum. You can walk around all day taking pictures of famous statues. I walked around all day taking pictures of tourists standing in line waiting to see the statues inside of the buildings instead of just looking at the statues on display in every intersection and square. They also have the best gelato in all of Italy!
* Rome - One of the most amazing cities in the history of the world. Deserves more than a day. Put it on your “must see before I die” list.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Can’t Sleep in Hotels? Try This Travel Tip…
Here’s a quick tip to help you get a better night’s sleep on your next business trip or vacation.
It seems that no matter how nice the hotel is, when you pull the certain closed there’s always a gap between them. I’m on tour and in a hotel rooms more often than I’m at home so I’ve encountered this annoyance hundreds of times. Light finds a way of streaming in through that little gap in the curtain, creating a slice of light through the room that always seems to lead directly to my eyes… as though the room had been designed specifically that way!
After being woken up like this a few too many times, I devised a way to block out this early morning intruder once and for all. It’s called a “Big Chip Clip”. These are the little plastic clips that you can use to hold a half eaten bag of chips closed and wouldn’t you know it, they work just as well on curtains too.
So on your next trip, toss one of those clips into your bag. Before you go to sleep that night use it to clip shut the curtains in your hotel room. You’ll get a much better night’s sleep and not get woken up at the crack of dawn… unless you’ve got noisy neighbors. The clip only works well on them if you can get it to stay put on their mouths and I imagine it’d slip off pretty quickly… just prior to them chasing you down the hall in your PJs!
If you forget the clip you can always use one of the hangers in the room, the kind that has two clips in the bottom for a pair of pants or a skirt. Just turn the hanger sideways and use the two clips to clamp the curtain shut in the middle. It’s better to bring the clip though because in some hotel rooms they’ve made it so you can’t remove the hangers from the rods.
Sweet dreams! And make sure you set a wake up call so the total darkness doesn’t
seduce you into sleeping past the check out time
NOTE: Comments are now closed. Here is what was posted…
Wally MacKinnon
I have faced the same problem many times and have never thought about using one of those coat hangers with the clips on it for pants. Thanks for the tip, I’ll be sure to try it on my next trip.
All the best;
Wally
David Farr
I use an eye mask. That way, no matter how much light gets in, it’s still dark to me!
From Can’t Sleep in Hotels? Try This Travel Tip…,
Joshua Seth
Hi David,
I use an eye mask when flying and it works great. I think that most people would find them uncomfortable to wear all night long though. You may be the exception, which wouldn’t surprise me as you’ve always been exceptional!
Mia Marrocco
Josh,
Its funny because when ever I go away I have a great night sleep, it is when I am home I dont sleep that well.
Joshua Seth
Hi Mia,
you may want to check out my Sleep Ezzzzz CD
I originally made that CD to put myself to sleep after doing my live hypnosis shows. I’d get back to the hotel room at about 1 am, all pumped up from the performance, and have to fly out again a few hours later. This CD always works like a charm
Denise
I wonder what the difference between the Insomnia cd and the sleep ezzzzz cd??? The same??As I have the insomnia cd….just a change of name?
Grace
Am I seriously the only one who really, REALLY likes the idea of the chip clip on the lips? I’ll have to remember to bring those along for my children….>_>….haha, j/k.
Rob Rasner
That is a GREAT idea, i had heard of that, and keep meaning to do it, and always forget and i am sorry everytime. maybe i will remember next time!
Popularity: 13% [?]
10 Weeks in the Caribbean
I’ve just returned from a 10 week tour in the Caribbean and I’ve got to tell you, it was amazing!
A lot of people talk about living the life of their dreams but very few actually go out and do it. I’ve been fortunate enough to be able not only to live my dream life but to surpass those dreams in every respect.
I thank my friends, my family, my agents and bookers, and every single audience member for helping to make this dream a reality. No one does it alone and in this blog I intend to give back to all of you by sharing tips, insights, and experiences that I pick up along the way.
All my best,
Joshua Seth
NOTE: this was the first blog post / article on this website on July 14, 2007.
NOTE: Commetns are now closed. Here is what was posted…
Jenny Wong-Rinyai
I was at one of your shows & the weight loss seminar on the Caribbean Princess the week of Nov 25th. Awesome!!!! My husband and I bought your “Beat Stress now” and “Banish insomnia” CDs while onboard. I just wanted to say, even though we did not get a chance to listen to them 21 days straight…I listen to when I can/have time and they are amazing. I have slept so well and not let stress take hold of my life.
I just have to work on the weight issue…though I am not overly overweight I wanted to change my eating habits. Your seminar proved successful. I just have to keep at it and not feel guilty if I stray sometimes here and there.
Thanks a million!!!!!
Jenny
Popularity: 2% [?]
