Road trips and family vacations are always alluring and fun, especially during summer. However, the issue of carrying everything you need for the trip is not an easy one to solve.
There are so many things and luggage to bring along when traveling as a family.
Almost everyone wants to bring their favorite clothes, toys, or ornaments, which may make the luggage too much to handle. Packing all the necessary items and things you need for a road trip is an art. Fitting everything in a confined and limited space takes creativity, patience, and ingenuity.
Fit More Luggage in a Car: Complete Guide
To fit all the luggage in the car, you need to learn a few tricks that will help you a lot. The good thing is that you don't need to be a professional loader to hack these tricks.
1. Arrange your bags first
Packing your stuff effectively in the car starts arranging your bags in order. The fewer the bags, the less the luggage you will pack in your car.
Understand that you have to work on the bags and make sure they are well and neat-packed to fit more luggage in the car.
You could consider compression bags to store your clothes in the suitcases.
If there is no time to compress the clothes, consider rolling them. Rolling the clothes allows you to have more clothes in the bag than folding.
Pack your shoes on the edges of suitcases. Smaller clothing items such as socks could go inside the shoes.
2. Soft bags are great.
Packing your stuff in soft bags is better than packing in hard bags. These soft bags will allow you to fit several bags in the trunk due to their material.
A small trunk space could fit several soft bags compared to the hard ones. If you are going on a road trip and need to sleep at a hotel, consider sharing a single suitcase as a family overnighter.
This big duffel bag will carry everyone's pajamas, toiletries, and meds.
You could prepare more room for extra bags that carry more essential things.
If everyone decides to pack their toiletries and pajamas in individual bags, that will leave out other essential things you may need to carry for the trip.
3. Last in, first out
As the kids fight over the window seats and your partner reminds you not to forget to buy the kids some snacks, you may find yourself just throwing the bags in the boot haphazardly.
Although you may think that throwing in the bag of snacks may save your time, it takes your time.
The kids will ask for snacks midway, and you will have to pull over and unpack some stuff in the trunk as you look for the snacks.
Consider having the bag of snacks around the seats where people sit rather than in the trunk.
It will take up space that would have otherwise been used to carry other essential items like camping gear. You will also have to unpack stuff to get to the snacks, which is time-consuming.
4. Empty the car first
To pack more and more stuff in the car, you need to create room. Anything you do not need in the car goes out to be left at home.
If you have a soccer practice bag or cooler that you will not need during the trip, take it out.
Your trunk has an ice scraper for winter that was useful during the last trip; take it out to create room for more bags and luggage.
5. Pack like a Tetris expert
From the novice to the expert, luggage Tetris will always work wonders to maximize space and put your luggage in order.
First, you need to place the heavy luggage on a large surface on the floor. These should be secured behind the rear seat to avoid falling, as the backrest will support them.
You could get an anti-slip mat where you will place this heavy luggage. Light luggage should come on top of the heavy baggage.
You could then cover your luggage using a blanket and secure it with a strap. Strap the luggage crosswise to ensure even the loose objects that can go flying in the car.
Consider a luggage compartment divider net if the luggage height is higher than the rear seat.
6. Next level - work with the interior.
If your trunk is complete, but you still have some bags to bring along for the trip, you can still carry some luggage in the car's interior.
Heavy luggage can go in between the rear and front seats. However, you do not need to have light, and small objects could go behind the front seat as you drive. You could also consider vacuum bags as they easily fit under the seats.
7. Same size bags
If you are a big family, you will require everyone to have just one bag for the trip. The bags should also be of the same size.
That means you will have uniformity in the trunk, which will allow you to carry as many bags as possible. However, if everyone is entitled to bring any bag they want, the big bags will take up more space for other bags.
One bag for each person means they will only carry what they need most for the trip.
8. Rooftop Cargo Carriers
It is another place where you can store more luggage in the car. An ideal rooftop cargo carrier has sound front reinforcement and tensioning straps to keep your luggage safe.
You need to be careful as you pack your luggage on the roof box. Ensure you evenly spread the luggage volume with the heaviest objects in the middle.
Pad the luggage using blankets to absorb the energy from the movement of the bags. Secure the loads in the box so it cannot open midway, and haul away your stuff.
Try to fit as many bags and luggage in the car as possible. Rooftop cargo carriers can be used to store luggage and camping gear, among other things. A rooftop cargo bag is an attractive option if you need to keep many small items since it can be readily packed and unloaded.
A rooftop cargo basket is a fantastic choice for bulky or irregularly shaped items.
Related: How to Pack a Small Car for a Road Trip
Final Thoughts
Fitting all the luggage you need for a trip in the car is like arFirst, youYou have to be patient and articulate to ensure you do not leave some essentials behind. This guide covers some of the hacks you can try to fit as many bags and luggage in the car as possible.