Southeast Asia Packing Guide
If you follow me on anything at the moment, it’s quite hard to miss that I’ve been backpacking around Southeast Asia for the last few months! I’ve about 7 weeks left on my trip so I think now is a good time to tell you what I wish I brought and what I really didn’t need.
I bought a 60 liter backpack on Amazon (linked here). I love this backpack. It’s super cost efficient but it holds up well and I haven’t had any issues with it. It’s nice that it’s a bright color and it’s easy to see when all your bags are being thrown off of a night bus or ferry by locals who really don’t care to be cautious. Before my trip, I watched a million TikToks and read a thousand articles about what to bring. Backpack or rolling suitcase? 75L or 55L? Packing cubes or a free for all? There are a lot of options out there.
First let’s start off with this: I was watching and reading about other people’s trips instead of taking a hard look at my own itinerary. What works for them might not work for me. I read so many articles saying that a rolling suitcase is okay for a trip around Thailand. It might be okay for a trip around Thailand, but a rolling suitcase would’ve been a nightmare when I went to Gili Trawangan in Lombok, Indonesia. I had to walk 50 minutes to my hostel on dirt roads that had a billion large potholes. My wheels would’ve surely broken off my suitcase and I would’ve been left in a very tough situation.
If you’re heading to Asia on the beaten path, (Bali, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur) I’d guess a wheeling suitcase might be okay. But for anything off the beaten path, (Gili Islands, Thai Islands) or anything that might be less developed than the major cities, I would really recommend a backpack. It’s also really common to have backpackers in this part of the world. I rarely see a 20-something with a rolling suitcase. It’s just a lot easier to manage everything on your back and not worry about the roads where you’re going. Backpacks are also far more flexible when being thrown off the roof of a ferry, whereas hard suitcases with wheels are bound to get broken. I would also recommend packing cubes for a backpack because one of the major reasons people don’t want a backpack is because you do have to unpack and repack everytime you need something but packing cubes cut down on the hassle!
Now onto the contents of the backpack. This is also where you have to take a look at your own plans. When I was looking at backpacking in Mexico, “they” told me to only bring one or two bikinis. Except I was going there to work as a beach girl in a hostel- multiple bikinis would’ve been used! I should’ve looked at my own plans before taking the advice of an article with a different itinerary. Southeast Asian countries are hot. Very hot.
I brought:
3 tank tops
1 pair of jeans
2 pairs of running shorts
1 pair of leggings
2 dresses (one with sleeves)
1 t shirt
2 going out tops
3 bikinis
0 skirts
0 makeup (because it would melt right off my face)
A toiletry bag linked here
A heatless hair roller
A 60L backpack linked here
A power adapter linked here
Packing cubes linked here
A pill box linked here
Chargers & charging organizer linked here
1 book, 2 journals
… & that’s it.
I am gone for months on end. Here’s what I would’ve done differently! You basically live in tank tops here because it is so incredibly hot, so I definitely would’ve brought at least 5 or 6. No jeans. I don’t know what I was thinking. I wore them to a nightclub one time, they take up so much space! I’m happy with the 2 pairs of running shorts, but I do wish I brought just 1 pair of jean shorts too. 1 pair of leggings is good- it’s too hot to wear leggings, but after a sunburn it’s nice to have something to cover your legs up. It’s also good to wear leggings on a plane. I wish I had brought more than 2 dresses. Dresses and skirts are so handy and I wish I brought 4 or 5 dresses total. Honestly, 1 t shirt is enough, I never wear it, I only wear tank tops. I really hate the two going out tops that I brought- always try on your clothes before you back them. Thankfully these take up not much room in the bag, but this does lead me onto my next point. There is so much partying in Southeast Asian hostels. So much. Even if you’re like me and you ‘don’t go out that much’ the few times that you do, you’re going to wish you had going out clothes! You’re also going to wish you had makeup. I’m not saying to bring everything, but I ended up having to buy the basics: mascara, eyebrow gel, bb cream, and concealer. I borrowed powder, contour, and highlight from the other girls I was getting ready with. You won’t wear makeup that often, but when you want it, you want it!
I have not used my heat less curler one time. It’s too hot for anything but braids and ponytails. In my toilet bag, I brought tampons (these are a f*cking currency in Thailand, bring double what you think you’ll need or better yet a dixie cup!) I brought 6 months worth of contacts, because I knew if I ran out of dropped a pair or something happened, I would not be able to get my contacts mailed to me easily. Girls got to see! I brought some cleanser and face oil, deodorant and body soap. I brought my own toothpaste, shampoo and conditioner. That’s about it. I wish I had brought moisturizer, toner, and so many more things because at the end of the day I am gone for 4 months and that’s a long time to let your skincare routine fly out the window along with my comfort.
So, do I wish I bought a 75 liter backpack? Yes! My 60 L isn’t hard to carry at all, it was a quarter empty when I left New York. Now that I’ve come traveling and bought things and my bag is bursting at the seams… it’s still not hard or heavy to carry. I’m not particularly strong either, the chest and waist straps take the load off of your back immensely. I would really recommend a 75 liter if you’re traveling for any length of time longer than 2 months. It’s worth it. I saw so many videos telling me to pack light and take less because I was going to want to buy things when I got to Asia. I did buy things, I bought 2 pairs of cotton pants, a pair of cotton shorts, and 3 crochet tops. I bought them out of necessity though. Hostels here aren’t like the ones I’m used to staying in. I have only stayed in one hostel in Southeast Asia so far that offers laundry service, so every other time I’ve had to go to a laundromat which can take a few days to get your clothes back to you!
To sum it up, here's a list of what I would bring if I were to do this trip again!
6 tank tops
0 pairs of jeans (sad because I’m such a jeans girl)
2 pairs of running shorts
1 pair of denim shorts
1 pair of leggings
4 dresses (still one with sleeves for when your shoulders inevitably get sunburned)
1 t shirt
4 going out *outfits*
4 bikinis
2 skirts
Some basic makeup (because it would melt right off my face)
Triple the amount of tampons that I think I’ll need
A toiletry bag linked here
A heatless hair roller
A power adapter linked here
Packing cubes linked here
A pill box linked here
Chargers & charging organizer linked here
1 book, 2 journals
… & that’s it.
You are still going to want to buy clothes, gifts, and things so definitely leave some room! But don’t underpack like I did and find yourself lacking things you aren’t able to buy in a foreign country!
