Travel Packing Tips For Indian Family Trips

Packing for a trip is hard. Packing for a family trip in India is harder. You have kids. You have elders. You have different weather. You have trains, flights, and long car rides. One small mistake and you are stuck without basic things. This guide helps you pack the right way.

Why Indian Family Trips Need Special Packing?

India is not one type of place. You go to a hill station like Manali. It is cold. You go to Kerala. It is humid and rainy. You go to Rajasthan. It is hot and dry. A family trip means you have people of all ages. A grandparent needs different things than a five year old child. You cannot pack the same way you pack for yourself. You have to think for everyone and know more about the travel packing tips for indian family trips.

Also Indian travel has its own challenges. Train bathrooms are not always clean. Roadside food is tasty but can upset your stomach. Airports are crowded. You might walk a lot. You might sit for many hours. Your bag must help you handle all this. Not make it worse.

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Start With One Big Bag Per Two People

Many Indian families pack one big bag for everyone. That is a mistake. If that bag gets lost or stolen, everything is gone. Better to use two medium bags. Put clothes for two people in each bag. This way if one bag has a problem, the other bag still has clothes for everyone.

Use soft bags. Hard suitcases are heavy and hard to fit in train upper berths. Soft bags on wheels work best. Also keep one small backpack for each adult. This small bag stays with you in the train or flight. It has your money, phone, medicine, and one extra shirt.

Clothes That Work For India

Do not pack too many clothes. Most Indian family trips are 5 to 7 days. You do not need a new shirt for each day. Here is what works.

For men and older boys. Take three cotton t shirts. Take two full sleeve shirts for evening. Take two pairs of loose cotton pants. Jeans are heavy and dry slowly. Cotton pants are better. Take one warm jacket even if going to a hot place. Trains and buses have strong AC. You will feel cold.

For women and older girls. Take three kurtis or loose tops. They are comfortable and good for Indian weather. Take two pairs of leggings or cotton pants. Take one dupatta or scarf. It covers your head in temples and covers your face from dust. Take one light shawl. It works as a blanket in train.

For children. They will get dirty. Take one extra set of clothes for each day. A child needs minimum two clothes per day. Take five to six cotton shorts or pants. Take five to six t shirts. Take two light sweaters. Children feel cold faster than adults.

Underwear and socks. Take one extra pair for each day. So for 5 days take 6 pairs. This saves you when you cannot wash clothes.

Footwear Is Very Important

Do not take new shoes on a trip. New shoes hurt your feet. Take shoes you already wore for many days.

Take one pair of good walking shoes. Sports shoes with good grip are best. You will walk a lot in temples, markets, and museums. Bad shoes ruin your whole day.

Take one pair of bathroom slippers. Indian hotel rooms give slippers but they are often very thin and slippery. Take your own. Also use these slippers in train bathrooms. Train bathroom floors are wet and dirty. Never enter with bare feet.

For children take two pairs of shoes. Kids lose one shoe very easily. A spare pair saves your trip.

Medicines And First Aid

• This is the most important part of packing for Indian family trips. Do not skip this.
• Take a small bag just for medicines. Write on it with a pen so everyone knows.
• Basic medicines to take.
• Paracetamol for fever and body pain.
• Medicine for loose motion. Ask your doctor for one good brand.
• Medicine for vomiting.
• Medicine for stomach pain and gas.
• Antiseptic cream for small cuts.
• Band aids of different sizes. Take at least 10.
• Cotton and gauze.
• One small scissors. Keep in checked bag not in hand bag.
• Ors packets. Take at least 6. For when someone has loose motion and feels weak.

Also take medicines that your family takes daily. Blood pressure medicines. Sugar medicines. Thyroid medicines. Keep a 3 day extra supply in case your trip gets longer.

For children take fever syrup and cold syrup. Also take a small nasal spray for blocked nose. Children cannot sleep with blocked nose.

Food And Snacks For The Trip

• You cannot always find good food on Indian roads and trains. So pack smart snacks.
• Take biscuits. Plain glucose biscuits are best. They give quick energy and do not go bad.
• Take roasted chana. Very healthy and does not make you feel heavy.
• Take ready to eat poha or upma mix. Just add hot water. Many train stations have hot water.
• Take instant soup packets. Good for cold evenings.
• Take small packs of namkeen. But only a few. Too much salt makes you thirsty.
• Take fruits that do not get spoiled fast. Apple. Orange. Banana. Cut fruits get bad in few hours.
• Take a steel water bottle for each person. Fill it at home. Refill at hotels and stations. Never drink train tap water. Never drink road side water. Buy sealed water bottles if your own water finishes.
• Do not take too much heavy food. Fried food makes you feel sick in a moving train or car.

Toiletries And Hygiene

• Indian public toilets are not always clean. So you must carry your own things.
• Take a small hand wash bottle. Keep it in your small bag. Wash hands before eating anything.
• Take wet wipes. One big pack. Use them to clean hands and also to clean toilet seats.
• Take toilet paper roll. Many Indian public toilets have no paper.
• Take a small bottle of phenyl or floor cleaner. Put few drops on toilet seat before using. Wipe with tissue. This keeps skin problems away.
• Take your own soap and shampoo. Hotel soap is very small. For a family you need more.
• Take a small comb. Take hair oil in a small bottle. Take a small mirror.
• For women take extra sanitary pads. Even if your date is not near. Travel stress can change your cycle.
• For children take diaper rash cream. Also take extra diapers even if child is trained. Travel makes children wet the bed sometimes.

Electronics And Gadgets

• Do not take too many gadgets. They are heavy and easy to lose.
• Take one power bank. Fully charged. Train journeys have no charging point near every seat.
• Take one multi plug. Many hotel rooms have only one working plug point. Multi plug lets you charge three things together.
• Take charging cables for every phone. Keep one extra cable in the bag. Cables break very easily.
• Take a small torch. Sometimes trains and hotels have power cut. Your phone torch runs out of battery fast.
• Do not take laptop unless you need for work. Take a tablet for children if you want. But keep time limits.

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Special Items For Elders

• If you have grandparents in the trip pack these things.
• Walking stick if needed. A foldable stick is best.
• Extra pair of spectacles. Very important. If glasses break it is hard to get new ones on trip.
• All medical reports in a small file. Just one page summary from doctor. In case of emergency.
• A small pillow. Train and bus seats are hard for old backs.
• Thermos flask with hot water. Many elders need to know travel packing tips for indian family trips.

Special Items For Children

• Children get bored and tired fast. So pack things to keep them busy.
• One small coloring book and few crayons.
• One small toy car or doll. Not too many toys.
• A small blanket that child likes. This helps child sleep in new place.
• Childs own spoon and plate. Hotel plates are heavy and breakable.
• Small plastic bag for dirty clothes and for motion sickness. Keep many plastic bags.

How To Pack The Bag?

• Put heavy things at bottom near wheels. Light things on top.
• Roll your clothes. Do not fold. Rolling saves space and less wrinkles.
• Put socks and underwear inside shoes. This saves space.
• Put liquids in a plastic bag inside bag. If bottle leaks the bag saves your clothes.
• Keep one set of clothes on top for first day. So you do not open full bag on first night.
• Keep medicine bag on top. Easy to reach.
• Keep a small extra bag inside. For dirty clothes and wet clothes.

Packing For Train Journey

• Train trips in India need special packing. Keep these things in your small bag that stays with you.
• Bed sheet. Train blankets are not always clean. Take one old cotton bedsheet. Use it to cover the berth.
• Small lock and chain. Lock your big bag under the seat. Many people have lost bags from trains.
• Sleeping mask and ear plugs. Coach lights stay on all night. People make noise.
• Paper soap strips. Easy to carry. Use in train bathroom.
• Small hand towel. Train bathrooms have no towel.
• Food for first meal. On train you cannot get food for first few hours.

Packing For Flight

• Flight rules are strict. Keep these things in mind.
• Put all liquids in checked bag. Bottles more than 100 ml not allowed in hand bag.
• Put power bank in hand bag. Not allowed in checked bag.
• Put all medicines in hand bag with prescription. If checked bag is lost you still have medicines.
• Put one change of clothes in hand bag. If your checked bag reaches late you still can change.
• Keep all chargers in hand bag. Do not check them.

What Not To Pack?

• Do not pack too many shoes. Two pairs per person is enough.
• Do not pack heavy books. Take one book for whole family.
• Do not pack jewelry. You will worry about losing it.
• Do not pack full size shampoo bottles. Take small ones.
• Do not pack hair dryer. Most hotels have it. And it takes too much space.
• Do not pack many towels. One per person is enough. Hotel gives towels.

Final Check Before Leaving Home

Two days before trip lay everything on bed. See if it fits in bags. Remove half the things you thought you needed. You always pack too much. One day before trip charge all phones and power bank.

Keep all tickets and id cards in one small pouch. Aadhar card. Driving license. Train ticket print out. Hotel booking paper. Keep two copies. One in bag and one photo on phone. Keep some extra cash. Cards do not work everywhere in India. Especially small shops and taxis. Keep a small notebook and pen. Write down emergency numbers. Your doctor number. Family member not traveling with you. Your hotels number. Keep a small packet of safety pins. Very useful for broken bag zip or torn clothes or falling dupatta.

Quick Summary For Last Minute Packing

Here is a short list to see at the end.

• Clothes for 5 days.
• Two pairs of shoes.
• Bathroom slippers.
• Medicine bag with ors and band aids.
• Snacks for road and train.
• Water bottles.
• Hand wash and wet wipes.
• Toilet paper.
• Power bank and chargers.
• Small torch.
• Bed sheet for train.
• Books and toys for kids.
• Extra plastic bags.
• All id cards and tickets.
• Extra cash.
• Safety pins.

One Last Truth

You will still forget something. Everyone does. Do not worry. You can buy many things on the way. The most important things are your tickets, medicines, id cards, phone, and money. Keep these in your small bag that never leaves your side. Everything else can be managed.

Pack light. Pack smart. Enjoy your trip with family. India is a beautiful country to travel with your people. Do not let bad packing ruin that.