This blog post is all about how to pack heavy clothes for travel to save suitcase space and weight, no matter if you’re packing heavy clothes, bulky sweaters, thick sweatshirts, denim jeans, or winter coats and jackets.
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Before I show you how to fold heavy clothes for travel, there are a few tips you need to know about how to pack heavy clothes for travel. These tips will make packing bulky clothes so much easier, faster and more organized.
Tips To Pack Heavy Clothes For Travel
First, the best way to pack heavy clothes is to avoid packing heavy clothes in general. This may sound obvious. But, believe me, many of the thick clothes you need for winter or fall travel can be easily replaced with thinner, more packable versions that will still keep you warm. Plus, you probably already have some of these alternatives in your closet. For example, a high quality athletic zip-up can feel just as warm as a hoodie while packing way flatter and weighing a lot less than a hoodie. Similarly, instead of a full-length wool winter coat, you could pack a waist-length packable down jacket. We’ll discuss more tips to pack coats later.
Second, use compression packing cubes to help you organize your suitcase. As you fold your bulky clothes, make sure that your bulky clothes are folded to the same dimensions as your packing cubes. This will help you pack the bulky clothes flatter and fit more clothing items in the packing cube. I personally use and love my high-quality Beis compression packing cubes for every trip.
Third, for major winter trips where you will need full-length puffer coats, insulated snow pants and other non-negotiable puffy winter gear, use vacuum seal bags to compress the gear’s insulation down flat before packing. Many vacuum seal travel packs come with a travel vacuum or hand pump to repack for your way home.
Fourth, fold, don’t roll. You may have heard other packing gurus say to “roll don’t fold” your clothes when packing for a trip. But, I have found that you’re much better off rolling your thin clothes and folding your thick clothes.
How To Pack Bulky Sweaters For Travel
Now, let’s dive into how to pack heavy clothes for travel in terms of folding, starting with bulky sweaters. Of course, my first recommendation would be to replace bulky sweaters with thinner, yet still warm, sweaters. However, sometimes, you want and/or need your bulky sweaters with you on your trip.
To pack bulky sweaters for travel…
- Lay the sweater face down and spreading the entire sweater out flat. It’s important that the sweater is spread flat to prevent wrinkles and to fold as flat as possible.
- Pull one sleeve across the sweater until about one third of the sweater body is folded over.
- Pull the end of same sleeve down to the bottom of the sweater. One sleeve should now be folded over two layers of the sweater body — a layer of the sweater facing down and the layer of sweater folded into one third.
- Repeat steps 2-3 with the other sleeve. Remember to always spread the sweater flat between steps.
- Then, fold the sweater into thirds horizontally. Until now, you were only folding vertically.
- You have the option to either leave the sweater as is. Or, you can tuck the bottom of the sweater into the sweater’s neckline to prevent the sweater from unfolding in your suitcase.
How To Pack Hoodies For Travel
Like sweaters, the best way to pack sweatshirts for travel is to replace thick heavy sweatshirts with thinner, yet still warm, sweatshirts. Like I mentioned earlier, athletic zip-ups and quarter zips make perfect hoodie alternatives. They are still warm, but they pack way thinner, fold easier and weigh less. It’s important that you always take weight into consideration, especially if you’re flying, because all airlines have weight restrictions on checked luggage. Some airlines have weight restrictions for carry-on luggage too. Read my tips to pack lighter for any length trip here.
To pack hoodies for travel, use the same folding steps as the sweater. The only difference will be to fold the hood down toward the center of the hoodie between steps 4-5. Tuck the hoodie strings into the hoodie to keep the end product folded even neater.
How To Pack Heavy Coats For Travel
Overall, the same rules apply to packing heavy coats and jackets for travel as well. Your best option is always to replace your heavy full-length coat with a waist-length packable down jacket. Packable down jackets, like my favorite Columbia packable down, are designed with travel in mind. They are intentionally lightweight and can compress extremely flat, relatively speaking. Plus, they are designed to withstand the coldest, snowiest and wettest winter weather conditions, ensuring you stay warm throughout your trip. You can check out more of my favorite travel essentials for cold weather here.
Although, there is another packing tip for coats that is somewhat different from sweaters and sweatshirts. That tip is to save packing your coats and jackets for last. Coats don’t count toward your airline personal item allowance. This means you can still bring your coat even if your packed suitcase is full and/or too heavy. Best case, you can pack your heavy coats on top of your clothing for easy access in your destination if your luggage space and weight limit allow. Worst case, you have to wear or carry your coat through the airport. Either way, you can bring your coat.
If you really must pack a long heavy coat, follow the same folding steps as sweaters or hoodies, depending on if you’re coat has a hood. Or, lay your coat flat across the top of your packed packing cubes, tucking the edges and sleeves into the sides of the packing cubes. Or, use travel vacuum seal bags to compress your coat as flat as possible. Vacuum sealing will work particularly well if your coat is a long puffer coat instead of a thick wool trench coat.
Keep weight in mind, though, because heavy coats will contribute a lot of weight to your suitcase. If you’re already close to your weight limit, one heavy coat will definitely send you over the edge. This is another reason why you should wait to pack your coat for last. This is also I love my Beis luggage, which comes with a weight indicator that quickly tells me if my bag is overweight without a luggage scale (although, I do own this digital luggage scale too).
How To Pack Jeans For Travel
Finally, denim jeans are also heavy compared to other clothing items. Luckily, jeans usually fold much easier, flatter and thinner than bulky sweaters, sweatshirts or coats. Like I said earlier, I preach rolling thin clothes and rolling thick clothes. The same rings true for jeans. For thin stretchy denim, roll. For really thick no-stretch denim, fold. No matter what kind of denim, always fold along the seams to prevent wrinkling. Although, thankfully, jeans tend to wrinkle less easily than other materials anyway.
To pack thick no-stretch jeans…
- Fold the jeans in half vertically along the inseam with the zipper folded in and back pocket facing out.
- Fold the portion of the denim beneath the zipper toward the center of the jeans.
- Pull the bottom of the jeans up to the bottom of the back pocket.
- Fold the top of the jeans (waistline) down to the center of the folded legs.
- Tuck the remainder of the folded legs into the waistline.
Better yet, if you don’t mind wearing jeans on the plane, wear your bulkiest jeans on your travel day. You can also layer up your bulkiest sweaters and sweatshirts, too, if you don’t mind rewearing clothes from your travel day (or if you’ll have access to laundry on your trip).
More Packing Tips
13 Travel Essentials For Cold Weather
17 Carry-On Packing Tips You’ve Never Heard Before
How To Pack Lighter For Any Length Trip
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