traveltip: roll it up

I haven't done a great job of following up on my traveltips series after my first post regarding finding cheap airfares. There was so much to write that I planned to write two more posts just on airfares alone - they're still coming, but as you may have noticed, I have been having to stick to quick posts lately. So here's a quick traveltip for you as holiday travel approaches. This may be one everyone already knows, but I read it somewhere in the last couple years and am always amazed how well something so simple works. When packing your bags, roll your clothes (especially now that everyone tries to fit everything into carry-on size because of the airline checked baggage fees). This works best for t-shirts - I fold two together, then roll them. Undershirts, boxers, etc roll up to be particularly small - those can often be used as filler to fill in empty spaces after everything else is packed. Don't forget to take advantage of the space inside boots or shoes too. If you have some bulky items and need the space, you can also use those plastic vacuum bags that you put something in and then roll the air out of. I only bother with those on long trips like to Europe and stick to things like jeans or sweatshirts for those. But if nothing else, roll up your basic items. See how easy that was?