Pack a punch with these top tips for travelling light...

IN THE ART OF PACKING, as so often in life, you learn through your mistakes. Over the course of a decade I’ve made many but one of the more practical life skills I have mastered through these memorable catastrophes is how to travel efficently.

Holidaying once upon a time required digging around the attic for the biggest piece of luggage. When I went backpacking around the world, I eschewed a practical North Face backpack belonging to my sister for my dad’s old beloved Briggs & Riley that weighed half as much as I did. When I went to Melbourne and India for a six-week trip, I bought the biggest backpack I could find at Target – I’ll never forget those 72-hour train rides and lugging it up and down hostel stairs in the heat.

I learned some hard, valuable lessons and I can now fully appreciate the concept of underpacking and choosing light, compact luggage – even it it means forking out more money for it. Clocking up thousands of air miles in my 20s has, I must admit, made me a clever and nifty traveller and though the following tick list may not sound groundbreaking, trust me, it’s a good reminder and will save a few disastrous encounters – and excess baggage fees – when you journey.

Your luggage is one of the most important elements to get right before you get on a plane. Most brands are plain, streamlined and a little bit ugly. The good quality brands that last for years, even through aggressive travelling, tend not to obsess over aesthetics so if you have to forsake colour and print for a bag that’s light and sturdy, then it’s a no-brainer. I once associated the Samsonite brand with big, heavy loads but its range at Arnotts features newer collections like the CityVibe, which combines a lightweight backpack with wheelie totes – pure genius and good value too. For shorter trips, Italian brand Brics at Arnotts and Brown Thomas specialises in leather weekend bags that start around the €250 mark but they are incredibly easy on the eye and last for years. For a cheaper alternative, Debenhams’ Tripp Full Circle range is light and comes in colourful variations.

Online, brands like Travel Pro and Delsey are good bets and wiser to buy now as older season bags and luggage sets are much cheaper in the sales. If your budget extends, other more luxurious brands like Away and Hartmann offer incredibly clever features like an inbuilt USB for charging your camera and phone. They don’t come as cheap but they will follow you to the ends of the earth and back again in perfect condition.

Now what to take with you? I’ve just landed in Venice for four days, with a leather holdall across my arm. That’s for next week...

Clocking up air miles in my 20s has made me a clever traveller