Business Trip Packing List: What to Pack When You’re on An Important Business Trip?

Struggling when trying to come up with a business trip packing list? Don’t fret, we’ve got you back. Below is a list of essential elements that can serve as a checklist for everything you need to carry in during your business travel.

If you ever find yourself asking the same old question every time you prepare for a business trip: “What should I be bringing?”, don’t worry, we’ve all been through that.

As a business traveller, you are probably on the road no less than ten times a year. And packing up your extended business trip can be daunting, especially when you are on a last-minute move and everything just becomes so overwhelming.

To help you travel smarter for business, our team brings you the fastest way to include all the travel essentials in your business travel packing list. There are many factors to make up a successful business trip, and it all starts with packing your stuff the right way. When you know what to keep in your luggage, you'll always have what you need!

The Ultimate Business Trip Checklist for Women

A great trick for you ladies to organise your work trip packing list is to group all essentials together and then choose a specific-coloured and different bag size for each group. This way you can always easily find everything you need whenever you want!

Makeup bag

Whether you’re on a 2-day or 2-week trip, a clear zipper top cosmetic bag would be a good choice to store all your beauty essentials in order to get through airport security easily. 

For a basic set of makeup essentials, there should be a sheer foundation create the radiant complexion, a concealer for extra dose of coverage, a rosy blusher as well as an instant eyeshadow, a mascara and last but not least, add in your favourite lipsticks and travel size perfume - the ones that not only make you look like a gorgeous lady but also make you feel confident and comfortable.

Feminine Hygiene Products

Another tip for business travel is to prepare a separate bag for feminine products to toss into your bag during your overnight work trip and make sure they are sufficient for any circumstance, especially for emergency supplies. This bag can also hold things like hand sanitizer, band-aid, a nail repair kit, and other personal items.

Medication Box

An important essential category is a pill box with your daily doses and maybe extra if you're being treated for an infection/disease. Whatever you decide, keep your pills in their own bag for easy access. Don’t forget to include ibuprofen or aspirin.

Eye Care

Eye care essentials when travelling is of importance whether it involves day-to-day care or if an emergency arises. To avoid eye related problems while on the road, it’s a good idea to bring along essentials such as eye drops, packets of lid cleansing wipes, an extra pair of glasses or contact lens, and a good pair of sunglasses. The same goes for eye drops and allergy/cold medication in case your eyes get dry or irritated.

Battery Charger

It’s easy to forget about your charger when you’re preparing your luggage, which is definitely a terrible mistake — especially when you see their price in airports and at some local stores when you want to buy an extra one. Therefore, it’s best to keep this item on the permanent packing list and never leave home without it. And make sure to regularly recharge your emergency battery so it's always available.

In-flight Entertainment

Whether you’re a regular business traveller or not, it can always be tiresome and gruelling to endure long flights and delays, especially when you have nothing to pass the time. To avoid that, you may want to consider bringing travel-friendly e-readers for movies, games, or books to optimise your waiting time.

Proper packing is the key to a carefree journey. Image from Unsplash

The Essentials Business Trip Checklist For Men

Preparing for an important occasion such as a business trip can be extremely stressful for us men- especially when it comes to packing. At some point you will still find yourself losing sight of the essential items you need to travel with or leave behind an important essential item only to regret it later on. To deal with that, we have made a handy business packing checklist for you guys to leave the house confidently and feel like a travel pro on your next vacation.

Paperwork

The first things you must have in your backpack should be your identification card, driver’s licence, a boarding pass and a valid passport. Without these necessities, you won’t meet the airline requirement or be able to head anywhere but home, so it’s crucial to organise these important documents at home beforehand. 

Electronics

For modern business people, most of their work is connected with electronic devices, i.e., mobile phones, laptops, tablets, and other necessary devices. So it’s better not to leave home without these essentials as well as their chargers if you want your trip to be smooth and successful.

First aid kit and other medication essentials

A small bag with the most necessary pills and medicine is indispensable for every business traveller. You wouldn’t want to find yourself suffering a migraine trigger, high-climate fever, upset stomach or all three of them running hand in hand during your journey, not to mention medicines in the country you are visiting may be limited to prescription only. It’s best to keep a domestic remedy for your ailments at hand to prevent any inconvenience during your travel.

Kindle or book

If you’re in for a long trip and experience delays at the airports, it’s best to entertain yourself by brushing up on some of the latest best selling hits or classical novels as reading will make the time go faster. As the saying goes, “a book a day keeps the boredom away” – so bring them on board!

Pen and notebook?

YES. Another seem-to-be pesky space-filler, yet you may find yourself looking for it later on. Who knows when you will come up with a new idea? Or, when you might need to jot down some important information quickly? Keeping these accessible essentials in your backpack for more convenient travelling.

Step by step for business trip packing

For those times when we don’t really know what to bring on our journey, here are seven simple steps that may help you curb packing problems and make wiser choices with your preparation.

Plan ahead

It may seem obvious and boring, yet it’s never a redundancy to plan everything beforehand and have information about the locations you would like to see or things you would like to buy by studying in advance. When you fully make sure about the road plan and meeting information, you will save plenty of time for yourself and find the gateway to a stress-free holiday. 

Prepare a grab-and-go toiletry bag

While in a rush for a last-minute business trip and trying to get everything done as soon as possible, people tend to forget some of the essential items such as toothbrush, razor, deodorant or cotton pads, even those that should be obvious. To deal with that, we suggest you get a small bag designed for toiletries packing and fill it with all the essential things only as much as you’ll need for your trip and nothing more. It won't solve all your problems, but it crosses one major packing headache off the list.

Categorise your essentials

No matter where you go, there will always be so many things to remember. That’s why separating your essentials with desires should be a must whenever you’re about to hit the road. This will lessen the hustle of thinking long and hard about what you need to bring with you while also ensuring an enjoyable business trip.

Check the weather forecast while packing clothes

Depending on where you’re going, checking weather forecasts in advance can really do you good by giving you the best idea of what weather to expect on your holiday. Look for the day before you fly and pack accordingly so your trip will be as smooth and cosy as possible.

Choose functional and wrinkle-free attire

Be selective about which clothing to take and packing fewer yet extremely functional items can save you a lot of space in your suitcase, especially when you plan to wear them more than once. And do not forget to check the weather conditions of your destination and pack accordingly to ensure an ideal and comfortable business travel experience.

Save bag space for all your holiday purchases

When travelling, you're likely to come back from almost every trip with a bottle of wine, cosmetic items or specialty products as a souvenir to share with friends and family. Therefore, we recommend keeping everything at a minimum or using travel-size products to save extra luggage room for your trip back home. Packing light and using rolling technique is also a good way to to maximise space! 

Double check

Last but not least, double-check your business trip packing list again to make sure you have everything you need. Your packing list won't do you any good if you don't check it before you leave!

Sort your stuff out. Image from Unsplash

The Best CabinZero Backpack for The Best Business Trip

When you’re on a business trip, it’s important to pick the right backpack and pack smart, so you won’t have to feel like it’s weighing you down. There are so many backpacks out there, so picking the right one for yourself can be pretty much a problem, especially when you have neither time nor experience in this type of shopping. So where do you even start?

The first thing to do when you’re trying to make a decision is to figure out what you really need. Here's our breakdown of questions to ask yourself when it comes to baggage selection:

• How long your trip will be
• Which form of transport you’re taking
• How much you pack
• What is the expected carry-on bag dimensions

Well, to save money and time on looking for suitable luggage, consider reaching out to our trusted products. Here at CabinZero, it is our priority to advocate for our clients with our versatile, minimalist and lightweight travel backpacks and packing cubes. Visit our website to see some of the best backpacks and packing cubes, designed to accompany you on your business travel. 

Elegant, comfortable, and water-resistant, the Classic CABINZERO in four different colours features the highest quality of a zero-hassle travel bag that you wouldn’t want to miss. This classic backpack - which is available in 28L, 36L and 44L - is perfectly suitable for constant business travellers as you are.

CabinZero packing cubes would also be an excellent choice to help you get organised overnight work trips! The packing cubes are perfectly sized to fit inside our 44L, 36L and 28L bags, helping you to pack neatly and efficiently. What is more, you can also organise your clothes neatly and efficiently using our large packing cube. As a bonus each packing cube has a built-in global luggage tracker, powered by Okoban. So like all our other bags if you lose them there is a good chance you'll get them back.

Invest in our items for a simpler and easier journey so you never have to worry about whether your bag is good to go for any and every situation.

 

 

FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions for Those Who are Still Confused

Got a question? We’re here to answer! 

Here are the two top questions that we get asked the most from our beloved followers. If you don’t see your question here, drop us a line on our Contact Page.

What should I pack for a 4-day business trip?

When packing for a work trip, you may want to consider using a carry-on-sized bag plus a hand luggage to store your personal items as well as your laptop. 

And to provide a clear picture of which items to include in your business trip packing list, here’s an example checklist of the things to prepare for both men and women if you’re about to hit the road for about 4 to 5 days.

Paperwork

• Passport or ID
• Visa, boarding pass
• Driver’s licence
• Credit card and checking card
• Cash, various bill values
• Plane tickets or print out confirmation
• Hotel reservations with address and phone number
• Driving directions and local taxi phone number

Formal and business attire

For men:

• 1 suit or blazer
• 2 dress shirts
• 1 casual shirt
• 2 pair of dress pants and slacks
• 2 dark matching colour socks
• 3 pairs of underwear.
• 1-2 pairs of shoes (one dress pair and one athletic)
• 1 pair of sandals or flip flops
• 1-2 jewellery and watches

For women:

•  1  business suit
• 2 pant suit or skirts
• 2 blouses 
• 1 dresses 
• 2 high heels and 1 pair of sandals 
• 3-4 Jewellery and watches

Casual and swimwear

• 1 swimsuit
• 2 jeans
• 2 jacket
• 1 tank tops
• 1 scarf and pair of gloves

Essential toiletries:

• Toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss and mouthwash
• Razor, shaving cream and aftershave
• Sunscreen and moisturiser
• Deodorant
• Hair gel, hair clay and comb
• Cosmetics 

Entertainment Essentials

• Laptop with charger and laptop bag
• Headphones
• Pens, pencils and notepad
• Kindle or a book

What should I not forget on a business trip?

If you’re still worried that you may miss something while packing your luggage, check out our list of indispensable items as you pack for your next corporate travel endeavour.

Paperwork

First thing first, make sure to check your passport, ID or other requisite documents prior to your long work trip. This will help you avoid nightmarish scenarios such as not being able to get on the plane and miss out on important travel business.  

Chargers and Charger Cables

In a technology-driven modern society, every task is connected to phones, computers, laptops, or tablets for email checking, meeting arrangement and data storage. Without these devices working properly, we would not be able to do the work that we are likely travelling for. With that being said, it’s a must to keep a charger cable compatible with each of your devices on hand at all times. This way you can have the devices available whenever you need.

Business Card

One of the main purposes of business trips is to establish new business contacts with new people and to look for new opportunities. Therefore, you should never forget to take plenty of your business cards with you so they are easily accessible during the day.

Hand sanitizer

Chances are you will be seeing lots of new faces and shaking people’s hands on a business trip. It’s best to keep a hand sanitizer close by to avoid getting sick, especially when there is the pandemic of coronavirus looming over our heads.

It might take time and effort to get used to these arrangements, but you can do it.

Business travelling can be a life-altering experience and certain elements are required for the business to be smooth, and it all starts with packing your stuff the right way. If you're planning a business trip soon and are stressed about preparing, the recommendations above are what we have found to be the most useful for business travellers to lessen the hustle of or overthinking and overpacking, as well as to save you money in the long run. In addition, other elements are also recommended according to your interests to make the journey as smooth and comfortable as possible.

Phuong Nguyen