How I Packed for a Week to Italy Carry On Only

I love reading how other people pack for trips abroad, so I figured you all might be interested to see how I’m packing for our week in Italy. Luckily, their weather is pretty close to ours this time of year. I’ve been checking the weather app and southern Italy is in the 60’s during the day, maybe close to 70 some days, so layers will be great for this trip. We decided to pack carry on only on this trip, because really we don’t need that much for 7 days. I figured I would choose 7 outfits, plus one extra just in case I needed it. I think for the most part, we’ll be dressed for the day which will go into dinner time as well. On other trips we have taken, I don’t always change to a new outfit for dinner, so I’m taking things I can mix up and make different outfits with the pieces doing double duty.

I used these packing cubes from EZ Packing that I got several years ago and they still work great.

I roll my pieces and you can stuff a lot in one of these bags. I’m taking 3 pairs of pants in black, jeans, and white pants with a variety of tops and jackets to interchange between them, plus one dress. I’m taking 2 pairs of tennis shoes and one pair of comfy flats. I’ll share all the outfits below.

I got all my under garments in this smaller bag, plus pajamas from Soma.

These fit on one side of my small carry on suitcase.

Soma pajama set. I would link these, but they are mostly sold out on these pieces. I tried on all the outfits so you can see exactly what I took and how I’m wearing them.  Affiliate links used below.

Of course, I’m dressing for comfort but I also like to look cute, so even though I’ll be wearing tennis shoes I wanted to still be a little stylish. This short sleeve dress from Amazon I’ll be wearing with tennis shoes, so I took 2 colors of tennis shoes, a light pair and dark pair. Foot comfort is the most important when traveling. The aqua linen jacket is old so I can’t link it. I’ll be taking some basic jewelry to dress up these outfits a bit too.

I’m packing white pants and will wear them with a few different tops. I’ve got on 2 different white pants in the pictures, but I only took one pair. This aqua tank is worn under the linen jacket with a leopard belt.

These black faux leather leggings from Loft I’ll wear a couple of ways. This floral top is long sleeved (old from Chico’s Black Label) and I topped it with the linen jacket. These are the comfy Blowfish flats I’m taking and they are old so I can’t link.

These white Chico’s pants are the ones I took and this is a casual knit 3/4 length sleeve top with a coral athletic jacket.

This black knit jumpsuit from Clara Sunwoo is comfy and I added this long plaid black and white tunic over it and added a belt.

I can wear the plaid again with the faux leather leggings and a simple black tank.

Just in case it’s really chilly one day, I packed this striped Talbot’s top that’s a little warmer with jeans and my Adidas sneakers. 

I’ll wear a white linen tank and a striped cotton shirt with the jeans and sneakers.

Here’s the outfit, along with the crossbody bag I’m carrying from Amazon. It has lots of zipped pockets as well as slots for cards, so the perfect size for travel and it comes in lots of colors.

Because I tend to get a little chilly even in 60 degree weather, I’m taking this jacket from Talbot’s I bought last year. It’s lightweight enough to not be too heavy, but also warm and cozy in case I get cold. I’ll be wearing this on the plane and not packing it since it’s the bulkiest thing I’m taking.

This is my favorite travel outfit, this knit Zenergy top from Chico’s and lightweight pants with elastic waist, both bought last year. This is what I’ll wear going over and coming back on the plane and if I need to, I can wear it one day on excursions.

I bought this sunhat from Amazon and will be taking that for excursions. I like to keep the sun off my face as much as possible and this has a drawstring under the chin to help keep it on.

This duffle bag is my other carry on item and it will go under the seat. It has a shoulder strap and a flap that fits over a rolling suitcase.

This makeup bag holds my makeup and other items and fits inside my carry on duffle. I decided to pack one of the outfits in this bag, just in case they insist I check my rolling bag. Every since Mark’s bag got lost for over a day on our last Viking cruise 5 years ago, it seems smart to do this, so I added the knit jumpsuit and the plaid tunic. I’ll have room in here for a few things, plus my crossbody bag and this bag will go under the seat.

I love the zippered compartment on the bottom and this is where my shoes go. I’ll wear the light colored sneakers and pack these two. I had room to add this tunic top and it all zips up nicely.

So, that’s what I’m taking to Italy. It’s not high fashion, but I should be comfortable and somewhat cute for the trip. I’m also adding in a few scarves to the outfits and jewelry to dress it up a bit. By the time you read this, we will have already landed in Italy, ready for our week’s adventure. Ciao friends!

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