This five-minute packing trick can change the way you travel - forever

What kind of packer are you? The decisive, list-making type who zips the suitcase once and walks away - or the serial checker who keeps reopening it to add "one more" top, just in case?

For many of us, packing stress is about too many choices. Faced with lots of options, we second-guess ourselves. We imagine scenarios. We pack for the versions of ourselves we think we are on holiday. A 2024 survey found that 71.7 per cent of people admit to overpacking for a trip, while 40 per cent say they've returned home with clothes they never wore.

That's where a system can come in handy. Capsule wardrobe fans suggest that fewer, well-matched pieces create good outfits, while psychologists have long said that limiting choices reduces decision fatigue. That's why packing plans like the 5-4-3-2-1 method (five tops, four bottoms, three dresses, two layers, one destination specific item) and the Rule of Three (three tops, three bottoms, and three pairs of shoes) are always circulating on social media. This system, which uses a time limit - a productivity technique known as time-boxing - just adds to the genius. Most overpacking doesn't happen in the first instance, but when you open the case for the second and third time when doubt creeps in. A timer essentially removes the opportunity to tinker.

So, on your marks ...

Essentials and tech: passport or ID, medications, phone, cards, chargers, laptop, cords and headphones. These go in your handbag or carry-on - not your checked luggage. A recent RACV survey of more than 1200 travellers found 60 per cent had experienced delayed or damaged luggage, and 26 per cent reported luggage going missing entirely.

Clothes. Use that 5-4-3-2-1 or the Rule of Three method beforehand to choose your pieces and lay them out on the bed. Make sure each top works with each of the bottoms to maximise combinations. Don't deviate here - research into everyday wardrobe habits shows we tend to wear only about 20-30 per cent of what we own even when we're at home, so travel wardrobes can be far smaller and more specific.

Three pairs of shoes are plenty for most shorter trips. Wear the bulkiest pair in transit. Pack one dressier option and one casual or climate-appropriate pair. Add socks and undies (no more than a week's worth - you can wash things) and roll them inside the shoes to save space.

Toiletries. Keep a permanently stocked kit in your case and refill it after each trip. Decant larger bottles into small travel containers. If you're a super smart traveller, you'll be using a hanging toiletry bag which you can whip out and hang up at the other end. If you use hair tools, add travel-sized versions, adaptors et al, and let them live in your case year-round, too.

The extras. Add a light jacket or coat if you will need one - again, wearing the bulkiest on the plane. Add sleepwear, accessories, a handbag for evenings, swimwear if you need it, a casual bag or tote. Now stop. Zip the bag. Resist reopening it. Enjoy your trip.