Summer vacation season is in full swing and we wanted to provide luggage storage and packing tips for your next trip. Vacations have the potential to be amazing and disastrous. Being away from home, it’s important to be prepared for many different situations. For example, if your luggage gets lost on your flights, do you have a change of clothes in your carry on? Packing for your next trip may not be the most fun way to spend your evening, but implementing a few of our vacation packing tips may make your experience a little more bearable.

How to Store Your Luggage in a Storage Unit

Luggage comes in many different size options, which allows you flexibility depending on the length of your trip or how you’re traveling. If you have multiple suitcases and multiple people in your household, the amount of luggage piling up at home can take up a lot of space. Suitcases, backpacks, duffel bags and other types of luggage add up and it may be advantageous to use a storage unit for luggage storage.

Clean Your Luggage Before Storage — Whether you choose to use luggage storage at home or in a storage unit, it’s important to store your baggage clean. After traveling, you may notice your luggage smells bad or has food crumbs. Cleaning your luggage before placing it in storage helps prevent damage to the fabric over time and means you won’t have to take a stinky duffel bag on your next trip.

Store Luggage and Other Items Inside Luggage — Be smart about the space you’ll be using for luggage storage, whether at home or inside of a storage unit. Store smaller suitcases inside of larger ones — in a way that doesn’t cause damage to either bag, of course. If you’ll be storing luggage for a long period of time, consider placing extra bedding, costumes and seasonal items inside of your suitcases.

Choose a Climate-Controlled Storage Unit — Luggage is bulky and takes up a lot of space at home. Instead, consider renting a storage unit for luggage storage. A climate-controlled storage unit is ideal, as it’s similar to keeping your luggage in an air-conditioned room at home. If you live in a humid climate, climate-control helps protect your items from potential damage caused by moisture. Climate controlled storage units are maintained within a set temperature range, which helps protect the integrity of the fabric and materials of your baggage.

Prevent Dust Accumulation With Luggage Covers — Dust and particles in the air can build up on luggage which is in storage, either at home or in a storage unit. If you’d like to protect your luggage from dust accumulation, we recommend using luggage covers, which are inexpensive and provide you with an extra layer of protection.

Small storage units at Security Public Storage are very affordable and may be the best solution for your luggage storage needs. Choose from traditional or climate-controlled storage for your suitcases, duffel bags, backpacks and other travel gear. Renting a storage unit for luggage storage offers customers a wide range of benefits, including more usable space at home.

Luggage Storage at Home for Large Suitcases and Carry-Ons

luggage storage in closet

When vacation season ends and it’s time to store your luggage, it’s important to find a place without intense humidity. Humidity causes moisture to build up, which can result in mold that destroys the integrity, or aesthetic, of your bag. After cleaning your suitcase, there are a variety of great places to store your luggage and ways to utilize the space they take up.

  • Place luggage under your bed, if it’s high enough.
  • Store carry-ons inside of larger suitcases.
  • Store luggage on high shelves in your garage, closet, or basement.
  • Use your suitcase in your closet for extra shoe storage.
  • Hang luggage from sturdy hooks in closets, the garage, utility rooms, and more.
  • Give the wheels a break, store suitcases on their side to reduce weight on the wheels.
  • Have a lot of luggage? Rent a storage unit from SPS!

Luggage Packing Tips for Vacation

  1. packing tips - roll your clothes Use a Lightweight Suitcase — Most airlines enforce strict weight limits. By using a lightweight suitcase, it allows you to pack without the bag contributing more to the overall weight. This is especially important when packing for air travel on budget airlines, as they tend to have strict weight restrictions and charge for checked baggage. Be sure to get a suitcase with wheels that rotate 360 degrees for ease of use while traveling.
  2. Roll Clothing for More Space — Rolling clothing rather than folding it, generally, takes up less space in your suitcase. Another benefit of rolling clothing is it makes finding specific items of clothing easier. You can also pack things into the crevices of your luggage.
  3. Maximize Unused Space — Many of the items in your suitcase can be used to pack other items to maximize space. For example, pack socks in your shoes. Stack bras and then tuck underwear into the cups, which also helps them maintain their shape.
  4. Pack a Change of Clothes in Your Carry-On — While the odds of losing your bag are small, there’s still a chance that the airline might misplace your suitcase. If the worst happens, don’t get caught without any clean undies for the next day. Pack a spare pair of shoes, a change of clothes, extra underwear, as well as chargers and tech equipment in your carry-on to prepare for the “what if’s” of air travel.
  5. Use Travel-Sized Toiletries — While it may be tempting to just throw in your full bottles of shampoo and conditioner, you likely won’t need it. Pack travel-sized toiletries to decrease the amount of liquid in your luggage and to increase packable space. You may consider getting refillable travel-sized containers and bringing along your special shampoo.
  6. Bring a Small First Aid Kit — People often overpack when it comes to their luggage, but a small first aid kit should be included in your suitcase. Stick it in your day pack. You’ll be thankful in the event of accidental scraped knees, burns and sprains. It should include band-aids, antiseptic wipes, ibuprofen, an epipen if you have allergies, and burn gel, for starters.
  7. Pack Heavy Items on the Bottom — Just like when packing your storage unit, you want to stack the heaviest items on the bottom of your suitcase. Pack shoes and heavy denim jeans at the bottom of your luggage. This makes it easier to wheel around your suitcase, which you’ll appreciate after a long travel day.
  8. Lay Out Your First Outfit on Top — No one wants to spend the first day of vacation digging through your suitcase for the perfect outfit. Pack the outfit you intend to wear on the first day on top of your suitcase for easy accessibility. This will also help prevent wrinkling and will keep your luggage organized, at least for day one.
  9. Bring a Tote for Souvenirs — Certain things tend to slip your mind while packing, at least in our experience. How often have you had to rearrange your pack because you forgot to account for souvenirs? Bring a tote or additional smaller suitcase if you plan on bringing home more items than you left with.
  10. Wear Bulky Clothes in Transit — Even though you may be headed somewhere tropical, you can maximize space in your suitcase by wearing your bulkiest items. Your coats, boots, sneakers, and thick socks should be worn in transit to save space (and weight) in your luggage.

As you prepare for late summer vacations, remember to pack in advance. Waiting until the last minute will cause unnecessary stress, possible delays and you’re more likely to over or under pack.

Enjoy Your Summer Vacation with Proper Luggage Storage

We hope you’re having a great summer and that your vacations are filled with fun. As you prepare for your next vacation, take a look at our luggage packing tips. Remember to pack light, roll your clothing tight and wear your bulkiest items on the plane, if you’re traveling by plane. When you return, our luggage storage tips will be a great guide to ensure you protect the integrity of your suitcases.

Looking for a climate-controlled storage unit to protect your luggage from possible high humidity? Many SPS locations across the west coast and Washington DC metropolitan area offer climate-controlled storage options!

Secure Your Unit Today

Looking for a storage unit near you?
See which storage units and special discounts are available.