Wife's <40L Onebag List (Spain, Honeymoon, Pregnant)

Written by my wife, my post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/onebag/comments/v15kpy/spain_may_25_days_54kilo_18l/

Here’s my one bag for 3.5 weeks in Spain, with weather expected to range from 55 to 95 degrees.

About me: 5’8, size S/M. In early 2nd trimester of pregnancy, so I needed clothing that would grow with my stomach. Started the trip without a bump, came home with a visible bump. I’m a stickler for sun protection via hats, layers, and SPF. I didn’t want to look aggressively out of place, so I didn't bring much obviously tech-fabric. I also knew that we had access to a washing machine at least once per week. If I had needed to rely on a laundromat or exclusively sink laundry it may have been different.

The Outcome: 40 L backpack, 17 kg. The MVP item ended up being my white linen long sleeve button down. I wore it every day, and it looked soooo much better than the SPF technical shirt I was considering. Panty liners came in second, allowing me to do less sink underwear laundry. 3rd were my eye mask and ear plugs. Ultimately if we had been somewhere with high humidity or even just somewhere hotter where we were sweating more, I would have gone with more quick-dry materials. That being said, probably half my wardrobe was cotton and it was completely fine in this circumstance.

If I wasn’t pregnant I think I would have packed less. I think I did a great job not knowing A.) how cold it was going to get, and B.) how much my body would change. Ultimately I could have skipped ¼ of my clothing volume. Shoes were the hardest and heaviest, and ultimately I would bring this combo again because I haven’t figured out a better solution. I mostly wore my Bedrocks but they definitely made me look like a tourist (unlike in the PNW where locals are more likely to be in Birkenstocks or Chacos during the summer than any other shoe.) My bedrocks are also my hiking shoe, so bringing them was non-negotiable.

My biggest takeaway was the reminder that unless I’m going somewhere quite remote, I can buy whatever I need. Going forward I would err on the side of packing less, and if it came up that I felt like I was really missing something I would buy it at the destination.

Vans-esque black leather slip ons

Black leather sandals as my “fancy” shoes

Bedrock sandals in orange.

Compression socks - only wore on the airplane. I don’t wear socks.

4 bralettes - outgrew one on the trip, could have brought only 2.

1 strapless underwire bra - outgrew on trip

4 amazon essentials bikini cut underwear, 2 dark 2 light. (used panty liners for long travel days and with sink laundry and how quick they dry i would bring 3 next time)

2 thongs: one light, one dark. Didn’t wear it at all..

Sleep shorts and a sleep tank. Very lightweight cotton. Loved having these.

1 lightweight black cotton pants. Love these. Ended up not using them much due to weather, but if it had been a little cooler they would have gotten more use. https://www.costco.com/jessica-simpson-ladies%e2%80%99-printed-pull-on-pant.product.100792241.html

1 medium weight black sweatpants. These were PERFECT. I will only be flying and doing long travel days in these now. The zippered pockets are a fantastic detail for the airport and cities with a lot of pickpots. https://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?pid=480764112&cid=1031032&pcid=1031032&vid=1&nav=meganav%3AWomen%20%26%20Women%E2%80%99s%20Plus%3AOld%20Navy%20Active%3AActivewear%20Bottoms&cpos=31&cexp=2223&kcid=CategoryIDs%3D1031032&cvar=16849&ctype=Listing&cpid=res2206011821494579977120#pdp-page-content

1 light linen shorts. Good choice for the weather but I ended up only wearing dresses.

1 black bike shorts. Good for hiking and basic day wear. Could have used them more, but again I only wore dresses.

1 loose long sleeve shirt, mostly polyester. I get cold easily so this was great on the plane and cooler mornings.

1 white knit tank. Dressed up and down with the linen shorts.

1 black tank in performance fabric. Didn’t look “athletic” but great for hiking and sweating.

1 white cotton tank. Wore once. Wouldn’t bring again.

5 dresses. Could have done just 3. I got the most wear out of my olive green cotton t-shirt dress, and a cotton spaghetti strap summer dress.

1 white linen button down shirt. I wore this every single day, either as sun protection or as an extra layer.

1 denim jacket. Wore very frequently.

1 mountain hardwear ghost whisperer. Didn’t really need based on weather.

1 black baseball cap

1 rollable straw visor.

2 sunglasses. Only ended up using one pair.

1 bikini. Ended up buying a larger bikini top while abroad because the one I brought became uncomfortable. #boobs.

Crossbody day bag. Ugly but the perfect size. Not too bulky but holds everything I could need with a ton of zippered pockets.

Slim card holder instead of regular wallet.

Kindle and padded case

Journal - I have a travel journal that is much lighter weight than my at home journal. I could have gone for an even lighter/smaller notebook but didn’t feel like spending money.

Makeup - Most of it was sample size items. I don’t wear a ton of makeup usually, but I wanted enough to feel cute. I’d cut one or two things, but otherwise I'm happy with what I brought even though it was not at all necessary.

Toiletries - Travel size of everything. Hair care is non-negotiable because I need medicated shampoo and my hair is to my lower back so I use a lot of conditioner. Face soap, leave in conditioner. I use a packageless deodorant bar that I cut in half.

Skincare - Sample sizes. Used up most of them by the end of the trip. Eye cream, face moisturizer, toner, medicated lip balm.

Meds - my daily medication for as long as we were there plus 14 days in case we had to quarantine. Melatonin to sleep, migraine meds for when needed. Gummy prenatals and anti-nausea meds took up a ton of bulk but obviously were gone by the end of the trip.

Eye mask and ear plugs

Wish we had:

Body Sunscreen - sunscreen in Spain was weird and expensive. Would bring a 3 oz bottle per week for 2 people next time.

Body lotion - sun plus sunscreen plus sand and ocean. I got dry. Ended up using my face moisturizer on my body.

More bandaids. - i brought 4 anticipating blisters or a scrape here and there. We got both blisters and scrapes, so i’d bring 10 next time.