The best packing advice we've ever received was from an older couple in a Nice hotel who unpacked, unhurriedly, two small carry-ons that between them contained a week of very good clothing. "The rule," she said, folding a linen shirt, "is that everything should get worn twice."
What follows is our eight-item weekend list. It fits in one bag per person. It is ranked in order of how likely the item is to start an argument, if you get it wrong.
1. The linen shirt — bring it
One good, oversized linen shirt is the whole weekend. It goes over the swimsuit at breakfast, over the T-shirt at dinner, on its own with sleeves rolled up at the bar. It doesn't wrinkle in a way anyone minds. It's the reason a small suitcase can carry a big week. If you don't own one, buy one before the flight.
2. The good white T-shirt, in triplicate
Three identical white cotton T-shirts, packed rolled not folded, and you will never look bad in a photograph. This is not about minimalism; it's about signal. A white T-shirt says: I have prioritised something other than clothing on this trip. It is the flag of someone who's here to be present.
Bring three of the same shirt. Nobody will notice, everyone will admire.
3. One pair of jeans. Not two.
The second pair of jeans is the item that ruins a small bag. It is heavy, it is redundant, it is a fear-based decision. Bring one good pair, wear them on the plane, and let the linen trousers handle the rest of the trip. If you cannot commit to one pair of jeans, you are not yet ready to travel with a small bag.
4. A dress that does dinner and lunch
For whoever wears one — one dress that is decent enough for a very good restaurant, casual enough for a Wednesday market. Long, black or cream, no belt. If you're worried about wearing the same dress twice on a five-day trip, you're not on the kind of trip we're writing about.
5. Shoes: three pairs, together weighing less than a book
Walking sneakers you can put on with a nice shirt (Common Projects white, Veja Esplar, whatever). Sandals or loafers for evening. One pair of small flat things for the beach, the pool, the shower. If a shoe weighs more than a paperback, leave it home.
6. The scarf, or the throw
A large light scarf — cashmere in winter, cotton or linen in summer. It's a jumper on the plane, a blanket at the beach, a pillow in the taxi, a shawl at dinner. It is the item that pays for its own weight ten times a day, and it's the one thing that will make you look put-together in a photograph you didn't plan.
7. One toiletry decision
Adults do not carry twelve small bottles. Adults carry a bar of good soap, a small shampoo, a small conditioner, a razor, a toothbrush, and one perfume. Everything else is at the hotel or purchasable in a shop that will feel like a small adventure. If you cannot leave home without a Vitamin C serum, buy it locally. You'll find one better than yours.
8. Book, notebook, one very small camera
The book weighs almost nothing and will change the trip. The notebook is optional, but the small camera — a proper one, not the phone — is worth its weight ten times over. A phone photograph is proof. A camera photograph is memory. There is a reason your parents' honeymoon album still exists and your last trip lives in a folder you never open.
The correct amount of luggage is the amount you can carry from the airport to the room without setting anything down.
What not to bring
A second pair of jeans. A hairdryer. Books you meant to read but haven't started. A gift for the hotel, unless you know them. Anything electric with a plug that isn't a phone charger. A "just in case" jacket that is bulkier than the coat you're already wearing. A second phone. A laptop, unless the trip depends on it.
Pack once, honestly. Unpack in the room, entirely. Wear each thing twice. Come home with a bag that's the same weight — one dirty shirt heavier, one bar of soap lighter — and try to book the next trip before the sheets are washed.