If you’re frequently traveling and staying somewhere for a month or two, it’s not convenient to bring along all your clothes and material possessions.

In this article, we’ll give you some tips on how to pack light and how to have all you need in one place. We will teach you some tips on how to travel without spending money and energy on carrying enormous amounts of luggage or buying all that you’re missing „when you’re there.“

Best clothes for traveling light

The best tip for packing your clothes is to plan 5-10 outfits upfront. Of course, the key thing is to pick clothing pieces that can mix and match with many other clothes.

👕 For example, pack a basic t-shirt that goes great with jeans but that can also be a base layer below your clothes or go with a skirt or sweats.

👖🩳 Pack 2-3 bottoms, one casual, one semi-casual, and one formal-ish. For example, you can pack sweats, jeans, and a skirt or trousers. If you’re traveling in the summer, then shorts, light long pants, and casual/sports shorts.

👚👔 Pack 4 tops that can mix and match – 2-3 t-shirts, a shirt, two sweaters, or sweatshirts (depending on your style). Again, if there’s no need for sweaters, some light sweatshirt or a long-sleeve shirt will do.

🥼 Try to pack only one overcoat, like a suit top, cardigan, or a shirt that can go both casual and formal. It all depends on your style, but you should pick pieces that can mix with at least two other outfits.

👟👡 When it comes to shoes, if you can, bring only two pairs of shoes + sleepers or flip-flops for inside. Two shoe types can differ in warmth or formality. If you think you have universal shoes that go with everything, it’s okay to bring only those.

Another rule to follow is to wear all the bulky items when traveling and leave the light clothes for packing. If you’re not traveling in summer, layering is a great way to save space.

What cosmetics to pack when traveling lightly

If you’re doing makeup, pack only the essentials. One to two things for your face, one for your eyes and brows, and one or two things for your lips. One smaller eye shadow palette is more than enough to stay creative but pack light.

Other than makeup, bring only essentials that are expensive to buy again. Those can be face or acne creams that you cannot go without, but that you typically renew only a few times a year.

You should invest in travel-size packaging and take your stuff like that. For example, these traveling containers from Amazon can come in handy.

If you click this link and make a purchase, as an Amazon Associates we will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Other things like shampoos, toothpaste, showering gel, etc., you should either buy at your destination or bring in solid form. Solid shampoos last longer and help save space, and reduce plastic use so they’re often the “eco” option so it’s a win-win. You can find these on Amazon or your local pharmacy.

Doing laundry on the road

If you decide to wash your clothes on your trip, you will see that it will save you so much space when packing. To make this happen, try finding accommodation with a washing machine or one close to a local washing place.

Self-service washing places

Washing places in Europe charge from 2-4 euros per load and another 1-3 euros for using the dryer. However, even the smallest load in these places fits a lot of things so you can wash all your clothes with one load.

If you’re using these self-service washing places, they will have washing powder included, so you don’t need to buy one. If you’ll use a washing machine at your accommodation, you can buy washing powder for as cheap as 2 euros that can last for a few weeks. There are also many options of solid washing powders that come in small blocks that can be super easy to carry through the airport.

Try to fit all your electronics in one place

Depending on your job or hobbies, you will have some essential electronics that you’ll need to take with you. And I’m not talking about hair dryers and curling irons here – these are not essentials if you’re traveling light. The key to traveling light is to pick your accommodation in a way that you will have all the stuff you need there.

But, when it comes to essential electronics, we’re talking about your laptop, phone, chargers, cameras, etc.

A tip is to try to fit all of these into the laptop carrier or in one compartment of your suitcase instead of having a separate case for every piece of electronics. There are some great compartments for organizing the electronics that you can buy on Amazon.

However, maybe the best thing is to go for a backpack as an all-in-one solution.

Our advice is to choose a backpack that can cover both traveling and daily working needs. That way you don’t need to pack an additional one, which can save you a lot of space in your suitcase.

In the end, if you need more space, you can always combine the two and separate the backpack with organizing cubes, thus allowing yourself a better-organized space.

Bring energy bars instead of potato chips and other snacks to save space.

If you’re bringing food to your travels, it’s best to buy energy bars or other protein and energy foods that will not take much space but will also keep you going longer.

Chips and other similar snacks will not help you fulfill hunger nor give you energy and will take too much of your space.

Stick to a packing list

This one seems obvious but is very important. Write a strict list of the things you’ll be carrying and stick to it. When you’re not following a list, you’ll put a lot of things you don’t need but found while packing.

If you brainstorm and find out you need only three shirts, stick to it and do not bring the 4th one with you.

Use packing cubes

Packing/organizing cubes like these from Amazon are a smart thing to invest in, especially if you’re carrying a suitcase.

Organizing your clothes in one place, cosmetics in another, and electronics in third, really helps you think about the essentials.

It’s great to have 5-6 packing cubes that you designated to specific categories and stick to those categories. If you already filled out the packing cubes you meant for clothing, don’t pack your clothes anywhere else.

If something can’t fit into the cubes, leave it, or swap it with another piece. This will help you stay on track.

Another great product to invest in are compression packing cubes. Packing your clothes in compression compartments is life-saving and will allow you to bring much more things. There are plenty of options on Amazon for this, too.

We hope these tips will help you pack lighter and be more organized. Remember, living lighter is rewarding and will make your life simpler and more stress-free.

Travel safe!

We appreciate your support!

Thank you for reading our content and following our journey! We are working towards becoming full-time content creators and being able to share stories with you even more frequently. If you’d like to support us to be one step closer to that goal, you can do it through Ko-Fi! 👇🏽

Secure yourself the best travel experience

• SafetyWing – The best travel insurance for digital nomads and remote workers. It is perfect for all people who want to experience a coliving way of lifestyle.

Disclaimer: This article contains some affiliate links.  At no additional cost to you, we can earn a small commission if you decide to make a purchase.

Digital nomad lifestyle

• • Coliving Movement

Coliving 101 – Become a part of a global movement

• ByMarko
• March 12, 2022

• • Coliving Movement

Coworking nomads – How the world is adapting to new philosophy of work

• ByGala
• February 10, 2022

The post How to pack light when traveling as a digital nomad appeared first on My Coliving Space: Spain.

They replaced their stationary offices with many different things, from home offices to coworking spaces, where some of them decided to go even further and bring their working station with them all across the globe.

We already covered this topic in our separate article about coworking nomads, so feel free to check it out.

This trend has become more and more popular among new generations of workers, due to many different reasons, but one certain thing is that this trend has allowed a new living model to be born, and that is coliving.

What is coliving?

Coliving is a new living model, where visitors have an opportunity to share accommodation with other like-minded people, usually remote workers, and digital nomads.

Even though colivings don’t strictly reserve spots for these groups, due to the nature of their jobs, digital nomads, freelancers, and remote workers are the most common enjoyers of this type of lifestyle.

Coliving places are usually equipped with shared working areas, where visitors have the opportunity to carry on with their work without the need to leave their accommodation. This amenity makes these places perfect for people that require a stable internet connection, and a defined working environment.

Keeping all that in mind, since this is still a relatively new model of living, it is hard to give one overall definition for coliving.

Concept of coliving

The co-living model is built on the concept of sharing your life with others and having support from a community of like-minded individuals. This concept is not something new, and it existed in different forms throughout the history of mankind.

Today, we are only going to concentrate on the latest concept of coliving, the one that we see is rising in popularity right now. There are many defining aspects of coliving accommodation, but the next five aspects stand out as the pillars of coliving:

Long-term stays

First of all, coliving does not come from the idea of a standard tourist trip. In fact, it doesn’t even start with the goal of traveling, but more of a goal of experiencing a new way of living.

Instead of focusing on tourist attractions, these places provide you with a genuine local experience and the opportunity to discover what it’s like to live like a local.

For you to enjoy the real benefits of coliving, you should stay at your desired place at least for a month. To support this idea, most colivings actually don’t rent their rooms for shorter stays.

A longer stay will allow you to truly experience how it feels to live there, connect with the local area, and maybe even develop some deeper connections with your fellow colivers.

Shared accommodation

Coliving places are usually have shared areas where visitors can interact with other colivers. The most common ones are the kitchen, working area, communal area, relaxing area, etc.

Unlike hotels and hostels, coliving places put a lot of thought into their communal areas so they would spark conversations and inspire you to come together. Community is a big part of colivings, so the communal areas are also a big part of what makes colivings different compared to other accommodations out there.

However, unlike in hostels, in colivings, you don’t share all rooms with others. Some rooms are there to connect you with others, but you will also have your privacy because, in most places, bedrooms and even bathrooms are private.

A big difference is that hostels are usually oriented towards shorter stays, while, like we already mentioned, coliving places are built for long-term stays. Even though a person can share a room with many different people for a short period, it’s a bit tricky for an adult to stay for a month or longer while never having their privacy.

Building community

Access to the community might be the most important factor that divides coliving places from other types of accommodations. Again, the emphasis here is not on the accommodation but the whole experience, so redefining coliving from “a type of accommodation” to a “way of living” might be the right thing to do.

Colivings are built around their colivers and they offer a place where you can meet other people, co-live, and interact.

Most coliving places are very proud of their communities, considering them as one of their most important qualities.

These places offer a perfect opportunity to meet like-minded people, share your life, ideas, etc.

All these lead us to the next pillar of coliving, which is coworking.

Coworking

Coworking is something that has gained popularity in the last decade or two, and which, in some way, opened room for coliving to fully emerge as a concept. Keeping that in mind, you can say that coliving is built on coworking.

Most of the coliving places have their coworking areas which allow people to have fully-equipped offices built in their accommodation.

This is a super important feature for the new working class. As we said, so many people switched to working remotely, and so many companies started hiring people to work remotely.

Covid definitely had a significant impact on this change, but even without it, it would probably happen very soon.

Companies have realized that they can bring so much more talent in-house without limiting themselves by distance, or even country borders. Along with that, by hiring people remotely, companies found a way to cut costs by not renting offices (that can be so expensive), as well as sometimes paying their employees salaries matching their location.

All in all, so many people started working remotely and soon realized that having a designated working area instead of working from their living rooms, or a coffee shop could be very beneficial on their productivity, expenses, etc. That’s where coworking places started getting attention.

And now, in colivings, coworking mostly goes into the price of your room.

Coliving activities

Coliving activities are something that really adds up value and uniqueness to each coliving space. Usually, the activities revolve around some local-related stuff which additionally provides you with an opportunity to truly experience the place or a city where you are staying.

Coliving owners are the ones that usually organize these activities, and it is a good way to help colivers build some bonds and have fun while doing it.

And of course, they are a perfect way to take your mind from hard work and charge your batteries.

There are no limits to what these activities can be, but usually, they are arts and crafts sessions, wine-tasting, surfing, etc. If you want to check out some of the activities that some places in Spain offer, check these two articles where we talk about this.

Coliving activities in Spain

• • Coliving Movement

List of most unique activities that coliving places in Spain offer

• ByMarko
• April 13, 2022

• • Coliving Movement

8 Most Popular Coliving Activities in Spain

• ByGala
• February 23, 2022

Coliving in Europe

Some of the first coliving places in Europe, in this latest form, started opening at the beginning of the 2010s’.

Today, colivings places exist all over Europe, and they are getting more and more popular. Almost every country in Europe has at least one coliving place.

The biggest players though, are Spain, France, and Germany.

Coliving in Spain

Spain is one the pioneers of the coliving movement in Europe. Some of the first coliving places on the oldest continent start opening here in Spain.

Even though it firstly appeared in this form 7-8 years ago, the big wave of coliving places can be noticed somewhere around the Covid outbreak. This is not unusual. Throughout history, we can see some of the greatest community movements took place during and after tough times.

Covid especially impacted the getting-together and brought loneliness and isolation, so a logical next step was to make places where people can start being part of a group again and surround themselves with others.

Some of the biggest coliving centers are the Canary Islands, Barcelona, and Valencia.

These days there are 20-30 different coliving places around Spain, and you can experience everything from rural coliving to colivings for families.

If you are more interested in discovering about the coliving movement in Spain, you can jump to our separate article where we cover all of that.

Also, recently we started an interview series with coliving owners in Spain, so you can check out their perspective on this movement.

Types of colivings

As we already stated, there isn’t a single definition of what coliving should look like. That is why there are numerous different types of coliving places.

Each of those places has its own approach to coliving, and all of them put some personal touch on this concept. That is one more charm of the coliving movement since it allows its members to shape it.

Some of the most common types of coliving places are:

Rural coliving

Rural coliving is probably the most popular form of coliving. The usual motivation for people choosing this type of coliving is to escape from the everyday chaos of city life.

These types of places allow their colivers exactly that, but also the opportunity to continue with their jobs and have all necessary equipment which they can find in the cities.

These places also often promote sustainability and help the local economies grow. The food is either grown in the coliving and colivers take care of it, or the coliving supplies its food and other necessities from local vendors and thus supports the rural community.

With the increase of people enjoying the digital nomad lifestyle, the gentrification of rural and exotic places also increased. People traveling abroad, renting places, and working from coffee shops has had an impact on the local prices, so places like these come as a great alternative and show that you can also support the local growth and development while enjoying a modern stay with fully equipped amenities.

Coliving for families

Not many coliving places are optimized for people with children, and that is why in recent months there are new places that are dealing with this issue. One of them is iSlow, which is opening its space to visitors in April 2022.

Opening the doors to families with small kids can encourage more young couples not to choose between experiencing the world and starting a family but to embrace it all. Growing up in these settings can have a huge positive impact on the children, which we yet have to explore.

New ways of working mean new ways of lifestyle and that definitely includes family life, so it’s amazing to see that there are places that will try to incorporate that into the new coworking-coliving lifestyle.

Coliving for artists

As we said, coliving places are not restricted only to remote workers and traveling freelancers. Some colivings are targeting different groups of visitors.

One representative of these places can be Kalart. They have a process of selection where they are looking to filter out and enrich their community with a diversity of different types of creatives and artists.

They do not target people who would work on their laptops 8 hours a day, but instead people that would share their art skills, make music together, tell stories, etc.

Coliving places for students

Even though coliving places are oriented towards a bit older audience, there are still places that target students and younger people.

These places are more organized around parties and student lifestyles instead of the traditional coworking approach. One of the examples is Coliving Porto which often hosts Erasmus students.

Benefits of coliving

This model of living has so many benefits to offer and it allows its visitors to fully enjoy the local aspect while staying in a new place.

Other than that, coliving places give a sense of community. In the last few decades we were all transitioning to a digital era, and like with any other transition, we lost a bit of ourselves in the process. The communities have weakened, and people became more private and individually-oriented.

Now all our lives are tightly connected to our screens. Instead of going for a coffee, we can now hang out with friends over video calls, instead of visiting the gym, we can work out in our bedroom watching an influencer online, instead of cooking, your dinner can now be at your doorstep in just a few clicks.

Now, you can listen to whole concerts on streaming platforms, talk to your colleagues via chat, and your kids can learn in virtual classrooms while looking at their peers through the screen.

After a decade of improving the technology to be able to do all these things online, we’re all now in desperate need of connecting in real life.

We need to connect with:

• Ourselves
• Our friends, colleagues, our family
• The food; our bodies, our health
• The nature, the art, the freedom

Colivings are built on the above – the real connection in the real world but without going completely offline; they’re about bringing the balance into our lives and doing it together.

We appreciate your support!

Thank you for reading our content and following our journey! We are working towards becoming full-time content creators and being able to share stories with you even more frequently. If you’d like to support us to be one step closer to that goal, you can do it through Ko-Fi! 👇🏽

Secure yourself the best coliving experience

• Coliving.com – The most popular platform for finding coliving spaces online. On top of that, they have the biggest base of coliving accommodation in the world.
• SafetyWing – The best travel insurance for digital nomads and remote workers. It is perfect for all people who want to experience a coliving way of lifestyle.

Disclaimer: This article contains some affiliate links.  At no additional cost for you, we can earn a small commission if you decide to make a purchase.

Coliving

• • Coliving Movement

How to choose the right coliving for yourself?

• ByGala
• January 23, 2022

• • Coliving Movement

Why Spain should be your first coliving experience?

• ByMarko
• November 18, 2021

The post Coliving 101 – Become a part of a global movement appeared first on My Coliving Space: Spain.

With a completely new work culture, new ways of living and connecting with people are also taking over. The world from 5 years ago can no longer keep up with our lives and fulfill our needs so friend groups, coworkers, and even families are changing to accommodate these needs.

Coliving spaces are one of these new-world creations made to meet the needs of a new working class – freelancers, digital nomads, travelers, and millennials that are trying to figure out themselves in this new world shift.

How is the world of work changing?

People quitting 9 – 5 jobs

The classical 9-5 jobs are less and less popular, and merging your work into your life is becoming a reality. There are many people jokingly saying „I quit my 9-5 so I can start my own business, and now I’m working 24/7“.

The truth is that we, as a society, are working more than ever because we have learned how to support our lifestyles by doing what we love.

Even though quitting 9-5 and living out of your hobby sounds like a dream, it can also more easily lead to burnout. The motivation for work when the product or service is completely and solely yours hits differently and you can find yourself pushing your limits way more than you should.

While the new work philosophy emphasizes people’s true callings and inspires young to explore their passions, it also calls for a completely new vision of work-life balance.

Flexible working hours

Another perk of today’s work philosophy is flexible working hours. The ability to micromanage your working hours puts your life before your work.

We are finally realizing that we should not be aligning our lives with our work, but the other way around. This philosophy also gives you the opportunity to look into your needs and address them instead of pushing them under the rug because you’re focused on work.

People finally have time to stop and meet their micro needs on a daily basis. You can pick the times for your hobbies and relaxation, which gives you space to unlock all these new things within yourself.

With this newly-acquired time on our hands, we’re starting to become aware that we have other needs to satisfy, and that the traditional work-life culture isn’t made for that.

That’s why new social settings are emerging and creating spaces for people to express themselves beyond work. With the change of the working culture, the entertainment, relaxation, and social norms are also changing.

People are seeking connections, places, and activities that will help them relax by inspiring them instead of making them numb.

Ability to work remote

Today, most of us can take our work wherever we go. You pack your laptop in your backpack, and you can work from anywhere and anytime. However, there is a downside to this lifestyle that we’re all rushing into. Silly as it sounds, being always from your work in the past also meant disconnecting from it and letting your mind focus on something else.

Even if being this flexible sounds convenient, this means that work can always sneak into your mind even when you’re trying to relax. Remote work means that your office can be anywhere, but it also means that your office might be everywhere.

That’s why one of the rules of the new working culture is knowing how to set boundaries, for others but also for yourself.

Bigger responsibilities

Another huge change is that so many young people today are CEOs, managers, or other roles that bring a lot of responsibility. 10-20 years ago, people trained years to take that kind of responsibility, and now, only with opening your online store or setting up your online business, you are in charge of it all.

Most young people are actually aspiring to take on their business – at least a lot more people than before. Owning your business is not reserved for the special ones anymore, and practically with the right motivation, anybody can do it – which is amazing!

But, because of that, young people today bear this enormous responsibility toward their jobs while also juggling to maintain/build social connections, relax, travel, maintain or start relationships, and be young and live their best lives. And all that can be overwhelming.

Colivings as spaces made to meet the needs of the new working generation

In this new working setting, we are all in tremendous need of community support.

Digital nomads, freelancers, and remote workers all have one thing in common, and that is that they very often work alone most of their time. At least if they don’t join working communities like coworking spaces or coliving spaces. Colivings understand the need for remote workers to connect with others like themselves.

Without classical office jobs, we’re also missing people with whom we could share our problems on launch breaks, who might understand us because we’re working for the same company, etc. And these all are important for one’s mental health.

Besides community, coliving spaces are made to meet both the working and leisure needs of the new working generation with spaces thoughtfully designed to inspire the mind and balance out the work-life relationship.

Colivings offer a built-in community. (Coliving communities)

Coliving spaces focus on building new-age communities of people with similar views on the world. These communities are meant to help people connect with others like themselves and share a part of their world with people who will truly understand them.

When choosing to work as a digital nomad or travel while working, you might not receive support from your regular community. Your friends or family who live traditional lives might not understand your needs or your problems, so connecting with people who do can really make a difference in your mental health.

Not only do these communities offer support, but you can also meet so many talented people that can help you build your business. You might meet people that could contribute to your story or help connect with others that can help your wheels roll. These communities are all about sharing ideas, exploring together, and sharing services and talents.

Colivings are built to help you unwind after work.

Working remotely and especially running your own business can be extremely exhausting. Working long hours on your computer can affect a person’s overall health and disconnect them from reality.

Having that in mind, coliving spaces focus on providing safe spaces for relaxing and connecting with people enriched with fun and inspirational activities that help you unwind and introduce some balance in your life.

These can be yoga classes to help your mind and body, surfing to help your body and soul, music-listening sessions to open, relax and inspire you, cooking together to help you connect with others and feed your sensory needs, etc.

Watching a movie or a show is something we still love and do, but since our worlds have moved into the digital space, it’s important to participate in activities that disconnect us from the screen.

Coliving spaces prioritize the importance of reconnecting with nature, people around you, and yourself, so even if you don’t know how to introduce these changes yourself, the surroundings will motivate you.

Here is a list of some of the most unique experiences colivings offer to meet your soul’s needs if you’d like to get inspired.

Providing a healthy working environment

Being built for the new generation of workers, colivings almost always come with coworking spaces. These spaces are also always carefully crafted for the needs of a digital worker. They are well-equipped with up-to-date amenities, office furniture, and all you might need for peaceful and productive work.

The work environment is especially important for productive and stressless work, so these spaces are often designed to inspire you and help you concentrate.

A healthy space should have a lot of natural light, good airflow, be decluttered, and provide you with reliable equipment and amenities.

Besides all that, coworking spaces give you coworkers even if you’re working on your laptop, so there is always the opportunity to take a break and have a chat with someone, share a smile, or just take a stroll with someone on your break. That really makes a difference.

Living lighter

Visiting coliving spaces means traveling, and because the stays are almost always at least a few weeks long, it might even mean “moving” a lot. After going away for the first few times, you will realize that living lighter is not only easier for traveling but also easier for the mind.

You will not be able to carry all your material belongings with you wherever you go, and you will need to learn to choose what is really important. This will also help you realize that many things that you own are probably not as important for your everyday life as you might have thought.

Learning to live lighter is so beneficial for the environment and yourself as an individual. This way, you will learn not to spend money on unnecessary things and leave the money to spend on experiences that will stick with you forever. It will also teach you not to support fast fashion, overconsumption and thus, you will be helping the environment.

Living light is hard to start, but once you get used to it – it’s worth it. You will find that living light means no more frustration about the material things; more creativity when it comes to fashion and clothes, more creativity overall when it comes to living, and more time and money to spend on valuable experiences that will enrich you emotionally, and spiritually.

We appreciate your support!

Thank you for reading our content and following our journey! We are working towards becoming full-time content creators and being able to share stories with you even more frequently. If you’d like to support us to be one step closer to that goal, you can do it through Ko-Fi! 👇🏽

Secure yourself the best coliving experience

• Coliving.com – The most popular platform for finding coliving spaces online. On top of that, they have the biggest base of coliving accommodation in the world.
• SafetyWing – The best travel insurance for digital nomads and remote workers. It is perfect for all people who want to experience a coliving way of lifestyle.

Disclaimer: This article contains some affiliate links.  At no additional cost for you, we can earn a small commission if you decide to make a purchase.

Coliving

• • Coliving Movement

How to choose the right coliving for yourself?

• ByGala
• January 23, 2022

• • Coliving Movement

Why Spain should be your first coliving experience?

• ByMarko
• November 18, 2021

The post Coworking nomads – How the world is adapting to new philosophy of work appeared first on My Coliving Space: Spain.