One Bag Packing List (4 Seasons, 6 kg)

Travel gets easier when you carry less.
This is my one bag packing list, learned from many years of travelling with just a single small backpack, for work, for pleasure, and across very different climates. If you’d rather enjoy the journey than drag a suitcase around, this approach is for you. It’s practical, flexible, and designed for real trips, not hypothetical packing scenarios.

For me, packing light starts with weighing everything. It helps me decide what to bring, what to leave behind, and what can be swapped for something lighter or more useful.

4-Season Travel in One Small Bag total bag weight 6Kg - picture of Fjallrave 24L backpack with a weight background of contents

Summary Weight Table

The summary table below shows the total weight of everything I bring, including clothes, shoes, toiletries, tech (including a laptop), and everything else. Yes, it’s a bit nerdy. But I’m asked so often how I manage to travel with just one small bag that writing it all down felt easier than explaining it yet again.

Category	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Bags	480	100	24L Backpack & Small Crossbody bag (fits in the backpack)
Clothes	3,000	1,532	4 Seasons down to around 0℃, I may bring less
Shoes	406	605	1 worn and 1 packed
Travel Tech	1,193	751	Includes 13″ Laptop and E-reader
Travel Toiletries	668	103	Everything I need for at least a month
Everything Else	329	647	Down to the last pen and packing cube
TOTAL	6,076	3,738

Worn Weight – Travel Clothes plus small crossbody bag and contents. It can fit in my main bag if needed.

I use a 33-item counting system to keep my travel wardrobe compact. While the individual pieces for a trip sometimes vary, this represents everything packed for trips where both hot and cold weather are expected. It gets reduced further, or items swapped, if a narrower temerature range is expected.

4 season travel wardrobe in a 24l litre bag (Fjallraven High Coast Foldsack)

Each section below breaks down these items in detail, including individual weights.

This guide may include a few affiliate links. If you choose to buy something through one of them, I may earn a small commission (at no cost to you). Thank you for supporting One Small Bag and helping keep this resource ad-free and independent.

Bags

I use a Fjällräven High Coast Foldsack for every trip. It’s lightweight, comfortable, and adjustable in size, with a supportive back system that feels closer to a light hiking pack than a typical travel backpack.

Although clamshell backpacks are popular, I now prefer a top loader for comfort, looks, and ease of packing. I pack by pre-assembling small “components” in packing cubes and pouches, then dropping them straight into the bag. This makes packing and unpacking quick, with no rummaging at the bottom.

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Fjallraven 24L High Coast Foldsack	460	0	1/33
Nylon Crescent Bag	0	100	2/33
TOTAL	460	100

4 Season Clothing

Items may vary from trip to trip, but this is typical for a multi-season trip. Warmth is achieved by layering eg 3 jackets can be worn together or separately, tops can be layered, Tights/leggings can be worn under trousers. Ultralight tech trousers can be worn as over trousers.

While I’ve written this as a packing list for me as a female,it could easily be adapted to suit everyone. It’s designed to work to around -5C (with multiple layers) but not into arctic conditions.

Travel Capsule

These clothes are examples of the things I wear, I do interchange them with other things. Mostly regular clothes, with a few merino pieces. Obviously replace this with your own clothes but hopefully the weights will be useful as a guide to compare your clothes to.

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Nellie notch t shirt (white stuff)	143	0	3/33 Short Sleeve Top 1
Merino waistcoat (M&S)	200	0	4/33 Short Sleeve Top 2
Merino Blend Top (Icebreaker)	132	0	5/33 Short Sleeve Top 3
Smart V Neck long sleeve top (Wool&)	180	0	6/33 Long Sleeve Top 1
Merino crew neck Sweater (M&S)	0	205	7/33 Long Sleeve Top 2
Annie Button Down (White stuff)	0	226	8/33 Long Sleeve Top 3
Asana Straight Leg Pants (Ninepine)	0	345	9/33 Trousers 1 – Smart Black yoga straight leg pants
Kiwi Pro Hiking Trousers (Craghoppers)	310	0	10/33 Trousers 2 – Plain, non shiny, not just for hiking
Regatta Packable Zip-off Trousers	290	0	11/33 Trousers 3 0 – can be worn as shorts or as overtrousers
Sun Dress – Long (Ripskirt)	199	0	12/33 Dress 1 – Longer length – also worn with a top to look like a skirt
Merino Summer Reversible Dress (Wool&)	237	0	13/33 Dress 2 – worn mainly as nightdress, but useful backup dress
SUBTOTAL	1,691	776

Jackets / Outerwear

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Jeans Jacket style (Roman)	0	470	14/33 Not denim, fabric lighter and more packable
Down Puffer Jacket (Decathlon)	350	0	15/33 Designed for temperatures down to -5C
Packable Raincoat (33,000 degrees)	263	0	16/33 Oversize so it can be worn over the other two jackets and other layers
SUBTOTAL	613	470

Underwear, Swimwear and Sleepwear

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Socks	90	30	17-19/33 various thickness – merino blend or synthetic
Briefs	60	30	20-22/ 1 worn, 1 clean, 1 laundered. Sometimes I bring more, but always washed overnight, lightweight
Bra	88	0	23/33 Nothing different required for travel
Bra top/Tankini Top &shorts	70	196	24/33 Used for swimming, sleeping, exercise or extra underwear/top
Sleepwear	0	0	Sleepwear options – Black merino dress or top and shorts/tights/leggings. No extra items needed
Merino Tights/Leggings	120	0	25/33
SUBTOTAL	428	256

Clothing Accessories

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Scarf	100	0	26/33 Scarf from Decathlon
Buff e.g. Ecostretch (Buff)	0	30	27/33 multi-purpose, hat, neck warmer or sun protection, head covering, hair band/tie, eye mask, face mask, ear protection
Warm Hat	38	0	28/33 merino hat from Decathlon
Bucket Hat	50	0	29/33 Packable hat for sun or rain
Gloves	40	0	30/33 touchscreen from Decathlon
Belt	40	0	31/33 lightweight, smart
SUBTOTAL	268	30

Total for Clothes

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)
Travel Capsule	1,691	776
Outerwear	613	470
Underwear, Swimwear and Sleepwear	428	256
Clothing Accessories	268	30
TOTAL	3,000	1,532

Footwear

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Boots / Sneakers	0	655	32/33 Lightweight Zip Ankle Boots (Rieker)
Packable Pair	406	0	33/33 eg sandals, loafers or ballet flat. Josef Siebel Rosalie Closed toe sandals shown
TOTAL	406	655

Travel TecH

This is a gear list of all the travel tech I bring with me. Do Check: Lightweight Tech for Travel: What to Pack and What to Skip, for further details as to why I picked these items and why they work for me.

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Mobile Phone	0	274	Pixel 7 Pro – Not the most modern phone but it still works well
HP Aero 7 Omnibook 13″	990	0	Ultralight laptop – lighter than Mac equivalent
Fast Charge 65W Flat plug with EU/UK/US plug ends (Ugreen)	159	0	Ends cover travels for much of the world without bringing a separate bulky adapter
10,000mAH tiny 45W powerbank (Iniu)	0	163	Ultralight with 3 ports, passthrough charging, digital display and attached USB-C cable
100W Fast Charge PD USB-C to USB-C Cable (Anker)	18	0	Replaces laptop cable when used with Ugreen plug
Flex Wireless Magnetic Earphones (Beats)	0	19	Less easy to drop and lose than airpods
Colour E-reader (Kobo) and case	0	284	Chosen over kindle for colour option and library integration (UK)
Tracker (Chipolo)	8	8	Similar to Airtag but compatible with Android and Iphone
USB-C to USB-A adapter (BaseSailor)	0	3	Converts USB-C cable to USB-A
Small Zip pouch (Sostrene Grene)	18	0	Small Pouch for Small Loose Tech items
TOTAL	1,193	751

Ultralight Tech setup including 13 inch HP laptop for International Travel — Ultralight Tech in my One Small Bag

Travel Toiletries

This is a list of all the toiletries I bring with me. Do Check: Carry-On Toiletries for a Month? Here’s What I Fit in a Tiny Pouch for further details as to why I picked these items and why they work for me.

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Face and Body Bar (Upcircle)	60	0	Gentle bar designed for face and suitable all over.
Shampoo Bar (Garnier Ultimate Blends)	62	0	Finding the right shampoo bar for your hair can be tricky, this one suits mine.
Travel Soap Bag including net bag (Uliya)	35	0	Helps dry the bar out without leaking, stopping it from going mushy.
Huile Prodigieuse Multi-Purpose Dry Oil (Nuxe)	97	0	Multi-use: Replaces Hair Conditioner, face and body lotions, oils and creams
Deodorant Balm (Nuxe)	29	0	Nuxe Deodorant Balm Tin
Electric Travel Toothbrush (Sonisk)	44	0	Lightweight and suprisingly effective
Dental Tablets (Sonisk)	34	0	Lighter than toothpaste and you can bring as few or as many as you need
Mini dental floss (Superdrug)	11	0
Comb and nail file set (Kent)	26	0
Razor and Spare Blade (Venus Snap)	18	0
Nailcare: Swisscard multi-tool (Victorinox)	0	27
Sunscreen Stick SPF50 (Neutrogena)	0	76
Foundation, lipstick, mascara, eye pencil,	75	0
Travel Mirror (Muji)	13	0
Large Ultralight Towel (Matador)	82	0	Airlite Towel (Sea to Summit) is also an excellent ultralight option
Mesh Soap Bag for Shampoo Bar (Kitsch)	2	0
Hanging Toiletry Bag (Sostrene Grene)	80	0	Travelinglite Toiletry Bag (Sea to Summit) also excellent
TOTAL	668	103

Feminine products not personally needed, so not included

Flat lay of minimalist carry-on toiletries for travel, including folding toothbrush, toothpaste tablets, shampoo bar, multi-use oil, BB cream, solid deodorant, compact comb, and a small floral pouch. Lightweight setup from One Small Bag. — Toiletry Kit (Slightly reduced version from above list)

Everything Else

So this is everything else, the emergemcy just in case items and the general stuff I carry in my Crossbody bag (Every Day Carry) I’ve featured some of the items in Minimalist Travel Essentials: My Top 15 Tiny Travel Accessories.

Item	Packed (g)	Worn (g)	Notes
Small Packing Cube – Single (Muji)	30	0
Small Packing Cube – Double (Muji)	50	0
First Aid Essentials	25	0
Sewing Kit (Muji)	16	0
Travel Pillow Outer	0	30	An inflatable one with inner removed – filled with puffy jacket for sleeping
Humangear Folding Fork & Spoon	0	28
Tea and coffee sachets	0	10
Laundry detergent sheets (Dr Beckmann)	30	0	In zip lock bag
Quiet 2 Ear Plugs (Loop)	10	0
Passport Wallet	0	200	To protect and keep passport safe + copies of documents
Ultralight Wallet (Muji)	60	0	Ultralight wallet – splits money and cards betweeen main bag and EDC
Water Bottle with cup (Dopper)	138	0
Ultralight umbrella (Fulton)	0	92
15L Packable Backpack (Nanobag)	0	30
Tissues	0	15
Spare Glasses in ultralight hard case (Filley)	0	82
Keys	0	80
Notebook and Pen	0	80
TOTAL	329	647

Explore Minimalist Packing

Here’s a growing selection of posts related to packing light. This covers the items chosen in more deail than the weight tables above.

4-Season Travel in One Small Bag (6 kg)