MANILA, Philippines – Checking in baggage for your flight can be quite convenient, but there are times when the expenses can add up. This can be true especially for international flights, with their higher baggage fees. And, if you are taking more than one international flight to your destination, you can easily spend P1000 just for baggage.

Here’s what you can do this summer to avoid check-in fees and still bring what you need. 

1. Bring clothes (as lightweight as possible) only good for the number of days and the activities of your trip. For longer trips, do laundry.

Pack clothes just enough for each day of your trip. At most, bring only an extra change of clothes on top of your clothes allotted for each day. You can fit up to 4 days’ worth of clothes in your hand-carried luggage, and you can stretch that to a weeks’ worth if the clothes are lightweight.

If you feel your bag will be too heavy, be prepared to do laundry or have your laundry done. 

Aside from managing the number of clothing items, research on the activities you will be doing and only pack the appropriate outfits. If there’s only a slim chance you’ll be invited to a party, do you really need to bring a cocktail dress and heels? If you are going to a party on or near the beach, a sundress for women and a casual polo and light pants for men are dressy enough.  Flip-flops or casual sandals are good enough as footwear. 

For a 4-day trip involving beach or any water activities, I usually pack, as shown in the photo below:

• 2 swimsuits
• 1 pair of board shorts
• 1 swimsuit cover-up
• 1 sarong (lighter alternative to a towel)
• 6 tops (3 for going out, 3 for sleepwear)
• 4 pairs of shorts (or 2 pairs of shorts and 2 pairs of pants)
• 1 sundress
• Underwear
• Flip-flops

The total weight usually comes to less than 5 kg, which is actually good even for Boracay, where the baggage allowance is often only 5 kg.

I don’t usually pack my heavier clothes or footwear; I wear them on the day of my flight so they are not  counted in the baggage. When the trip calls for some trekking, for example, I wear my trekking sandals to the airport. A cardigan or sweater is a must for me as the air conditioning in the plane can get really cold sometimes.

2. Store your toiletries and other personal care products in small containers.

The allowed weight by airports for hand-carried liquids is 100 ml or less, so bring only 100 ml containers or smaller. You can buy sachets of shampoo and lotions, or, for an eco-friendly option, you can recycle small bottles of personal care products like Human Nature or buy travel-sized containers from specialty stores like Beabi. You don’t need to fill the containers all the way up, either – just make sure they’re enough for your trip.

Or, you can also make use of extra soap and shampoo from accommodations you stayed at on your previous trips, especially if you will be staying at a hostel or inn – which may not have free toiletries – for your upcoming trip. For overnights stays at a hotel or staycations, I usually save the soap bar for longer trips since I know I won’t be using up the hotel soap on a short overnight stay.

(READ: Packing for a trip? 9 common dilemmas)

3. Limit your gadgets.

Gadgets – especially laptops – can considerably eat up your 7-kilogram baggage allowance. Unless you will be working during your trip (and actually, sometimes, a tablet can suffice), don’t bring a laptop.

A smartphone may actually be enough if you just want to check the Internet occasionally and take photos, especially if you are satisfied with the image quality. In addition, if you have a waterproof camera, you can bring it to document your underwater activities. 

I usually just bring my old-school phone (no Wi-Fi access) and my digital camera for a trip. Sometimes I borrow my brother’s iPod touch for Internet access. Or, I simply go to an Internet café during my trip. Some hostels and inns, too, have computers free for guests’ use, so I take advantage of that too. 

4. Make room for your essentials.

Essentials can vary from person to person. It may be your meds and supplements, or it may be an item you always bring on your travels, or for this specific travel. Just make sure that these are items you really need for this trip.

I always bring a water bottle I can easily refill when water is available, a scarf or headgear to cover my head from the sun, especially when trekking, and a notebook and pen for writing. I also bring supplements like drops for the eyes, ears and throat. Sometimes I also bring my snorkeling gear if I know there are rich marine sanctuaries in the area.

5. Consider the weight of your backpack or suitcase.

The bag itself is another item that can eat up baggage allowance, so make sure you factor that in when packing. My backpack weighs a little over 800 grams, which means I have only roughly six kg left for packing. 

If you don’t have a backpack or suitcase yet, consider shopping for a lightweight one. Bring a portable weighing scale to compare the weights. You can look at the different brands in department stores, or you can try travel or outdoor shops like R.O.X. 

6. Don’t pack such that your baggage will be exactly 7 kg.

Pack less than 7 kilograms. Allow for at least a few hundred grams difference. Even though your weighing scale at home may be digital, it is best to be on the safe side. One time, my supposedly 6.9-kilogram backpack turned out to be 7.2 kg at the airport. The check-in staff let the balance weight go, but it was a lesson for me to leave more allowance when packing next time. 

7. Be flexible.

If, after following these tips, you still find your baggage to be over 7 kg, you might need to give up some items, or find lighter substitutes. For example, I usually trade even my light pants for shorts. But in other places, like Myanmar for instance, pants or long skirts are a must.

For that trip, I flew to Kuala Lumpur and then to Penang, before taking the train back to Kuala Lumpur to fly to Yangon, Myanmar. I didn’t want to buy baggage for those three journeys. I didn’t have many light pants anyway, and I like buying clothes in other countries, so I bought pants in Penang. And, since they were light enough, I didn’t need to check in a bag for my flight to Yangon.

Packing less than 7 kg for your trip may be difficult at first, but as you do it more often, you may find yourself enjoying its benefits, like breezing through the airport upon your arrival, without waiting for your checked baggage. And of course, you save a few hundred pesos or more. –Rappler.com

Claire Madarang is a writer, traveler and seeker. Her wanderlust takes her on adventures like backpacking for 7 weeks straight. Her seeking leads her to different wellness practices like meditation and healthy (mostly vegetarian) eating. Follow her adventures, tips and epiphanies at her blog, Traveling Light.