25 Essentials for Cold Weather Travel: Winter Travel Packing List

Living in California makes us antsy for winter. We crave snow and cold weather and yearn for hot mulled cider and a crackling fire. The good news is that living in the San Francisco Bay Area means snow is only a few hours away from us, so we’ve developed a habit of taking weekend getaways to explore snowy destinations in California like Yosemite and Lake Tahoe. And every year around Christmas, we jet off somewhere cold, like Europe or Canada.

We love frolicking in the snow just as much as some folks love laying on a beach, but we’ve learned to pack carefully to prepare our coastal California bodies for for legitimate cold (which, to us, is anything under 50 degrees).

In this post we’re laying out all of our favorite, field-tested essentials for winter travel, from gear to clothing. If you’ve ever read any of our guides before, we’re REAL persnickety about stuff, so please excuse us if we nerd out and like, wax poetic about the scientific properties of merino wool or whatever. We live for that sh*t. Spoilers: you’re gonna learn a lot about merino wool in this post.

Wondering where to take a snowy winter trip this year? Here are some of our favorite destinations. You can also read all of our posts about traveling in the winter (you get bonus points for binge reading, y’all) .

• 12 Charming Things to Do in Copenhagen in Winter
• 12 Epic Things to do in Banff in Winter: The Ultimate Banff Winter Guide
• The 4 Best Salt Lake City Ski Resorts for a Weekend Getaway

Hey, need a handy dandy checklist to help you pack? We’ve got a printable version of this post that includes EVERYTHING you’ll need for your trip. Sign up in the box below and we’ll deliver it right to your inbox. Just call us the fairy godmother of packing lists!

How to Pack Winter Clothes into a Carry-On

Before I started traveling regularly to snowy destinations to get my winter fix on, I wasn’t sure if it was actually possible to pack light for winter travel. I mean, isn’t everything insanely bulky?!

Well, after backpacking through Europe in December and January with nothing but a backpack, we learned that yes, it IS possible – and you can absolutely pack all your winter clothes in a carry on! (Psst: read all of the posts we’ve written about visiting Europe in the winter.)

Here’s the trick: wear all of your heaviest stuff on your travel days – like your bulky jacket, that scarf that’s as big as a blanket, and so on.

Other than your bulky stuff, everything else you pack should be soft, lightweight, and travel-friendly – and you want your clothes to pull double duty so you don’t need as many of them overall.

We’ll talk more about this below, but in order to achieve the difficult goal of packing light for winter travel we get REAL nerdy about textiles. And no, it’s not just because Lia has a degree in fashion design. Well OK, that does help a lot, actually.

Like, a merino wool sweater will keep you roughly 86252526x as warm as an acrylic sweater, meaning you have fewer layers overall that you need to bring.

The beauty of winter travel is that 99% of the time, all anyone is going to see is the very outer layer of your clothing. So as long as you’ve got clothes that can withstand being worn over and over again, you really don’t actually need to bring very many items.

Our typical cold weather packing list looks something like this (we’ll get into specifics in a bit):

• Two pairs of pants. We both bring our favorite pair of travel jeans. I bring a pair of warm leggings, and Jeremy brings a pair of chinos to spice things up.
• 2-3 Sweaters. We look for a few neutral-colored sweaters that are made from at LEAST 20% merino wool and aren’t bulky.
• 2-3 Collared Shirts. These get layered under the sweaters for a variety of spiffy sweater/collared shirt looks. I dress mine up with statement necklaces and Jeremy dresses his up with scarves and a well groomed ginger beard. You’d hardly even know we were backpackers! ... Except for the fact that we’re carrying backpacks. And sleeping in hostels. Still, though.
• 1-2 T-Shirts. These get layered underneath our other clothing as needed and worn to bed. I also bring a cardigan so that I can mix things up from the whole sweater/collared shirt situation on those warm, balmy 40 degree days. My favorite t-shirts to wear in cold weather are made of hemp, which is naturally insulating and anti-bacterial, just like wool.
• 1 Skirt: To switch things up from the ol’ sweater routine, I bring a cute skirt that I can wear with my t-shirts, button-down shirts, or sweaters. I wear leggings or tights underneath to keep my legs warm, and a little belt to dress it up. Bam: that’s like, TRIPLE the outfit options.
• 1-2 Scarves. You’ll be wearing these every day and they’ll be in every picture. So if there’s one accessory you’re really going to be extra about, make it your scarves! I have a scarf collection that spans every color, so I usually match her scarves to her sweaters when deciding which to bring. Jeremy … has one scarf. It is a good scarf. It is dark grey.
• 1-2 Hats. Jeremy brings a gray beanie that goes with everything, and I bring a couple of hats in different colors. You know, for accessorizing.
• 2 Jackets: We each wear our bulky outer jacket, and bring another jacket that squishes down really small and weighs almost nothing.
• 1 Pair of Shoes: Yep, really, just one. We’ve found the PERFECT pair of boots for cold weather and they’re all we need to bring. Plus we wear them every day so we don’t even have to bother packing them in our bags. 
• Toiletries/Makeup/Gear/Yadda Yadda. We try to keep this bit as lightweight as possible – Lia has mastered the art of packing travel makeup and we’ve managed to get all of our gear to fit into one single packing cube.

Whoop, there it is: one carry-on bag each. Er, plus our camera bag. Annnnnnd a day bag. We wear those in front. So like … two carry-on bags each. STILL COUNTS, EUROPEAN BUDGET AIRLINES.

Winter Travel Essentials

From guarding against horrifyingly dry air to what to carry all your stuff around in, here are a few of our travel essentials for your next cold-weather vacation.

• Winter Sports Gear: Between the two of us, Jeremy snowboards a few times a year and I’ve been snowshoeing exactly 3 times and taken 1 ski lesson. So we’re not like, extreme athletes or anything. But if you’re planning to try a few winter sports on your trip, bringing a few things can easily be packed in your suitcase will save you cash on rentals. Jeremy recommends these goggles and these gloves. If the snow is hard enough, these travel-friendly crampons that go over your regular hiking boots are all you need for snowshoeing. For clothing – which is also perfect for snowshoeing or other outdoor sporting adventures – he wears his rain pants over his hiking pants (over his wool under-layer when it’s super cold out). On top, he layers a wool long sleeve shirt with his rain jacket, plus his packable down jacket when he needs an extra warm layer. Here are the femme equivalents of all of those items: rain pants, hiking pants, wool leggings, wool shirt, rain jacket, packable down jacket.
• Chapstick & Moisturizer: The air in winter is dry as a bone. You’d think like, snow might help, but no. Spend a few days adventuring in the winter and you’re gonna end up with chapped lips and thirsty, parched skin! So I highly recommend carrying some good quality chapstick with you during your trip. I love these handmade, all-natural lip balms from Etsy that come in compostable packaging! I also recommend using a heavy moisturizer like this one on your face every night. I also recommend taking alone something you can use for chapped skin elsewhere, like your elbows, feet, and hands. I’m obsessed with this Burt’s Bees salve; Jeremy and I slather it on ourselves religiously during the winter. Don’t forget to bring some intensive moisturizer like this for your hair, too!
• Travel Insurance: At this point in our lives, we never travel anywhere without travel insurance. We’re way too accident-prone to risk it! We’ve filed several claims with World Nomads, so at this point, our insurance policies have all paid for themselves. Not sure if that’s like, a good thing, or just a sign that we should probably lock ourselves indoors and barricade the room with pillows…
• Bra Pocket or Money Belt: So, confession: I can’t stand purses. It’s not just because they’re easily snatched and stolen. They’re also just a giant hassle. From leaving them behind to aching shoulders to getting tangled up in coat sleeves, purses and I just do not get along. But putting your money in your pocket in an easy-to-snatch wallet is a terrible idea, so my travel solution is a handy little Bra Pocket. It snaps onto my bra and hangs out inconspicuously between the girls, ready the moment I need to take out a card. Nothing got lost or stolen, especially since it’s buried underneath 18 layers of scarves and sweaters. I highly recommend one. I’ll never go back to purses & wallets! As for dudes or anyone else living that bra-free life, Jeremy wears a money belt.

• Day Bag: You’ll want a bag with you to store things like extra layers, your camera, a phone charger, snacks, and whatever trinkets you pick up while you’re out exploring – you know, the essentials. I carried this super cute day bag with me every single day packed with my packable down jacket, an extra pair of gloves, and anything else I needed for the day. We also have this theft-resistant camera bag specifically for our camera gear, because we’re extra AF professional bloggers or whatever. If you don’t have like … camera gear, you probably don’t need it, but if you do, it’s REALLY nice.
• Carry-On Luggage: We recommend packing everything into carry-on luggage so you’re able to take advantage of the crazy deals offered by Ryanair, Norwegian, and Wow. Also, because it’s way easier than schlepping around a giant suitcase! We already covered our tips for packing light for winter travel above, but there’s one last thing you’ll need: a carry-on bag. If you’re partial to backpacks, this PacSafe bag is comfortable, roomy, and as theft deterrent as it gets – it’s our go-to backpack for carry-on travel. It’s also perfect for tossing comfortably on your back and navigating through icy cobblestone streets, running through train stations and airports, or carrying up to a wintry cabin.  But if you prefer rolling luggage,the Away suitcase is as beautiful as it is high-tech, with a built-in portable charger, an incredibly durable exterior, tons of space, and a built-in dirty laundry compressor (whaaaaat, game-changing).
• Travel-Friendly Camera: Although our camera of choice is a hefty, professional-grade Sony A7R II, you don’t need all that to get great photos of your vacation. All you need is a travel-friendly pocket-sized Canon Powershot, which appears deceptively cheap and old-fashioned to potential thieves but actually takes AMAZING photos. This is what we used before we eventually upgraded to our pricey DSLR. If you’ll be going snowboarding or taking sweeping landscape shots, a GoPro is a great choice.

Clothing to Pack for Winter Travel

Here are our recommendations for clothing that’s both functional AND super cute to wear on winter trips! These are our tried and tested essentials. No vague suggestions here, just the actual pieces of clothing that make it into our suitcases for every single winter trip we take.

Underneath Your Clothes

THERE’S AN ENDLESS STORY … THERE’S THE MAN I CHOSE, THERE’S MY TERRITORY! Sorry, that’s going to be stuck in your head for the rest of the day. But Shakira is a queen, so.

ANYWAY, back to things that are actually useful: what to wear underneath your clothes (see, you just sang that, didn’t you) to help regulate your body temperature.

The goal isn’t just to keep heat in, but also to prevent you from overheating when you walk inside a 70 degree building after running around in 30 degree weather outside.

You know that feeling – the “oh god I’m so hot is this what hypothermia feels like because I need all these layers off of me RIGHT NOW” feeling. It’s usually followed shortly thereafter with the “how am I so sweaty it’s 30 degrees outside” feeling. Ick. No thank you.

We cannot stress enough how amazing merino wool is at preventing you from having to use the word moist to describe yourself. Ugh, did anyone else just audibly shudder? 

Merino wool is a travel miracle fabric.

It keeps you warm when it’s cold out, but it keeps you cool when it’s hot out – and it wicks and regulates moisture too, so that even if you do get a lil’ sweaty inside, you’ll dry quickly and still be nice and warm when you step back outside into the cold.

Merino wool is also naturally antibacterial, meaning even if you wear it for 2 weeks straight every single day, it won’t smell. Er, yes, we’ve tested that… for science, you know. 

Also, fun fact: it’s flame retardant, too, so ya know. Handy. I guess now we know why sheep are so dumb: all of their intelligence is in their extremely high tech, super engineered fluffy coats.

We recommend stocking up on a full merino wool base layer, so you’ve got wool from head to toe. Depending on which country you’re in or how cold it is that day, you can layer up underneath any of your other outfits to instantly add extra insulating warmth to any outfit.

We also wear our merino base layers to sleep at night, because they are cozy and warm and wonderful and never smell and they’re just magical.

If you’re allergic to wool, or adverse to wearing it, you’ll also find great base layer options in silk. Just be sure to avoid non-insulating fabrics like cotton, which feels cold when wet – you literally risk hypothermia when you wear cotton in the cold. Don’t do it!

Here are the base layer items we bring with us on every winter trip, plus silk alternatives if you’d prefer not to wear merino wool.

• Merino Wool Base Layer Leggings: These super comfy 100% wool leggings function just like long underwear. Except they’re made of soft, super-luxurious wool instead of cheap polyester, and make your legs feel like they’re being hugged by an extremely soft sheep. I wore a pair of these under my pants on extra-cold days and they kept me toasty warm (without being too hot)! Jeremy has this pair. Bonus: they also double as the world’s coziest lounge leggings or even sleepwear! Silk alternative: men’s, women’s.
• Merino Wool Undershirt: Laying is crucial when it’s this cold. This is the wool cami I wear under my clothing every single day, and this is the wool undershirt Jeremy wears. Silk Alternative: women’s camisole.
• Merino Wool Undies: You gotta keep those buns warm! I wear these undies (psst: buy a size up) and this travel-friendly bra, and Jeremy wears these.

From the Waist Up

From shirts and sweaters to our favorite jackets, here’s what we bring to keep us warm (and lookin’ good, but only if we’re inside somewhere warm) from the waist up.

• Flannel Shirt: I’m in LOVE with the MerinoLux flannel button-downs from Royal Robbins. They’re stretchy, they’re cozy, they’re blended with merino wool  (yassss) and most importantly, they’re warm AF. But not so warm that you’ll get all sweaty running around and exploring, because they’re also super breathable. They’re also wrinkle-resistant, odor-resistant, and moisture-wicking, and have a hidden zip pocket – so basically everything you could ever ask for in a flannel shirt. I’ve been searching for the perfect flannel for YEARS (you know, one that didn’t give me button-down boob gap and allowed me to actually cross my arms) and this is The One. I love it! Here’s mine and Jeremy’s.
• Sweaters: We wear a LOT of sweaters when we travel in the winter. We dress them up by layering them over our collared shirts or adding scarves. But we wear them just about every day! Again, your best bet is a merino wool sweater for maximum warmth and minimal smell. Jeremy and I each have a Smartwool merino wool crew neck base-layer that we wear constantly (this is his, this is mine). But if you’re looking for something with more pizzazz, you can actually find some REALLY cute options at Banana Republic (like this one or this one) or Men’s Wearhouse for dudes.
• Long Sleeve Crew: A staple of our winter wardrobe is a thin, stretchy long sleeve crew. They’re perfect for layering under vests – and keeping you from overheating if it’s not THAT cold out.

• Packable Down Jacket: We each bring two jackets on a winter trip: our heavy wool one for extra-cold days, and a lightweight, travel-friendly packable goose down jacket. It’s perfect for those days when I just want the freedom of not wearing a big coat, but it’s also a fantastic added layer. We keep our jackets stuffed in our daypacks in case we need an extra layer of warmth on super cold days. Here’s my jacket and Jeremy’s jacket.  If you’ll be in sub-zero temperatures, we recommend a higher fill, like 850 fill down – that just means there’s more feathers in your jacket, which means you’ll be warmer! This is the jacket I wore for -30 degree adventures in the Norwegian Arctic.
• Warm Coat: Your jacket is arguably the most important thing you’ll bring on your winter vacation other than your shoes. It has a big job – namely, keeping you warm but not sweaty, allowing you to actually move your arms, and letting you explore for hours without feeling heavy or restrictive. Plus, it’s gonna be in almost all of your photos. I recommend splurging on a coat made with real wool – no synthetic material comes close to the warmth of real wool! I have a beautiful camel-colored A-line wool coat like this one that keeps me incredibly warm and looks amazing in all of my pictures. Jeremy wears a wool-blend coat similar to this one and this one. A great wool alternative is a thermal, insulated jacket that’s lined on the inside, like this one. I wore mine in Canada and Norway in January and it performed excellently.

From the Waist Down

Not all pants are created equally, and we’re REALLY persnickety about our pants. They have to be comfortable, stretchy, made to last, and – most importantly of all – have pockets!

Extra room to layer with merino wool leggings underneath is also crucial for really cold destinations. If you want to know a LOT more about the pants we’re obsessed with, we’ve got entire posts dedicated to our favorite women’s travel pants and men’s travel pants.

• Travel Jeans: Unlike regular jeans, travel jeans are designed specifically to solve travel-related woes. One of my personal woes is the lack of pockets on women’s jeans. My favorite travel jeans, made by Aviator USA, have 6 HUGE POCKETS. And 2 of them are zipped and hidden inside other pockets, for extra pickpocket protection – crucial in any European country. Jeremy and I each have several pairs of Aviator USA jeans. They’re super stretchy and buttery soft, dry quickly in the rain or when wet, and keep our legs warm when it’s cold out. They’re cozy enough to wear on a plane, stretchy enough to accommodate 2-3 extra layers of clothing (and that 5 extra pounds of holiday weight I always seem to bring back home with me), and they’re super cute! We’re both obsessed. You can get a pair of men’s or women’s jeans on the Aviator USA website.
• Water-Resistant Pants: As a solid size 14 Amazonian sized woman, I have yet to find snow pants that actually fit. So instead, I layer up with these super cute water-resistant pants on top of a pair of lined leggings and my wool base layer. These pants are made of the same material as my hiking pants, except they’re cute enough to wear every day without looking like I’m going hiking. They dry off in a few minutes, even after spending hours falling over repeatedly in waist-deep snow (I speak from clumsy experience) and will keep you warm and dry when properly layered.
• Warm Lined Leggings: I throw a pair of these on over my base layer pants whenever I need an extra layer of cold, like in the Arctic tundra or when temperatures are hovering around 0. I have two pairs: cozy fleece-lined leggings and insulating merino wool leggings. Sometimes I wear these over my base layer leggings and call it a day, because I love wearing leggings as pants. If I’m doing winter sports or other outdoor adventures, I also layer water-resistant pants on over top and stay warm and dry all day!
• Warm Leggings (with pockets!): Although Jeremy and I both bring our wool base-layer leggings to layer under our pants, I also bring a pair of regular leggings – you know, for when it’s a balmy 40 degrees in the sun. I love these pants because they actually look like pants, not leggings – and they have ZIPPERED POCKETS!!!! Not those stupid pockets that can fit like, a chapstick and 3 dimes – you can actually zip a phone in there. BLESS. These are another one of my favorite women’s travel pants.
• Cute Skirt: Just to add variety to my very minimal clothing options, I bring a cute skirt (this one) that I can wear with my t-shirts, button-down shirts, or sweaters. I wear leggings or lined tights underneath to keep my legs warm, and a little belt to dress it up. Then I layer wool socks and my Gobi Boots on top and feel freakin’ adorable all day long.
• Warm Lounge Pants: Our need for cozy, warm comfort in the cold extends to relaxing in a hostel lounge and even sleeping. So we each bring a cozy pair of warm sweatpants made from – you guessed it – merino wool!

 

How to Keep Your Feet Warm

We here at Practical Wanderlust would like to personally help you avoid getting cold feet – especially if you’re getting married in the winter. GET IT? GET IT!? We’ll see ourselves out. Anyway, keep those toes toasty warm! Nothing will cut a day of exploration short like freezing cold toes.

• Weatherproof Boots: There’s only ONE pair of shoes on our cold weather packing list, and they are hands down the best boots for winter travel. These boots are amazing. They’re cute, they’re insanely comfortable (perfect for long hours of walking and exploring), they’re nearly-waterproof leather and lined with shearling to keep your toes toasty warm, and they’re extremely lightweight and foldable so you can stuff them in your bag. Oh, and they have thin and flexible soles that let your feet function as if you were walking around completely barefoot!  Note: you might find yourself in need of some calf strengthening if you’re not used to barefoot-style soles. We can’t recommend these boots enough. They’re made to last – we’ve had ours for 3 years now – and they’re worth every cent. We wear them on every winter trip. We’ve even gone snowshoeing in them! Plus, they’re cute AF! Here are my boots and Jeremy’s boots. You can read more about them in our guide to the best travel shoes for women and travel shoes for men. N
  • Note: on slushy days, we recommend wearing waterproof socks over your wool socks, particularly with the men’s boots. The only time we’ve ever gotten cold or wet feet in these shoes was one day when we walked through ankle-deep slush for several hours. Otherwise, they’ve been flawless everywhere from the Canadian rockies to the Arctic tundra.
• Warm Wool Socks: Warm boots aren’t the only thing you’ll need to keep your feet toasty warm. Don’t forget to bring warm socks! Make sure you don’t just have run-of-the-mill acrylic socks – they won’t keep your feet warm while you’re traveling in the winter. Make sure you get socks that are primarily made of soft, heat-regulating wool, like these or these. We recommend wearing exactly 2 pairs – any more and you’ll be doing more harm than good, any less and you’ll risk chilly feet. On very wet days when snow is melting into icy, miserable slush, we bring along a pair of waterproof socks just in case.

Cold Weather Accessories

• Warm Hat: A warm hat is an absolute necessity for winter travel. It also doubles as a super cute accessory – I usually pack a few colors. You know, for the ‘gram.  You want a hat that will stay on your head even in blustery gusts of wind and keep your ears nice and warm, so stay away from those brimmed ~travel girl types of hats and stick with reliable beanies instead. Personally I’m a fan of the ones with poofs on top, like this or this. Jeremy is more of a purist, and likes to wear beanies like this one, which is made from earth-friendly recycled wool and nylon. To keep your head AND your face warm (and also ensure that nobody will ever talk to you) get this Cthulu Hat. And then send me pictures of you wearing it, please.

• Scarves: I LOVE a chunky scarf. They’re my favorite accessory! And you will absolutely need a good scarf for your winter vacation. I love this super soft scarf from Royal Robbins, which is blended with wool and turns into a cute shawl or infinity scarf with a few well-placed buttons. I’m also a big fan of scarves that are big enough to double as blankets, like this one or this one.
• Gloves: I get cold hands just sitting inside on the couch I love these merino wool gloves that work with touchscreens, because let’s face it, I have a hard enough time using my phone without wearing gloves. On extra cold adventures – or days that I’ll be playing in the snow – I layer my wool base layer gloves with this pair of leather and wool gloves.

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Hey, what questions do you have about packing for winter travel? Drop us a comment below! Looking for more helpful travel tips? Here are a few of our most useful posts:

• 12 Long Haul Flight Essentials & Travel Tips for Economy Fliers
• The 3 Best Travel Pants for Women: Functional, Cute, & Field-Tested
• The 4 Best Women’s Travel Shoes: Lightweight, Field-Tested, & Cute
• Travel Safety Tips: How to Protect Yourself and Prevent Theft while Traveling

Hey, need a handy dandy checklist to help you pack? We’ve got a printable version of this post that includes EVERYTHING you’ll need for your trip. Sign up in the box below and we’ll deliver it right to your inbox. Just call us the fairy godmother of packing lists!

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