I packed only a 28L backpack for 10 days in Guatemala and came home wishing I'd brought more stuff

Ray Hernandez · 2026-10-21T11:20:04.343696+00:00

Everyone online swears by packing super light, so 4 months before my trip to Antigua I bought a 28L bag and spent weeks trimming my list down to the bare bones. What actually happened is I wore the same two shirts so much they smelled like a bus station by day 6, and I paid $19 at a lavanderia just to feel human again. The thing is, I also met a guy at my hostel who had a 55L pack and he was miserable dragging it up the stairs every day, so I get why people go small. But my real lesson was that the tiny bag pushed me into buying stuff I could have just packed, like sunscreen and a rain shell, which ate the money I thought I was saving. So now I'm stuck between two camps: the ultralight crowd who say anything over 30L is for tourists, and the people who just bring a normal bag and stop stressing. Where do you all land on this, and did going small actually save you cash or just cost you in other ways?

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I packed only a 28L backpack for 10 days in Guatemala and came home wishing I'd brought more stuff | Budget Travel Hacks - SMM Buzz