So you’ve decided to backpack Europe. Your mind is made up, your friends are informed, and there is no turning back now. The only thing standing between you and the open road is one thing: packing. In this article I will discuss the various things that you will need on your trip, determined by length, weather and activity. So, grab your backpack, get out your clothes, and let’s get started.

The first things you should take note of are the essentials. These are the handful of items that you cannot live or travel without. They are the be all and end all of necessity for anyone planning to leave the country.

1. Your passport. Even if you have one, it is a smart idea to make absolutely positive that you will have 8 months on your expiry date when you leave the country. Although 6 months is the legal limit, there is no reason to try and push customs agents. This also applies for visas. If you are heading somewhere that you can’t get into without them (such as is constantly with the case of my Hungarian wife), appropriate visas are a must.

1. Your tickets. This means your airplane ticket (or tickets) prepared, your train tickets (if required), and any other reservations you have made along the way. If you are booked online, then it is best to print out a copy of all reservations and carry them along in a separate folder. It may seem like bureaucratic nonsense, but when you are stuck in a foreign airport scrambling to prove you have a return ticket, you will understand. When I backpack, I carry these items in a separate section of my backpack that is easily accessible, along with my other necessities.

1. Your wallet, credit cards, bank cards, and whatever else you intend on paying with. I took a trip to Thailand once with a man who forgot all of his money back home. It wasn’t pretty. Double, or even triple-check that you have enough money for every day of the trip. Do rough calculations towards how much you will spend, and then add a few dollars per day. Don’t forget innercity travel, train reservation costs, and any other incidental that might slip past your calculations. It is always better to have too much money prepared than too little.

The rest of what you need is actually a mix and match of what you like most. I don’t pretend to

know how you feel about dirty clothes, camera gear, camping or the rest. What I will provide here is a list of things that many backpackers feel useful to them, and give a brief description of the pros and cons of the item. After checking off which ones you will need and which you won’t, try filling up your backpack to make sure that it is not only large enough, but that the items are not overweight for current airline standards. Nothing feels worse than shelling out fifty dollars because you are a kilo over the limit.

-          Camping gear. This includes tent, sleeping bag, mess kit and flashlight (or headlamp).

A camp pad is also a good idea for those who are not used to sleeping on the ground. (I would not recommend bringing a camp stove unless you really can’t handle food from the grocery store or intend on heading deep into parks.) The pros of camping are high enough that I never go without. You can sleep in pretty much any town or village, campsites are cheap and offer almost all the same amenities as hostels (and more than cheap hotels), and you end up meeting a far more interesting crowd of people. The cons are that camping gear is not only bulky, but it is also heavy. If your trip is more dedicated to a drunken meet-up in another country, I don’t think camping is the right choice. However, bringing camp gear doesn’t mean you can’t spend a few nights indoors. It just gives you the option of seeing a greater variety of things.

-          If you don’t go for camping gear, I recommend bringing sheets and a pillowcase. They are

small, lightweight and will save you money in about half the hostels you come across. Plus, they can double as a light blanket for the long nights you may end up taking on a train.

-          A good, large book. At almost every hostel or city I have been to there has been a way to

exchange books. So don’t worry too much about bringing a book boring enough for the next twenty weeks, or bringing five along to keep you stocked. Keep in mind that the more book you bring, the more you have to carry. It might be good to mention here that an MP3 player (and charger cord) wouldn’t hurt, either. Make sure to have it chock full of songs, though. Otherwise you are going to hate them all by the time you return.

-          Clothes. Well, this might have been up in necessity, as you will undoubtedly not be

backpacking naked. However, the variety and amount of clothes you take is an issue very divisive amongst backpackers. Clothes will fill your bag and add on extra weight faster than you think. I normally plan for a pair of (broken in and comfortable) sandals, one sweater, a single pair of pants and shorts, three shirts, and a few pairs of underpants. As I only ever travel with sandals, I do not bring socks. Socks get dirty too fast, and end up being a smelly burden in my pack, infecting my other clothes and making me wash them all twice as much. If you pack this amount of clothes, you will undoubtedly get quite dirty. But, hey, this is backpacking! You were expecting to stay fresh? On that note, it is probably a good idea to bring rain gear, as well. Nothing more exquisite than a cheap poncho will be necessary, though. Bringing full on rain gear sounds like a good idea, but the odds of you spending that much time in the rain are pretty low, and rain pants and jackets are very bulky and quite the nuisance.

-          A first aid kit. I bought one once, and still carry it with me, but I have only ever used the

alcohol swabs and band-aids. It came with a plasma injection kit, which left me wondering what kind of situation I would have to be in that I pretended it would be a good idea that I try injecting myself with plasma instead of just going to the doctor. Unless you expect to be off in the woods and away from all civilization, I think that maybe you should just stick to the alcohol swabs and bandaids.

-          A good, study knife. I use a Leatherman. No, this is not for defence.  Your bread, cheese and

ham aren’t going to cut themselves! It is especially useful for those who choose to camp, as you will undoubtedly be eating a majority of your meals while sitting in a grassy field. If you don’t bring a knife, you are really relying on all your meals to come ready made.

-          Toiletries. There are the basics, toothbrush, toothpaste, razor etc. However, keep in mind

that if  you want to fancy yourself up at night, you should try to keep your extras to a minimum. If you really want shampoo, conditioner, gel, shaving cream, etc, that is your choice. If you do end up bringing liquids, be sure to carry them in a plastic bag (or two), as they are notorious for popping inside people’s bags.

-          Some item you enjoy playing with. Be it cards for a card game, a Frisbee, a hacky sack, or

some other small item that you can play with in your off time, it will do you a lot of good during those moments of waiting to have something to do with other people. There are fewer ways to make friends better than busting out a Frisbee at a campsite.