What would YOU pack for a surprise destination?

BlueBoxBride · April 2010

Next weekend my SO is taking me on a "surprise" vacation. I had to put in for vacation time at work a month and a half ago... but I have absolutely NO clue where the destination is. I'll find out when I see my ticket at the airport. Initially the plan a few months ago was that we'd purchase our engagement ring, become engaged officially before the trip and then we would have the trip to kind of "celebrate" it in our own way. But you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men... Picked out a ring, it's being sized and I highly doubt it will be back in time for the trip. So it's just a romantic getaway at this point! (I mention this because usually when I tell someone that it's a surprise destination the response is always, "OMGZ DO YOU THINK HE WILL PROPOSE?!"

This is all I've got: we're going for an undisclosed period of time between May 9th- May 13th. So, five days at max.

I'm a spazz when I visit my parents in Nashville for three nights. Like, I seriously look like I'm moving back home and I actually KNOW what kinds of events/activities to pack for.

So what would you pack for a mystery location?

#1Mommy · April 2010

I am the same way...I waaaay over pack. I would bring something for everything. Bathing suit, shorts and tees, a nice dress or two for intimate dinners, outfits that you'd go shopping or sight seeing in, heels, flip fops or sandles, tennis shoes....
I hope this helps, I would not be able to handle this if I were you...lol
Good Luck!!

BlueBoxBride · April 2010

I know, right?

He won't even tell me the frickin' region of where we're going! At least if I knew we were going to NYC, I could pack my usual mix-n-match black and grey. But an all black outfit won't be ideal for the islands either. I would want to pack shoes that I can just trash after the trip if we go down to New Orleans (because the Quarter and our stomping ground bars can get sticky gross). I might need sneakers if we're going to Disneyland, lol.

What if we're going to a Civil War reinactment and I forget my petticoat, lol?

Sue-n-Kevin · April 2010

OMG BlueBoxBride, how FUN! But I guess I'm more adventurous

I travel a lot for work, and whether I'm gone 1 day or 3, I always pack the same and can get it into a carryon bag. I always pack black & white, clothes & shoes, because they are interchangeable.

For your trip, I'd pack the following:

Bathing suit & wrap
white or black flip-flops
black or white unwrinkleable dress, preferably knit, also can be dressed up or down
black or white shrug or cardigan, light to mid-weight
black or white casual pants
2-3 tops in black or white, assorted, with long and short sleeves
1 pair of black or white mid heeled dress shoes
Jewelry that goes with all your outfits, some dressy like pearls, some casual
Appropriate undies, ie strapless or whatever you need to go with your outfits
One pair of flesh toned pantyhose

On the plane wear jeans, jacket or coat, tennis shoes, black or white hoodie, all the things that would take up a lot of room in your bag.

Depending on the amount of personal care products you need (curling iron, dryer, makeup, etc) you should be able to get all of the above in a large-ish carryon.

Good luck. Have fun!

emilyinchile · April 2010

I would say that unless he gives you a clue on climate/activities - just enough to be able to pack - you will be forced to pack nothing and have him buy you an entire vacation wardrobe once you arrive

Melstar2002 · April 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_would-pack-surprise-destination?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:11Discussion:1b187e06-69b0-48ad-9695-f7bbc6337f94Post:84e994b6-8a2c-485f-9cd9-b7ec2eef7494">Re: What would YOU pack for a surprise destination?</a>:
[QUOTE]I would say that unless he gives you a clue on climate/activities - just enough to be able to pack - you will be forced to pack nothing and have him buy you an entire vacation wardrobe once you arrive :)
Posted by emilyinchile[/QUOTE]

Agreed! If you think it could be anywhere, let him catch you packing everything from flip-flops to a snow suit and tell him he has to carry the extra luggage! Be innocent about it and tell him you could be more specific if you had a hint! ;)

Otherwise what the other ladies said is good. I always shoot for items easily layered and easily dressed up or down. As nice as it would be to have an outfit for EVERY potential occassion, it's probably easier to have outfits that can be used for ANY potential occassion. Know what I mean?

brit_bell90 · April 2010

My fiance did almost the same thing to me for our 6 month anniversary. He came home from work at lunch and told me to pack a bag, and that I needed to bring a dress. We ended up staying at a great hotel, and then we went out to dinner at Mader's. Mader's was built in 1902 and is the country's most famous german restaurant, they have $3 million worth of art in the restaurant, it was really neat! When we tried to sleep in the hotel we couldn't all we heard were creepy noises and we kept seeing weird shadows. (6 months later I found out that Jeffrey Dahmer killed one of his victims in that hotel and it is indeed haunted, lovely...lol it does explain why we couldn't sleep) The next day we saw one of our favorite bands only a block awa from the hotel.

I ended up overpacking, but it wasn't such a bad thing. Hopefully you're soon-to-be-fiance has something fun planned!

alithebride · May 2010

lol at omgz.
anyway-if you're a notorious over-packer to begin with ask your BF what's the weather going to be like?
frankly i'd be po'd if i didn't get a climate hint. wtf?!
and also-while i see you're hoping it might be the engagement weekend-what if it's not? try not to build it up like that-you may come home disappointed or be looking for it every minute and miss out on the fun. hopefully not-but it could happen. if he does ask come back and tell us about it!
have a great time where ever you go

BlueBoxBride · May 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_would-pack-surprise-destination?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:1b187e06-69b0-48ad-9695-f7bbc6337f94Post:1a96e337-b482-430f-a71a-d8050f386653">Re: What would YOU pack for a surprise destination?</a>:
[QUOTE]lol at omgz. anyway-if you're a notorious over-packer to begin with ask your BF what's the weather going to be like? frankly i'd be po'd if i didn't get a climate hint. wtf?! and also-while i see you're hoping it might be the engagement weekend-what if it's not? try not to build it up like that-you may come home disappointed or be looking for it every minute and miss out on the fun. hopefully not-but it could happen. if he does ask come back and tell us about it! have a great time where ever you go :)
Posted by alithebride[/QUOTE]

<div>No, we're all good on expectations! I think you missed something because I wrote that this was originally planned to be an engagement celebration trip (meaning that the proposal would have already happened and the trip is to celebrate just the two of us). But my ring is still being reset/sized, so it hasn't happened and it probably won't be back before the trip. This will just be a fun getaway! </div><div>
</div><div>And still no climate clues! The only clue he gave was that we will NOT be going to Hedonism II, haha. </div>

arllinma · May 2010

I would not pack myself. I would make him a list of your favorite outfits for a hot and colder climate and let him do it. Or bring out a bunch of clothes so he knows what he's doing. That way you will have what you need. You could be packing shorts and tank top when you need to be packing jeans and a sweater.
You can arrange your own toiletries/ undergarments/jewelry and leave them for him to pack.

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