I have just returned from a wonderful ten day holiday in beautiful Croatia.  Given the pandemic, this was the first time I have had to pack for a proper holiday in quite some time!

I have previously run workshops on how to pack for a holiday within cabin luggage allowance, so I am pretty good at putting together a very limited capsule holiday wardrobe. This time around though I was fortunate in that I had a 23kg luggage allowance so I didn’t feel the need to limit what I took. Nonetheless, when I got to the airport, my case weighed in at just 13.2kg and that included toiletries and books as well as clothes. My frugal packing habits are obviously pretty deeply ingrained!

Here’s what I took, what I wore (and didn’t!) and what I wished I’d taken.

What I wore for the journey

It was a 4am start, so quite chilly.  I am in any case prone to feeling cold in air-conditioning (even when everyone else is happily just wearing tees!) so always like to wrap up warm for plane travel. Layers are ideal so I wore a sleeveless peach tee under a coral cashmere  jumper, a green leather biker jacket, ivory jeans and ankle boots (and socks!) as well as a lightweight scarf. I carried a pair of flip flops in hand luggage.

This outfit worked well because it meant that once I arrived in Croatia, I could just whip off my jumper, jacket, socks and scarf and pop on the flip flops and I was good to go.

On the way back, I wore pretty much the same outfit but with a different tee shirt.

What I took to wear

As this was essentially a relaxing beach holiday at a nice hotel with a bit of sight-seeing thrown in, I just needed beach wear, comfortable clothes for sightseeing and some slightly more dressy stuff for cocktails and dinner in the evening. I therefore took the following:

• 6  dresses which could be dressed up (heels and jewellery) for evening  or down (sensible shoes and flip flops) for day time.

  

• 1  short cream denim skirt
• 1  pair of white shorts
• 1 pair of cream trousers
• 7  tops (plain and striped)
• 1  cardigan
• 1 pair flip flops
• 1 pair of comfortable sandals for sight seeing
• I pair of nude heeled sandals for evening
• 3 nighties
• 3  beach cover ups
• 2 bikinis
• 1 swimming costume
• 1 x sun hat
• Underwear

What I didn’t wear

I’d love to tell you that I wore every single item I took, but of course I didn’t. Pieces that didn’t get an airing are:

• One of my ( rather old) bikinis  – It was so long since I’d last worn it that I hadn’t realised that it had lost most of its stretch and was unflatteringly baggy!
• The shorts.  I don’t look or feel my best in shorts but I took them because I stupidly succumbed to the notion that shorts are what one wears on holiday. Actually, I prefer skirts.
• Two long sleeved tops – the weather was glorious throughout so I wore more sleeveless than sleeved tops.

 

What I wish I’d taken

• More dresses. Not because I actually needed them but I love a nice dress and I could easily have worn a different one every evening.
• Another bikini!

Key tips for a successful holiday wardrobe

• Stick to neutral colours for your bottom half – that way you can wear every top with every bottom.
• Neutral or metallic sandals will work with everything in your wardrobe.
• Pack what you know you enjoy wearing rather than what you think you should wear. After all, you are still you, whatever the setting!
• Lay out potential outfit combinations on the bed before you pack.
• Try things on that you haven’t worn for a while to make sure they still fit!
• Use jewellery to dress outfits up for evening.
• Unless  you are that rare woman who is confident walking around in just your bikini/costume (I wish I was, but I’m not) versatile cover-ups that you can wear around the pool/to lunch etc are a great investment.

Want to see more?

If you’d like to see more of the outfits I wore on my holiday, just click here. If you’d like me to put together your own personal Lookbook, along with suggestions on what to buy, and where, just let me know.