1. What happens if you exceed your hand luggage allowance?

If your hand luggage exceeds the maximum, you will have to place it in the hold and pay an excess baggage fee. You can prevent this by pre-booking a bag online rather than risk being charged for one at the gate, which is more expensive.

Also, Ensure you know the hand luggage restrictions of the airline or airlines you are flying with, especially if you are connecting to another or if you are returning on a different airline. This can vary and affect bag size, the number of allowed bags, and whether there is a weight limit.

2. Which items should be packed in your hand luggage?

You'll need to be ruthless when deciding what to pack in your luggage. Whenever possible, you should try to carry as little as possible and buy local items whenever possible. There are a few ways to streamline your packing list while maintaining the necessity of clothing and toiletries.

To begin with, stick to the capsule wardrobe concept - essentially, a set of pieces which work together to create multiple outfits. You can also reduce the weight of your bag by wearing items such as coats, jeans, hoodies, boots, shoes and belts. All other clothing except your heaviest items should be lightweight, easy to maintain and wrinkle-free.

Additionally, you can take heavier items in your pockets in order to carry them on board, then transfer them to your bag later (for example, your phone charger, camera, and book). Be smart about what you take since notebooks and laptops are heavy, especially if you have multiple chargers and items. It is possible to download all of your guidebooks, language-learning resources, and entertainment onto one device? Traveling for only a few days will not even require the larger items.

Furthermore, you can use pockets to store your passport, tickets, insurance cards, driver's license, and money, and they are safe to carry with you.

Obviously, the longer the trip, the more creative you should be, but make sure you'll need everything you pack - if not, do not pack it. You can usually purchase something easily and quickly if you need something that you left behind.

3. How does travelling with only hand baggage benefit you?

The benefits of travelling with hand luggage only include skipping bag-drop queues and saving money on checked baggage fees.

The process is quicker: Traveling with just hand luggage will save you plenty of time: there's no need to stand in a check-in or bag-drop queue on departure, and you won't need to wait for luggage at the airport. Also, you get to the taxi queues or car rental counters ahead of the rest of your traveling companions.

Less Expensive : On holiday, carry-on luggage is generally cheaper than checked baggage, allowing you to avoid paying for checked baggage charges. You should, however, always confirm the weights and costs of the specific airlines before you fly. For instance, if you don't prebook your hold baggage with Ryanair, your cost might be up to £40 for a 20kg case (depending on the length of your flight) or up to £50 if you arrange this when you arrive at the airport.

The risk is lower: If you don’t check a bag, you will always have your belongings with you, so you won’t have to worry about them. You can also put your mind at ease that your bag won't be damaged in the cargo hold since it's safely stored in the cabin above or beneath your seat.

Take note that some airlines no longer allow hand luggage items into the cabin. With EasyJet, overhead locker space is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. All other bags at the appropriate size could be placed free of charge in the hold. Ryanair will only allow passengers who have paid for priority boarding to carry a larger bag in the cabin.