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SXSWPackingTips

Page history last edited by Tantek 13 years ago

SXSW Packing Tips And Check List

Update 2011-03-02: see my latest 2011 SXSW Packing Tips and Check List It has lots of updates and improvements from this wiki page. -Tantek

 

 

Here is a summary of most of the things I recommend packing for SXSW (2011 will be my 10th SXSW).

 

first you must unpack what you have packed

If you are one of those urban superheroes that walk around with useful gadgets like knives, disassembly tools etc., remove them from your utility belt, your jet pack, and any other part of your supercostume.

 

Leave the following items home unless of course you're willing to pack a bag to check-in (which I highly recommend avoiding, due to risk of loss etc.):

 

  • swiss army knives (or any kind of knives)
  • allen wrenches (or anything that looks like it could be used to take apart an airplane)
  • soldering irons
  • pocket torches

 

the night before

 

pack and prepare

 

clothes to change into

set out the clothes you want to change into, e.g.:

  • plain black socks, underwear, and tshirt 
  • plain black pants. either simple work pants, like Dickies, or comfortable black jeans, but flexible enough for any number of emergency activities, like running and climbing obstacles to ditch crazy stalkers or emo drama queens. H&M (or Volcom) slacks and jeans have a good fit. get a 2-4% spandex blend for extra flexibility.
  • plain black belt (you never know when you'll need to cinch around something to hold onto, and also a useful yoga prop), consider a solid heavy belt buckle that you can swing around on the end of your belt like a mace if need be.
  • plain black shoes (must be very walkable, I prefer PUMAs for their excellent arch and heel support) e.g.: black+silver PUMA Voltaic II (these worked great for me at SXSW 2010, and I've started running in them here in SF as well).
  • long sleeve shirt - American Apparel has a good selection
  • hoodie - zip-up, plain black
  • plain black coat/jacket, preferably something waterproof or water resistant. It often rains in Austin for a day or two during SXSW. Spiewak has some good options. Related: 10 day Austin Weather Forecast.

 

stuff to put in clothes

 

backpack

In a sturdy backpack (like the Boblbee Megalopolis Executive Hardshell Backpack, see also the smaller People's Delight)

 

handbag or small dufflebag or rollaway

In a small handback, small dufflebag, or rollaway (like the awesome ZÜCA sport rollaway with aircraft aluminum frame)

  • climbing shoes (I love my FiveTen "5.10" Dragon climbing shoes), tape. see http://geeksloveclimbing.pbwiki.com/
  • small empty water bottle (e.g. 16oz Nalgene and a simple carabiner keychain to hook it to your shoulder bag)
  • 6 sets of underwear + tshirts + socks.
    • small bottle of Woolite Dark liquid detergent if you're staying for music. On Wednesday morning after showering and changing, wash your dirty laundry in your hotel laundry room (Residence Inn has coin-op laundry) or hotel room sink and hang dry on the shower curtain rod and towel rods.
  • swim suit - most hotels have pools, even hot tubs. put them to good use. The Hilton has a pool on the roof.
  • compact umbrella - check weather, rain expected in Austin some days
  • Apple Airport Express to create your own secure reliable wifi cloud from the Ethernet hardline in the hotel room
  • thin black fleece sweatpants (American Apparel) - for sleeping in if it gets cold, doing yoga or pilates and just lounging around your hotel room. also good for a quick morning jog/run.
  • bath kit: toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, contact lens fluids/case, shaver, fingernail clippers, perhaps some hair product (essential for music) and whatever else you would include in a larger bath kit. extra vitamin C, Advil, Tylenol.
  • extension cord and powerplug splitter (so you can share an outlet with someone else).
  • power adapters/rechargers for your phone and camera battery.
  • audio/video cables to connect your laptop to a stereo/tv/flatscreen/projector. Some hotels have the ability to connect to the in-room TV and use it as a second monitor. And if you have DVI/mini-DVI out rather than VGA (e.g. a Mac laptop), bring an adapter that will let you connect your laptop to VGA.
  • thin compactable dufflebag. yes, pack a folded up bag inside your hand bag, as there's a good chance you'll acquire stuff (tshirts, guides, etc.) that you'll want to take home.

 

print your boarding pass

  • Log on to your airline's website
  • check-in online,
  • print your boarding pass
  • put it in your backpack.

 

get plenty of sleep

I seem to have trouble with this one, perhaps from procrastination, perhaps from all the anxious excitement of seeing friends I see perhaps once a year at SXSW. But still, try to

  • get plenty of sleep. You'll need it!

 

the morning of

  • shower and put on the clothes you put out last night
  • pack your laptop(s) (e.g. MacBook Air) in your backpack, including
    • their power cable(s) and supply(s),
    • their video adapter(s) connected to your external monitors 
  • get to the airport 90 minutes in advance.
  • get to your gate and look around for other folks also going to SXSW,
  • your adventure has begun.

 

ship directly to your hotel

If you lack any of the above, call your hotel and ask them for their "shipping address" (typically it will be "Attention: Your Name" followed by name of hotel and their normal address). Then order whatever you need from Amazon.com and have it shipped overnight or second day air directly to you at your hotel.

 

Amazon aStore

I've curated an Amazon aStore with a bunch of the above items to pack for a trip. Might be helpful for quickly ordering things to ship directly to your destination:


See also: PackingTips for general tips.

Previously:

  • the origins of the SXSW packing list, my original blog post from 2008: SXSW Tip #1 what to pack
  • broken ASINs. Dear Amazon, links with ASINs should never break: B000U7AHHO (from trim/hoodie), B001E26E4E (trim/zuca), B000U78EOW (trim/fleecepants), B002WCUTEQ (was an American Apparel zip-up hoodie)

Comments (1)

urban_mermaid said

at 2:09 pm on Mar 9, 2010

I would also add earplugs to the list, in case you end up listening to loud music, or need quiet.

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