How to Make Travel Planning Wardrobe Decisions - Are You Traveling for Business or Pleasure?

Is there anything as stressful as travel planning and wardrobe planning for your travels? You have to worry about airport traffic, security checkpoints, and if adding a string bikini to your already overstuffed luggage will trigger an overweight luggage fee that even loan sharks call excessive. But, there is an upside! Because of a more thorough TSA, you can get your baggage scanned and a gynecological exam at the same time. Here are some travel and packing tips to help you navigate travel planning and wardrobe decision making.

Is your trip for business or pleasure? If your trip is for business, then you have to be extra careful packing because as a woman business trips mean that you cannot repeat outfits during your trip, particularly if it is a conference or anything that there are going to be many pictures. It will require extra careful prep planning for your wardrobe. Celebrities have wardrobe stylists who prepare their outfits for press tours and trips since their photos end up everywhere. If you are a guest speaker at a conference or trade show, you will also need to pay maniacal attention to your wardrobe to ensure that you are chic in every picture snapped.

Your wardrobe for a business trip does require more items and it might even require you to check a bag. However, you do have options. You can ship your clothing ahead of time to make sure it arrives in one piece and on time. That is another task that is performed by wardrobe stylists for photo shoots in exotic locales or if you are dressing other VIPs for exclusive events.

If this trip is for pleasure then wardrobe is a whole differently animal. While you still can't show up to the first class lounge in six year old Juicy sweats and mismatched flip-flops, you can be more efficient in your wardrobe planning. A travel tip revealed by Kelly Ripa is to wear the same outfit to and from your travel location. It is your travel outfit and it will prevent this outfit from taking up valuable real estate in your suitcase.

There are two schools of thought concerning preparation for emergencies in travel planning and wardrobe. Some fashion experts say don't bother planning for contingencies as you can purchase anything you missed once you arrive at your destination. The other fashion experts (some of these experts may also answer to a nickname of neurotic) say to always plan for contingencies. This means throwing in an extra pair of underwear and socks into your suitcase and maybe even an additional outfit. This depends on your own personal comfort level with uncertainty and how jam packed your schedule is. If there is no time on your itinerary to run errands then pack for contingencies.

There is one contingency that should always be accounted for when considering travel planning and your wardrobe. Derek Blasberg, author of the book Classy, reiterates this point in his book. Plan for an unexpected dressy event, throw in a dress you can wear to a really swank dinner party. You never know who you are going to meet and you don't want to say you turned down a dinner invitation to meet some awesome people because you failed in your travel planning and made poor wardrobe decisions and now you missed your chance to have organic split pea soup Gwyneth Paltrow.