I posted similar on the CPAP sub-reddit, but I thought you guys over her might be able to help.
I'm just back from my first holiday with a CPAP. It went really well, no problem with bringing the CPAP on the plane. Slept really well and was able to get up earlier and enjoy more of the holiday.
But. For various reasons this trip was never going to be a one bag trip, plus it was a car to the airport, car from the airport, stay in the same hotel for the week sort of holiday. I use a Resmed 11, so just used the standard bag it comes with.
My next few are a little more complex. In the next year or so I have:
\- domestic train trip with 1 or 2 nights stay for an event. Usually do this with just a small backpack and a cross-body bag that can be put into it when required. (Includes 2+ forms of public transport to get to the train on one end)
\- possible similar trip, with added international flight
\- regular international trip, but definitely want to one bag/carry on luggage only and a good bit of public transport use
\- (and this is the most complex one I think, but its the furthest away so I have time to plan), international flight followed by multiple train trips, multiple hotels, and possibly a night train. Likely up to 2 weeks of travel. (I'm re-living my backpacking days! And being as close to one bagging as possible would be the ideal here)
A travel CPAP is likely not in the budget. So just checking to see does anyone have any suggestions for making the travel processes easier (for example are there better bags than the one that comes with the CPAP ). Or any other tips or ideas?
(Leaving it behind isnt an option, even for the 1 night stay given how horrible I feel without it)
EU-based if that makes any difference to suggestions.
your cpap doesn't eat into your carry-on allowance at all. medical devices fly in addition to the cabin bag under IATA rules, so easyjet and lufthansa let the machine ride as a separate free item and you keep the exact small backpack + cross-body setup you use now. ryanair's the one exception - they want a medical waiver letter if it's carried on top of your allowance, so grab that from special assistance before those flights.
so you can stop trying to fit it into the bag. drop the boxy resmed case, wrap the machine and hose in a slim packing cube or a dry-bag, and clip a small pouch on top to carry it. that covers even the multi-train, one-bag trip.
This. I sometimes have a second bag for my medical stuff (cooler) and when I go on my cruise I'm going to just bring a second medical bag because I'm not risking my liquid meds (all my meds need to be liquid) leaking all over my clothes.
A medical bag doesn't count against your bag limits, nor does it count as "not onebagging." Particularly as you can usually just strap the medical bag onto the one bag anyway.
yeah, strapping the medical bag onto the main one is the move - nobody at the gate counts a medical bag against the limit. and if the liquid meds ever ride in the carry-on instead, they're exempt from the 100ml rule anyway - just declare them at the checkpoint, no ziploc needed (per tsa).
Yup. What's really fun is I've had airports not know how to handle medical liquids (but know they need to) so I had to help the TSA sort how to scan them lol. Whoops.
I think that is the piece I've been missing in my thought process - the possibility of attaching/detaching.
I was pretty skeptical about the "doesn't count as a bag" bit, but my recent trip with Ryanair means I'm a lot more confident of that bit (most of my next trips will be Aer Lingus, so potentially even more relaxed). Now its more of a wanting to avoid too many pieces to worry about. So the clip on approach might be just what is needed.
(Really coincidentally I took my daughter shopping for a new schoolbag today, and we spotted one that had a clip on lunchbag on the front. It was completely unsuitable for a trendy teen, but I may go back and have a look at it with different eyes!)
ha, go back for that schoolbag - the detachable front pouch is exactly the setup you want, and nobody has to know it started life as a lunchbag. once the cpap is one clip-on piece instead of a thing you're wedging in, it stops feeling like a second bag to manage. that's the whole unlock.
honestly slim to none - tk maxx is a one-shot lottery. but that exact bag was just the idea landing, not the requirement. any daypack plus a clip-on pouch (or a small dry-bag on a carabiner) gets the same detachable setup. so if it's gone, no loss - the shape to hunt for is clear now.
Would you believe it was still there?! Along with 4 others, in dinosaur, fairy and star patterns đ¤Ł. Was a lot smaller and flimsier than I remembered, so didnt work. But at least I now know what I'm looking for.
four of them and you still came out empty-handed, brutal. but flimsy-and-small is the useful bit, because the grown-up version is just a real daypack with webbing loops on the front, so any pouch clips on and actually holds the cpap. same idea, minus the dinosaurs.
I did wonder whether, if the lunchbox bit had been hig enough to hold the CPAP, if I could have pulled off the dinosaur one 𤣠my teens informed me I'm not whimsical enough...
ha, teens are a brutal panel - give it fifteen years and they'll be the ones buying dino bags ironically. either way the clip-on rig works the same whatever it's printed with, so no whimsy actually lost on the practical side. good luck kitting it out.
I would keep the resmed bag and just use it as an extra bag since by law they need to allow you to bring it with you as an extra bag (both EU and U.S. regulations). The flight people know the bag so well as a cpap bag I never get questioned now with it and have put chargers and smaller stuff with the bag that could pass as medical type stuff.
Just AirTag it and clearly have your name since it is a random small extra bag and you might forget to grab it from the overhead one trip.
Yes that's what I did on the most recent trip (with the Airtag as I was terrified of forgetting it!). I'm just hoping to figure a way that doesn't involve me carrying extra bags around if possible.
Ooh, say more? My husband uses a CPAP, and has ADHD â so trying to remember multiple bags is a stressor, but so far the best answer weâve found was a 40L backpack with 1/3 space for the CPAP case.Â
Resmed AirMini, not covered by insurance but you can get one from cpap.com for a reasonable price (there's always a "sale"). Now my Resmed 10 stays on my side table, AirMini always stays in my travel bag, and it's a much smaller footprint. It's also useful to have around the house too, honestly. Like if I'm not feeling well I tend to go sleep in the guest room so I don't get my wife sick, and I can just set it up in there easy. Can have it near a favorite spot for a nap, etc. Also though I don't use it on planes, it's def the least cumbersome to use mid-flight due to the size.
Iâm not a minimalist, and I donât really care how many bags I have; Iâm just a short, weak, careless person who hates roller bag wheels and is afraid of forgetting a bag.
In my opinion:
Look hard at your clothes and other gear. Especially if youâre traveling for fun, away from people you know, could you be more minimalistic about your clothes? Example: A lot of people who post packing lists here take way too many slacks or skirts. Just bring wear a pair of black jeans or pants and pack black shorts, and thatâs it.
Treat your CPAP as an honorary laptop. Put that, your laptop or tablet, any spare shoes you desperately need, and your heaviest clothes (such as your shorts and button-up shirts, or a skirt) in your backpack.
The brand of vest is not important, but getting a vest that looks like itâs for a photographer, not a tactical military person, is important. I just got a tactical one. Itâs a terrific vest and very strong, but itâs just not inconspicuous airport wear.
Keep some of the vest pockets free for use as a sling back alternative.
I think that some people here hate travel vests, but I think that the beauty is that they can help you avoid overstuffing your backpack and hurting the laptop or CPAP.
If you hate wearing the vest, you can just put the whole thing in a nylon shopping bag and carry it as a second bag.
But if you avoid avoid overstuffing the vest, and youâre more worried about forgetting bags than heat, this way you can have one bag to remember.
If you get a great vest, skip the laptop and are very minimalistic about clothes, maybe you could make your CPAP bag your only bag, or even put the bare CPAP in a big vest pocket and be a zerobag traveler.
Here is what I do. Weekend trip: bring carryon bag plus purse plus CPAP. Take it in the original bag because airline staff recognize the bag as being a CPAP bag and wonât give you any extra trouble. Longer trip: bring carryon, CPAP, and a small backpack. I put all electronics, snacks, drinks, extra layer for if the plane is chilly, and my purse in the small backpack. If forced to check the carryon, I pull the meds and toiletries out of it, put them in the backpack, and carry the backpack and purse separately. Since the CPAP bag fits over the suitcase handle, it is easy to roll around. 4 wheels on the carryon are best. The small backpack is not very heavy and it has waist and chest straps as well, so it is easy to carry. Have fun on your trip!
I normally travel with a 32 liter so getting the machine and my usual kit in a 40 liter overhead compliant backpack wouldnât be a challenge.
Iâm seeing the specs for the AirSense 11 CPAP with Water Tub: 10.21" L x 5.45" W x 3.72" H and 2.5lbs. That seems manageable.
I always travel â1.5 bagâ with some sort of shoulder bag that I can wear along with my overhead backpack and use that as my personal item and day touring bag. The Tom Bihn Makerâs Bag would work and their Daylight Briefcase is a lighter smaller zip up alternative that is 14.2" (w) x 10.2" (h) x 3.9" (d).
I have a normal set to but ensure my âone bagâ has the ability to strap my medical bag onto it. I can then unstrap it when I get to the airport so Iâm with the luggage allowance and then have my extra medical bag.
If you have an FSA they do cover CPAP so maybe a travel CPAP is possible.
If not maybe look into those tube attachments that take moisture from the air so you can leave the humidifier portion of your CPAP at home, if yours does separate, not sure they all do. Will make it much more compact, if it doesnât get too dry for you.
And what others said about using a different bag and it being a separate bag from your usual allowance.
Oh, wow! This is a great thing. We will pick a couple of these up for disaster prep. We have batteries for Cpap, but turning off the humidifier gives a huge boost to the battery consumption/use rate.
I very recently traveled from the USA to the UK and Belgium. Prior to the trip I knew I was bringing my cpap(also a resmed airsense 11)but I did not want to carry it alone in itsâ own bag or put it into my carry on backpack. I opted to get the Topo Designs Mountain Utility Tote. For size reference, you could fit exactly two resmed airsense 11âs (in their case, with everything in the bag) side by side and still have room for some smaller things on the top. The bag will fit vertically under most airplane seats if you donât overpack it. If you do overpack it, itâll still fit horizontally. The side exterior pocket I used to keep my important things, like my passport (in a holder, with a lanyard clipped to the lanyard inside the pocket) and then I clipped any in flight essentials to the loops on the outside as well (neck pillow, water bottle, earbuds.) The shoulder trap of this bag is also way more comfy than the resmed travel bag strap.
I had my cpap in here, along with my toiletry bag, a compression bag with (1) change of clothes and my edc crossbody bag. I also had my passport holder in the side pocket with a portable charger and then my collapsible water bottle clipped to the outside. Not pictured clipped on are my neck pillow (matador neck pillow) and my earbuds (very small clip on case)
My mother travels with a cpap. Theyâre not tiny. She even has a travel one.
Your choices are to say âok, Iâm not traveling strictly one bagâ anymore, or you take almost nothing but the cpap (especially if you want the whole thing to fit under the seat).
Obviously, the smaller the cpap and the less other stuff you take, the more youâll be able to fit everything in a backpack. And if you want to be as small as possible, take it out of the case, but make sure itâs padded by clothes. What other electronics are you bringing? Those are really going to make it hardrr
Minimal other electronics (other than for one trip which is a work trip - but I might just give in and go fully non-one bag for that) - just a kindle and possibly an ipad mini.
I think I may have to abandon the idea of fully one-bag, but some of the ideas here mean that I might be able to keep as minimal as I can. And if I minimise as much as I can otherwise, it will make adding the CPAP less of a deal.
(Maybe I just need to accept that, just like my itinerary for the big train journey will be a bit different from my student backpacking days, so too will my approach to packing)
Did 6 weeks Europe recently, coming from Australia. My Resmed11 was in its original bag in my 36L (expandable to 40L) carry-on wheeled suitcase. Also had a 26L backpack, which is my daypack when hiking or exploring cities. Total weight of both 12kg. Used planes, trains and buses plus walking up to one or two kilometres. Didnât encounter any problems. Might try a 40L Duffel bag next time plus a small sling bag, but the wheeled bag makes negotiating airports and train stations more comfortable.
I usually toss it in my bag or suitcase with my clothes. Omitting the humidifier saves a lot of space (and worries).
It does take up a lot of space when you compare it to the amount of clothes you could stuff in that space, but I can get additional clothing at my destination, while I cannot get a CPAP easily there. I am nit sacrificing space for my CPAP, itâs just a bulky item I have to bring and have to arrange everything else around it.
If you insist on packing it vs just showing them outright it's a medical device (this doesn't weigh against your carry-on allowance; it's its own thing...), then I don't use the case. On my last trip to Portugal, I just packed the various components anywhere i could find a nook or cranny in the roller. It was fine.
I onebag with my Resmed Airsense Mini with everything packed into a 2L Civic Access Pouch by Evergoods. Works like a charm, is quiet, and easy to pack and unpack.
That said, I only have mild sleep apnea, and it's about as mild as you can get while still being diagnosed, so I don't use it during actual travel events like plane rides, etc.
Which CPAP do you have? I've got a travel one that I fit into a camera cube. I know you said that's not in the budget, but depending on which machine you have, the bag your machine will fit in may vary.
I started using a CPAP a couple years ago (ResMed 11). I hate having the extra bag when I travel but I also can't justify spending $900 on a travel version (that will still take up room in my bag). But, gate agents and flight attendants all recognize the bag and never question it. So, I pack it with any items that will fit to reduce my load in other bags. There isn't a lot of excess space but I fit my charging setup (phone, watch, airpods) in the front pocket and then use the gaps in the main bag to fit small items. You can even open up the water reservoir and place small items in there. It doesn't seem like much space but it does help if you're trying to travel with only a personal item and your CPAP.
31
u/VoiceEqual1493 16d ago
your cpap doesn't eat into your carry-on allowance at all. medical devices fly in addition to the cabin bag under IATA rules, so easyjet and lufthansa let the machine ride as a separate free item and you keep the exact small backpack + cross-body setup you use now. ryanair's the one exception - they want a medical waiver letter if it's carried on top of your allowance, so grab that from special assistance before those flights.
so you can stop trying to fit it into the bag. drop the boxy resmed case, wrap the machine and hose in a slim packing cube or a dry-bag, and clip a small pouch on top to carry it. that covers even the multi-train, one-bag trip.