Packing List For Full-Time Petsitters

This past year I’ve started experimenting with being a full-time overnight housesitter (more or less). In exchange for watching over someone’s pets, I get free accommodation! I’ve complete two long sits so far and am on my third, and I enjoyed it so much that I’ve decided to keep doing it for at least another year (if not longer).

This post is about what I packed for my adventures as a full-time petsitter.

It’s a little different than just packing to travel full-time. For one thing, I’m booking longer sits so I don’t need to move from location to location as quickly as I might if I were just backpacking full-time.

I also don’t need to bring all the things I would if I were staying in hostels or even AirBNBs, as (usually) the housesits come with all the regular things someone needs to live comfortably, unlike a temporary home.

It’s with those considerations that I thought putting together a packing list for petsitters specifically would be a good idea. If you’re a wannabe full-time sitter, keep reading!

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and buy something, I get a small percentage at no extra cost to you. Your support helps keep this blog running— thank you! Read full disclosure here.

But First: Where Do I Get My Housesitting Gigs?

I’ve gotten all my sits booked (so far) through Trusted Housesitters (THS), which is an exchange website– I exchange my time/energy to look after a cat and house, and in return get free accommodation. Housesitting has gotten really popular in the last few years as a way to save money on travel, but personally I like petsitting because I get to hang out with cats while I work on the computer.

If you’re going to specific countries, there’s usually a corresponding website. For instance, the US has Housesitters America (HSA), which also has a family of sister sites for Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the UK. If you’re interested in France and nearby areas, you could try Nomador. And many people find sits on Facebook groups, though from what I’ve seen they tend to be listed very last-minute compared to the other sites.

I’ve signed up with HSA but haven’t had any sits through them yet. I do find THS’s website to be the easiest to use and find sits, plus they have an alert feature which sends me notifications whenever a sit matching my search filters shows up.

Before You Pack: Luggage

The thing to remember is that you’re still traveling full-time, so eventually you’ll need to pack your stuff and move it to another location. Ideally you’d pack light enough that moving days aren’t a problem, AND that you’re not cramming an oversized suitcase into a tiny guest bedroom at the sit.

For me, I stick to one carry-on size suitcase (international standard which is still larger than most EU suitcases I’ve seen, a whole other conversation) and a personal-sized backpack. These are the same two things I’ve been using for the last three years of full-time travel– although I did leave the suitcase behind in 2023 to travel in Southeast Asia for 10 months!

If you’re housesitting in the US especially, you can save quite a bit of money by doing carry-on. Most (non-budget) airlines still let you bring one carry-on and one personal item for free, but they charge for checked bags. Going carry-on only can save $35-50/flight!

✈️ Use Skyscanner to search for discounted flights around the world. Use the calendar view to get the best dates to fly, and the “everywhere” search to figure out the best destinations.

My Luggage

I’m currently only traveling with a carry-on suitcase, a personal-sized backpack and a purse (which I can stuff into the backpack when needed).

My suitcase is a Samsonite hardsided global carry-on (similar to this one) that I picked up from an outlet store; it’s held up SUPER well over the years, even after dragging it over European cobblestone streets and NYC subway stairs. It’s a clamshell design so both sides have equal amounts of depth, which is great for spreading out and looking at everything in a hotel or housesit.

I do recommended a hardsided suitcase, as I think it’s a little more difficult for pets to get into than a softsided one. I haven’t had that problem so far (knock on wood) but very determined dogs might be able to open a soft zipper-sided suitcase. The hardside ones tend to have more protected zippers, so it’s difficult for them to get into it. Hopefully, anyway!

My backpack is a North Face Women’s Borealis, which again has held up super well over the years. It’s small enough that I can fit it under the seat on most planes, if I don’t over-pack it. If I DO over-pack it, the middle bulges out and makes it hard to shove under a seat– one of the only things I don’t like about it.

When I’m not using my backpack for travel days, I use it to lug groceries home! Or else for hiking!

And my purse is currently just a normal Uniqlo crescent bag that everyone has. I went with a neutral taupe color, which goes with everything– even brighter-colored clothing.

Petsitter Packing List

I’ve seen some packing lists that have you bringing practically your whole house with you, and honestly if that’s what makes you comfortable then go for it. Especially if you’re traveling by car between sits, you’ll have room to bring extra stuff like comfy pillows, bigger kitchen appliances like an Instant Pot, and clothes for all four seasons.

But if you’re the type of traveler who prefers to pack light (or even carry-on only) then you’re going to have to pare it down to the basics. After all, you’ll have to fit everything into only one or two small bags!

Things to keep in mind before packing anything:

weather at your destination(s), especially compared to where you’re coming from
how easy it’ll be to get new stuff or additional stuff if you need it (especially if you’re a larger or smaller size than the locals usually get)
if you have dietary needs/requirements
if you can get everything through airport security (food restrictions, liquid sizes, etc.)

There’s a lot to think about! Hopefully this list will help you figure out what you need.

Clothes

I went a little crazy with my clothes this year, because I knew I wanted more options than I had when I was going international for the last three years. But really you only need a few things, as you’ll most likely have access to a washing machine at your sit.

If you’ve never traveled long-term before it seems strange to only have a few outfits, but eventually you’ll come to love it because it makes getting dressed so darn easy!

At the minimum:

Bring three outfits, one set of pajamas, one “meet the homeowner” outfit (business casual) and/or one going out outfit.

(The “meet the homeowner” outfit is just my personal preference– I try to look slightly nicer to make a good first impression. )

If you’re going somewhere colder, bring a thermal set (top and bottom), a merino wool sweater, a puffer jacket or fleece jacket, a rain coat and hat/gloves.

You’ll also need two pairs of shoes (one athletic, one sandal) plus something you can wear in the house as slippers.

And underwear and bras as needed.

What Clothes I’ve Packed

My current clothing list looks like this:

6 tops (5 t-shirts, one tank top)
3 long-sleeve shirts
3 pairs of pants plus 1 pair lounge pants
2 dresses
2 sweaters
the aforementioned thermal layers
fleece jacket
hat/gloves
Buff neck gaiter
rain coat
1 pair lightweight hiking shoes (currently Solomons)
1 pair Teva sandals (love!)
1 pair Croc flip-flops (house slippers)
2 hats (one sun hat, one baseball cap)
Numerous underwear, 2 bras

It’s maybe a little more than I technically need, but it all fits into my suitcase with room to spare, so…why not!

Bathroom Stuff

I always bring my own shampoo/conditioner and face wash, and I have a travel-size bottle of Dr. Bronner’s castille soap that I use as body wash. I never use anything from the homeowner unless they offer!

If you’re doing carry-on, you’ll have to either buy a bigger bottle at your destination OR you can switch to shampoo bars/soap bars which’ll give you more space in your liquids bag for other stuff. You can even get lotion bars to save liquids there, too.

Personally, I love the LUSH shampoo bars. And Dr. Bronner’s actually has a bar version, too!

I also recommend bringing a few washcloths with you, if you use them. You can save some space by getting the small baby-sized ones, which fold down much smaller than a regular washcloth.

And of course your usual stuff like razors, toothbrush/toothpaste, floss, hairbrush, OTC meds, and so on.

If you regularly use a hair dryer and you’re NOT going internationally, then I’d say just bring the one you’re used to (or a slimmer travel version).

If you ARE going international, then buy a hairdryer when you get there– the plugs will match, and you won’t accidentally blow a circuit trying to use your US version.

Kitchen Stuff

One of the upsides of a housesit is that presumably the owner lives there full-time, so they should have the normal kitchen stuff you’d need. However, I’ve found that not everybody thinks the “normal kitchen stuff” is the same as MY normal, so I’ve had situations where I did need to bring (or buy) some kitchen items.

You’d be surprised what people are missing in their homes. One place might have 3 different coffee makers, but no can openers!

So I bring the following: ceramic vegetable peeler (I actually left mine behind in a UK sit and haven’t been able to find a decent replacement yet), butterfly can opener, 1-4 dish towels, pour-over coffee filter, silicon mug topper, fabric mug rug. I’ve been tempted to bring a rubber spatula and a few other things, but have learned to make do with what’s available.

As for food, I don’t bring much because I can usually get what I need once I’m there, but I do tend to bring a few spices and quick-make foods with me so I don’t have to immediately run out to the grocery store.

I bring: oatmeal or instant soup, a bag of coffee grounds, snack-sized bag of peanuts, a small selection of tea*; Mrs. Dash and Old Bay seasoning. If I were checking a bag I’d also bring a small jar of peanut butter!

*I actually have a huge bag of PG Tips I brought back from England, but usually I only have a few individual bags with me.

Tip: Schedule a grocery delivery to come the next morning! If you do it the day-of, usually there’s a couple hours’ delay. But if you schedule it ahead of time, then you can usually pick a delivery window and get your stuff earlier. I get my groceries delivered either through an app like Door Dash or Uber Food, or sometimes the grocery store will have a delivery service (that they contract out to DD anyway).

Pet Stuff

I don’t recommend bringing anything major with you, and I don’t recommend bringing or feeding treats to animals without the owner’s approval. But you CAN bring a few small toys (if you want).

One of those feathers on a stick toys for cats can be a great idea. A surprising amount of people don’t have toys for their cats, which is a shame.

Or a small laser pointer could be fun to bring, and it doesn’t take up much room!

Everything Else

The rest is for your hobbies or to make your stay more comfortable!

Besides my laptop (which is mostly for work and only sometimes video games), I’ve slimmed down my hobby supplies to a paper journal and a few fancy pens, a Kindle for reading books and an iPod for music. I also bring a Roku Stick to put into the host’s TV so I can just get my own streaming stuff set up ASAP (though some owners are nice enough to let me use their Netflix accounts).

You may also want a power converter, a power strip, an eye mask or even blackout curtains if you’re light-sensitive, a travel pillow, and Apple air tags if you have an iPhone (I attach one to the owner’s house keys and put the rest in my luggage).

And finally, I recommend bringing a small notebook and pen, to take notes during the walkthrough. Usually hosts will spring a bunch of info at you all at once, and you’re never gonna remember it once they leave. Take notes while on the tour and be reassured that you know which garbage goes into which can. 😉

Final Thoughts

Packing for a housesit isn’t much different than packing for full-time travel, but you do have some room to bring more things that’ll make you comfortable— especially if you’re doing long housesits of a month or more. You don’t have to scrunch down as much as you might if you’re moving fast between cities and staying in hostels or hotels.

On the other hand, you also need to think about how you’ll fit your stuff in with the owner’s stuff…not everyone has a huge guest room available, after all!

And you’ll ALSO need to think about how to keep the pets out of your stuff, too. Keeping your personal items contained to a smaller carry-on suitcase and a backpack means you won’t have to fight for space within the house, and you can “lock up” anything you don’t want the pets to get into in your suitcase.

At first it may seem intimidating to pack for a long-term housesit, but soon enough you’ll get the hang of it. Good luck, and happy travels!