What kind of bag will you bring?
How long will you be away?
Where are you going?
What will the climate be in your destination?
What activities do you plan to indulge in?
How much luggage weight allowance do you have?
What kind of transportation would you be taking?

Once you have answered all those questions then you are on your way to starting your travel packing list.

People have different requirements. And there is no absolute one list of what to pack which would apply to all travelers. So, rather than try to be Ms. Know-It-All with "you must have this and that..." kind of entry, I'll show you what to check out which could give you an idea on how you can go about with your packing.

The Universal Packing List is a good starting point. It gives you all sorts of options which could help tailor your packing list. Of course, the result will not be THE list for you but it could be the first draft of your final list.

Rick Steves has listed down the basic items which you might want to consider taking with you. You could check out his list and cross check with your own list or with the result you have received in the Universal Packing List. It might remind you to bring some things which might be useful but which you have not thought of.

WikiTravel gives you detailed explanations of why you need some items in your packing list.

And flickr has an interesting collection of photos of what people are packing in their bags. There's the backpacker, the city traveler, the flashpacker, the organised traveler and the overweight luggage bearer. Interesting mix, eh?

So... what about you? What do you have in your packing list?