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What options are available when you travel with your laptop (e.g. to work a few days while in town) but you don't want to carry it with you when doing small excursions (few days, weeks)?

A laptop can really be a burden (weight, fear of having it stolen, always thinking about your bag, fear of breaking it, …).

Example:

  • you stay 1 month in an apartment in e.g. Bangkok, Hanoi, … to work remotely with the computer
  • you then travel for a few weeks to visit the country (no need for the laptop now)
  • settle up in another city for a month and repeat…

Are there safe places where a laptop can be stored? (even if I have to pay a good fee)

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  • I've often left bags with my hotel when doing a side trip. Consider pulling the HDD/SSD and taking it with you.
    – Spehro Pefhany
    Apr 3, 2014 at 14:47

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Very often, the accommodation place where you stayed will have a long-term storage. It's exceedingly common for hotels or hostels to have guests leaving stuff there while they go elsewhere - eg skies from their mountain trip, or stuff they've bought to take home but don't want to keep travelling with until they return to the hotel a few weeks later.

Sometime's it's complimentary if you're coming back soon and if you're staying with them again shortly, but more often there'll be a nominal fee.

I've even seen a comment on here somewhere about someone who wasn't staying in a hotel paying the hotel anyway to store their stuff - you don't necessarily need to be a guest. Of course, this'll depend on the specific hotel.

Alternatively, train stations and airports often have day and long-term storage lockers, for a fee. It'll usually get x-rayed, and then kept for you. I've used these in the past as well when I didn't want to take all my bags into the city to explore with, and they were very quick to use, and seemed very secure.

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  • I had no idea some hotels/hostels would agree to keep some luggage for maybe up to a month, that's good news. Is it safe though (for a not so expensive hotel or even a hostel)? Would I be better trying to find a more expensive hotel and try to get them to store it even if I don't stay there (hoping expensive means "safer")?
    – Matthieu Napoli
    Apr 3, 2014 at 15:12
  • Regarding airport storage, I know this is specific but it doesn't seem Hanoi airport provides one, and Bangkok doesn't accept laptops (or any kind of object of value I'd say): bangkokairportonline.com/node/134
    – Matthieu Napoli
    Apr 3, 2014 at 15:15
  • Regarding safety in the hotel/hostel - we can't guarantee anything, but as long as you make sure that a) it's in a locked room and b) you get a receipt or tag for your bag, so that nobody else can claim 'their' bag and walk out with yours, it's pretty safe.
    – Mark Mayo
    Apr 4, 2014 at 0:05
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    I suggest also locking the bag (maybe that's a dunh, but better say it) and not making it obvious what's inside. I've left stuff many times and never lost anything. YMMV. Keep backups with your and/or in the cloud, anything could happen if if it's with you 24/7.
    – Spehro Pefhany
    Apr 4, 2014 at 3:34

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