1. Your Phone Charger and a Power Bank
Your phone is your moving day command centre. It has your movers’ number, your building manager’s number, your moving checklist, and your map to the new place. Keep your charger in your bag and charge a power bank the night before. Running out of battery on moving day is a genuinely terrible experience.
2. Medications and First Aid
Pack all prescription medications, vitamins, and any over the counter essentials into a clearly labeled bag and keep it with you — not in the truck. Add a small first aid kit with bandages, pain relievers, and any allergy medication. Moving is physical work and small cuts, headaches, and sore muscles happen.
3. Snacks and Water
Moving is hard work and it is a long day. Keep a bag of easy snacks — protein bars, fruit, nuts, crackers — and a full water bottle or cooler of cold drinks within reach all day. Your movers will appreciate it too. Dehydration and low blood sugar slow everything down and make a long day feel even longer.
4. Toilet Paper and Hand Soap
This one gets forgotten constantly. The moment you arrive at the new place, someone will need the bathroom. Pack at least one roll of toilet paper and a bar of hand soap in your personal bag. It takes thirty seconds and will save you a very inconvenient first errand at your new home.
5. A Basic Tool Kit
You will need tools before the day is done. A screwdriver, hammer, Allen keys, and a utility knife cover most moving day needs — assembling bed frames, opening boxes, tightening furniture bolts, and cutting packing tape. Keep them in a small bag in the car, not at the bottom of a box.
6. Important Documents
Keep all critical paperwork in a single folder or envelope in your personal bag. This includes your lease or purchase agreement, ID, insurance documents, movers’ contact information, and any building access instructions or key information. Do not pack these on the truck. If something goes wrong during the move, you need these documents immediately.
7. A Change of Clothes and Towels
Moving is sweaty work. Pack a change of clothes and at least one towel per person in your personal bag so you can clean up and change at the end of the day without searching through boxes. If you are moving with kids, pack a change of clothes for each child as well — things spill, things get dirty, and it is a long day.
8. Keys, Access Cards, and Parking Passes
Keep all keys, fobs, elevator access cards, parking passes, and garage openers in one clearly labeled envelope in your bag or in the cupholder of your car. Moving day involves a lot of coming and going between two properties and losing a key or access card in the middle of it is a stressful problem you do not need.
9. Cleaning Supplies for the Old Place
Before you hand over the keys to your old home, you need to leave it in reasonable condition. Keep a small cleaning kit handy — all-purpose cleaner, a cloth, paper towels, and a broom. A quick wipe down of surfaces and a sweep of floors takes twenty minutes and protects your deposit if you are a renter.
10. The Open First Box
The night before your move, pack one clearly labeled OPEN FIRST box with everything you need for the first night at the new place — bedding, pillows, pyjamas, phone chargers, a mug, coffee or tea, and anything else that makes move-in night feel like home. Load this box last so it comes off the truck first. After a full day of moving, having your bed ready to make and a hot drink within reach makes all the difference.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I keep out of the moving truck on moving day? Medications, important documents, phone chargers, keys, snacks, and anything you will need in the first few hours at the new place should travel with you in the car — not in the truck.
Should I tip my movers? Tipping is not required but is always appreciated. If your movers did a great job — worked efficiently, handled your belongings carefully, and kept a positive attitude through a long day — a tip is a great way to show your appreciation. There is no set amount but anywhere from $50 to $100 per mover is a common range for a full day move.
How do I stay organized on moving day? Keep a checklist on your phone, assign someone to be the point of contact for the movers, and do a full walk-through of your old place before the truck leaves. Make sure every room, closet, cabinet, and storage space has been checked before you hand over the keys.
Still have questions about your upcoming move? Our Vancouver movers are here to help — call us at 604-720-0931 or request a free quote online. Brothers Moving has been proudly helping families relocate across BC since 2008.
Brothers Moving serves Metro Vancouver including Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey, Coquitlam, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, New Westminster, Delta, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, Langley, Abbotsford, White Rock and Horseshoe Bay. We also serve Vancouver Island including Victoria, Nanaimo, Courtenay, Campbell River and Parksville, and throughout BC including Kelowna, Kamloops, Penticton, Chilliwack and Prince George.