Travel Tips » backpacking

Travel essentials. Compression Sacs

Vi — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 22:00:24 +0000

What is compression sac? You probably know vacuum-seal storage bags which are very handful to save some storage space in wardrobe and which would be useful create extra room in a suitcase, but do you always have easy access to the vacuum cleaner to remove excess air from the bag? Only recently I found out about compression sacs which don’t require any vacuum cleaner. Check this video to see how it works

Isn’t it cool? It is not such effective as compression sacs, but it would be very useful if you are on long term (Round The World) backpacking trip and need clothes for all kind of weather. This sacs won’t help much to compress t-shirt, but sweaters or jackets will take less space within it. You can buy such sacs at amazon.com. It cost only 10-15$US depending on size. But be careful to check size first before buying any of these bags as larger ones may not fit inside your backpack, so should choose it depending on size of backpack.

Travel essentials. Compression Sacs is a post from: Travel Tips

When NOT to go to Thailand

Vi — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 14:01:02 +0000

I had long trip during Xmas/NY time and to make it easier decided to stopover for a week in Thailand. From November through March is the best time to visit Thailand. It is less rain, not so hot. That also means more tourists, everything more expensive. So I didn’t expect to be alone there, but it was busier I anticipated. A lot of people are on holidays as me, so not much you can do about it. But if I could be more flexible I would avoid Xmas/New Year period. It is not just about crowd. Except you have booked all accommodation and flights/bus tickets in advance, it would be very time consuming to do it then you are in Thailand during this time. I had arrangements for the first half of my trip and later was planning to go depending on situation without strict schedule and list of places to visit. It is not best idea for short trip as even around Khao San Road in Bangkok it difficult to find room and need to wait until somebody (may be) will check out. Also I had problem finding transport back to Bangkok from Krabi as buses and planes were fully booked on the days I need it. So searching for accommodation and transport took quite a lot of time. I am sure it was just bad timing and not flexible schedule. So next time I will go to Thailand I’ll try to avoid this very busy Xmas/New Year period or at least book everything online. That would be more expensive but I think anybody would rather spend time on the beach instead of siting in internet cafe searching information or browsing in the town through travel agent shops.

When NOT to go to Thailand is a post from: Travel Tips

Backpacking? But do you really need a backpack?

Vi — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:38:07 +0000

MEC Ibex 80 Backpack

I am in no doubt that in most cases you don’t need backpack then you are “backpacking”. What is definition of backpacking according wikipedia – “use of public transport as a means of travel, preference of youth hostels to traditional hotels, length of the trip vs. conventional vacations, use of a backpack, an interest in meeting the locals as well as seeing the sights.” Of course there are other descriptions of this term and all of them will include “use of a backpack”, but for me backpacking first of all associates with budget travel. Do I need to have backpack to travel on budget?

It is already more then 3 years when I left my home and travel from place to place. I didn’t know for how long I will be on the road, but because I was planning to stay in hostels and other budget places, so first thought in mind was – I will backpacking so I need big backpack for my trip. So I bought MEC Ibex 80 Backpack. It is nice backpack and there are full range of similar backpacks with internal frame. But couple months after beginning of my trip I started to think how many times I needed to use that backpack as BACKpack…The answer was – none.
Usually it was short walks to public transport or hostel, or leaving it somewhere at luggage storage. So I realized I didn’t need backpack. One big disadvantage of backpacks – top unloading/loading. I tried to put most often used items on the top, but almost everyday I needed something from the bottom. Although this backpack has access at the bottom, so wasn’t so bad, but at least one repack per day was usual routine. I can live with that, but so called hybrid bags would make life much easier. There are simple bags which can be used as backpacks or one shoulder bags or backpack with wheels. These bags are heavier then usual backpacks, but backpacks has many different straps on outside so you will need such thing as airport tote for you bag protection during loading into plane or on the bus. This will add some additional weight to your total, but it still probably will be lighter then hybrid back (especial one with wheels) and with all weight restrictions on budget airlines it can be issue.

So next time you will be looking for backpack think about such thing:

Will you go trekking on your trip.
If just day trips, may be all you need is daypack?
If it will be multi-day trekking, may be you can rent suitable backpack in the place you start your trekking?
If you decide go ahead with hybrid bag, check weight and how it feels on you back. Of course it won’t be very comfortable, but good enough for short distances.
Do you need bag with wheels?

Would be interesting to hear your thought about backpacking gear – what kind and why you are using it.

Backpacking? But do you really need a backpack? is a post from: Travel Tips