• Durable
• Large Pockets
• Comfortable
• Waist has a drawstring for the perfect fit
• Multi-purpose shorts, can walk around, swim, hike, ride and whatever else you want

• Overpriced until they’re on sale

I chose two pairs of hiking shorts because they’re tough and they are comfortable. These will be the workhorses of your entire bag when you are in warm climates. They can be worn for days at a time, they can be worn on trails, or simply into town for the night.

The pockets are deep and secure, nothing will fall out. If you need to, these can easily be taken into the water, the material will dry quick enough and they won’t weigh you down.

I’d recommend you get yourself two good pairs of tough shorts that can go into the water as easily as they can be worn around town or while walking through winding jungle paths.

You can still have your favourite shorts, but these compliment the lifestyle of travelling and being adventurous.

• Tough
• Lightweight
• Loose fitting to go over hiking boots
• Strecth fabric
• Zippered pockets for security
• Partially elastic waist for comfort

• They don’t look the best in my opinion, due to the loose fit

I needed a pair of pants, everyone needs at least one pair of pants. I wanted mosquito protection, something to cover my legs on jungle trails or eve just to walk around town. The advantage of them not looking fancy is that you won’t stand out much as someone with expensive gear like you would with brand new jeans or chinos.

These were so comfortable when I tried them on, I also loved the zippered pockets. Having zippered pockets gives you more security on overnight transport or busy streets.

I’m not saying you can’t pack your favourite pair of jeans as well. After all, you still want to look and feel good when you travel, especially if you go to colder climates.

If you enjoy getting out and about though you will want a pair of pants that will take a beating. One where you don’t care if it looks a bit shitty after a few falls, because that gives you the freedom to explore freely.

• These look way better than hiking pants if you want to go to some better places for nightlife
• Comfortable (Boulder denim jeans are my favourite pants to wear ever)
• Water repellency
• Both have zippered pockets and are designed in part for travellers
• The jeans are tough, made for rock climbing. I can’t vouch for the chinos simply because I haven’t owned them long enough
• Both are stretchy 

• This will add an extra 200-500 grams into your bag depending on what pants you wear. I think the Boulder denim pants are about 300g for a medium size
• If you’re going to hot climates, you’ll find these just sit in your bag and never get used
• These aren’t cheap pants by any means

I wanted one extra pair of pants for my travels, which I think will be used more in South America than they ever will be throughout Southeast Asia or Central America where it is always humid.

The Boulder denim jeans are the best pants I have ever owned, but in the end I decided to travel with the Baubax travel pants.

My reasoning was that although the Boulder denim pants are light for jeans, they were still marginally heavier than the chinos, they were also taking up more space in the bag because they didn’t compress as much.

The Boulder denim jeans are so good I actually didn’t want to entrust them to laundromats, or hang them up to dry in places they might go missing.

Make no mistake about the Chinos though, they’re brilliant but they’re way overpriced in my opinion. Luckily I got them fro Kickstarter, but Baubax do have sales often, they had an end of year sale for 40% off!

They are super comfortable, they fit me perfectly, compress well, have great pockets and with any luck will be durable. Of course denim will always be tougher but that’s the trade off you make with weight.

I personally wouldn’t carry any more than 2 pairs of pants unless you’re doing winter type travel. They take a huge amount of room in your bag.

Pants don’t need to be washed every time you wear them, they’re able to go a week without a wash in normal day to day wear, this will help them last longer as well.

I recommend you have at least one pair of pants, for hiking and rough, dirty work. The second pair is optional.

• Very light weight
• Odour resistant merino wool
• Handy chest protection
• Quick drying
• Looks good if you need to dress up a tiny bit
• Great sun protection

• Merino wool is very fragile, so be careful how you wash it and dry it
• Button up shirts can be annoying to get in and out of when you’re in a hurry

I chose this shirt because despite the long sleeves, it is one of the coolest shirts I own. It really helps cool you down and regulate your body temperature.

Being as light as it is, it doesn’t take up much space in your bag either.

I do try wear long sleeve if I can for sun protection. Australians have a very high rate of skin cancer due to our coastal lifestyle, so avoiding the sun if possible is important to me. It also means I don’t need to apply so much sunscreen all the time.

This shirt is 100% merino wool, which means it will keep odours at bay a lot longer than a cotton shirt would. You don’t have to buy one, but I doubt you would regret it if you did.

Try get a good quality merino wool shirt so that it is not itchy.

• Treated with mosquito repellent
• Buttons are the pop on and off type, making it quick to get in and out
• Has a massive zippered chest pocket that I can fit my huge powerbank in when I’m checking in to flights to save weight in my bags
• Lightweight build
• Quick drying fabric
• Roll up the sleeves and pin them up if desired
• Great sun protection

• I can’t really think of any, it’s a pretty handy shirt to have

I wanted a long sleeve shirt that was tough enough to hike in. This shirt had me sold with its huge chest pocket as its pop on and off button styles, as opposed to the more traditional buttoned shirts that slide through the fabric slot.

The shirt is lightweight and tough, I am unsure how many washes the repellent lasts for though or if it is actually “repellent” at all. It could be Permethrin, which isn’t a repellent but works by killing mosquitoes that land on the shirt.

If you love hiking you probably have your favourite shirts already sorted, they might be even more advanced than something like this.

Take whatever you have. For those that don’t like the outdoors, you can replace this with a button up dress shirt or just skip it all together for more singlets or short sleeves.

• Lightweight
• Odour resistant

• Can get itchy as they get older
• Overpriced if not on sale
• Durability yet to be determined

To put it bluntly, the reason I got these is because they were on sale and I found them to be a very good fit for me as well as super lightweight.

To be able to get away with wearing a shirt maybe two days in a rom before washing it is handy because it means less laundry. These are partially merino wool.

Because they’re only partially merino wool they’re itchier than my 100% merino wool shirt, but I don’t really notice it. They do still resist odours better than my cotton shirts and singlets which need washing after a day’s wear.

I also think it helps that they’re a very basic design. You don’t want to be thinking about what you wear matching as you travel, just take basic stuff that goes with anything.

You don’t need “travel shirts” at all. I got these because they were on sale, because the shirts I had were very old, and because I wanted something plain without logos and brand designs.

I’d recommend you travel with 4 short sleeve shirts, but you can have more or less depending on if you prefer long sleeves, singlets, or short sleeves.

• It’s good to have a dedicated exercise shirt to cop all the abuse
• Lightweight and breezy
• Quick dry fabrics

• This is excessive if you don’t plan on exercising, so be real with yourself

Just like I like to have a dedicated pair of shorts to get all sweaty, the same applies to my shirts.

This way the items can be separated from the clean clothes, it’s always the same items and you know what has been exercised in.

They’re quick dry, so give them a quick wash in a sink if they’re too smelly and you aren’t ready to do a big wash at a laundromat yet.

They’re actually super comfortable to wear around town as well because of their lightweigh builds.

Don’t go overboard, one shirt will be enough here.

Don’t pack one if you don’t think you’ll use it, if you change your mind you can pick them up cheap in most locations.

• The ultimate summer garment
• Perfect in tropical weather
• Lightest weight tops you can get
• Suns out = Guns out
• Nice and cheap purchase

• No sun protection
• No insect protection
• Need to apply a ton of sunscreen

You can’t have a summer holiday without singlets!

These are so lightweight and perfect for taking down to the beach, or showing girls how small your arms are.

These are cheap to pick up anywherem just take whatever you have at home, make them plain coloured and basic and enjoy the breeze.

Consider having a singlet for exercising in, especially in tropical climates.

Don’t be fancy here, take basic stuff from home and replace it as it breaks or goes missing wherever you are. These are sort of cheap throw away clothes that sometimes go missing, but you shouldn’t care because they’re easy to pick up.

• Protect yourself from long periods of sunlight
• Keeps you a little bit warmer for longer

• Pain in the arse to get off

I love the water, I love to swim and I love to have a tan as well.

However there is nothing good about getting sunburnt, or constantly having to buy sunscreen over and over again.

Having a rashie is great for long days at the beach or for those who are interested in having a surf. It will protect you from the cold as well as the rash you would get on your chest without one.

If you spend a lot of time in the water or at the beach this is a worthwhile purchase for the sun protection alone.

Sure you can still get a tan, but once you have a tan it’s there for months, you need to protect yourself. Covering your whole body in sunscreen becomes tedious, this way you just do your face and your neck and get in the water.

• Comes with a down jacket as well as the rain jacket
• Heaps of pockets
• Good fit and build quality
• Can separate the down jacket and the rain jacket and use them separately
• Keeps you incredibly warm

• Down jacket is a reasonable 550 fill, but some may want higher
• Overpriced if not on sale
• Takes up a lot of room and weight in your bag if you’re backpacking
• This isn’t a heavy duty 3 layer rain jacket like you will get from jacket makers such as Arc’Teryx and Marmot 

This was less than half price when I picked it up. Living in Australia, I don’t own a rain jacket because it’s not needed, so I was in the market for one.

There are better jackets out there, but you will pay a large premium for them. I couldn’t justify paying $500 for a rain jacket that I might only use 30 times a year, but I wanted a middle of the range solution.

In the end I actually decided to remove the down jacket and leave it at home, for weight reasons but also because I wouldn’t need the warmth anywhere in Southeast Asia or Central America.

Although it would be handy in places like Patagonia or when climbing at altitude, the few times it would have been handy didn’t justify the size and weight of carrying it the other 340 days of the year.

If you come from somewhere that requires you to have a rain jacket, just take it. You’re more than likely not a mountaineer, and if you are you know what you need.

Often times in Southeast Asia for example people just buy cheap ponchos, but this is wasteful when they get ditched in the bin.

You don’t want a jacket with insulation if the climate is warm as you will just drench yourself in sweat by wearing it and end up wet anyway.

• So dam comfy!
• Great to throw on when you’re flying as it can get a little bit chilly
• Good for colder afternoons, you won’t need a big jacket most places you go
• Very light weight for its warmth
• Really good fit
• Good zippered pockets and huge internal pockets that can even hole my Mavic 2 Pro

• I don’t think there’s any cons to this

This jacket takes up so much less space than a down jacket, like the one I got rid of from the Talas rain jacket 3 in 1.

This is about as warm as you’ll need to be 99% of the time. There are occasions where it is insufficient but they are few and far between.

Use it with layers if you’re still cold, if wind is an issue then throw on a rain jacket over the top to stop the wind chill.

Everyone should take a light weight jacket that keeps them comfortable, especially if you’re flying a lot because the aeroplanes can be very cold.

There’s nothing special about this, but it just fits me perfectly, has huge pockets, and finds that balance between acceptable warmth and weight.

• Not too bulky
• Good dexterity and warmth balance
• Strong leather palms for added strength
• Pack away small

• Not suited for those who are going sub-zero
• There are warmer gloves out there

I wanted these for some climbs at altitude with early morning starts. Your hands will not work properly without some warmth and it can be very uncomfortable.

I tried on about 4 or 5 different pairs of gloves before deciding on these. They offer a good balance of warmth as well as maintaining dexterity.

The leather palms give strength to the glove in the highest wear and tear areas. These are very lightweight and are multi-purpose gloves.

If you think you’ll need gloves you can get an all around glove like this which serves a few purposed, or you can hire them as needed from a lot of places that run hiking tours.

This won’t be necessary for most people doing general travel, but is worth considering for those who get out and about in nature.

• Sun protection
• Can be scrunched into any part of your bag without being ruined
• Chin strap for strong wind conditions
• Lightweight and durable

• Might not look “cool”

I chose it for sun protection. I spend a lot of my time in the sun, at the beach, on dive boats, hiking etc.

To me the protection of your face is essential, it helps not having to put sunscreen on, means you can carry less sunscreen, protects your neck and won’t come off in a strong breeze.

Get one, get one that can be squashed down into some random nook or cranny of your bag and come out perfectly fine.

Either a wide brim or a legionaire style hat.

The brand doesn’t matter, but try get something good quality that will last a lifetime.

• Extremely well made boots
• Sole is tough and grippy
• Good laces hold tight and haven’t slipped
• Waterproof
• Comfortable when worn in
• Way more support than hiking shoes

• Less supportive than full sized hiking boots
• Take up a lot of room in your bag
• Quite a bit of weight in your bag
• GTX version takes longer to dry if wet

I wanted to expand my horizons when I went travelling and see things beyond the normal scope. I needed these to accomplish that properly.

I read a lot of reviews and then tried them on in the store and the fit was perfect for me. I ended up choosing these as they’re a happy compromise between the full sized hiking boots and hiking shoes.

The brand is one you can trust.

In hindsight I probably didn’t need the GTX version, because it can make your feet warmer and take longer to dry out if they get wet.

I will only recommend what I know as alternatives, so I will offer two alternatives from Salomon, which I was very close to buying, one of which I probably should have.

Salomon X Ultra Mid 3 Aero

The difference here is that they aren’t GTX. They are for summer weather, better for tropical climates more often than not. These probably would have suited me fine, but I’ve never felt too sweaty in my GTX boots with good quality socks on.

Salomon Quest 4D GTX

Commonly regarded as the best all around hiking boot in the world. These were very tempting for me but in the end I decided I wanted the smaller form factor and lighter weight of the Ultra Mid GTX boots.

For serious multi-day hikers check these out and see what you think.

Just remember to always wear your boots on the plane to save weight and space, and walk in the boots long before you do any hiking in them.

• Sturdy enough to run on slightly uneven ground
• Tough sole for running over hard surfaces
• Very good laces and comfort in general

• You can find less sturdy running shoes that will pack down smaller and weigh less

I decided to go with these over some more lightweight running shoes due to their sturdier sole. If you’re running on tarmac the last thing you want is to feel every loose pebble that you accidentally step on.

They offer a sturdy flat base, they will last a long time and are comfortable to walk in all day long.

My only other recommendation is another shoe that I have travelled with before. It falls into the super lightweight category, so there are advantages for sure, but they can be hard to run in if the pathway is not well maintained and don’t offer the same comfort for walking in all day.

Nike Fly Knit Shoes

These things are brilliant!

I have previously travelled with them, they squish down to the size of the soles. The soles themselves are a lightweight foam, while the upper is a stretchy mesh design with great breathability.

These can get wet and will dry quickly, but the grip isn’t really made for water activities. I never had to untie them thanks to the stretchy mesh upper, I simply slid my foot in and out and they stayed tight for years.

Weigh up whether the lightweight convenience, or the sturdy base is more your style and then take your pick.