All set for a 10-day trip in Portugal

When I travel these days, I’m doing it one of two ways: with my family for up to three weeks, or on a writing trip for a week to 10 days. I sometimes check a bag for the former (especially if I need to backpack with a real backpack), but usually get by with a carry-on for the latter. You get a free checked bag for international flights on all but the stingiest airlines (like Spirit Air), but if you’re leaving the airport city upon arrival, the last thing you want to deal with is lost luggage.

As the editor of Practical Travel Gear, I get loads of apparel, footwear, and gadgets to try out. I personally review close to 100 items a year and the three others who write for me there check out even more. So after all that, what are the best items to pack? Which ones really pull their weight and bulk?

Quick-dry clothing
This is the key factor in packing light. Sure, take a few cotton t-shirts if you want, but the bulk of what you carry needs to be items you can wash in a sink and have dry by morning. I’m a big fan of ExOfficio clothing as it holds up to a crazy number of washings and still looks good. But if you’re put off by the price, try similar alternatives from Colombia Sportswear or just browse the clearance racks, physically or at sites like Sierra Trading Post. A few companies are making polo shirts with built-in odor suppression, something you’ll also find in many wicking t-shirts meant for exercise. These are a nice alternative to the button-up ones.

For pants the usual lightweight tough nylon ones are great for warm places, but companies like ExOfficio, Craghoppers, and Sherpa Adventure are making “trekking pants” that are stretchier and thicker. They still dry fast though and resist a drizzle and stains. I’ve often worn these a week straight without washing them–like I did with the ones in that photo above.

If you’ll be someplace like Delhi, Rome, or Barcelona though that’s notorious for pickpockets, it’s good to invest in a pair of Pickpocket Proof Pants (also known as P^Cubed Pants) from Clothing Arts. They also make shorts and just released some nice lightweight travel shirts as well. It would take an incredibly determined thief and you being passed out for someone to get into these and steal your valuables.

Double-duty shoes
Shoes are the adversary of the carry-on bag. Footwear takes up an inordinate amount of room and if not chosen carefully, can add a lot of weight. Fortunately shoes are getting lighter in general—even hiking boots—and more companies are making ones that pack down flat or close to it in your bag. Scroll through a few pages of travel shoes that the four of us at PTG have reviewed. We go through a lot of them looking for ones that can be worn in multiple travel situations.

Wear the heaviest, clunkiest pair on travel days to lighten your packing load.

Quick-dry underwear and socks
Cotton is not your friend in this area. Underwear and socks are the things you want to replace most often in your wardrobe, so bring at least a few pairs of travel underwear that use merino wool or synthetics. You can sink wash them anywhere and they’ll dry more quickly than cotton. Well-made hiking or running socks usually avoid cotton and will last for years of heavy usage.

Small toiletries
To carry on a bag, stay with small sizes. Hit the trial size aisle at your local drugstore or Target, save the little bottles from hotels, or buy small refillable bottles you can reuse. You can buy cool dry tabs from Sea to Summit that start working when you get them wet and I like shaving cream that comes in a tube as it takes up less space. I use a hanging toiletry kit for when counter space is tight.

Pack-away jacket and bag
One of my secret weapons in getting by with a carry-on bag is to pack things that stuff down into a little pouch. I love my Eagle Creek packable daypack, for instance, and if I need a jacket where I’m going but sporadically, I’ll bring one that stuffs into a pouch when I’m not using it, like this Helium II windbreaker one from Outdoor Research or this warmer Powerfly Down one from Colombia.

SteriPen Water Purfier
If I’m going anywhere with dodgy water, which is most of the world, the SteriPen is an essential item. It saves the world from your personal mountain of disposable single-use plastic, but keeps you from getting sick from any bad drinking water.

Gadget chargers
I’m past telling anyone what gadgets to bring and how much to use them, but a lot of them have batteries that don’t last very long. I’ve used a Callpod Chargepod for six years now to avoid bringing along a bunch of cords. Then I carry a small charger from Innergie or Eton for times I can’t access an outlet. If I’m going off the grid for a while I might bring some kind of solar charger.

And then…
One belt, usually worn the day of travel.
One or two hats, including a sun hat for sunny places, a beanie for cold ones. Tilley ones are expensive but have a lifetime warranty.
A pair of good sunglasses, usually worn the day of travel.
A loaded Kindle or good book.
Magazines I can throw away or pass on as I read them, lightening the load as I go.

Many women carry some kind of shawl or multi-use scarf to change up their outfits.

Keep an eye on the colors you’re packing. Ideally most every bottom can go with most every top. You don’t want to have pieces that can only go with one other thing.

What about you? What carry-on items or tricks have you found worked best?

Packable winter boots from Teva "weigh less than a pint of beer."

I just spent three solid days checking out the new travel gear that will be hitting the shelves later this year, at a trade show where all the buyers come in and figure out what’s going to be hot and should be in stock. You can catch individual reviews on Practical Travel Gear as they hit the market (and if you’re a guy, go see a little eye candy on the PTG Facebook page.)

Meanwhile, here’s the big picture view of what’s happening now and what’s on the way—plus how it’s hitting your wallet.

Commodity Prices are Way Up

The Week magazine has a section called “Boring but Important” and this is one of those subjects. It’s not just the filling of your car gas tank that has gotten more expensive. Many synthetic fabrics are petroleum-based and even those that aren’t take energy to produce. Natural fiber prices have seen similar spikes though. Fine wool prices doubled just from 2009 to 2011. Cotton prices jumped 150% in that time because of rising global temperatures and devastating droughts in places like Texas. Sooner or later, companies have to pass on those basic materials increases to the retailer and you.

But Competition is Fierce

Are you looking for a new breathable waterproof jacket, a rolling suitcase, sunglasses, a water bottle, a pair of good socks, or a pair of lightweight hiking shoes? There are anywhere from 30 to 100 companies now supplying each of those items. All of them are fighting for their corporate lives to get your attention and get shelf space in stores so you can find them.  So while prices simply have to go up for these guys to even break even, none of them has the ability to really sock it to you as a consumer. So it’s really hard to find travel gear that’s a bad value these days. Sure, you may find items that are more technical than you need or are aimed at upper-end travelers who are less price-conscious, but you can be fairly secure that if you buy a (legit) name brand item, you’re not going to get something crappy. The stakes are too high. With some companies, they’ll even guarantee anything in their line for life: Eagle Creek, Briggs & Riley, Osprey, Tilley Hats, and Gore-Tex for a start.

Everything is Getting Ridiculously Light

The technology in travel gear, apparel, and shoes has progressed so far so fast that if you have a backpack or jacket from even five years ago, there’s a good chance it weighs twice as much as what you would buy now to replace it. I’m routinely running into backpacks I can pick up with one pinky, wheeled suitcases I can pick up with a forefinger. This wheeled carry-on from Osprey at the right weighs all of four pounds.

Big companies like Columbia Sportswear, Sierra Designs, North Face, Mountain Hardwear, Outdoor Research, and Patagonia are putting out wispy thin jackets that are windproof, waterproof, and heat-reflective on the inside—but pack into a little pouch that fits in one hand. You can get down or Primaloft jackets warm enough to let you travel almost anywhere outside the Arctic or high mountains that will stuff down into your daypack. There’s almost no trade-off now between packing space and comfort. And yes ladies, it’s all getting more fashionable and slim-cut too.

Compact Suitcases for Small Living Spaces

Suitcases, backpacks, and bags have a way of taking up a lot of space in your house or apartment. If you’re fortunate enough to live in a place with lots of storage space, no biggie. If you’re in an apartment in a big city, however, every inch can count. I’m starting to see bags that fold down into much smaller footprints, something I would have drooled over when I lived in Hoboken, NJ and worked in Manhattan. The best iterations of this so far are from High Sierra (see an example on the left, only $30-$60) and Eagle Creek (on the right). Later in the year, Eagle Creek is putting out wheeled duffel bags that still fold down to a size you can stuff in the corner of a closet. Very cool.

Don’t Believe the Hype

Take a pause and go put on some Public Enemy music.

Ready now? OK, all the things I’ve outlined above are real. They’re tangible economic and market forces that influence pricing. Then there’s hype that’s driven more by fashion. A lot of what drives retail buying is what’s new, What’s New, and WHAT’S NEW?!?!

It’s fitting I mention Public Enemy because one of the huge (but baffling) trends I kept running into this year was “retro packs” and jackets. Some fashion guru apparently came out and convinced all these gear companies that Jansport had it all right 30 years ago and we just need to update those designs with some new materials. Yeah right. I used those packs and there’s a reason they’re not around anymore—they totally sucked compared to what you can buy now. You’ll be able to buy these retro packs on the clearance rack two years from now I’m sure. So wait a while before you do the time warp and you won’t pay top dollar for these.

Which leads me to my one piece of advice in all this: get last year’s model. Yeah, if your pack or jacket is from five years ago, it’s probably time for an upgrade to take advantage of the advances in technology. But in general terms, the advances from one year to the next are incremental at best. More often, they’re driven by fashion: a new set of colors, new patterns, or a different stitching pattern here or there. Outdoor Research typically puts out 40-50 new hats per year, Chaos even more than that. Do we need that many new hats to choose from? No, but if they just put out last year’s hats again, there’s nothing to talk about with buyers or the trend-happy magazines searching for a new look (or a new look that looks like an old look…)

If you go to the clearance rack at your local store, or the online outlet equivalent at Backcountry, Sierra Trading Post, REI, Moosejaw, or Campmor, you’ll find awesome stuff for 50% off. If you’re buying when it’s not the right season—-like Insect Shield hot weather gear for your Thailand trip when it’s autumn in North America and Europe—you might feel like you’ve hit the jackpot.

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Ever since the airlines got addicted to baggage fees—and ones like Spirit Air made it their primary revenue source—most of the rest have piled on in tandem. Still, some are worse than others, both for domestic flights and international ones.

If you’re headed to Europe, EuroCheapo put out a very handy baggage fees chart for 21 Airlines heading that direction.  It gives you all the details on the good (free second bag on IcelandAir); the bad (€80 for a second bag on Finnair); and the downright ugly (€75 for a second bag, €200 for a third on KLM—what are they smoking?). With fuel charges and two extra bags, you could triple the price of your flight.

For domestic travel and a few other routes, there’s a good baggage fees chart over at AirfareWatchdog. Obviously Southwest is your best choice by far in the U.S., provided your bags don’t fly out of a hole in the fuselage that is. JetBlue will let you check one free. Others that used to have joined the customer vacation penalization scheme, going to at least $20.

The worst by far in the U.S. is Spirit, who would charge you for standing up to stretch your legs if they could find a way to do it. They hit you whether you bring a carry-on bag or checked bag and have a lower weight limit to add another gotcha. (Here are a few tips for getting around Spirit baggage fees.)

Fortunately, it gets better when you leave the countries. Even the legacy U.S. airlines will let you check one bag for free. If you have their credit card or have hit elite status, maybe more.

For all that info, see this more comprehensive collection of charts from SmarterTravel.com. When you look at that, it becomes even more clear that most Latin American airlines want your business more than the U.S. ones headed that direction. You get a free first and second bag from Aerolineas Argentina, Avianca, Lan, TACA, and Tam. All bets are off for domestic travel on some of them, especially Aerobus in Mexico. (Besides crazy baggage fees, they actually charge you an escalating fee based on how soon you get to board the plane! If you’re with a family, you pay it or sit apart.)

I haven’t found a good Asian airlines chart, so if you know of one, post a link in the comments. But as with the Latin American ones, you’ll have a better flight, better food, and fewer charges if you go book on one of their carriers.

Of course the obvious answer, except for Spirit, is to be smart and travel light. Clothes are washable and you really don’t need seven pairs of shoes for anywhere. Pack some good double-duty travel shoes instead.

In December I spent two weeks traveling around Costa Rica, from Guanacaste to the Osa Peninsula and places in between. Except for the Kelty Station daypack holding my laptop, camera, pens, etc., I did it all out of a 22-inch wheelie carry-0n.

I’m getting ready to get on a plane and head to the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in Salt Lake City to check out all the new gear coming down the pike we may want to review over at Practical Travel Gear. So it seems like an appropriate time to run down what helps me pack in such a compact and light manner for a two-week trip.

Take a Lightweight Bag

First the bag. Normally I bring something without wheels, like a backpack, but this was a work trip where I knew I would be mostly in airports, taxis, and hotels. So I used the Eagle Creek ORV 22 wheelie suitcase pictured here. It’s not super-light at 7.5 pounds, but light enough. It holds 43 liters (2,600 cubic inches). You can cram more than this into a carry-on if you ditch the wheels, but keep in mind some airlines also restrict the weight. That includes Nature Air where I was in Costa Rica, but also many budget airlines in Europe and Asia. The heavier your bag, the more you’ll pay.

Go Easy on the Shoes

Speaking of weight, shoes are the big killer, so I usually only travel with two pairs of travel shoes, wearing the heaviest pair on the flights and bus rides. Sometimes I’ll break down and bring a third if I need water sandals or dress shoes for some reason, but at least one pair has to be really flat. If you must carry sneakers for a workout, these New Balance WT100 travel sneakers pack down to nothing and are wispy light: they’re all mesh at the top and have a thin footbed.

Leave the Jeans at Home

The weight of your clothing can add up surprisingly fast as well, especially if you’re packing blue jeans, normal corduroys, or khakis. I’m a huge fan of lightweight, quick-dry travel clothing from the likes of ExOfficio and Columbia Sportswear. I find life so much easier on the road with a wardrobe of this stuff in my bag: the clothing weighs very little, it stays relatively wrinkle-free, and it looks nice enough that you can look respectable at a restaurant or meeting. Sure, it’s not all that cheap, but I’ve got ExOfficio shirts I’ve been wearing for years that still look like new. And hung in the sun, they dry in 15 minutes. Heck, I even pack their travel underwear for the same reason.

Carry Only the Cosmetics You Need for That Period

Too many travelers play the “what if” and “just in case” games when packing their toiletries and end up bringing half the medicine cabinet. With reusable plastic bottles and sample sizes you can bring enough for two weeks and still stay under the TSA carry-on requirements. Plus you can buy whatever you really end up needing locally—usually for the same price or less. Sure, there are exceptions that are a bit tougher, like sunscreen, but not many.

Pack Double-duty Travel Gear

If an item you’re packing only does one thing, it had better do it really well—like a SteriPen or a solar gadget charger. Part of the way I pack lighter is to carry double-duty gear that can perform multiple functions. A belt that holds money, pants that can also be shorts, long-sleeve shirts with button-up sleeves, a coat that converts to a neck pillow, a keychain that’s a corkscrew or bottle cap opener, or a watch that’s also an altimeter and compass.

I love to rag on the Apple hype machine, but I have to admit the iPod Touch is the ultimate double-duty item. The electronic equivalent of a Swiss Army Knife. Carry one of those tiny packages and you’ve got all kinds of apps and e-mail access, yes, but you also have more mundane helpers travelers needed even before the Internet Age, things like a calculator, currency converter, language translator, alarm clock, music player, and (Skype) phone. Put SugarSync on there and you’ve got all your home files with you at all times as well.

Do you travel two weeks or more with a carry-on? Put your tips in the comments!

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Spirit Air nominated itself for all kinds of bad PR awards yesterday, from getting a flood of negative press purely from its own announcement and trying to spin its story in a way that was the exact opposite of how most readers would interpret it.

“In order to continue reducing fares even further and offering customers the option of paying only for the services they want and use rather than subsidizing the choices of others, the low fare industry innovator is also progressing to the next phase of unbundling with the introduction of a charge to carry on a bag and be boarded first onto the airplane.”

Interpretation: “We will now charge every single passenger who brings any kind of luggage a hefty fee. You will pay us this on top of the price of your ticket whether you check a bag or carry it on.”

There’s only a knee’s worth of room between seats on Spirit flights, but if you can fit what you have under the seat in front of you (short people rejoice!), then you can still bring the bag on. Here’s a full breakdown on the complicated fee structure. Ironically, it can cost you more to bring a bag that no Spirit employee touches (as much as $45) than one they check for you—a sure irritant for people trying to save time.

It’s going to take some work to get around Spirit’s baggage extortion fees.

1) Don’t pack a bag. This might get you screened on the way in and out by the TSA, and will add a few extra hours when leaving Colombia. You’ve got no change of clothes and just a toothbrush in your pocket. But hey, you can always buy a new outfit locally for less than all those baggage fees.

2) Pack one change of clothes in a tiny bag with your laptop. If you pack well, a small laptop/netbook, a change of clothes, a pair of flat shoes, and some toiletries should fit under the seat.I would suggest good travel apparel from the likes of ExOfficio so you can sink wash one set at night and it’ll be dry by morning.

3) Layers, layers, layers. So far there’s no extra charge for being fat—too hard to “unbundle” that—so expand your width with lots of extra clothing.

4) Wear your belongings. There’s a company called ScotteVest that makes jackets with 12, 20, 50+ pockets to hold all your gear and gadgets. Then there are those photography vests the French are so fond of wearing that hold all kinds of stuff in multiple pockets.

5) Ship your belongings. On a domestic flight, you would likely come out ahead by shipping your belongings in a Priority Mail flat rate box or by UPS.

6) Fly another airline.

I’ve met some nice, well-meaning people from Spirit Air and the company flies to some underserved routes in places like Colombia and Nicaragua. Sooner or later though we’re like frogs in a heating-up pot that’s about to boil. Jump! I get that they’re trying to be like RyanAir, whose CEO admits the airline is just “a flying bus,” but few buses make you pay for baggage and often they come with a movie, a snack, a drink, and Wi-Fi. So can “We’re worse than a bus” be a successful strategy?

I’m not convinced. Legacy airlines have earned a bundle of pure profit from passenger baggage fees, but Southwest keeps thrashing these airlines in every market where it competes, with lower fares and no fees for bags. They win hands down in customer satisfaction surveys. With more fees than anyone, Spirit sometimes shows up even lower than hated USAirways. RyanAir and EasyJet succeed because their fares are clearly half the price or less of competitors’, where in Spirit’s case that’s only sometimes obvious (with a calculator in hand), and the best deals are only offered to those who pay yet another fee to get access to them.

What do you think? Will you keep a calculator handy and go through the process of adding up all the gothca charges to get the total price, still flying Spirit if it’s cheaper? Or will it need to be a lot cheaper before you go on their planes?