My Favorite Travel Gear Brands: Craghoppers

Who makes the toughest travel clothing around? If you ask me in the mid-2020s that would be Craghoppers, a brand that is a household name in the UK but disappeared from the USA market for a while. Some have called them “the European ExOfficio,” which used to be a testament to how well their clothing will perform and hold up. Since ExOfficio is just an underwear company now, I’m thrilled that Craghoppers USA is alive and well. I’ve been raving about them for a decade and a half now and can keep at it, thankfully.

There are a lot of travel gear brands I’ve highlighted here on the Cheapest Destinations Blog, items that have held up well through tough adventures and repeated trips, but some of them are focused more on style than sustainability or sustained use for years on end. Craghoppers is a different story, the kind of adventure travel clothing real adventurers wear, the kind of clothing that won’t crap out on you after weeks in the jungle or the mountains.

When I first started reviewing their apparel at Practical Travel Gear, before I sold that site, there wasn’t much variety in the color palate or the styles. I didn’t care so much because their Nosilife Adventure shirt was the toughest thing in my closet and I had a couple pairs of pants to match. To give you one idea of how they’re different, many of the buttons are sewn on with strips of cloth that won’t break, fray, or unravel — not with thread.

Over the years they got a little more trendy and pursued the “trail to pub” styles a bit more. Now they seem to have swung halfway back toward their roots and are not trying to be all things to all people. They deserve to be known as the brand for serious adventurers who are not just trying to look pretty on Instagram during their hike. So they’ve doubled down on the travel clothing that’s going to take whatever you throw at them instead of trying to be as fashionable as prAna, Anatomie, or Lulu Lemon.

If you just want to go see their whole line, follow this link to the official website for the USA and scroll through for a while. That link should give you a discount because of where you came from.

I’m going to toss in a few recent and old photos of me and of the wife Donna wearing some Craghoppers clothing, in hot California recently and last decade in cold places. The various brand styles have come and gone, plus it’s June as I write this, so I wanted to focus on another big advantage they have: Insect Shield clothing.

Insect Shield Clothing From Craghoppers to Keep Away the Bugs

It is so ironic to me that the places that are miserable most of the year because of cold and snow are the ones that get the most mosquitos when it finally warms up. Maine to Michigan, Minnesota to Alaska, the joy of summer turns to the accompanying pain of scratching bug bites. Then we can add ticks and Lyme Disease to the threats in North America, Dengue Fever, Zika, and Malaria if you head to the tropics.

If you want to come back from your vacation with just souvenir gifts and not souvenir bites, you need to take precautions and protect yourself. Slather on the DEET, light those mosquito coils, get some heavy-duty meds, or just cover up better. That last option comes with the fewest side effects, so cover those ankles and arms at dusk, ideally with some treated clothing that keeps the bugs at bay.

There’s a chemical called Permethrin that is impregnated in some clothing. It is odorless and it can last for up to 70 washings, far more than most normal people will put a shirt or pair of pants through. When ExOfficio travel clothing went away that reduced the number of items with Insect Shield, but thankfully you still have plenty of treated items to choose from with Craghoppers.

I always feel a bit more confident, maybe superhero-level even, when I’ve got on socks, long pants, and a shirt with Insect Shield in the mix. I’m not saying I leave the bug spay at home on a camping trip when I’ve packed these items, but they’re a huge extra layer of security.

On this latest round of trips I’ve been wearing an Insect Shield Nosilife Adventure II short-sleeve shirt, a treated Outback Hat, some Adventure Life III pants, and some Insect Shield socks, so I’m feeling a lot less itchy in the USA and Canada. When I take a long trip to Southeast Asia next year, there will be even more reasons to pack these things because the threats are greater beyond just some annoying itches.

Then I’m also packing the long-sleeve Adventure II shirt that’s also treated, plus it offers sun protection, a vented back, plenty of pockets, roll-up sleeves, and hanging hooks for after a sink wash. This Swiss Army Knife of shirts also packs a built-in lens cleaner and ” a special zip’n’clip RFID pocket for added security.” If you’ve been looking to replace one of your adventure shirts from ExOfficio that they no longer make, this is your best choice on the planet.

Once again, this is not just a guy thing. My wife is about as fond of camping as I am of reality TV shows, plus the last time she took a multi-day hike with me was the Inca Trail in Peru about 20 years ago. She definitely hates bugs though and will go for more function over form if it’s going to keep the critters away.

I got her outfitted in some Craghoppers gear for our trip through four cities in the USA and Canada this summer, so hopefully the conversation won’t touch on itchy bug bites. Here’s a shot of her outfitted in her Insect Shield Pro Legging, her treated sun hat, and the Adventure III long-sleeve shirt for women.

All three items are designed to last as long as your body holds out, but these adventure shirts are especially rugged, made with ripstop nylon and with heavy-duty stitching and button clasps. You’ll likely get rid of one of these in 20 years because you’re tired of it or it got food stains on it, not because it wore out.

Want to try some Craghoppers clothing out without paying 100% retail price like a schmuck? Use my discount code TL15 and you can get outfitted for less at CraghoppersUSA.com.

Adventure Travel Clothing for All Seasons

A previous round with this brand was last decade when I tried out some swim trunks in a pool in Florida, then donned a bunch or layers for my first trip to Alaska.

My wife was able to stuff her synthetic fill Craghoppers Compresslite Jacket into her bag easily when we flew out, then uncompress it when the time came to bundle up. It was a great choice for a trip to a cold place where she didn’t want to lug around a giant coat.

On the train in Alaska shot above, I’m sporting a Tristan shirt while riding the rails. Looks like a normal shirt, right? But, I didn’t get bugged by bugs because it was treated with Insect Shield. It also has a cool hidden zipper pocket on the front for putting cash or a credit card. Other neat traveler features include a loop for hanging your sunglasses, loops for hanging it to dry, and sleeves you can roll up and then button. It also provides good sun protection. I’ve taken it on at least a dozen trips since.

I’ve also taken a pair of Kiwi Pro Lite Trousers on a couple trips with me and have been happy about how little room and weight they require. They’re very lightweight, but offer UPF40 SolarShield sun protection, heel tape, and zippered security pockets that keep your valuables safe.

Now I’m packing a new version of these, the Kiwi Pro II Pants, and I’m digging all the zippered pockets and the nice fit. Now they’re made with recycled materials and they’re treated to resist stains. Here I’m wearing them along with a Renu Full Zip Fleece that’s also made with 100% recycled materials, so I’m feeling smug while I’m feeling snug at that high altitude overlook..

I haven’t done anything tough enough to warrant the Adventure Pants III that I have, but I’ve got some outdoor adventures in Quebec province coming up in a few weeks so I’ll give them a workout then in the woods and check out how the Insect Shield protection is working. Get that model if you want six pockets (including some cargo ones), some elastic in the waist, and thicker fabric than the Pro versions. These also have a built-in lens cloth and offer plenty of sun protection.

Although I’d prefer a bit more transparency in the “Guaranteed for Life” link — it takes you to a Typeform cascade of info to fill out — at least they do have the balls to make the promise out loud. It’s admirable that they believe in their products enough to even mention the idea—a very rare thing in the clothing world. Craghoppers is one of the brands I outlined in my post The Gear and Travel Clothing Brands I Couldn’t Kill.

Pay attention to which website you’re on when ordering. If you’re in Europe you’ll probably be on the UK site, which is fine, but stateside you need to order from the USA one.

Is Craghoppers a good brand? Are their shirts and pants worth the premium price? Based on my experience, they’re one of the best, especially if you want to buy travel clothing that’s well-made and will hold up for years of travel.

And hey, since you’re on my blog you can get a discount when you order. Use my code TL15 and you can get 15% off your order at CraghoppersUSA.com.

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