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| Traveling in Europe? |
The Traveler's Pub The Home of Adventure Travel |
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Message Board!
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The Essentials List
- Comfortable Back Pack
- Bag that can be scrunch up and used a
- Sleep Sheet
- Money Belt
- 2 pairs of pants
- 2 pairs of shorts (get the pants that turn
- 3 shirts
- The lest amount of underwear and socks
- Toiletries in a convenient, hard to make
- Lock, bike style is best
- Towel
- Really comfortable shoes, a second pair
- A small alarm clock
- Guide book
- Book to read
- Something to use as an eating utensil
- Camera
| Packing |
The way you pack will play a major role in your trip. And remember,
less is better. I will say this again, less is better. Bring the bare
minimum that you need. You will probably bring too much and have
things that did not ever make it out of your pack. I may seem like I'm
harping on this too much, but take my first trip case for example. I
brought everything I could cram into my poor bag, thinking I might just
need it over the month and a half. Five or six shirts, three or four
books, one of which was a textbook (stupid, stupid, stupid!!),
Gameboy, I think my dog may have even been stuffed in the bottom of
my bag, never got that far down to know. My pack actually weighed 55
pounds! And if you don't pack light for yourself, do it so that your
companions don't have to hear you whine about sending it home every
time you pick it up (like mine did, who happened to be the perfect
packer and the person who the above list is modeled after). When I
got to the UK and locked my bag up deep in a hostel and took my day
bag for the last week of my trip, not really caring if the monstrosity
chained to my back would be stolen or not. So remember, less is
better.
As far as what type of Backpack to bring, there are a lot of options
in two main categories. You can have an internal frame or an external
frame. Each has its advantages. Externals are nice because you can
hang things on the frame itself, but they tend to be bulkier. Internals
are easier to move around in and by number you'll see a lot more of
them in Europe. Find one that fits well and has a storage layout you
like. They aren't cheap, typically a little under a hundred bucks, but do
it right.
For clothing, it really depends on when you go and where you're
going. If you plan on going out a lot at night to clubs or bars you'll
need extra stuff, but don't go overboard. Make sure you have good,
comfortable, durable cloths. A bathing suit is a good idea too, guys
substitute shorts. As far as washing cloths just find a laundromat as
needed. And remember the backpacker law of clean cloths: Take
dirty cloths, put them in your bag, and when you take them out a few
days later, they count as clean!
Other essentials are a guide book. Some people tare out the
pages of places they know they won't be going to make it lighter.
Good guide books can be found hear or a decent bookstore. Bring
one and just one book to read. You will probably be able to trade with
another backpacker or hostel when you are done with it. An alarm
clock is a real good idea to make sure you are up in time to catch
those early morning flights or trains (I've forgotten my on two trips and
regretted it at high expense). A camera is a must, digital is advisable
to save space on film, but cameras are easily lost or stolen so go
cheap. Keep your money and essential in a money belt, pick
pocketing is a common crime over there. Finally get yourself a sleep
sheet. Its not too high tech of a device, just take a bed sheet, fold it
down the middle and sew it up like a sleeping bag. This will save you
on renting sheets as is required at some hostels and give you the
piece of mind of having known where its been.
less is better. I will say this again, less is better. Bring the bare
minimum that you need. You will probably bring too much and have
things that did not ever make it out of your pack. I may seem like I'm
harping on this too much, but take my first trip case for example. I
brought everything I could cram into my poor bag, thinking I might just
need it over the month and a half. Five or six shirts, three or four
books, one of which was a textbook (stupid, stupid, stupid!!),
Gameboy, I think my dog may have even been stuffed in the bottom of
my bag, never got that far down to know. My pack actually weighed 55
pounds! And if you don't pack light for yourself, do it so that your
companions don't have to hear you whine about sending it home every
time you pick it up (like mine did, who happened to be the perfect
packer and the person who the above list is modeled after). When I
got to the UK and locked my bag up deep in a hostel and took my day
bag for the last week of my trip, not really caring if the monstrosity
chained to my back would be stolen or not. So remember, less is
better.
As far as what type of Backpack to bring, there are a lot of options
in two main categories. You can have an internal frame or an external
frame. Each has its advantages. Externals are nice because you can
hang things on the frame itself, but they tend to be bulkier. Internals
are easier to move around in and by number you'll see a lot more of
them in Europe. Find one that fits well and has a storage layout you
like. They aren't cheap, typically a little under a hundred bucks, but do
it right.
For clothing, it really depends on when you go and where you're
going. If you plan on going out a lot at night to clubs or bars you'll
need extra stuff, but don't go overboard. Make sure you have good,
comfortable, durable cloths. A bathing suit is a good idea too, guys
substitute shorts. As far as washing cloths just find a laundromat as
needed. And remember the backpacker law of clean cloths: Take
dirty cloths, put them in your bag, and when you take them out a few
days later, they count as clean!
Other essentials are a guide book. Some people tare out the
pages of places they know they won't be going to make it lighter.
Good guide books can be found hear or a decent bookstore. Bring
one and just one book to read. You will probably be able to trade with
another backpacker or hostel when you are done with it. An alarm
clock is a real good idea to make sure you are up in time to catch
those early morning flights or trains (I've forgotten my on two trips and
regretted it at high expense). A camera is a must, digital is advisable
to save space on film, but cameras are easily lost or stolen so go
cheap. Keep your money and essential in a money belt, pick
pocketing is a common crime over there. Finally get yourself a sleep
sheet. Its not too high tech of a device, just take a bed sheet, fold it
down the middle and sew it up like a sleeping bag. This will save you
on renting sheets as is required at some hostels and give you the
piece of mind of having known where its been.
Check out the back packing in Europe FAQ's |