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Travel pak/gear on a budget for 3-6months
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csawala
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21st April, 2011
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After nearly 2 years teaching English in Japan, I am taking off on July 29th for China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, (maybe) Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and whatever else I can see before I run out of money.
I bought a used travel pack from a former teacher -- Solo-Tourist bag (found on "value products Japan" website) -- a year ago. It has served me well enough for a couple short trips to Taiwan and Okinawa, but it wasn't the most comfortable. I also felt that the top loading was pretty annoying, especially when customs wanted to root through my bag or when I needed clean clothes or something...
It is a 50 or 60L bag (not actually sure).
I think investing in a new bag would ease my mind for my trip.
I am currently looking for a daypack as well that will double as a camera bag for my DSLR, flash + accessories. It would also be my carry-on for airplanes and would store my Kindle, iPod, DSi, etc.
Anyways, back to the travel pack, I am trying to maintain a budget, and hope to spend less than $150CAD. I have checked the forums but don't really know what to look for other than price. Don't know if it matters, but I will be bringing my scuba mask and snorkel along with me because I plan on diving as much as possible.
Any recommendations?
#1 Posted: 24/4/2011 - 14:02
Ryvyan
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24th April, 2011
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I bought a Mei Voyageur for my 3-week backpacking trip through UK, Paris & Italy last year. It survived the snow and throwing around (5 cities; all trains so there was a lot going on). I also brought it on a short trip to Malaysia and it still looks brand new.
The Mei Voyageur kind of fits your budget, is a front-loader and works best with travel cubes. I bought *really* cheap cubes but they didn't last my trip so I'm investing in good ones soon. The bag is carry-on size, which I'm glad for because I have not seen any baggage conveyer belts, has decent clasps for luggage locks and is not flashy (as top-loaders scream "rob me!!", this one is a little nerdish and retro -- old school). My friend and I were able to lug this around Europe without any problems (both of us girls).
This is my first comment on here so this recommendation might seem a little suspicious, but your post was the first to catch my eye. Plus the bag has an excellent following on the internet, do google to check. Just putting in my two cents because I really love the bag, which always makes me feel like I'm going on an adventure!
#2 Posted: 24/4/2011 - 20:51
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goonistik
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Hmmm...Thinktanks makes a series of camera backpacks. These are among the nicest I've seen. There are alternatives like Kata, Lowepro, Tenba, etc. I also like the Naneupro backpacks because they look like ordinary backpacks.
If you plan to go on a hike/trek, I'd take a look at the F-stop and Clik backpacks.
http://fstopgear.com/
http://www.clikelite.com/
You can check out bhphoto.com for a large variety of bags. I am sorry I can't be more specific but only you can decide what features you need.
#3 Posted: 24/4/2011 - 22:11