Travel clothes galore

Travel clothes galore: By: Rich Tong; Category: Opinion > Other; Read the article on Judy’s Book.

Hey, great question, we went on a three week trip through Europe in July/August (boy did that define hot) and through China in October which was also warm. Here are some brands to try:

1. If you don’t mind toting lots of stuff, then Tommy Bahamas http://www.tommybahama.com/index.jsp really makes nice stuff. It is cotton and very comfortable. OTOH, it is like any traditional clothes that looks great, but doesn’t pack well.

2. Go to REI and you are in lightweigh tropical clothes heaven. I ended up with less attractive, but way more functional clothes. The REI convertible pants are great http://www.rei.com/online/store/Search?storeId=8000&query=*&title=Mens+pants&text=1&link=1&cat=4501396%2C5074258%2C4501397&cm_re=toc*toc*mns_pants which are zip off and have nice pockets. They also are super quick dry and very light.

3. Similarly their Mohave shirts are terrific http://www.rei.com/online/store/Search?storeId=8000&query=*&text=1&link=1&cat=40002358,4501436%2C4501437%2C5074259%2C4501438%2C4501439&title=Mens+shirts&cm_re=toc*toc*mns_shirts and I have a bunch. These feature everything from short to long sleeves, they have sunblock protection and if you are traveling somewhere where pick pockets live, terrific hidden pockets.

4. Ex Officio. These are usually more expensive than the equivalent REI, but are just a touch more fashionable. In many ways, they invented this kind of travel clothing http://www.exofficio.com/ and it shows. The cut of the clothes is just a little nicer. REI carries these as well but you have to wait for their annual end of the summer sale. Like the REI clothes above, these are incredibly quick drying. I’ve had them get wet and you can rinse and they are ready for the next day.

5. Poly Pro T-shirts and shorts. You didn’t mention it, but while you are out there, I really do recommend that you get poly propalene t-shirts, shorts and even underwear. Same reason. They are super breathable and don’t get damp and disgusting in the hot climates. If you jump into a pool with these shorts, they are dry like 30 seconds later. In terms of brands, I haven’t notice much difference, so I normally get REI generics that are lightweight http://www.rei.com/online/store/Search?storeId=8000&query=*&cat=4501407

6. Eagle Creek bags. Finally there is the baggage to carry all this in. The trend right now is to ultralightweight materials so the bags themselves aren’t heavy. The midweight Eagle Creek stuff http://www.eaglecreek.com/ seems quite durable and good. The Tarmac series http://www.eaglecreek.com/20158.html is what I use. They come in 20″, 22″ and 25″ and they have one of the best lines of little bags to stuff thing in http://www.eaglecreek.com/packing_solutions.html.