BootsnAll Travel Community

My trip's starting in two months so I suppose its time I started thinking about what I'm going to be packing (along with the multitude of other things I have to do).

My problem is this. I'm starting in Western Europe in January. Barring some seriously large scale co2 emissions in the intervening time, increasing the global warming process exponentially, its going to be cold, possibly extremely so.

Now I know to get my good backpacking badge I should be aiming to fit everything into a small handbag and wearing only poly-carbo synthetic fibers or whatever, and I’m trying, I really am.

But, and this may shock some of the more fashion conscious, I really only wear jeans. Maybe if I’m feeling flamboyant some chords (not sure what these are called in America), but most if the time just jeans. I have lots of pairs of jeans, denim is warm. I like jeans.

Denim as a material however, is not so travel friendly. As has been pointed out on many a different travel page; its heavy, its difficult to wash and it takes ages to dry.

So my question: What shall I take to wear on my legs? Which material? What style? And how many pairs of trousers/pants?

Now maybe I’m just being vain but I’m not really into that synthetic, highly breathable, gortex stuff. Along with being expensive it just looks a bit lame. So what’s the indie alternative, what do the poor but stylish travelers wear

On a side note I’d also like some advice on clothes generally. I’ll be in hot and cold, wet and dry places. I’m thinking of getting an expensive fleece type thing, should I? or I should I just take standard sweaters/jumper..

Furthermore should I take a coat? I’m thinking of taking one and mailing it home when it gets to hot. I’m sure flies in the face of conventional backpacker wisdom and I’ll probably be ignored at hostels or something, but hey at least I’ll be warm.

Thanks for the advice.

Hi there....i had a similar problem. I've had to go out and buy an entirely new wardrobe for my travelling. I still plan to take a pair of jeans along with me though for nights on the town etc.

I've found that you can get decent lightweight trousers in various Skateboarding shops. They are lightweight enough to travel in & pack in your bag and still look kinda cool, they also have a multitude of pockets, which I'm sure will come in handy.

TopMan sells some decent plain long sleeved T-Shirts too for about £10 if you need something lightweight and practical.

As far as a jacket goes I just ended up getting a waterproof Beghaus (not the big bulky ones), but then again I won't be in really cold places until the back end of the year in the States. Taking one and mailing it home seems like a decent idea.

Yep, Ian's on the money as far as mailing stuff back home goes if you find you've got so much stuff accumulated and you're not using it.
Alternately, you say how much to buy some cheap stuff in Bangkok on the way home if you are going anywhere Asia/Pacific way to decide if you have enough wears out of it and can decide to dump it - purely on economics.

Jeans are great durable and versatile in my book, and even if you deliberately just wash them half a dozen times before going, you'll find that the stiffness and some weight will disappear.
Wearing a pair of air-cell long johns under them is a great keep warm combo - even used in wet snow by myself.
Get to somewhere warmer, then you'll be better keeping the jeans for cooler evenings and get something light cottony and so losse fitting it is baggy and daggy - but plenty of air about the bod for maximum comfort possible and you kinda fit in with the locals.

For intermediate wear, there are what is called in some places Cargo pants because of all those pockets, and then to be real fancy you have the zip off legs ones, to convert trousers to shorts
I'd be more inclined to wear layers rather than have a fleecy lined Jacket that could have you wanting it off and then being too cold.
If there is one bit of good travelling gear you should scrimp on, it'll be good quality Goretex or whatever 3/4 length weatherproof jacket, the kind of thing you just wear outside for inclement weather and long enough to keep your butt dry, and then any drops tend to drop off rather than soak into you.
Once you are heading to warmer tropical climes, the $200 or thereabouts Jacket is something that can be mailed home.

Should be "you should not scrimp on"

Well, the weather in the northern part of Western Europe in March will be about the same as that in say, New York State. That means you'll need some warm clothes. I found that a winter parka was just fine in winter, but in spring you might make do with a styling fleece jacket and warm pants. A pair of old fashioned thermals will be a good complement.

It can be rainy. A light rainjacket, umbrella, or poncho would be a good addition.

I've never seen this much support for jeans on here... I'm shocked.

If you wear jeans a lot, and are comfortable in them, don't listen to the backpacker types who tell you not to bring them because of xyz. I actually lost sleeping, and a lot of money on clothes I hate, over this issue before my last trip in an effort to be a "good" backpacker. (Yes, I worry what people think a lot, hence the resolution posted on the other thread ) In the end, I actually wound up shipping home the other "good for travel pants" and keeping my jeans, my zipoffs, and a couple skirts. American Eagle jeans are pretty lightweight, and no, they don't dry as fast as some other materials, but dammit I didn't do my washing that often, and when I did, I splashed out and paid for the clothes dryer (heaven forbid).

I always bring jeans...they are what I normally wear and what I own the most of. I don't wash them very often while on the road. This is where Febreeze comes in handy; spray it, freshen up the jeans, and be on my merry way. And when I do wash 'em, I pray I can find a place with a dryer (usually possible, and usually at a point where I have a lot more real laundry that I can't just do in the sink).

Took jeans, wore 'em, washed 'em (as anniebanannie said in somewhere where there was a dryer) and would take 'em again. You wear jeans in the UK in the middle of winter I presume....???? I know that some places can be colder, wetter etc but I think you should go with them if that's what you're comfortable wearing.

I've found that it's very important to wear what you like and are comfortable in. I spent the first nine months or so of my RTW trip feeling daggy because I had been convinced to come away with only fleece and poly-blends. Jeans are wrinkle resistant, go with everything, and allow you to blend in with the "normal" people. (If you should feel inclined to do such a thing.)

Take comfortable underwear, too.

Um Ok, when I went to Senegal on study.abroad Isuddenly notticed that I wasn't the only one who packed jeans to go there. And on the ground I suddennly learned that it was possible to hand-wasch jeans. You need water, soap, a soft brusch and the ability to wring out tough fabrics (like jeans). With the brush you can wash those tought fabroics, and scrub them too. Take your time, you'll get them clean.

We're starting to get clothes ready for our trip as well - jeans are definitely on my agenda. They can handle getting a little dirty, washed a hundred times, and are warm.

On the flip side - I've been spending WAY too much time at REI and on The North Face's website lately - looking for that perfect windproof/waterproof/breathable jacket

How cold does it get in Europe in the winter? We're going to try to time it so we are in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece from November - February. Does it ever get really freezing in Southern Europe?

I traveled in summertime in Europe (not as warm as one might think!) and did not bring jeans. I don't wear jeans a lot, but this summer, I REALLY missed wearing jeans. I felt so scrubby in my lightweight pants, and I also had a pair of casual black pants that ripped halfway through my trip, as well as a pair of maroon capris that took forever to dry, and that were quite dirty at many points. So, jeans I wanted...BUT I handwashed EVERYTHING. I think I did laundry, oh, I can't remember...maybe twice? Every other time I handwashed everything and it was so nice to have everything dry relatively quickly. Jeans get stiff, they take up more room in the washing machine, etc.

Cargo pants are very good.

Go to H&M and find some cheap stuff. Oh, and you can always say, "These jeans suck and I'll just wear them for a few weeks and then chuck them." I know a lot of people who threw stuff out as they went along--I was SUPER happy throwing away a certain t-shirt in Amalfi--others looked at me as if I were crazy.

I always bring jeans and then buy some cheap stuff on the road. In my opinon jeans are the best travelling pants - and I mean this specifically for the act of travelling, i.e. trains, boats, buses, etc. You wouldn't believe, how many pairs of pants I've shred to pieces while travelling. And Jeans seem to endure the longest. You can always wear something lighter or shorter when staying in a place (and/or while your jeans are hanging in the sun to dry).

I don't know. The 'classic' traveller gear never did it for me. Too posh and not endurable enough. My opinon.

Adrian

Unless I'm actually backpacking, trecking, camping etc. through the swiss alps or other wilderness area, I always felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb with those expensive, lightweight pants in the middle of Paris or Rome. Jeans are durable, can take a stain and still look ok (especially at night), are warm, and most importantly, comfortable. If it means a few more ounces in the backpack I'll be lugging around only a day or so per week at most, so be it. I've wasted plenty of space and weight (not to mention money) on "travelling" clothes that I invariably end up leaving behind or giving away to some poorer sap than myself (ouch, the thought of the money wasted hurts too.). Bottom line: Don't worry about what the "experts" say, take what you know you'll wear and leave the rest behind...

To answer you Brianne on how cold does southern Europe get in winter compared to Portland, I'd reckon you could count on much the same give or take.
Like Portland is about lat45n, whereas from Spain thru to Italy and down to Greece you will be touching 45n around the top of the med, but then heading back south a lot going down thru Italy and a ferry is it across to Greece to less than 40-35 lat.
You probably get similar moderating effects from the Pacific as Italy and Greece get from the med.
That being said tho, Athens does get the occasional Snow storm, and certainly plenty of snow in higher country to north there, in Italy and Mountainous areas of spain up near the French border.
But it is a good move to be down that way that time of the year other than you will find that Europe tends to near close up shop for winter as far as summery resorts go, even on the Greek Islands to a large extent.

OK - thanks. CJ and I were just talking about the subject this morning, so thanks for the info. I have a nice waterproof shell and we are looking at windproof fleeces, so hopefully we will be ready for whatever European weather can deal out to us!

Gonorth - I don't really have to worry about this subject in your neck of the woods, do I? Stays pretty nice down there?

I'm in the same place a lot of you guys are! I, too have wasted money on special travel clothes. Why oh why did I get those lightweight *brown* pants (trousers for the UK bunch)? Yeah, they dried quickly and didn't show dirt, but they were *Ug-ly*!! Every time I wore them I, too felt ugly-ish.

So I was at a thrift store yesterday and found two very stylish and *lightweight* pairs of dark-ish jeans for only $5 each. I thought, "I am taking one of these on my next trip!"

And my rain jacket is a waterproof kid's jacket--I'm fairly small (I think it's plastic, so it has to be waterprrof) with a hood and pockets and little duckies all over the inside of it, and long enough to keep the butt dry. That, too was a thrift store find for only $5. It works. The money I saved will be used on my trip!

So I guess my advice is, wear what you are comfortable in, what you like, and check the thrift stores first!

I always say "no, I don't need jeans" and then regret it the whole time (and wind up buying them in Bangkok). Bring em. Sometimes you just need to be comfy and happy in your favorite clothing.

PC

There seems to be a fairly unanimous agreement in favour of Jeans then.

I agree with the fact that if you are comfortable in it , take it with you. How are you gona havve fun on your trip if you don't even feel good about yourself?!

just like amhran said, i don't particularly want to wear those travel pants.

It looks to me that i will be taking jeans with me then .
SORTED.