Before you go? (advice, rucksacks, what to bring)

Davexirl

Right I have everything booked, visa, flights etc. I am arrving in Perth on the 16th of March, I will be there just in time for Paddy's day:D.
So I am wondering what should I bring and some advice??? Maybe we should get a list going here because I'd say this question is going to come up a lot over the next few weeks and months.

I am looking at rucksacks at the moment and have my eye on these two but can't make up my mind, anyone have any recommendations?

Caribee Grand Air 80 Travel Pack: http://www.caribee-uk.com/grand-air-80-travel-pack-cat-1-subcat-10-product-232

or

Caribee Fast Track 85: http://www.caribee-uk.com/fast-track-85-charcoal-black-cat-1-subcat-10-product-273


Thanks

layke

http://www.berghaus.com/ProductDetails.aspx?ProductID=1517&Gear=1

-Opens like a suitcase so it's easy to get your gear
-Detatchable bag for when you are traveling about for the day or on a flight

Best Rucsack I ever bought.

samhail

I got a Wynnster convertible 80. very impressedd with it, 80l obviously. the detachable front bag.
thing i like about this one is that it has a waterproof cover for the front and the back, with the back up it will zip completely shut and protect on flights.
i picked it up in town somewhere, one of the camping shops at the end of henry street, or on capel street.



My opinion of those two would be your first one, looks a bit more secure, espicially if your going to be travelling and leaving your bags on planes etc.

Davexirl

Cheers for the replies, think I am gonna go with the first one.

The Sweeper

Personally, I'd never travel with an 80 litre rucksack again - because if you have the space, you'll fill it and have to lug it about.

This is assuming you're doing direct Ireland or UK to Australia - I haven't done the interim travelling bit myself.

What not to bring:

Don't bring big bottles of shampoo, shower gel, moisturisers, shaving foam etc. The stores down here are basically the same as the stores in the UK and Ireland - same brands, same ranges, and toiletries are really heavy. Stick with the theory - if you can't buy shampoo or shower gel in your destination, then you won't need them anyway.

Don't even bother buying sun cream - there are great ranges down here and you can pick one up within a day.

Also, light cotton clothing is *really* cheap down here. The things it's more difficult to get are things like a good quality cotton jumper for the evenings when it cools down, or a good pair of shoes. Bring something you can walk for miles in on your feet (and I'm talking city footwear here, not necessarily hiking footwear) and one respectable pair of shoes for when you'll eventually have to get a job. Buy the rest here - thongs (flipflops) are a popular footwear choice if you're near the beach but you can buy most light shoes for minimal prices.

(And this is a country full of hillbilly wannabees too - just go to any country petrol station and baulk at the fact that you're the only person in the queue who isn't barefoot.)

I would recommend travelling light. Choose your clothes well - bring nothing that you haven't already worn and know that you could live in for a few days at a time. Understand that it's a hot country - heavy denim jeans are uncomfortable to sit around in, uncomfortable when it's 35 degrees, uncomfortable to travel in and uncomfortable to walk for miles around a new city when the heat is reflecting back off the concrete buildings. They're more useful in the evenings, so bring one favourite pair, don't fill your backpack with them.

Don't bother your arse buying expensive sunglasses. The aussies are good on their sun-screening products, so all the cheap $20 sunnies will have the appropriate uv protections on them - and when (not if) you lose them or they get nicked, it's no crisis.

Be careful of buying an expensive rucksack, only to discover it's a total pain in the arse to travel with. Rucksacks are designed for people who want to walk great distances with their belongings on their back. If you're going Ireland to Australia without a few weeks of stopover in Asia, and you're travelling home-airport-public transport-hostel-ditch bag, why would you bring a rucksack? It's a real bastard if the airline refuses to let your rucksack travel as standard in the hold because they're worried the straps will get caught in the conveyor belts and as a result they either shrink wrap it in cling film or send it through the excess or special baggage check-ins. Then you don't get out of the airport as quickly at the other end - and trust me, when you land after hours of flying, all you want to do is get out of the airport! Plus a good rucksack costs a sodding fortune, which is wasted money if all you really need is a big bag.

If you're not intending to head off into the red centre on foot with your belongings with you, then I'd buy a horrible-coloured or otherwise distinctive lockable airline case that comes with wheels and a variety of handles so it's easy to cart about a city. Then spend more money on a well-chosen, useful cabin-bag sized carry-on that you can then use as an overnight bag, a weekend bag, a bag you can walk around the city with while your locked case stays at wherever base camp is.

What I *would* bring, would be the smallest of wash bags, seven days of socks and underwear, one pair of jeans, one pair of good shoes, three or four light cotton tops, one decent cotton jumper or shirt for the evening, a pair of shorts or very light material trousers, then my camera, mobile phone, musical entertainment device, whatever single can't-live-without item you'll insist on taking whether or not it's practical, and some cash. Not loads of cash, but definitely some cash in the denomination of the country I'm going to.

See if you can blag some small change off an Australian you know - because it's just nice to get off the plane and be able to get something to drink from an airport vending machine if you want to.

samhail

wow nice one

chris85

my advice would be against rucksacks also. They are not necessary and a serious pain in the ass to carry around. Unless you are doing some serious off road walking that requires one I would get a rolling suitcase. Much easier to get at stuff in it. Nothing worse then when the thing you need is at the bottom of the carefully packed rucksack.

I travelled with a 65L Jack Murphy rucksack that I bought about eight years ago. Much better than the one the missus bought before we went and cost a few. But still we didnt need them as we were not using them for that they are intended. A rolling suitcase would have been a lot handier.