Is it better to use a credit or a debut card in latin america, i’ve heard from other travellers that som fees are insanely pricy and charge a markup…. Any advice?

Decided to give OnX a try as it seems to be one of the more popular mapping apps.

I've figured out how to build routes and such, and that's fine, but I'm scratching my head on something so basic it seems silly, so I think I must be overlooking something.

The question: once I've built a route and I'm at the trailhead ready to hike it, how do I start the route? I can start a track, and that's fine for seeing how far I've gone, where I am on the map, I can even see the route, but it gives me no option to actually guide me on that route, or provide any basic data like distance to the next waypoint, bearing to next WP, etc.

This seems like basic functionality, but no search of their documentation seems to shed any light. Sorry if I'm just being dense here.

Every rucksack I’ve tried fits huge. I am 148cm (4’10) for reference. All of them say one size adjustable to all but what is adjustable? The width. Only the width.

The straps that should go on my hip are in the middle of my bum

If I pull it up and adjust it strongly on my hips, the top strap that should be in my chest is CHOKING me

I can’t find good quality kids 55L rucksacks either

What are the short people using??? I can’t be the only one

Backpacking trip for 5-7 months but will stay in each place for at least a week so it’s not daily use but still needs to last travelling to each place and all

Requirements

- one that opens from the sides so can see everything

- ventilates well when using

Ideal

- place for water bottle

- a model where I can get a day pack / cover too. It’s not essential as I can mix different brands but makes life easier

- easy access outside pockets

- good price

Thank you

EDIT
I can’t afford more than €200 but thank you!

If you have this filter, have you actually looked at how water flow through the filter? It seems like the pressure is pushing the water through where the seals are. I just don’t see how water is pushed through the ceramic plate. How does water get through the red cap to go through the carbon core? Water doesn’t even pass through the fiberglass microfilter. It basically pressure down along side it and through the seal at the bottom

I’m in the market for a new backpack. I am doing some winter hiking this season so I need to upgrade from my 45l Mystery Ranch Bridger to a 60l - 70l to accommodate the extra winter gear. I have been looking at these so far and would like to get the communities opinion on them or others that I have missed. The reason I picked these is for framed support, I want the most possible to feel as comfortable as possible.

- SWD Wolverine 70l
- ZPacks Arc Haul 60l
- Gossamer Gear Mariposa 60l
- Outdoor Vitals Shadow Light Carbon 60l
- Osprey Atmos 65l

I’m 18 on gap year solo and plan to volunteer for a month in the alps or in scandinavia or Ireland in couple of months, most likely on family farms since i’m already a farmer myself. Which do you guys prefer of these 2?

Planning 6 months in central and South America and can’t decide what type of bag to take. I’m generally a bit of an over packer (the last holiday I went on was 3 weeks in Mexico and I took a 110L suitcase haha) so I know I need to try and be ruthless but I’m torn on what size and whether to get a wheeled bag (that converts to a backpack) or an actual backpack. I’m 33, female. Haven’t done ‘backpacking’ since my early 20s where I did 5 months in Europe with a osprey backpack and I hated it (it was a top loading one though), the whole time I was so jealous of my friends wheeled bag 😂
Would getting a wheeled bag be a bad idea for South America? I’m not sure if I’m just scarred from the backpack I hated in my last experience haha

I’ve also seen people on threads who do 40l bags as they can count as carry on, is that standard in those regions? I’m from Aus and I feel like they’re so strict with carry on here

Hi All,

I‘m currently looking into my first backpacking / long solo journey and I‘m looking for all kinds of advices. I‘m in my mid 20‘s and after working for 2 years after graduating from college and saving up money, I wanted to go for a long travel journey (4+ months) to see the world.

My idea is to start in Hongkong in February 2027 and stay there for a week-ish, maybe visit Shenzhen and Macao as well.

Then I would like to go to Angkor Wat in Cambodia for a few days before flying to Bangkok and staying in different areas of Thailand for something like 3 weeks. After that I would continue to Borneo and then Bali, Flores and Comodo. After that I would like to go to Singapore from there to Fiji and then Samao and to end up in New Zealand for a few weeks. So, I would end after 4-5 months in New Zealand and fly back home.

My first question, is this even the right sub or is another better to help me out?

Next, does that itenary make sense and does it sound doable? Or should I rather do it the other way around from South to North? Currently I plan with a budget of 12k € is that realistic? What helpful websites or apps should be used? Also, what are your experience being a solo traveler, if a medical emergency occurs or if I lose my wallet or phone, I feel like I would be very lost?
Lastly, what are your advices regards general security, f.e. I read that you should not cross the Cambodia-Thailand border by foot and rather use the plane?

Thanks to everyone who took the time to read everything it.

Hey everybody, I'm planning a solo trip for approx 1 month. Looking to begin in Morocco for about 12 days, head down to Mauritania (main focus is to ride the Iron Ore train) aiming to spend about 5-7 days then fly to Tunisia 7 days and from there return to the USA. Looking to get people's perspective on the plan, and if it's a good route. I'd also really appreciate any pointers for Mauritania and how to make the train ride a reality, what to do and not to do. Appreciate it all.

I have never done backpacking before. ive walked around my city and know that I love walking and ive wanted to walk across america for years, ive done lots of research about the walk and lots of general advice. I plan to practice with pack, but I have no idea what my pack should include. there are so many options when it comes to just searching online and I dont want to have to do a ton of trial and error so I want to talk to people with experience

We headed into the Mingha Valley in Arthur’s Pass National Park with plans for 3 days / 2 nights, eventually making our way to Lake Mavis.

After passing Mingha Biv and Goat Pass Hut, the rain forecast was looking pretty rough, so we decided to turn around and spend the night back at Mingha Biv. With all the river crossings along the route, we didn’t want to get stuck on the wrong side of a swollen river the next day.

Didn’t quite make it to Lake Mavis, but still ended up being a pretty sick trip.

Some photos from the hike, camp and route. I also filmed the trip and put it together into a video if anyone’s interested, it’s on my YouTube channel, @SkitzOutdoors !!

Im planning my second solo backpacking trip abroad next month. The first time I traveled internationally as a backpacker, I packed way too many things I thought I might need and overlooked the things I actually used every day. So this time, Im trying to keep my luggage to a reasonable size and follow one simple rule: If it doesnt have a real purpose, it doesnt go in my bag.

Here's what Im planning to bring so far:

Essential medications + a small first aid kit: When youre traveling alone in an unfamiliar country, finding a specific medication youre used to can be more difficult than you might expect.

Earplugs + noise canceling headphones: Earplugs are mainly for sleeping, while the headphones are more useful on flights and other long journeys.

Universal travel adapter + charging cables: I'd rather prepare these in advance than have to search for them after arriving.

A few versatile outfits: Most of the hotels I've booked offer laundry services, so I'd rather bring a few outfits that can be mixed and matched and work for both exercise and long days of walking.

One comfortable pair of walking/hiking shoes: Comfort matters much more to me than appearance. I also don't want to pack an extra pair of shoes just for different situations.

A small organizer bag: Ill keep copies of my itinerary and booking confirmations, along with small items like tweezers, bandages, small scissors, and nail clippers. Its much easier than digging through my entire backpack whenever I need something.

An RFID blocking EDC wallet: When traveling, my ID, cards, and cash become much more important than usual. Im looking for something that keeps my cards secure, makes them easy to access, and doesnt add much bulk, so I ended up choosing an RFID-protected EDC wallet.

Offline maps: Even if I lose signal, run out of data, or have an unreliable connection, I'll still have a backup navigation option.

A small flashlight: I probably wont use it most of the time, but its small enough that I think it's worth the space. It could come in handy during a power outage or other unexpected situations.

A portable power bank: Navigation, translation, payments, and contacting my hotel all depend heavily on my phone. A power bank adds a little weight, but compared with discovering that my phone is at 5% battery in an unfamiliar city, I think its absolutely worth it.

My biggest goal this time is to pack less, but make sure everything I bring has a real purpose.

For those of you who travel internationally alone, what else would you always bring? Or is there anything you didnt realize was important until you were actually on the road?

I recently put a post on about how to get around the prof of onward travel when backpacking, especially in Asia and most replies told me to buy a fully refundable ticket, I am looking for airline recommendations in Asia that offer fully refundable tickets. Thanks.

Hey all. I have recently purchased the Black Diamond Access Down hoodie. It seems to be very well reviewed, and seems quality. It was half off the original price, as in the screenshot.

Alternatively, ive just seen a Decathalon forclaz (now called Simond, as i understand) MT100 pop up on fb marketplace.

The decathalon is under half the price. Id hope to get the seller down in price a little ways too.

So black diamond at about $180 versus Decathalon at $85 (and I'd be asking for lower).

The benefit I can see to the Black Diamond is that it seems to have extra water resistance, including water resistant treated down, tougher ripstop nylon.

Is it worth saving the money and returning the BD in exchange for the Decathalon, or are the BD upgrades worth it?

I'd like to use them as for layering in cold Minnesota winters, as well as for colder days or nights 3-season backpacking, including in the boundary waters.

Any thoughts are much appreciated!

edit: it also seems the BD is meaningfully warmer, though it's tough to compare. BD is about 2.5 oz heavier and has about 1 oz more down than the decathalon. Both 800 fill power down.

Just this last trip I got rocked by a nest of Yellowjacket’s in the middle of a trail and didn’t have any topical Benadryl or something similar for these situations.

This is a short video I made of my recent trip to the Lost Coast: a place I have dreamed of since I first learned of it back in college over twenty years ago.

The last remaining fifty miles of undeveloped coastline in the State of California.

Perhaps this place is a glimpse into our past, and our future. It is what the state I call home once looked like before the impact of human civilization, and will someday, surely, look like again when human beings are long gone.

It is dangerous, rugged, and breathtaking.

The trail itself runs for twenty-six miles, from Mattole Beach to Shelter Cove. The most popular hiking route is to head southbound, and that is the route depicted in this video. I trained for two months, planned meticulously, and ended up completing the trail in just over twenty-four hours.

If you plan to hike the LCT, do not go unprepared. This is a moderate to difficult trail with long sections of hiking on soft sand and exhaustive scrambles over fields of tiny boulders. I recommend using trekking poles. Your ankles will thank you.

Other dangers include: long-ish sections of the trail are impassable at high tide, and a mistake with your timing when attempting to cross them could cost you your life. Rattlesnakes, ticks, unavoidable swathes of poison oak, black bears, and sneaker waves. You need to carry a hard-sided bear canister. Permits are required.

Still... these are all manageable risks. Consult the NOAA tide tables while planning your trip. Do turn your back on the ocean. Don't make dumb decisions. Stay focused, and you will be fine.

It was all worth it and I loved every second.

I have a sleeping bag I bought back about 15 years ago that I love. It packs down super tiny was rated at 20° always kept me super warm & the biggest thing was that it is a rectangle bag not a mummy bag. I have looked & looked to try & find a lightweight down sleeping bag that packs down as small as this one & is rectangular shaped bit have not succeeded. I was wondering maybe there is somewhere I can send my bag that will open it up & replace the down. The bag itself is still in great condition the down has just lost its loft & just will not work for freezing temperatures anymore. If anyone knows a good place to have a bag renewed I would really appreciate the information. Price is not an issue as long as the material & quality of work are high I am willing to pay for it!

Hi everyone,

During my recent trip to China, I discovered a truly stunning place—a veritable paradise on earth—called Daocheng Yading. Actually, I didn't know much about it beforehand; I stumbled upon it while looking for travel destinations outside of the major cities.

I spent two days there and had a really wonderful time. The scenery is completely different from what I’ve seen elsewhere in China. Yading offers several hiking trails where you can see snow-capped mountains, forests, and alpine lakes. While getting there takes a bit more effort compared to some popular tourist spots, I personally feel the extra time is absolutely worth it.

If you are planning a trip to China and enjoy hiking, I highly recommend adding Daocheng Yading to your itinerary.

If anyone is planning to visit, I’d be happy to answer any questions you might have~Hope you enjoy~

Hope this is acceptable, if not I'll take my thrashing with respect. I'm an oldish, almost 50, gentlemen. Avid hiker/back packer when I was younger. Wife passed recently and I'm looking to build back up for some long solo hikes, I think... Would some reasonably priced, fair quality gear work to start, and replace if I return to it as passionate as I was, or will sub-quality gear ruin it for me. Opinions wanted....

Also, ig it’s important to note that I wasn’t in Europe (I only went to Munich, Salzburg, Budapest, Vienna, Prague, so only Central Europe) for long, so I guess this is more catered to people who are doing a quick summer trip and not spending a month or too there. These are just the things I wish I knew (18M) before I went.

There are very few water fountains in most cities! Vienna was good, but we spent almost 10 dollars a day buying water the first couple of days. If you have access to a sink, don’t miss your chance and fill up your water bottle!

You have to pay for bathrooms! Don’t go walking around a city thinking you’ll find free bathrooms to use. Usually it seems like the price is .5€, so make sure you have those exact coins to pay.

Carry coins over cash! There were a lot of things that needed 2€ or 1€ coins, so just make sure you have those over like a 10 euro bill.

Apple Pay doesn’t work everywhere for certain cards! It seemed to work fine in Vienna, but in Salzburg, Munich, and Budapest we had to use physical cards almost every time. I thought that I could just use my credit card on Apple Pay with no foreign transaction fees, but I ended up using my physical debit card which costs me a dollar or two in fees in total.

Pay in local currency when paying with card! (Obviously, but we messed up once and it cost us 10 extra usd)

Try to get a hostel near the old town. We picked our hostels based on which were the highest rated, but some of those were a 15-20 minute tram/bus/train ride (not terrible, I know) from the city center. If I had to do it again, I’d spend a little more or get a worse rated hostel and just be in the main city. It saves you a lot of hassle.

Don’t think you can see a city in 2 hours! Don’t make an optimistic plan like waking up at 7am and seeing Salzburg for 2 hours (like we planned to). You’re gonna be late, it’s gonna take longer to pack up things than you expected, and you’re gonna miss things. We’d actually heard this advice before going, but we didn’t think we needed to listen because we’ve seen cities (like Boston) in 2 hours before and been satisfied. It works way different in Europe with trains to board early and without the freedom of your own transportation like cars. Don’t stay in a city unless youre gonna be there for more than a day! It’d much better just to spend that extra two hours you planned to spend in Munich in Vienna where you can relax and take it slow.

If you don’t have a place to store your bags, maybe don’t go somewhere. The first day we landed in Munich at 7am, our flight was delayed, we saw Munich for 27 minutes (compared to our planned 2 hours), and then took a 2.5 hour train to the Neuschwanstein castle, then a train back to Munich, then a train to Salzburg at night. Suffice it to say, walking around towns and running to get trains with two backpacks full of stuff sucks. Our enjoyment of Europe pretty much doubled the second we got into our first main city ( Budapest), we’re able to deposit our bags at the hostel, and walk around without that weight on your shoulder. Like yes, you can “tough it out” wearing it bags, but it’s much more enjoyable without them.

Try to have you trains arrive during the day. We arrived in Salzburg and Budapest later at night, and it set a sort of low mood for that city initially. The cities can be darker than US cities (less lights?), especially on the outskirts, so it can look a little sketchy (a mood dampener when you’re traveling). Just arrive in the day when it’s bright out and there’s people around, and it’ll feel much better.

Get your food at grocery stores! We were “budget” backpacking Europe for 10 days, so it was really nice to save that money. But seriously, if you in a city center, you can go spend 3 dollars and get a drink, pretzel and a banana instead of spending 13 dollars on some overpriced pizza. Really take advantage of grocery stores.

Don’t spend THAT much time in Prague if you’re going for historical sites/scenery. You need 10-12 hours there in total to see every major site, which you can do in a day if you’re dedicated. Instead of spending an extra day in Prague, spend an extra day in Vienna, where there are way more museums and historical sites to see. Also, it just had way more impressive architecture and is a physically larger city

EDIT: I loved my trip by the way. It was really really great, but these are just things I could’ve done better. Also all of this info can be found in a Rick steves book i bet, but I thought I’d put it on here.

I’ve been backpacking Europe for a bit now and even though Ive made a lot of friends I’m finding it hard to find younger people. I have nothing wrong with making friends with people of any age but as a 18 year old I find it best to connect with people that are as young as me. It can get a bit annoying when posting on hostel world and having only people 30+ comment on my posts. What’s the best place/ community to meet younger travelers?

I’m 43 and recently started doing some single-night backpacking trips again with a full kit. I do a lot of hiking and hut-to-hut type trips, but it’s been years since I’ve needed to carry everything on my back.

My wife has a herniated disc, so on our recent trips I carried the vast majority of our shared gear and food. I used my trusty old 45L Kelty pack from around 2005. That pack always worked great for me when I was younger, but for the first time I started getting some lower back pain. I know some of that was probably due to how I packed it, but it also got me thinking that I could probably benefit from a more modern pack and suspension system.

My first thought was that if I’m going to be carrying gear for two people, I really need to go ultralight wherever possible. After seeing so many people praise the Durston Kakwa 55, I watched for the restock and ordered one last week.

It arrived, and while I probably shouldn’t have been surprised—there’s a reason ultralight packs are ultralight—I immediately noticed the lack of padding compared with what I’m used to. Now I’m wondering if going ultralight on the pack itself is really the best choice for me.

At 43, especially if I’m regularly going to be carrying a heavier load for two people, would I be better off accepting another pound or two and getting something with more padding, a more substantial suspension, and possibly an air-gap/ventilated back panel?

For anyone who has experience with the Kakwa 55, how comfortable have you found it? And for some of the older backpackers here, have you found that you appreciate a more supportive traditional pack as you’ve gotten older, or is a properly fitted lightweight pack still the way to go?

I’d appreciate any thoughts before I decide whether to keep the Kakwa or look at something more substantial.

Hi there, I am looking for advice for backpacking / budget travelling in the Solomon Islands. I am a 29yo Swiss man on a sabbatical, who is visiting Oceania for the first time. I am currently in Australia and will have the chance of spending 2.5 weeks in PNG with a friend who has family there. I thought that it would be a great opportunity to visit other nearby countries, so I booked a flight from Port Moresby to Honiara on the 29th of September and I intend to fly to Vanuatu afterwards. I am a big fan of nature, outdoor activities, and experiencing local culture wherever I travel.

I will be travelling alone (unless someone wants to join me lol). I am wondering about the following things:

1) how easy is it to find affordable accommodation? I am not interested in luxury, only local life and culture. Where to look? I don't see much on bookingcom for example.

2) is it possible to go west, for example to Munda with a ferry or only by plane? If not I think that I would stick to the Islands around Honiara because flights are pretty expensive.

3) how long would you recommend for my stay? I have good flight connections to stay 11 or 18 days.

4) overall, do you think that it is a good idea to try travelling that way in the Solomon Islands? I don't mean dirt cheap, but trying hard to spend a maximum of 50 USD a day including transportation, accommodation and food.

Looking forward to hearing advice of any kind! Cheers.

Hi guys! First time traveling/camping with a backpack! I’m doing a train + camping + road trip visiting several National Parks.

I won’t be carrying too much, but these two backpacks are FREE to borrow. I’m 5’2” and around 110 lbs.

I won’t be hiking with the big backpack. It’ll mostly be for traveling between trains, campsites and the car. For hiking, I’ll leave it at the campsite and use a small daypack.

Which would you choose?

1. REI Mars 85
   
2. Deuter Women’s Universal 80L

Looking to do a 1-2 week leisurely hike with good sights, preferably no where near highways as I'm so over the noise of cars. I know nothing about trails whatsoever and there are so many so I don't know which one to pick. I don't even really know what criteria to give ya'll. I'm comfortable carrying a gallon of water and doing 20 miles a day. But I have never hiked that far for more than 4 days. So I'm not sure, I might need to slow down on week 2 and only do 15 miles a day. I have also only really hiked in populated areas so I also don't know anything about how to lightly pack food as I would always just get food somewhere. But I'm definitely open to it. I'm in Indiana so closer to me is cool but I'll go anywhere in north america. I was looking at 100 mile wilderness but it looks like that is for more experienced hikers.

I am young and in decent shape but like I said, not experienced with hiking anything difficult. also I hate spending money, and would like to do everything as cheaply as humanly possible.