ESSENTIAL TRAVEL ITEMS
Wondering what to pack for your trip? What are the essential travel items? What the best travel gear to use when travelling, taking photos or exploring outdoors?
Below you can find recommendations for the best essential travel items including the outdoor gear and photography gear. All of the items listed, I tested myself on my travels for over the decade. I use them on all my trips, and I can highly recommend.
Content:
This post contains affiliate links, which means that I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. More details here.
TRAVEL GEAR
Backpack – one of the most important essential travel items. I currently use Berghaus 30 l. It’s great for short hiking trips or weekend gateways. For longer travels, I’m planning to upgrade to the better quality backpack with more pockets and unzipped bottom, like Osprey Kestrel 48 . I still want it to be small enough to fit in the hand luggage regulations for the airlines, but also to fit all my stuff!- Check price.
Compression bags – and people wonder how I can manage to travel for several weeks just with a hand luggage. Luggage compression bags are the answer. By using the compression bags, your clothes get to the much smaller volume by squeezing out all the air. They are also very good for keeping your things dry and away from unpleasant smells. – Check price here.
Packing cubes – they are great to organize your luggage. Packing cubes come in many shapes and sizes, so you can split your belongings into the groups. I normally prefer compression bags for the backpack, but packing cubes are great for the suitcase – Check price here.
Guidebooks – travel guides from Lonely Planet are always a big help in planning my trips. They have been on a market for a long time, just make sure you take the up to date version. Otherwise, stick to my blog ;-). Check the latest offers here.
PHOTOGRAPHY GEAR
Camera – I love mirrorless cameras and from the very beginning of my photographic journey I had cameras from Fuji-X series. I think they are the best travel cameras – lightweight, small and compactable, with interchangeable lenses. I had Fuji-XA1 (before it got stolen), and now I have Fuji X-E1. Affordable, small and has a great quality of pictures – Check price. Find some of the deals here!
Landscape lens. It is essential for the landscape and night sky photos, also great for general travel photography. I use Samyang 12 mm lens which has an affordable price from the lower end, but provides really good photo quality. Check price here.
Zoom lens. If you want to take wildlife photos, a zoom lens is a must. I decided to buy Fuji zoom lens 50-230 mm, F 4.5-6.7 and I am very happy. That’s one of the cheapest zoom lenses available, with really good picture quality. I bought it for our Svalbard trip and Masai Mara safari in Kenya and it did very well.
Tripod – the lightweight tripod of a small size is a must for me. I chose compact Manfrotto tripod and I’m very happy with it – now my Aurora and stars pictures are even better – Check price.
Action camera – I have a cheaper alternative for GoPro – AKASO EK7000, which is still providing great image quality! Great for underwater shots and anything adventure related- Check price.
Stabilized DJI Osmo Pocket Camera – Handheld DJI Osmo Pocket Camera with 3-Axis Gimbal Stabilizer and excellent video and photo quality is perfect for these on-the-move shots when there is no time to fiddle with the bigger camera or you need a smooth video stabilization. I love mine and take it to all my hikes. Check price here.
SD card iPhone reader – the best item, that I recently discovered. It allows you to instantly move pictures from your camera to your phone. Must-have for every travel photographer – Check price.
Camera bag – I decided to buy the padded camera bag insert, that I can put into another, casually looking bag. The normal look makes it the best travel camera bag. Better be safe than sorry! Check price.
More of my camera gear here.
OUTDOOR GEAR
Waterproof jacket – I love my Marmot Goretex jacket, but any Goretex would do – Check price.
Hiking shoes – I’ve been using La Sportivas for 10 years and they walked lots of kilometers and climbed many peaks – Check price. I can recommend hiking boots from Merrell, Salomon or La Sportiva
Waterproof trousers – they are the best for hiking, especially in unpredictable Scottish and Norwegian weather. I have Marmot waterproof pants for many years now.
Trekking socks – good trekking socks are an essential item for hiking. I can recommend merino wool socks, they are soft, breathable, keep you dry and away from blisters.
Headtorch – I have Petzl headtorch since, like… forever – Check price.
The base layer – I always use merino wool – such a game changer! I have the top merino wool baselayer and the bottom merino wool base layer.
Read more about my camping gear here.
Like it? Pin it!
