In five days, I’ll be on my way to Spain. After two months of being home, it’s time to head back out and explore my world. I’ve spent the last week getting my gear together, shopping for some new clothes, and making sure all my ducks were in a row. Last year, I talked about what I pack on a trip. For the most part, what’s in my backpack hasn’t changed. The clothes and toiletries are still the same, though the fake brands I bought in Thailand might be a bit different. But this time around, I’m adding some new toys as well as using some new companies. So besides clothes and a toothbrush, what travel gear do I take on the road?

Guidebooks- The staff at Lonely Planet gave me the new edition of Western Europe. I can see some changes to the format. There are more pictures, for example. I tend to use Lonely Planet when I go to Europe. I think they make good European guides, so I tend to focus on them. I’ll be using it more than I normally do, just to see if this new format and edition is an improvement over the last.

Travel Insurance- You know my favorite travel insurance company is World Nomads. I particularly love the staff, as I deal with them on the business side a lot, and they are always very friendly. Since I’ll be taking a lot of electronics this time, I really wanted to have travel insurance on this trip. World Nomads was nice enough to give me complimentary insurance this time around. I would have bought it anyways, but it’s nice of them to help me out!

Rail Pass- I’ve never railed Europe. I took an overnight train once, and it was such an awful experience that I vowed never to do it again. But one of the best ways to see Europe is via train. The countryside is stunning, and you can get into small towns you couldn’t visit by flying. Though it will take more time, I plan on doing a lot of day train travel. I was able to get Rail Europe to gave me a Eurail pass for my trip. I’ve never used one before. Many people use these passes on their holidays, so I am on a quest to find out if they really do save you money, as well as write good stories about train travel in Europe.

Backpack- I’ve had my REI Mars backpack for over three years now. It’s been tossed around in airports, crushed on crowded buses in Asia, forgotten under my bed while I lived in Thailand, and stuffed into hostel lockers. For all that wear and tear, it looks and functions as good as the day I bought it. REI makes quality packs, and I’m their customer for life because of it. If you are looking to get a backpack, check out my article on picking the right pack for tips.

Audio/Visual- I’m a Canon guy. I find their products to be easy to use, affordable, and well designed. This trip, I’m still sticking with my old PowerShot 400. It’s a few years old, but it does what I need it to do. This time, I also added a video camera. I’m now traveling with the Canon HF200. It’s a new HD camera and has gotten rave reviews. The next step for this blog is video, so while in Europe, I plan on producing a number of videos on destinations in Europe.

My book, “How to Travel the World on $50 USD per day,” features many of the above companies offering EXCLUSIVE deals and discounts that will save you over $1000 USD off your next trip! Click here for more details!

Note: If you want to help support this site and keep it going, using the companies above through the links above when you book your trip, does just that! Please consider it!