Round the World; help me pack and plan

[Dee]

So, as mentioned in another thread, I am planning a round the world trip next year, about February-August.

The current plans are: arriving in New Zealand in late February, staying through March; 2 weeks Hawaii early or mid April, 2.5 months western US, then up to Vancouver; scenic train across to Toronto and back home in August/September.

I have options for two further stops from the following list: Dubai, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapur, Sydney.

I'll mostly be staying with friends, so I'll have some local advice and plans ready, but I haven't traveled outside Europe for ages, so any advice/watch-outs/don't-miss will be gratefully received.

I am mainly after lots of nature, sunshine, some hiking, and anything textile. I don't anticipate doing anything too fancy. There'll definitely be some camping. Oh, and I tend to be on the feeling cold side.

So with all the preliminaries out of the way, here's my draft packing list:

bags: DLBC, Aeronaut 45 (could be checked), Synapse 25 in Aeronaut.
all things marked a are currently packed into a PCBP.

Tops:
a Camisoles *2
a tshirt
a turtleneck *2
a black shirts *2
a Wool dress
(Fleece wool hoodie or second cardigan(w)) //I am debating this depending on how cold it might get. The hoodie has been very handy for a camping trip in the UK in late August, but it's also comparatively chunky.
a cardigan
jumper(w)
a summer dress
short top (to be made) //my crafting project for New Zealand
a tunic

Bottoms:
a Silk skirt
Jeans(w) //get non convertible trousers?
convertible travel trousers
a leggings *3
a shorts

Accesoires:
posh beige shawl(w)
rain jacket(w)
fingerless gloves
sandals
flats
hiking boots (w)
legwarmers
bikini
cotton shawl
bra
underwear
Scrubba //?
hats? //I have a packable straw summer hat. I also own a leather stetson style hat, but a) it's not very packable, although I could pack around it, and b) I don't want to be the silly looking foreigner.
oversocks


Toiletries: 311 bag, comb and assorted bits and pieces.
Tech: Macbook Air, iPhone (iPad?) Kindle, chargers, battery, headphones, adapters.
other: calendar, paper reference, small notebook/scratch paper.
knitting/spinning: turkish spindle *2, set of common needles, 1 crochet hook, notions //The needles and notions will likely need checking or posting. I'll have to find out how needle friendly airports are these days.
EDC purse
waterbottle
snack box
napkins(2, doubles as travel towel)

[bchaplin]

Wow, sounds great! I am interested to hear feedback about the Scrubba if you get it. In retrospect I should have purchased one for my last trip, because it lets you do the laundry more easily and probably get the clothes cleaner than is possible with just a dry bag and hand agitation. Of course your friends may have laundry facilities, but it is still nice to be able to wash a few clothes by oneself.

Do you have tiny locking carabiners, the kind you get at REI? I have found these useful in some places for securing the zippers on my bag. They won't prevent theft but would slow someone down.

I would ditch the hat and pick up something locally if you feel the need. For pants, maybe look at the Royal Robbins brand. They sell pants of thin material that don't look too much like travel clothes, but still hand-wash and dry more easily than jeans. On the other hand they don't protect against cold at all, at least the ones I have.

[timothy]

What a trip!

What are you leaning toward for the other possible stops? (I'm sure all are interesting ... Kuala Lampur would be the most interesting to me, I think, and I've heard only good things about Sydney, so those might be my picks)

[djjr]

As a POM living in Sydney, you will find everything you are looking for here. Lots of nature and hiking opportunities within an 1-2 hour drive/bus/train of Sydney, including the Royal National Park (I recommend the Coast to Coast track and Burning Palms) plus many wonderful walks/hikes in the Blue Mountains (easy to hard). Even in Winter, it's sunshine most days, just colder (but warm by UK standards!).

Have a wonderful trip!

[ClaireJ]

Sounds like a fun trip! Where on the US west coast are you planning on going? Obviously a stop in Seattle, I assume

Your packing list looks pretty good, but you could cut back a bit on clothes - seems like a lot of tops, in particular. Also, you could probably cut out one, or even two, pairs of leggings. Convertible pants - if you already have a pair you like, that's fine, but in my experience, they often aren't really good at being pants or being shorts. Either way, you probably don't need convertible pants and shorts, especially since you already have two dresses and a skirt. Of course, these are just my thoughts on how I'd cut back myself - you'll be fine with what you've listed currently, but don't forget that the less stuff you're bringing, the less stuff you have to drag from place to place. Plus, if you need another shirt/skirt/etc, it should be easy enough to buy one where you are, then it becomes a souvenir!

[scribe]

I would forget the hoodie/second cardie and buy something when you get to the West Coast/Canada if find you need it.

I also wouldn't bother with the fingerless gloves or legwarmers - it will be summer in NZ, Hawaii is warm all year, and then it'll almost be summer again by the time you get to the US mainland. I only wear gloves Oct-Mar, and that in the chilly UK climate. Again, you can always pick something up locally if it turns out to be colder than you like.

I'd also be inclined not to take jeans, at least not denim jeans. They don't keep you either warm or cool, and they take forever to dry. A pair of cotton chinos or cargo pants would be more practical. And given that you already list 2 dresses, I think seven "bottoms" is overkill, even allowing for needing changes of clothes after hiking. I'd ditch the convertible trousers and one pair of leggings at the very least.

Finally, if you're taking the MBA and a Kindle, I wouldn't bother with an iPad, as it doesn't do anything that can't be achieved with the other two - especially if you're also taking an iPhone. (I have all of these gadgets myself - well, a Kobo rather than a Kindle, but yeah...)

[snowbot]

I second the recommendation to buy a fleece when you get to North America if you're not restricted to a very tight budget. Unless you're really warm-blooded, you'll likely want in the evenings. A basic one will be inexpensive and easy to acquire. Fancy ones will likely be on sale.

[Dee]

Do you have tiny locking carabiners, the kind you get at REI? I have found these useful in some places for securing the zippers on my bag. They won't prevent theft but would slow someone down.

I usually use keyrings, but that sounds like a fingernail saving alternative. Will have a look for some here.

I would forget the hoodie/second cardie and buy something when you get to the West Coast/Canada if find you need it.

I also wouldn't bother with the fingerless gloves or legwarmers - it will be summer in NZ, Hawaii is warm all year, and then it'll almost be summer again by the time you get to the US mainland. I only wear gloves Oct-Mar, and that in the chilly UK climate. Again, you can always pick something up locally if it turns out to be colder than you like.

I run at least a season colder than you When I say I get cold easily, I am not kidding. I went for a walk this Halloween with a friend of mine, forecast 19C: I was wearing a jumper, cardigan, scarf and gloves, and I definitely needed them when we were sitting down for breaks. Friend was wearing shorts..
Also, if possible I want to do the alpine crossing in NZ and Kilauea in Hawaii, so I've got to factor in weather at those elevations too.

---
In general there's definitely quite a lot of gap going on between clothes for seriously warm weather, and more temperate weather. I can probably skip one of the turtleneck and black shirts each, but it'll definitely mean having to stay on top of the laundry. Same story for the leggings. The plan was one to wear, one to wash, one to sleep in. All of these are really base layers, i wouldn't wear them on their own, except for sleeping in. I could probably do with less if they were wool, but unfortunately they are all cotton. I'll definitely ask for trip funding for Christmas, so maybe I can afford to replace some of them.
The jeans I'd love to replace, ideally with black merino trousers that looks reasonably normal. Icebreaker have only grey and brown at the moment. I'll have to see what else I can find available in the UK.

The iPad is definitely quite redundant for me at the moment, even for life in general. The only reason I'd take it would be to spread the battery drain over yet another device, but I might just invest in a bigger backup battery instead.