Backpacking essentials list

[Pineaurouge]

I'm going backpacking in india for 4 weeks soon (for the first time) and wondered if anyone has advice on what essentials to take. I want to travel as light as possible! Also id appreciate advice on footwear.

So far i have.....
Hand sanitiser
Toiletries
first aid kit
bug repellent
small towel
hand wash for laundry
small backpack
money belt
packing cubes

Fwiw the north could be cold in Feb depending on how north you go so take something warm. The south will still be fine.

I went to Pakistan in November a few years ago and I didn't have nearly enough jumpers. The lows were colder than the UK.

Door stop to wedge under room door when sleeping etc

Are you taking a sleeping bag? If not, might be worth taking your own travel sheet (it's like a sleeping bag but just cotton)
I'd probably take a small torch and a battery pack for my phone too.

Sounds like an amazing holiday - I did Thailand years ago and best investment were the thin walking / trekking trousers which had a zip just above the knees - so I could wear them as shorts or long trousers. Most helpful when out hiking... and still useful as shorts at all other times.

PP said sarong / shawl - buy them out there. T-shirts too. There's little point in taking stuff like that as after travelling for four weeks you may well just need to ditch it all before you come home.

I would take a considerable amount of Imodium and rehydration sachets. And a few shalwar kameez outfits rather than western clothes (buy them there, Fab India is a good shop). I found I was sexually harassed less in them (although I went alone).

Dehydration sachets.

Oh! Lord my dgs is just about to go travelling and the lists above are so daunting to an old lady who left school on a Friday and started work on a Monday. He was only talking yesterday about what he should put in a back pack for Thailand. His mother advocated throwing away clothes and buying really cheap things available locally in Thailand! Give me a nice hotel please. Good luck to you and I hope you have a great time while you are young.

I second the door wedge for security. I like the money / passport holders that go around your neck or across body. I also kept some emergency money in an empty clean roll on deodorant bottle (just popped the ball out and hid some notes and replaced the ball) and kept this in my wash bag just in case.

I went travelling through Asia finishing in India. I was pretty sensible about clothes, t-shirts rather than vest tops, but I did end up with some new baggy tops as some were just fitted too closely. DH got comments like "nice wife!".

I wore walking boots all the time. The streets were not pleasant, even by my sandal wearing standards.

Light loose combat trousers although they were a bit more trendy then. Harem pants would probably be good too.

A loose shirt was good for an extra layer without being too warm (was there in November and moved south into December) Temperatures were 20s and quite pleasant although we'd gone prepared for mid-30s in China, through sub-zero in the Gobi & Himalayas.

In India we were in simple hotels which were more avaliable and good value against hostels. We only used the sleeping mats and bags on the night we walked into India into a very basic hostel after a gruelling 15 hours of travelling, plus on night trains.

Lots of great ideas.

I think i'm going to take my walking boots rather than sandals, along with my flip flops. It also sounds like i need to invest in a shirt to put over my other tops. I'm going to TRY to not take too much and buy the rest when i am there we have a pretty generous luggage allowance on our flights but i don't want to be carrying too much around with me.

I found my walking boots heavy and barely used them. Lightweight trainers would have been fine. I also agree about a door stop to wedge under the door when you are sleeping.

My one bit of advice is....don't eat salad.

Only eat food that has been cooked or food that you have just peeled (bananas etc.).

I know dozens of people will say oh I went and ate everything and it was fine.

The way I looked on it I was only going for three weeks and didn't have time to spend three days ill with Delhi Belly.

I didn't get anything. My friend was v poorly for a few days though and we hid in the hotel eating takeaways.

Take oral rehydration salts just in case.

Go to Holland and barratt now and get acidophilus. It’s a bacteria ;keep the tablets in the fridge). It fills your gut with good bacteria so if you do eat/drink anything dodgy the good bacteria will overcome any bad bacteria. I take it before any holidays and have never had a bad tummy yet and I do have a really sensitive stomach.

I travelled Chennai, Hampi, kochi, kollam, Goa, varanasi, Mumbai, Delhi, agra, jaipur, udaipur and amritstar staying mainly in home stays. I dragged walking boots with me the entire way and never wore them until I crossed into Nepal to trek in the Himalayas.

I found the south of india was dry and covered every bit of clothing in an orange dust which stained all light coloured clothes. The north of india was suffering floods..i second the sleep sheet suggestion, I used one in home stays and on night sleeper trains. Easy to clean also!

Footwear is very much personal preference, I live and die in birkenstocks evening during most of the winter uk months if I'm only our for short periods of walking the dog around the block! Take what's comfy to you.

If you're planning on using reusable water bottle I would suggest purification tablets as well.

elastic washing line for drying clothes

I wouldn’t bother with laundry products. Getting your laundry done is cheap in India particularly if you stay in one place for more than 1 or 2 nights.

And I’d second (or 3rd) the recommendation of a sarong/shawl - in cotton. It would replace a more bulky towel and double up as head covering as well as light wrap for travelling.

I found the best thing for me were linen trousers - quite floppy. And an oversize light Chinese/parachute silk man’s shirt - it buttoned right up to my neck and the sleeves went past my wrists so was a useful cover up against sun and heat (we were travelling in July ) but was light and soft and tolled up almost into my pocket! And because often hear, I wore white mostly.

“Because of the heat”

I haven't been to India, but for South America, an unlocked mobile phone was invaluable. I then bought a local SIM card and then you have cheap internet access / a local phone.

A very long piece of string is useful to hang washing on. I also had a cable lock so I could secure my backpack in hostels etc - it won't stop a determined thief but hopefully stops opportunists.

Silk sleeping bag - stops mosquito bites during the night

A large wrap is really useful for modesty, covering head, protection from the sun etc. Sarong, sandals, flip flops

Take a photocopy of the page with your information in your passport. Fold it up small and put it somewhere non-descript in your luggage. So if your passport should get stolen, you still have a copy of it.

Definitely dress modestly, long trousers, no vest tops, sleeves 3/4 or full length, I took a scarf to wrap round me at times too.

I wore walking sandals and washed my feet a lot and trekking shoes.

Only three things you need that you always forget! A plug so you can wash your pants in the sink, a nail brush for washing said pants, and a plastic door stop for stopping anyone coming in. Everything else you can get most places

I backpack a lot and a really good backpack is an essential investment for me. Mine are Osprey, they are expensive but worth every penny when you have to walk around with it on your back for over an hour in 40 degree heat.

I would take flip flops, Teva or Keen sandals and a good pair of trainers - I wear Salomons but Merrells or similar are also decent. You won't need walking boots unless you're doing hardcore hiking with a heavy pack. They're heavy, bulky and hot and really not needed on your itinerary.

Other stuff:
Sunglasses and rigid case
Pack towel
Silk sleeping bag liner
Power bank
Inflatable neck pillow - invaluable on long bus/train journeys
Kindle
Notebook and pen
Antibac wet wipes
Hand sanitiser
Toilet paper/tissues
Sunscreen
DEET insect repellent
Painkillers, anti diarrhoea and anti sickness meds
Plasters and antiseptic
Tweezers and scissors
Antimalarials if needed
Baseball cap to keep the sun off your face and your hair out of the way
Lightweight merino underwear, vest tops and t-shirts (Icebreaker) - pricey but comfortable and doesn't get smelly

You can buy lots of stuff there for next to no money - lightweight dresses, shawls, harem style trousers, tops etc. Take a sweatshirt or zip-up hoody for the plane and in case of a cooler evening.

Surprising things that I have learnt to take- sleeping bag liner (great for overnight trains, grottier than expected hostels or if you end up somewhere over air conditioned), 1 adaptor and a powerboard (in hostels, in overnight trains there may only be one plug and you’ll suddenly be super popular!) and a small padlock (lock bags, Lock hostel lockers, so much more useful then I thought!)