What to pack when backpacking in Central America
We decided a few years ago to be the carry-on only type of traveler. It doesn't matter if we are going for only a day, a week, or over a month of travel. We only bring what we can carry-on the plane. This has forced us to really think about what we pack. We've never regretted packing less. Each trip we take we hone our list even further.
What follows are photos and detailed lists of absolutely everything we currently have with us on our month-long Central American trip.
What Dan brought
Dan's disclaimer: I'm an over preparing kind of guy. I like to have what I need for that one time you meet a plug your computer doesn't plug into or you meet someone having a severe asthma attack. I also like my gadgets.
Footwear
- Reef Sandals
- Old Navy cheap sandals
- North Face Gore-Tex sneakers
Clothing
- 6 pairs of socks including five pairs of DeFeet LeviTator Lite Low Socks. (Awesome socks)
- 5 Pairs of boxer briefs including 4 pairs of MEC's Mens seamless boxer briefs (best underwear I have ever owned)
- Belt
- 6 t-shirts (5 of which are polyester/quick dry)
- Shorts
- Bathing suit (doubles as pair of shorts)
- MEC travel pants
- Marmot waterproof breathable shell
- MEC zipped hoodie
Bags, Luggage, & Organization
Technology & Gadgets
- Steripen Adventurer Water Purifier with solar charging case
- Canon 50mm 1.8 lens
- Hoya Circular Polarized filter
- Canon Digital Rebel XT
- Cannon 24-105mm L series lens
- Extra Digital Rebel battery
- 4GB compact flash cards (x2)
- Lenovo X60s Thinkpad
- Lenovo X60s Power adapter
- Petzl Tikka XP Headlamp
- Caribbean plug adapters
- Canon battery charger
- Rechargeable batteries
- Energizer compact battery charger
- Shure SE210 sound isolating earphones
- 16GB iPod Touch
- iPod cable
- iPod earphones (backup for my sound isolating earphones)
- Timex Expedition Watch
- Energizer's energi to go AA batter power adapter for the iPod (a MUST for anyone who travels a lot with an iPod. Exceptionally good for the iPod Touch as it works as a video stand)
- Mini tripod
- Garmin Vista HCX GPS Receiver (Not pictured... I um... forgot this in a hostel in San Jose, Costa Rica. Luckily they found it and are holding it for us until the 28th when we fly back to the city)
Books & Reference Material
First Aid, Drugs, & Hygiene
- Ben's insect repellent wipes
- Ultrathon insect repellent cream (absolute best bug repellent out there)
- Small roll of toilet paper
- Q- tips
- Band aids, blister care
- Thermometer (essential in knowing when you're really sick)
- Soap - Campsuds soap for washing laundry in sinks
- Sunscreen
- Travel sized tooth brush
- Travel sized toothpaste (x2)
- Travel sized dental floss
- Travel sized shampoo (2 in 1 style)
- Travel sized shaving cream
- Razor & cartridge of new blades (Mach 3)
- Travel pack of tissues
- Allergy/Sleeping pills (Diphenhydramine/Benadryl) - Helpful hint: You can use this instead of Gravol if you get motion sick.
- Prednisone (corticosteroid - part of the long-term treatment of severe asthma and anaphylactic reactions. We were traveling with an anaphylactic person earlier on in the trip)
- Ciprofloxacin - Hard core antibiotics. Used to treat a host of things including traveler's diarrhea
- Ibuprofen/Advil
- Dimenhydrinate/Gravol
- Loperamide/Immodium
- Dayquil/Nyquil cold medicine
- Benadryl quick dissolve tongue strips
- Antibiotic ear & eye drops
- Malarone anti-malaria medication. We were traveling in a Malaria prone area for the first 5 days of the trip
- Diphenhydramine Cream
- Antifungal cream (Tenactin)
- Antibiotic cream (polysporin)
- Anti itch/Sunburn cream (1% hydrocortisone)
- Antiperspirant
- Deodorant
- Finger/toenail clippers (YES! You can bring these on as carry on.)
- Polarized sunglass, cleaning cloth and hard case
Misc Travel Goodies
- Hacky Sack
- Pack of gum
- Pack of playing cards
- Inflatable travel neck pillow (yes, I'm _that_ guy on the plane)
What Dan should have, in hindsight, left at home
- MEC Zipped Hoodie
- 1 T-shirt
- Steripen Water Purifier. It's an awesome product but I really just didn't use it enought to warrant bringing it along
- My nice reef sandals/flipflops. I only wore the cheap Old Navy ones
- 1 or 2 pairs of socks
- Belt
- Plug adapters. I didn't think that I would need these but gadgetery without power is dead weight. It turns out I was right. I didn't need to use them
- Bring 1/2 as many band aids
- 1 tube of bug repellent
What Becky brought
Becky's disclaimer: First of all, I must confess to being a complete 'girly-girl'. The idea of wearing the same pair of travel pants for 30 days in a row does not sit well with me. Under no circumstance would I ever wear a dirty pair of underwear, and even though I can go days without wearing a stitch of makeup, I need a little bit on hand…just in case. If this description does not fit you, you may be able to cut this list in half.
Clothing and Accessories
- 7 Tank-tops (3 dressy, the rest casual)
- 5 T-shirts
- Sundress
- Jean skirt
- Pair of jeans (I travel in these. Airplanes, airports and busses can be cold and I like to have a pair of jeans for these occasions)
- Belt
- Hoodie (Also good for cool airplanes and any unexpected cool weather)
- Pair of gym shorts (Good for sleeping and hiking)
- Travel pants (Mine are North Face Women's Horizon Utility Pants. I love these because:
- they don't have a tapered leg
- they sit below the belly button
- they pack incredible small
- they are fast drying
- they easily convert into capris
- they are the only semi-flattering pair of travel pants I have ever tried on)
- Rain jacket (Mine is Eastern Mountain Sports- make sure it is waterproof, not just water resistant)
- 4 regular bras
- Sports bra
- Bathing Suit
- 4 pairs of socks (to wear in sneakers)
- 15 pairs of underwear (This is probably overkill but, like I said, I will not wear dirty underwear)
- Sunglasses
- Money belt (Though I didn't even use it on this trip, a money belt is great for situations where you have to carry all of your cash with you in a sketchy area). Dan prefers a dummy wallet.
Footwear
- One pair of sneakers
- Two pairs of sandals (One cheap pair of Old Navy flip-flops for showers and the beach and one pair of sturdier Rider sandals for walking around)
Toiletries
- Travel toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, hair products, deodorant (You can buy bigger versions when you reach your destination)
- Toothbrush
- Tweezers (YES! These are allowed in carry-on)
- Sunscreen and Bug Repellant (Ben's Insect Repellent wipes are excellent)
- Contacts, contact case, contact solution and an extra pair of contact lenses (Contact solution does not fall under the restricted liquid category when you fly. If you are going carry-on only, like we do, your contact solution does not need to fit in your zip-lock bag of liquids. Just make sure that you declare it at security.)
- Eyeglasses and Case (I never wear glasses but I always bring them in case of an eye infection that prevents me wearing my contacts)
- Feminine Hygiene Products
- Medication (Dan takes care of most of the first aid and medications. I bring Gravol in my purse for the flight.)
- Hairbrush and Hair Elastics
- Makeup (Completely unnecessary- I know, but I brought concealer, powder, bronzer, eyeshadow, lip-balm, eyeliner, lipstick, brushes and nail polish)
Electronics and Accessories
- IBM Thinkpad (Mine is huge- you'll save a lot of space and weight if you have a smaller one. A computer is completely unnecessary on most trips)
- Thinkpad Power Adapter
- Panasonic Stereo Zoom Mike, charger and computer hookup (This has been a great device to record ideas, conversations, and sounds from our trip. We used it to record the sounds of the jungle, conversations over meals etc. It is a good replacement for a daily written journal)
- Pentax Optio W20 Waterproof Camera (This camera is tiny and great for days when carting our large camera around is unrealistic or unsafe. It takes pretty decent video clips and can also take underwater pictures and video)
- Extra Camera Batteries, charger and computer connector
- iPod, iPod Charger and headphones
- Headphone splitter (for watching movies on the computer or the iPod touch. Our splitter is the Radioshack 3-channel headphone volume booster which is excellent)
- Headlamp (Mine is a Tikka Plus. They are great for power outages, for going to pee in the middle of the night when you are sharing a room with 5 other people and for when you are staying in the middle of the jungle with no electricity available)
Bags
- Backpack (35 Litre REI Aires Women's Pack. This is small enough to be allowed on as carry-on but, surprisingly, fits all of my stuff, including my computer and computer case)
- Computer Bag (Though I wish I didn't have to bring this clunky bag, it does protect my computer. It also works as a slightly larger day bag which came in handy a few times on the trip)
- Purse (Well, it's more of a small day bag. Just big enough to fit a bottle of water, a book and some snacks for the plane. This is what I carried around with my most days)
- Zip-locks (I put everything possible in zip-locks. Not only does this keep your stuff dry if your bag gets wet, but it also allows for easy unpacking and repacking. I can fit all of the clothes that I brought (with the exception of my jeans, hoodie and rain jacket) in 5 zip-lock bags. Bring extras for dirty clothes and shoes.
Other
- Blur Travel Docket containing:
- Passport, Global medical insurance card, credit cards, bank card, driver's license, plane tickets, student ID and a pen (I leave my birth certificate and another piece of picture ID at home in case my passport is stolen. We have learned that most places accept a regular university ID as proof of student status. An ISIC is not necessary.)
- Email Confirmations of all bookings
- A book
- Notebook (For keeping daily journals, keeping track of the budget, making quick notes, keeping game scores etc.)
- Bonanza ('The Bean Game'. The best game ever)
- Snacks for the plane (including gum)
Though this is a long list, it all fits in a 35L backpack and a small Roots purse.
Comments
Rebecca - June 30, 2008 2:00 PM
Man, I want to go! This is a really helpful list; thanks. Ordered one of those sleevecases and the sound isolating earphones.
Whitney Lund - November 4, 2008 5:35 AM
Overall a pretty good packing list. I prefer a little lighter load, but if you don't mind the weight, all power to ya. I won't even get into the female list, as I don't touch that area. But laptops? Although I own one of the best laptops for backpacking (12" Powerbook G4), and would love to bring it along, I have never understood the people who actually do this. Most hostels have computers that you can use, and if you have to bring along data, this can be done with a tiny little memory stick. As for the music dilemma, buy a bigger iPod. Other than that, not too bad. You learn these things as you go. I did Asia, Austrlia, and Europe ultra light. Now, as I am planning Central/South America, I am going ultra-mega light.
Dan - November 4, 2008 9:21 AM
Whitney,
I often work remotely while travelling so that's why I need to bring a laptop. Would you be willing to share your packing list?
Bobby - December 11, 2008 2:28 PM
Thanks guys! Im headed in 9 days and this really helped me out!!!
Keri Uffelman - January 10, 2009 11:02 PM
I am leaving for Costa Rica in a week and this website was very helpful in deciding what to pack, love the photos! Did you guys bring a towel? I was thinking about buying a trek-type towel, and was just curious.
Karyne - February 19, 2009 2:14 PM
Thanks for the packing lists. Great idea to share this. I have also travelled a lot (Africa, South Am, Europe backpaking) and less is definitely more when backpacking. I looked up your list as I was considering bringing my laptop, but although I would love to have it handy for downloading photos or surfing the net while avoiding hostel line-ups, I'll leave it at home. My advice: by an extra 8G memory card for each camera, and bring wi-fi cell phone with SIM-card, which is super handy. SIM-cards are really cheap an allow you to make calls for reservations or day trip in advance, as well as receive international calls for free and send text messages cheaply. It's also a great emergency blanket if traveling alone, and my cell doubles as another camera, sound recorder and web access point (Nokia N95).
ellen c - May 3, 2009 6:07 PM
Did you have any problems taking the Ultrathon or Ben's insect repellent wipes in your carry on bag? I was told that any insect repellent with more than 3-4% active ingredient could not be carried on (or even checked).
Dan - May 5, 2009 8:51 PM
Ellen C,
I'm not sure where you heard/read that rule. I can't find anything in the Canada/US carry on rules that limit insect repellent due to their active ingredients. We had no issues carrying on our 33% active ingredient creams/sprays.
The only limitations is the liquid limitations. 3oz or 100ml is your limit.
ellen c - May 6, 2009 6:49 PM
Dan,
Thanks for your quick reply. I actually heard it from a TSA agent, but I can't seem to find any other info on it. I guess I will just carry it on. By the way, thanks for the packing lists. Although I am not backpacking, I will be visiting Panama, so it was helpful to learn about the Ultrathon cream and Ben's insect repellent wipes.
Steph - July 12, 2009 8:36 PM
Thanks so much for sharing your packing lists! A total lifesaver! I'm off for a month around Central America next week and had no idea what to take! I'm now almost packed and not feeling too bad about what I'm taking (of course there are a few bits I'm packing that I probably won't use but at least I haven't taken the whole house with me!)
Thanks again!
Kelly - July 22, 2009 12:14 PM
Thank you guys so much for this! I'm going to C. America for 3 weeks on Sunday with the boyfriend, and this is just what I needed. I completely overpacked for my trip to Nicaragua last year!
Eddy Saul - October 27, 2009 12:16 AM
I'd love to get people's advice. Is bedding of any kind (sleeping bag or sheets) necessary for CA, or would it just sit in my bag and never get used? And malaria pills?
carolos the british - June 3, 2010 12:26 PM
why would you pack a wallet full of expired credit cards?
karendavidson - February 10, 2011 4:24 PM
Guys!
This is a huuuuge help! thanks so much, I was a little lots on how many shirts and shorts to pack.
How long were you traveling for?
ldw - April 18, 2011 9:37 PM
Great Ideals thanks for sharing
Jenna R. - August 17, 2011 3:47 PM
Thank you so much for sharing your packing list. Looks like you guys have definitely traveled on many backpacking excursions. I am headed to Costa Rica for 9 days and mixing it up with camping, hostels and maybe a night in a hotel. I was lost for where to start with a packing list and you have started me on the right track. I will not be bringing all the fancy gadgets you two have, but I understand if you have to work while traveling.
If anyone has any places that are MUST see's in Costa Rica, I would love to hear about them. Especially hikes, camping places, ziplining, and also places to stay away from (unsafe).
Natalie - December 22, 2011 2:40 AM
Jenna R.-
Just went to Costa this past summer. My must-see spots: Diamante Falls, the Whale Tale, Puerto Viejo, Montezuma, Manzanillo, BriBri, Limon in general. HAVE FUN! most incredible place I've ever been.
Dom - June 18, 2012 1:20 PM
How did you pack all that into a 46L backpack? Wow!!
Colleen - July 7, 2012 4:11 AM
Thanks for the great lists. It's especially useful that you have such disparate styles; you complement each other well. I'm probably halfway between you both, so it's perfect. Happy travels to you.
Jenna Hunter - July 15, 2012 12:52 AM
I leave for Peru on Monday ad this was so helpful! Thank u! Any suggestions for my 2 wk trip? Going w 2 girlfriends (all in our later 20s)... We are flying into Lima, out of quito, Ecuador. We were thinking lake titicaca, machu picchu, amazon/ rainforest.. Anything we should do that isn't on the obvious list? Thanks! Jenna
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