Overhyped Gear?

All gear is overhyped, as is all clothing, luggage, etc. One can get away with ALL normal stuff, just like we did backpacking around Europe in the 1970's ala young RS. Haircuts are also optional although one can date my decades of travels based on my hair length just like RS. But, as you note, sometimes a little luxury can make a difference in one's outlook on the day. I have opted to not take more, but to take better items that suit my lightweight travel style better than my usual/home accoutrements.

I have bought, and regretted buying, more gear than I care to admit to. However, once in awhile I find a gem that makes travel so much easier. This year’s find has been a neck fan which I received as a gift. Total game changer in these heatwaves. Could I live without it? Sure. Do I want to? No.

Interesting video, nice presentation, and I agree with him. But, I am going to look into the Anker noise cancelling earbuds. I stopped carrying my large Bose ones a few trips ago and have just been using the airline freebees.
PS, did you notice the Rick Steves travel guides on his shelf in the background.

I thought it was illegal not to use packing cubes. LOL

I haven't heard of the Bobble PRESSE, but I do use an AeroPress at home, and lately I've started bringing it with me on trips. I took it with me on my recent trip to Iceland, Stockholm, and Norway, and it was very nice to be able to have good coffee in the morning right after you wake up. It's also very portable.

Like the others, I'm a sucker for the word "travel gear," so I've bought more stuff than I ever should have. I don't buy a lot of other stuff, though, so I'll call it a one-off. 😊

PS, did you notice the Rick Steves travel guides on his shelf in the background.

Go to about the the 1:10 minute mark in this video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR0iIva4Ues

One things I've gathered form Nik's videos is that he to hold RS in high regard.

I haven't heard of the Bobble PRESSE, but I do use an AeroPress at home...

https://www.amazon.com/Presse-bobble-Tumbler-Stainless-Portable/dp/B07121GNCM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjxrd7oAKGg

It serves a dual purpose, but all I am interested in is its function as a coffee press. I like the 13 oz capacity, that its metal and doesn't have protruding base, handle or plunger and just seems to be something easy to stash in my bag.

The video actually recommends packing cubes; he just says to avoid the ones that require a plug in electric compression pump.

It is all really personal preference. One person’s “overhyped” is another’s necessity. A coffee press may be one of those “small luxuries” that makes travel more enjoyable.

I agree with most of the things he notes in the video except I love my bulky over ear noise cancelling headphones on an airplane to muffle the engine noise; I consider them one of my small “luxury items” that makes a long flight more tolerable. I bring them despite the fact that they take up extra space.

I’ve certainly bought travel gear that I end up not liking or using but sometimes you don’t know what you love until you try it.

That was 15 minutes that wasn't a total waste of time. But I'm not his target audience. I dont use hard sided luggage, and I (gasp, go ahead and clutch those pearls) almost always check a bag. I would never travel without my noise canceling ear buds. But DH actually needs his over the ear headphones, due to his hearing aids. I still use ziplock bags to corral multiple types of items, or re use the empty amenity bags from previous BC flights. They now store my meds and first aid items, and tech gear. The only travel storage bags I've bought were a single set of basic packing cubes for clothes. I do have a slash proof travel purse, but I bought it for the wide comfortable strap, and all the internal organizing features that I want. So I guess I'm definitely not the person he wants to reach.

Mardee,
Iceland, Sweden, Norway. Did you find your roots? Since you are a Minnesotan, I bet you fit in just fine.

Regarding “anxiety sells”, I agree. Or, lack of satisfaction. Always on the pursuit for perfection or something better. Sometimes, the airlines and security TSA change regulations which brings on another level of products. Even going to a different place or participating in a different activity brings on more products to purchase.

Hey, we like stuff. As long as we are not hoarders or going into financial hock - it’s okay. Keeps economy going. I don’t like “best ... of 2026” or top ten lists, because most of the criteria doesn’t apply to me.
I am so low tech that I am almost “off the grid.” And, I like it that way. I make my own criteria and excuses for buying products.

If anyone saw the humorous movie A Walk in the Woods, there was a funny scene with Nick Nolte and Robert Redford. Hiking along the Appalachian Trail, a young hiker in his twenties asked RR about why he chose his particular backpack. The much older RR responded basically that he needed a bag with straps to carry his stuff. The younger hiker was hoping to get into a gear bag discussion. End of discussion.

One person’s “overhyped” is another’s necessity.

I was thinking the same thing. Sometimes piece of mind can be worth the cost.

• The only thing on that video that resonated with me is the overear noise cancelling headphones. They take up way too much space. I have Bose noise cancelling earbuds and I love them. Wouldn't travel without them. Even if I'm not listening to anything I'll often turn them on while I try to sleep durimg an overnight flight.
• I've often considered a cross body bag and if I bought one I'd probably buy one that was slash proof for the few extra bucks, but everytime I research it I wonder if I'd be more annoyed by carrying it than the advantages it supposedly offers. I wear shorts and pants with multiple zippered pockets and that seems to work fine. My wife does turn up her nose at me sometimes for my (lack of) fashion sense but I note that she does take advantage of my pockets so she can carry a smaller purse...
• Isn't anxiety selling what was used originally for travel insurance? You bought it at the airport 'just in case' your plane crashed.

I have Bose noise cancelling earbuds and I love them. Wouldn't travel without them.

They have been essential for me too.

A new coffee system similar to the ones mentioned in this thread is the Wacaco Prestina.

Ear buds are not secure in my ears. If I fall asleep with them in, there's a better than good chance one will fall out, hit the floor and finds its way back several rows before I am aware.
No such issue with over the ear headphones, which block out most sounds better than do my ear buds. Maybe that's related to the less secure fit.
And the over the ear style takes up no packing space, as they are around my neck on on my ears while traveling.

Interesting video, VAP! I was surprised that I don’t have anything in those categories but each traveler has their own justifiable favorite “essentials”. Mine currently are art supplies & necklaces. : )

Anxiety sells = carry-on only

My mantra is if I need a travel gadget, I ask how do I get by without it at home?

Legitimate ones, I do need a plug adapter, but for most of Europe, it is a simple Type C, no big multi-adapter that fits every outlet on the face of the Earth. I admire the optimism I will galavant across the world willy-nilly, but I am only going to a single region. Aside from that, there is very little.

Special clothes? No, but then I like wearing "golf pants" that are lightweight and quick-dry, lightweight shirts, even my daily drawers are light and quick-dry, so that works. My vice though, is that I like a thick padded sock, terrible for sink washing, but we do real laundry once a week. I do usually pack a rain shell, in cooler weather an Eddy Bauer jacket that is lined and water repellent.

I also eschew flight gadgets. I get neck pillows, and I understand noise cancelling headphones (I travelled with them in my business days), but I can't get over having to haul them around for 3-4 weeks after an 8 hour flight.

As for little luxuries when I travel, I have started bringing a simple queen size top sheet with me. I am a charter member of the "Duvet Haters Society", I am always hot when sleeping, and a duvet is just too much. My wife likes air movement and white noise, so she brings a small USB powered fan.

Aside from that, lots of Ziplocs in different sizes, a laundry bag, I have an all plastic corkscrew that is always in my bag.

Aside from specifics for a special region or activities, I stick to that.

I see posts about this travel gadget, and that travel gadget, but for the most part, those are things you really do not need, add weight, and often, if you are "what iffing?" sit in your bag unused for the trip.

As my husband will attest, we have every type of coffee gadget that exists. I do have an aeropress and like it fine (as well as a Bialetti, french press (2 actually), traditional coffee drip maker) What I use for travel and take on camping trips is a pourover system I got from REI. I don't see it on their website but it collapses smaller than an aeropress.https://www.amazon.com/Vomika-Collapsible-Coffee-Dripper-Silicone/dp/B0GXYS2X9H

EDITED: Thanks, VAP, I tried copying it again hoping some of it would drop off. Now I know how to do it!

I do not mean for this to be a critique or a debate about different travel styles. I was intrigued by the broader notion of "accessory creep."

Marketers and the retail machine are brilliant at convincing us that our core items are somehow incomplete or vulnerable. Once you buy into that first layer of anxiety, the creep begins because that new accessory introduces its own set of needs. There's Nick's AirTags example, where the tracker suddenly opens a whole ecosystem of accessories. Or with packing cubes, where you can quickly find yourself pushed toward buying electric vacuum compression pumps just to pack more.

My own thought of foregoing instant coffee with a basic travel press is a perfect example. A simple, basic desire can easily get swallowed up by hype telling you that your morning cup is inadequate without a measuring spoon, a portable grinder, and a mini frother. Suddenly, you're packing for a laboratory operation.

That is the loop I found interesting, how hype can turn basic travel into a loop of dependencies. For each of us, "Do your own thing" is the best rule, but it is fascinating to watch how hard the retail machine works to complicate that.

Hey Jules use this link https://www.amazon.com/Vomika-Collapsible-Coffee-Dripper-Silicone/dp/B0GXYS2X9H

Or edit your link to delete everything after the product number, after the ...X9H. That will get rid of all that tracking information and shorten up the link

Mardee, Iceland, Sweden, Norway. Did you find your roots? Since you are a Minnesotan, I bet you fit in just fine.

Ha ha, Sun-Baked, I didn't find my roots, because mine come from Germany and France with some Netherlands, Belgium and Ireland in there. I'm originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, which has a very strong German Catholic population. We were in Norway because my daughter wanted to go since her husband's great-grandparents came from there. And most of all, because they're beautiful places, and I've always wanted to go to that area of the world.

Frank, have you tried that coffee maker? How is it compared to the AeroPress? Not just size-wise, but also convenience, ease of use, good-tasting coffee? I'm open to trying something new and I like that it has a built-in stainless steel filter.

Paul, my husband hates duvets for the same reason. Often, we'll ask for a flat sheet. I think I just read in a RS article (or maybe it was Cameron??) to take the quilt out of the duvet cover if necessary. For me, we had one trip to Northern France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany where we ran into so many strange bed pillows. Sometimes the pillow case was coarse, sometimes odd shaped. I've started to bring a pillow case. I use it on the plane and stuff with the airline pillow, blanket, raincoat, etc. for a nicer sized pillow. It has also come in handy to carry laundry to a laundry room. I'm always tempted to bring my silk pillowcase, but I'd likely lose it, so I use an older random pillow case.

In regards to coffee, as much as I like good coffee, most of the time, I just go with what my lodging supplies. We were surprised in Australia with some hotels that had coffee in tea type bags. And it was really good. I've tried to buy the brand on Amazon or similar with no luck. Wished I'd checked a grocery store in Australia.

My vice though, is that I like a thick padded sock, terrible for sink washing

Hahaha three times when I read this, my brain for some reason inserted the word "look" prior to the word "like," and I was having a devil of a time trying to understand why Paul believes he looks like a thick padded sock ....

I refuse to use hard-sided wheeled luggage. Absolutely detest it. I use a nylon duffel bag in a carry-on size. It holds 3 changes of clothes which is enough for 7-9 days. I wash the tops in the sink. People generally bring too much and never use it. I suggest you keep a list of what you bring and when you get back, go over the list to see if you used the item. If not, then don't bring it the next time.

I don't use neck pillows or packing cubes.

Kim, if I spent too much time in Paris with your wonderful baguettes, I would begin to resemble a thick padded sock - LOL!

Daisy, apparently a lot of people like the hard-sided luggage. I see a lot of them at airports. To each their own!

When I see an article titled something like "10 things Airline Pilots/Fight Attendants Never Travel Without" and it's just a list of a bunch of tech gear/electronics with links to buy, I think, if they really travel on-the-job with all that stuff, how do they fit their change of uniform, clean undies and a few toiletries in the size bags I see them wheeling through the airport?

I also think going to a "travel gear" type website or store is sometimes like going to the hardware store or office supply store. So much neat stuff that you never imagined even existed and now you wonder how you ever lived with one!

I haven't watched the video. Probably I'm an odd outlier. I rarely watch Youtube for x, y z- - unboxings, etc. I don't buy much stuff, at least compared to what I read about and what I see from other's shopping bags and carts.

I guess it helps that I know how to sew. I've made mesh bags to organize clothes in my suitcase, made a cylinder shaped cache pot for storage before I knew the Tom Bihn version was a thing.

I'm thinking of the odds and end to pack for my upcoming trip. My flight is overnight and long, about 8.5 hours. I was wondering , should I splurge on the Bose noise cancelling headphones since they are on sale at Costco this month? Then I realized it's a lot to pack just for the flight and then take up space for the rest of the trip. I h/ already have ordinary wireless earbuds for listening to music or podcasts on train rides. I can buy earbud style noise blocking ear plugs for a fraction of the price of the Bose headphones. There are other things I would rather spend that money on during my trip.
Should I pack my foam neck pillow or take the blow up one that packs much smaller?

Each of has our wants or needs and what we think is very necessary. I'm taking good tea with me.

Mardee!
I grew up in Michigan as a part of that very strong German (and Polish) Catholic community that you referenced. After reading your ethnic background, you qualify as a representative of the EU. To simplify,
Belgium was composed by taking land from both France and the Netherlands. So, you can eliminate Belgium from your ethnicity since you already have French and Dutch in you. 🤔

I watch way more than my fair share of packing/gadget videos, especially cruise related. I find that at least 90% of the items are of no interest to me and I can’t believe that people really need rhem. I keep hoping that I will see an item that might be useful to me. So many of them are repetitive. I do realize that many Youtubers have an affiliated Amazon store and such videos help the sales there.

An update on the coffee front: I ordered the PRESSE by Bobble. The price dropped to $10, which was too good to pass up. And is still sitting at $10 on Amazon as I write this.

At 6 inches tall, 3 inches in diameter, and 13 fl oz, it fits perfectly right into an exterior water bottle pocket, and not so large that it cannot be packed in my carry-on bag. It has no protruding handles or plungers to break off in transit, not glass, and the stainless steel tumbler serves as an insulated cup. No more instant coffee in the hotel room.