If you’ve ever seen the movie Congo about a high-tech African safari, you probably know where the latest technology in travel gadgets is: air conditioners for tents, laser detectors for catching animals that wander too close, etc. There is also another way to travel, and that means having a bad time. You head out into nature with nothing more than a couple of rubbing sticks to make a fire, and maybe a tube of mosquito repellent. But for now, for the rest of us, let’s go the other way: with travel gadgets that don’t cost more than $50, the ones we’d really need if we weren’t Crocodile Dundee.
You can find travel gadgets at your local travel store ranging from their ubiquitous iPods equipped with noise-canceling headphones, to Olympus’ Tough range of indestructible digital cameras and portable GPS trackers. The thing is, these devices need a certain amount of care: they’re heavy, you have to carry them around, and you have to worry about how to power them. And of course, these are expensive to buy and easy to drop (not that those Tough cameras care). What we’re talking about here is stuff for the frugal traveler, one who doesn’t have a tribe lugging his pack behind him, one who needs to do everything himself. For those self-sufficient travelers, these are the best travel gadgets he’ll ever need, so he won’t have to break the bank.
Let’s start with what it takes to pack for a trip. You have your standard 22-inch carry-on and have a week’s worth of clothes to pack in it. How do you do it? Of course, using Travel Space Bags. What these bags at about three bucks each do is they allow you to suck all the spare air out of your garment bags so you can fit more into less space.
Now that you know what to pack your things in, let’s see what you can pack. Most travel devices are electronic or highly intelligent. Here’s one that’s neither, but still extremely useful. It’s an all-in-one tool, a Swiss Army knife. When you’re in the foothills of the Himalayas and out squirting, you’ll probably kill for one of these. Look to the Leatherman series for great action when you need it. Some of the models come with pliers to help you remove electrical insulation, a screwdriver to help you fix a broken suitcase handle, a pointed tip to help you press the Reset button, etc. The best part is that they won’t cost you more than $50 on Amazon, if you go for the high-end stuff.
When you travel anywhere, in the Third World or in the First, you simply need to carry plenty of cash to last you the whole trip; But what about when pickpockets attack? You don’t want to be stranded in the middle of nowhere with no way to pay for your next drink, do you? Get a money clip; I’m sure there are thieves out there who know how to outwit this one, but I’ve personally never had a break-in since switching to one of these. If you buy one of those newfangled ones with a built-in flash drive, you’ll also have a little extra preparation on your hands. And while you’re securing things, why not get a nice cable lock to store your suitcase somewhere or whatever? The Kryptonite R4 is a great option, because it not only gives you your standard cable lock with a 3-foot extension cord, but it also gives you a body-integrated flashlight. After all this, you won’t spend more than $20.
Now you have to take care of the few equipment you have: phone, camera, etc. Just buy yourself an adapter that allows you to plug your stuff into a foreign receptacle; but how many of these can you carry? Grab a mini power strip that also supplies power to a couple of USB ports. Belkin has quite a variety here. You’ll also need a small collapsible tripod like the one for the GorillaPod. They make it so you can balance your camera on almost any surface, even a tree. And of course, let’s not forget that you yourself need to be taken care of; Grab one of the several medical kits they have on the market, like the Adventure Medical Kit with a bunch of perfectly cute, ready-to-use first aid stuff. So there you go, everything you need to stay safe and keep going.