Pack it or buy it?

The “pack light” mantra has been beaten into travelers who don’t have personal jets. It’s a good practice, too. Have you been following Rolf’s No Baggage Challenge?

It’s much easier to pack light when you can leave toiletries at home and just buy inexpensive replacements in your destination. It can also be simple, depending on where you’re going, to just pick up an extra T-shirt or clothing item. Necessary electronics are getting smaller and smaller: smart phones, netbooks and even iPads. Unless you’re a professional photographer or an aid worker, is there even a good excuse to bring lots of gear on a trip, then?

Some sports are either gear intensive, or just have rather large gear items. Take diving, for example. You’ve got a mask, fins, weight belt, regulator, buoyancy compensator, wet suit and a whole lot more incidental gear on top of that. Some things, like the cylinders (air tanks), you can get from a local dive shop in your destination. But once you invest in some types of gear, it’s often cheaper to lug it along, rather than buy new things in each destination.

It’s also possible to sell off gear you buy while on your travels. I’ve known surfers who may buy a board while on vacation, and then just sell it back to the surf shop for a reduced rate before returning home. Or, often better, the board is donated to a local grommet. I’m planning a surf vacation to Nicaragua, and while I might be able to find plenty of regular boards for use, I’m considering bringing my stand-up paddleboard (SUP) and paddle because I’m not sure what’s available where I’ll be surfing. Flying with surfboards can get both cumbersome and expensive.

If you travel for sport, have you gotten your packing down to a science, in terms of knowing what you can bring and what you can buy or rent reasonably? Share your advice in the comments section.