Minimus

Specialty: Individual and travel size items for just about anything.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Website: www.minimus.biz

If you’re looking for small, travel sized personal care/hygiene items, Minimus probably has one of the largest selections out there.  If it’s made in travel size, they’ll have it.

Upside: You won’t find a wider selection of travel or individual size items anywhere.

Downside: You’ll pay for the convenience of travel sized items.

REI

Specialty: All things travel and outdoor.

Rating: ★★★½☆

Website: www.rei.com

Retail Locations: Throughout the US

The main thing REI has going for it is access to almost everything made by major outdoor clothing or travel gear manufacturer.  It doesn’t come cheap, as almost everything is always priced at retail.  REI almost always has a wide selection of color, style and sizes in everything they carry.

Upside: Wide selection, stores throughout the US.  Regularly run coupon sales for members.  Membership fee is reasonable and a one-time fee.

Downside: Some stores don’t carry as wide of a selection as others.  You’ll almost always pay regular retail price. Online delivery can be slower than most other retailers.  Shipping costs can be higher than most.

Deal Watch:  Almost every REI store location has a “garage sale” twice a year for members.  Get discontinued or returned items for ridiculously low prices.

Campmor

Specialty: Travel & athletic clothing, outdoor gear, camping gear

Rating: ★★★½☆

Website: www.campmor.com

Retail Location: Paramus, NJ

From time to time, Campmor has great deals on anything travel related.  Some of their gear isn’t any cheaper than you can find elsewhere, but when they have a sale, they usually have great deals.

Upside: Large selection focused on travel and camping items.  Quick shipping and easy returns.

Downside: Some items are priced the same as most retail outlets.

Deal Watch:  Sunglasses, Columbia clothing items, outdoor clothing.

Gilt

Specialty: Clothing, shoes, outdoor gear.

Rating: ★★★★½

Website: www.gilt.com

You can’t beat Gilt for high-end brand name clothing for men, women or kids.  We discovered Gilt about a year ago, have made many orders and always pleased with the results.  Note that access is by “invitation only”.

Upside: Designer names at reasonable prices.  Selection changes daily.

Downside: Sales start each day at NOON ET and if an item is in short supply, it sells out quickly.  Some items have delayed shipping dates.  You almost need to buy the minute the sale starts each day for best selection.

Deal Watch:  Athletic clothing, Icebreaker brand baselayer, designer items

Sierra Trading Post

Specialty: Travel clothing, shoes, outdoor gear.

Rating: ★★★★½

Website: www.sierratradingpost.com

Retail locations: Visit their stores in Cheyenne, WY and Reno, NV.  Their stores have a larger selection of items that are not listed online or in their catalogs.

It’s our Go To place whenever we need quality name brand outdoor/activity oriented items at rock bottom prices.  You should always check out Sierra Trading Post before buying retail.

Upside: There are very few places that can beat Sierra Trading Post on price.  They have a wide selection of clothing, outdoor equipment, sprinkled in with a few odds and ends.  They have a “Bargain Barn” section that features discounts of a t least 60-70% or more.  Easy return policy and extremely fast shipping at reasonable rates.

Downside: Selection of colors and sizes can be very limited.   Quantities of certain items can also be limited.

DEAL WATCH:  Ski coats, baselayers and shoes.

Amazon

Specialty: Just about everything.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Website: www.amazon.com

You can rarely beat Amazon for selection or price on most things you’ll need for travel.  From clothing  and travel gear, to electronics and books, Amazon always comes through.  We estimate that we buy almost 60% of what we need for travel from Amazon.

Upside: Prime Shipping.  For $79 a year you get free second day shipping on every item or one-day shipping for $4.  There have been many a trip when we’ve needed something at the last minute and it’s paid for itself time and time again.  Has a high number of user reviews for most products.

Downside: Need to watch for items sold by 3rd parties via Amazon.  Sometimes it takes longer to receive them and shipping rates can be unusually high.


Flight 001

Specialty: Travel related – Luggage, bag tags, packing accessories, wallets, adapters, travel gadgets, etc.

Rating: ★★★½☆

Website: www.flight001.com

Retail locations: Berkely, San Francisco, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Chicago  and Sydney.

Flight 001 is expensive.  No doubt about it.  Their selection is somewhat limited.  So, why even bother to list them here?  They do have unique things that are hard to find anywhere else, when it comes to travel gear, especially packing items.  One of our favorite items is the F1 Seat Pack.   There’s nothing more frustrating than having to fill every nook and cranny in your backpack with things you need while you’re in the air.  Whether that be adapters, earphones, medicine, etc.  Because of course, you won’t need it until that seat belt sign is on for 20 minutes straight and you can get it out of the overhead bin.

One big advantage of Flight 001 is that when they have a sale or put items on clearance, they don’t mess around.  A few months back, we picked up a lot of handy items for over 70% off.  Make sure you sign up for the email list, so you’ll know when the items you want will be on sale.  But once they notify you, don’t wait around because this stuff flies off the shelves quickly.

DEAL WATCH:  Sign-up for their email list to be notified of monthly sales.  Sometimes, you can buy items at more than half off retail, but you’ll need to move quickly.