Travel Towels

[Buckshot]

We're off to Oz for a bit soon and we don't really want to take a huge suitcase if we can avoid it. Beach towels take up so much room we thought it might be an idea to use a travel towel and cut down on space.
I've used the pertex ones and weren't too impressed with them.
Are the cotton ones any good and will any of them stand up to being used to lie on the beach?
I'm sure we'll be doing at least some of that inbetween snorkelling around the great barrier !!!

Cheers

Mark

 

[g4ghb]

Hi mark, I tried the pertex towels and like you was not that impressed....

last year (at the outdoors show) i picked up one of these and I think it is ace! - drys quick (both me and itself) packs small and feels like a towel rather than drying yourself in a windproof jacket!

so for me it is a

just remembered cotswold - they have them too!

 

[mark a.]

I have Lifeventure Trek Towels (from Blacks etc). Not sure what they're made from, but they don't half stink after a couple of days. Still, they're small, light, and dry you off, so that's a bonus.

 

[Toddy]

Why not save yourself the bother? pack a couple of facecloths and just buy towels out there, use them and leave them. You'll save on the luggage hassle and they're not that expensive. Certainly cheaper and much more effective than the lightweight ones.
I struggle with them ; I've got long hair, the towels get wet too quickly and don't dry enough of me
I did find the microcloths very good though, 3 for a £ last set I got

Cheers,
Toddy

 

[MartiniDave]

I remember reading the account of someone who had kayaked around the Cape of Good Hope, their recomendation was to use terry nappies as travel towels. Very absorbent and a handy size.

Dave

 

[Goose]

I agree with Toddy buy them and leave them!

 

[Pappa]

Towels are the most useful thing it is possible to have handy in a crisis. One of the first things that Ford Prefect did for Arthur Dent after the demolition of the Earth was to equip him with a towel.

They can be used for snaring birds whilst falling from a three-mile high marble statue.

They can be used to signal temporally unstable spaceships by fossilizing them in planetary strata.

They can be soaked in nutrients to provide sustenance in awkward situations (Although, as Zaphod Beeblebrox found, this is not a terribly tasty solution to hunger).

They can also do a really good job of drying between your toes.

The Hitchhiker's Guide is full of suggestions for successful towel deployment. It is worth noting that a cup of white vinegar in a wash will help keep your towels fluffy and soft.

Sorry, I had to.

 

[Wayland]

If you want a microfibre one get an aztec one with nobac treatment which stops them smelling.

I got on a couple of years back and I'm so impressed I use it at home too.

 

[mattouthere]

Nikwax and Paramo do a travel towel made from the same material as the Paramo pump liners in their clothing. Ive used this and personally think its better then the Life Venture and Aztec ones. Dries quicker and does not smell so much.

http://www.nikwax.co.uk

 

[KIMBOKO]

I read a sailing article about the difficulties of drying terry towels on board and there was suggested several alternatives. The idea that I picked up on was that of using cotton Flanelette sheeting. I have been using this ever since on my visits to my local beach and camping. I buy a yard or two and use it like a normal towel it is thin but dries easily on a warm windy day, or infront of a fire. It is able to absorb the surplus water from my ample frame and I can wrap up in it for changing on the beach or wrap it sarong style whilst I walk home. Flanelette comes in several colour or you could use white and tie dye it.

Hope you get ten over.

 

[jake trg]

parmo i got one free with my coat and i'd say it's brilliant

 

[twelveboar]

I bought a microfibre towel from poundland a while back, thinking it would do to dry the bike seat after rain, I decided to put it to the test first, and yes it will dry a fully grown adult after a shower, even though it's only about a foot square. I've only used it on overnighters so far, but it dries easily and packs very small.

 

[Toddy]

Kimboko that's a very good idea, especially when there are kids along.
I use the pound stores micro cloths a lot for drying when I'm out, they make excellent dishcloths and they themselves dry very quickly. Cheap too

Cheers,
Toddy

 

[twelveboar]

Only trouble is you can't wrap them round you on the way from the shower
So they're no good for the bashfull!

 

[Scally]

i also have to agree with kimboko
thats what we did in NZ
BRILL
plus envious that youre going down under

 

[gordy1]

I spent 4 years travelling through Asia and Australia and all I ever used were the cheap Thai sarongs. Use them on the beach or as a towel and they dry really quickly.
Gord

 

[william#]

glad im not the only one who noticed how quickly a pertex travel towel gets stinky .
i reckon a couple of jay cloths work great and you can just bin them or use them to clean the kitchen after wards .
and if yu need a beach towel well just use one from a hotel

 

[Rain man]

Lifeventure trek towels r great!! I had a small one but had to upgrade to a large after cold river trip, they are brilliant!! soft, big, fold up small and are technically brilliant at their job. hope that helped