What I packed to travel around (mostly south) India during monsoon

My girlfriend and I made our first trip to India last year during the months of June, July and August. We started in Bangalore and travelled in Kerala before heading north for the last couple of weeks. Places we visited included Mysore, Ooty, Kovalam Beach, Varkala Beach, Kanyakumari, Cochin, Goa, Mumbai, Agra and Varanasi. From there we crossed the border and spent about a month in Nepal. We travelled a lot by train, but also made some journeys by bus.

For the most part, I was pleased with the gear choices that we made - following the advice in these forums was invaluable. I thought it might be helpful to make a list of what I took and what it all went in, in case other readers are making similar plans and are first timers (like I was). Sorry if it's a bit lengthy.

Pack: I took a North Face Base Camp Duffel, the medium size (Rachel took a bit less, so put hers all into the small size). This can fit 70 litres of gear, although it never got filled to capacity and it has good compression straps to keep it compact. The pros were the ease with which you can pack it (has a large single zip entry that opens the whole front of the bag), security (only one set of zippers to lock), durability and waterproofness (the construction is bombproof), and portability compared to other duffels, with shoulder straps that cinch down when you're not using them. The cons are the lack of a proper harness, in case you plan on carrying it anywhere far - the shoulder straps are useful for short walks, but it's not ideal for long distance load carrying, and the PVC material gets sweaty against your back quickly in the heat. This wasn't a problem for us, as we weren't hiking anywhere. Also, I'd take a smaller one next time and ditch the things I felt I didn't need - mentioned later. The size wasn't too bad compared to what I saw some tourists carrying, but small and light is definitely the way to go when hopping into rickshaws, buses and the like.

Footwear: I wore jandals 95% of the time. In monsoon heat they're much more comfortable than shoes, and while some people don't like walking around all day in them, I don't have any problems with them. They only become annoying when sloshing through deep puddles, when they slip about a bit, but on the whole I still would prefer them to sandals. I also took a pair of ultralight running shoes (New Balance Minimus), which were good for day hikes and the occasional run that I did. I love running, but it's not something i felt like doing lots of in that kind of heat/humidity. Down by the beaches was about the only place where it was comfortable - but even there, locals would sometimes look at you as if you were a bit weird for wanting to do it.

Clothing: 1 pair lightweight pants made from quick-drying material, 2 x ultralightweight Icebreaker merino t shirts (easy care and more comfortable than you'd expect in the heat), 3 x ultralight merino underwear, 1 pair shorts (knee length), 2 pairs socks, cap, short sleeve cotton shirt, lightweight long sleeve cotton jersey (good if you find yourself on an AC bus or train where they chill them right down), wool hat, light merino jacket, rain jacket, light running shorts, mid-thigh length (good for swimming in too).

Toiletries in little bag: small block of shaving soap, razor, sink plug, toothbrush and toothpaste, sunscreen, insect repellant, floss, contact lenses and small bottle of solution (you can get more along the way)

Small shoulder bag, which I used to carry my passport, cards, camera, and drink bottle when out and about. Also would carry a wallet with the cash I needed for the day, usually in my pocket. I took a money belt with me, but found it uncomfortable in the heat and got over my paranoia of needing it.

Other: mosquito net, Gerber multi tool, 4m long length of 2mm cord (useful for clotheslines, etc), watch, camera and charger, 4-plug adapter with surge protector, silk sleeping bag liner (was good for sleeping on trains, and at some hotels where the linen was a bit dodgy).

Stuff I picked up along the way: a couple of lungis, a yoga mat (a light and cheap one that saw almost daily use and only just lasted the trip). Rachel bought a pretty turquoise salwaar kameez in Bangalore, made to measure, that she wore a lot too. Local men and women really admired it. Next time I would buy a kurta pajama and wear this in the hottest places - regretted not doing this when I was there. Umbrellas - cheap and way more practical than wearing a raincoat.

Really useful: my ipod touch. It picks up wi-fi, which is available in many places. Also great for loading books onto. Get the kindle app for iphone and take plenty of good books. I didn't mind reading off the small screen, and you can load the Lonely Planet India guidebook on to it - it's way easier to carry one of these electronically than carry around the real thing, which weighs 3/4kg. Rach took her netbook, which we could have gotten away without, but it was useful at times.

Things I wouldn't take again: raincoat, warm merino jacket, wooly hat - these were useful up in Ooty, which was colder than we expected. I preferred to be lower down in the warmth, and next time wouldn't plan on visiting anywhere this high up. An umbrella is much better for everywhere else. Everywhere else it was too warm to bother waering a raincoat. Mosquito net - we used it once I think, and even then didn't really need it.

Hope that's helpful. We enjoyed our trip and will definitely head over again to see more of the north. Glad that we started with the south; we were well and truly broken in by the time we got to Agra and Varanasi, which would have been a lot to manage if we were fresh off the plane.

Thank you for sharing this - very useful information!!

Thanks - very helpful!

Thank you for the feedback .

I realized I forgot to mention a couple of things. We also took a sturdy combination padlock which we used for our room - often the door had a key, but sometimes there was just the sliding bolt arrangement - plus a small retractable cable lock which was handy for locking our bags to the seats on the train, although we only did this at night when we slept, since the rest of the time one of us could keep an eye on the other's gear if they had to leave where we were sitting. We also each took a quick drying travel towel - while just about every place we stayed at was happy to provide them, they do come in handy.

Another thing that we took, but could have left behind, was a Steripen UV light water purifier. We thought purifying water would be a bit easier on the environment than buying bottled water, but even with the biological nasties killed, the tap water still tastes revolting, and these things don't remove chemical impurities (nor will using iodine pills), which are definitely there in the water supply of many places. We made an effort for a while, but gave up on it pretty early on.

It's just as important to know what not to take as well as what to take. Thanks for sharing your list with everyone!

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