"Must have" travel item?
 

I'm searching for a quick gift for a man who'll tour China for 15 days (first internat'l trip). Any suggestions for something that's nice to have for such a trip? Would like to spend between $25-50. Also, the resource to order or obtain the item. Thanks!

I know this isn't very exciting but what I got the most use out of was a money belt. You can get them at luggage stores and maybe even walmart.<BR><BR>If he wouldn't use that he might like a nice tote bag or fanny bag. At the least, you have to carry water bottles all day with you. Other items we carried were camers, wet wipes, guide books, snacks, passport, etc.<BR><BR>Something that won't cost you anything that I used a lot was a currency conversion chart. Do a search--lots of sites have them. Print it cut it to fit in his wallet.<BR><BR>Something else I loved were my pack mates--large zip lock bags with one way valves. You zip them up then roll them up to squish the air out. Takes up a lot less space in your suitcase. A set of various sizes would cost in your price range. You can get some sizes at luggage stores but I would order online at www.packmates.com.<BR>They came very fast both times I've ordered.<BR><BR>Maybe a nice journal to write in.<BR><BR>If he is a coffee drinker and doesn't like instant coffee, they do not have coffee makers in the rooms--even 5 star hotels. They only have hot pots to heat water. A small coffee maker would have been so great for me.<BR><BR>

As the previous writer noted, a currency converter is a must-have. However, the one I use and love is an electronic item that does currency conversions and also functions as a translator. This great little gadget goes everywhere with me, Europe and Asia. They aren't expensive. I recommend getting that for him.

my suggestion would be to get him a Lonely Planet guide to China they cost $30 and they are one of the best guides

My wife and I traveled to China in May '00. Would have loved to have had a small pack with a water bottle carrier. You could pick up one at any sporting goods store.

Lonely Planet Mandarin phrasebook! haven't been to china, but i traveled the entire length of vietnam w/ a lonely planet vietnamese phrasebook, my single most indispensable possession after my passport and cash. w/o speaking a word of vietnamese, this enabled me not only to get around restaurants, shopping, etc., but to pass hours 'talking' w/ vietnamese i wd never have been able to approach otherwise. w/ all the notes and autographs people wrote inside, i missed this more than my camera when my suitcase was stolen after i got home.

What Lonely Planet China doesn't know or gets wrong would fill a book at least as big. The Berlitz phrase book is better than the LP one, too. I don't know how good the Fodors guide is (this is certainly a good Web site) but Blue Guide is a good advance read on history, culture and general background for someone whose practical problems will be looked after by a tour. It's not just a guide book, it's a good read. Unlike LP, the authors actually know what they are talking about.

i have used a lot of the guide books at least the major ones (berlitz, LP, Fodors) and they are all pretty good i found the LP to be the most correct and also with the Lonely Planet guides, in the very back is a language section of the country the book is for, and that is usually enough to get around its not hard to get around in china the only mandarin you really need to learn are the numbers, greetings, no, yes, thank you, and How much? and these are all easy to learn so...........