Will be in Singapore and Hong Kong next week. Which would be best to bring -- an umbrella, a raincoat (maybe the el-cheapo disposable kind), or both?

I go to Singapore annually...umbrella and nylon rain poncho. It's too hot for a raincoat. Happy Travels!

In HK, locals don't wear raincoats, except for young kids. Too messy when you get in and out of buildings, buses, trains, etc.

Umbrella!

It's way too hot and humid here for a rain coat.

You can easily get umbrellas in Singapore and Hong Kong. In fact there are some stores like Giordano which offer free rental of umbrellas. You pay a deposit of $10 which you get back on return of the umbrella. There are others which offer a discount when it's raining.

I carry a white umbrella which I purchased in Bangkok. It's double duty, sun and rain. Many women carry sun umbrellas in Hong Kong.

Also, in Hong Kong, when it rains suddenly, you'll see lots of shops having umbrellas for sale, regardless of what the store actually sell.

Thank you all, very much, for your welcome advice.

I use a "travel umbrella" that I got from the Container Store (perhaps there is one in your area). It's not one of those push button ones, but is so light that I can carry it every day in my purse. $14 plus tax...

Unfortunately, the closest Container Store is 60 miles away in Denver and I've too much scheduled this weekend to have time to drive there. Thank you for that suggestion, though.

I talked to my friend on the phone last night, and we've decided it would be fun, and a nice souvenir, to purchase umbrellas when we arrive in Singapore. She did find hers but one of the spokes was broken. We get little precipitation in this part of the state!

You can buy a cheap umbrella at T.J.Maxx. They have lots of them. Happy Travels!

Umbrellas... definitely. Either for rain or a sunny day. Just return from Asia & "doing as locals do" I carried my umbrella along with my purse & used it every single day either rain or shine. I felt like a local.. just that my umbrella was a generic Samsonite black one & theirs were mostly gorgeous umbrellas. Quite charming me with my umbrella on many photos.

Eve -

Umbrellas grow like trees in Singapore - no need to buy one ahead of time. You can even buy them from street vendors for less than $5 US. I'm from CO too and I never used a umbrella until we moved to Asia - now I never leave home without it.

If I remember (and I'm a bit of a scatterbrain), I'll take and post here a photo of us with our Singapore-bought umbrellas. Oh, we are going to have so much fun!

I'm glad I posted this question as I was only going to take a pair of black sneakers and a pair of very open sandals, but I think I'd better throw in my leather shoes in case the sneakers get soaked.

No need to take both since it just increase your loggage.

Eve,
A friend who has traveled to China a few times suggested to me that sandals might not be a good idea there since spitting anywhere on the ground is routine. I've also heard that babies wear split pants and when it's clear that they have to go, they can squat or be held over the right hole in a matter of seconds.

Hey, What a great idea for gifts for friends and family when we return from Thailand. Really pretty umbrellas.