Ultra light travel umbrellas seem darn expensive!
 

Hi everyone,

Planning a trip to Paris in November, and thought I should buy an ultra light travel umbrella (reading your posts have inspired me to do so).

But, I can't seem to find them any cheaper than $25. Between me and my fiance, it seems like $50 is a lot to spend on an umbrella.

Am I just being cheap here? Or is there a less expensive place to buy these? I've done some heavy web searches, including Ebay, but still, no great deals.

How much did yours cost?

Thanks guys.

Not sure where you live, but I have a couple of umbrellas, including a small travel size one by Totes, that I puchased at various specialty luggage stores(Bag and Baggage is one here)and I didn't pay over $25 for any of them. It easily fits in the side pocket of my computer bag.

Don't know what you consider ultra-light. But we have several Totes umbrellas that cost about $10 that are really tiny when folded up - about half the length and width of standard folding umbrellas. I know they are cheap because they are so small we keep leaving them places and buy several at a time.

Just saw unbrellas labeled as "ultralight" at Stop and Shop supermarket - as small as I described above for $9.99

Try TJMaxx or Marshall's! I have ultra lites for $7.98-$20.00. Sales in the department stores will get this price too. Coupons!!

They sell umbrellas in Paris. If it rains while you are there, get one for 5E from a street vendor or a very chic one from a department store. No unnecessary weight in you tote if the weather is good, a souvenir if it isn't. I have an expensive ultralight umbrella now, but the cheapo from a Barcelona street vendor always evoked a fond memory (until its demise).

The Dollar Tree's and Everything's a Dollar stores have small travel size umbrellas. Probably not the quality of a Totes but then they are only a dollar. Don't we always lose our umbrellas anyway?

Both the Metropolitan and Boston Museums of Art carry very nice small-sized umbrellas, some with matching totes.

I saw the $1 umbrellas at Dollar Tree today, and if I hadn't bought my two, pretty expensive Eagle Creek travel umbrellas last year, I'd be buying the dollar umbrellas. I'm almost kicking myself.

I hope this link works, anyway this is an older thread about umbrella recs:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34541266

The Dollar Tree umbrellas leak. I have tried 2 of them and both did. Just goes to show you, you get what you pay for.
I have found that most of the very small umbrellas do not hold up in a bad storm with wind, they usually go inside out. Saying that, I still always bring a small umbrella on every trip I take.

I vote for buying one there if needed.
I did toss in a souvenir rain jacket (from Volcano NP) at the last minute. It came in VERY handy on the Seine cruise - the wind was chilly in May. I like having a hooded rain jacket better than an umbrella.

I think the 5 euro umbrella from Paris is the best way to go. No extra bulk or weight, unless you need it. And, then you'll have a great souvenir too! Keep in mind, you'll have to lug the umbrellas around Paris (just in case it rains). Chances are you may have two umbrellas back at the hotel room when you are caught in the rain while out sightseeing.

Have a wonderful trip to Paris!

I never take an umbrella with me on a trip. It's weight I am not sure I will need - and if I do need it, I can buy something cheap on vacation.

i never pack an umbrella.

even a small one, that's the kind of stuff that start filling up your suitcase real fast unnecessarily imo.

because i travel in cities, if it rains, you can buy one from a street vendor or inexpensive at a store. or many trips only a few times have i needed to do this.

Anybody has Sharper Image, I saw them advertizing "the smallest in the world" for about $15.

Oh, and to answer your question how much is mine, I usually wear coats or light jackets with hoods - don't like umbrellas.

I'd buy a cheap one there if you need it and then throw it out.

If it's windy as well as rainy, then buying a cheap umbrella is just a waste of money. Walk around Paris during a windy rainstorm and you'll see broken umbrellas dumped in trashcans everywhere (or at least everywhere where they still have trash cans).
As I mentioned in the thread I linked to above, I bought an umbrella made by Knirp, a German company. It was superbly made and held up very well even in windy rainstorms in Paris and Brussels. It survived everything except my short term memory loss, as I forgot and left it behind in a taxi. In Paris, they are stold at an umbrella store on the rue de Grenelle near the rue Cler, among other places.
Just for fun, you should check out the ne plus ultra of umbrella stores at 218 Blvd. St. Germain. One of the few places where it's not surprising for customers to drop hundreds of euros on a single umbrella.
http://www.alexandrasojfer.fr/

BTilke, you are sure right on that! For home use, I bought an umbrella when I got my car serviced (Mercedes - and no worries, the logo isn't emblazoned on the umbrella) and true to form, the umbrellas they sell are like the cars - sturdy! 60 bucks but that darn thing is as heavy as a mag-light and I know it isn't going to turn inside out! also good for self-defense. :))

A co-worker has that Sharper Image umbrella. He has had to return it twice because it keep falling apart!

Well, obviously, it can be windy in any city, and if it is a cheapo (or any other umbrella in my opinion) is useless. Then you have to just put on your rain hat or hood and get over it.

But, seriously, the cheapo-disposable route has worked for me many times.