TRAVEL GEAR: Christmas Gift Ideas for Travelers

It's Support the Blog Day here at The World on Wheels.  Below are links to products at Amazon.com that we think would make great presents for those on your holiday gift list.  By visiting Amazon and buying your gear through these links, you also help support our mission financially at no extra cost to you. 

If you'd like to support the blog in a more direct way, you can donate to this site via the PayPal button to your left labeled Tim's Tip Jar (all money generated by this site goes to support him).  We also accept advertising, if interested shoot us an e-mail at dmusick - at - gmail.com and we'll discuss opportunities for you.

Thanks for your support...

If you're going to Europe, Rick Steves produces just about the best guide books there are.  This would be a great present for any of your friends or family that might be planning that trip across the pond next year.

This is essential for traveling out of the country.  The world has many different electric systems with their own style of outlets.  This item has come in very handy for us to use hair dryers, laptops, charge cameras, and more.  A little money goes a long way with this adapter. 

My wife bought a few of these a few years ago and we've been using them ever since, both at home and on the road.  This will save many stubbed toes and banged knees when you're trying to find the bathroom in the middle of the night in an unfamiliar room.  Just plug into an outlet and a dim green glow will allow you to navigate in the dark without interrupting your sleep.

Love this overnight bag.  Holds all your toiletries in one convenient place.  Fold up and carry like a satchel, or open up and put in your suitcase, where it lies flat...especially if you have your liquids in larger containers.  When you get to your hotel, just hang up in the bathroom and you have an instant medicine cabinet without sacrificing any counter space.

Finally, we'll put in this manual wheelchair for those of you who'd like to travel but find taking your power chair is too much of a hassle.  Tim bought this chair prior to our Midwest Baseball Tour last year and said it's the most comfortable manual chair he's ever sat it.  For less than $350 with free shipping, it's also a great deal.  Also qualifies for most FSA reimbursements.

So that's our Christmas suggestion list for our traveler friends.  We hope you have a happy and easy holiday shopping season and thank you for visiting Amazon.com via our links and supported our blog.

-Darryl

TRAVEL GEAR: Summer 2010

Here are some items we find very useful while traveling.  Some will be more useful for disabled travelers, other items are good for everybody.  Links go to Amazon pages to help support Tim and the site.  Thank you for your support...

Doing laundry is one of those chores we hate to do while traveling but having to shell out for detergent, fabric softener, and dryer sheets is just one more hassle and expense we don't need.  These sheets are great for alleviating that.  One sheet in the wash serves as detergent and fabric softener.  Leave it in for the dryer and it becomes a dryer sheet.  They are also very easy to pack.  We take 2 or 3 in a Ziploc bag and use along the way.

OK, I'm ready to name the Kodak Zi8 the best pocket sized HD video camera on the market.  We've now lived with this camera and the Flip Ultra HD for close to a year now.  The Flip is a great camera but makes very large files and the format, MP4, does not play well with Windows.  The Flip editing software is not user friendly either.  The Kodak makes HD files about a third smaller than the Flip.  It also has a jack for an external mic.  You an buy extra memory cards and add capacity to your camera...the Flip is limited to the 2 gigs that are already installed.  The files work seamlessly in the Window Live Movie Maker editing software. It's also slimmer.   I love this camera for its size, quality of video, ease of use and editing, and capacity.  You can see the results on our most recent videos such as our trip to Morro Bay.

When you travel to a destination that does not have great accessibility, a power chair can be a liability.  Transport chairs don't cut it for user comfort on long trips.  This manual has been a Godsend to us.  Rugged construction, large pushable wheels, and a very comfortable, folding cushion make this a great travel chair at a great price of under $350.  Another neat feature is that the armrests are designed to fit a dining table.

Great for your GPS or cell phone but we use it to hold the video camera to get those driver point-of-view shots you see in our videos.

-Darryl

Gear: Wine and Beer

Some Amazon links to items you might find useful for your wine and beer activities (proceeds go to Tim's job search)...

I tried this once at the Wine of the Month Club.  It's easy to use and an instant decanter for your wine.

We use this for times when we don't want to drink an entire bottle of wine.  It sucks out all of the air and keeps your wine fresh and drinkable.  Also allows the bottles to be stored sideways without leakage.

If you've eyed those Heineken mini kegs at the store and wish you had a tap to go with them, here you go.  Only works with Heineken though. 

Maybe you want to make your own?  We've done it a couple of times.  It's fun, but also time consuming and it takes up a lot of room if you don't have much.

And, finally, if you just want a good source for great wine at great prices, here's a link I really believe in...and, no, I don't get any commission for it but if you tell them Darryl Musick sent you, I might get some free wine pourers...

Paul Kalemkiarian's Wine of the Month Club is the place to get wine.  From their monthly picks to everyday bargains, you can't beat it.  Especially nice is that Paul and his staff are not wine snobs...they'll work with you to find the perfect wine at the perfect price.

-Darryl