Korean Job Discussion Forums

[nrvs]

Actually...where can my girlfriend buy one?

She's looking for a quality 35-40 liter pack for our trip to South and Southeast Asia this winter. I remember seeing some outdoors stores near Namdaemun but we're both skeptical of the authenticity of goods purchased in that neighborhood. Is there some kind of REI-style store in or around Seoul that has a wide selection of packs?

On my most recent trip to Thailand I saw scores of young Koreans wandering around KSR with Western-brand backpacks so I know one can buy a decent backpack somewhere.

[JacktheCat]

Your best bet is not a store, but where Koreans buy all their camping gear: off the internet.

Get a Korean friend to hook you up with the best websites.

I got a great, tough 45 liter bag made by a company called Halla Sport that cost next to nothing.

[indytrucks]

I've found that with rucksacks, you get what you pay for. Occasional bargain notwithstanding, I've bought all my rucksacks in the department store (Shinsegae, Lotte) at The North Face. They're tough and they last. My 70 litre ruck has lasted me for nearly 7 years.

[desultude]

I got a really good quality North Face (the real thing) back pack in Hanoi ($15.00 U.S.). If you can get that far (if you are going that way) with something funky and switch off there you can save a bundle of money. Good packs are available in all of the major S.E. Asia cities.

Be really really cautious, though, because there are some really bad imitations, also. Check the fitting and the stitching, etc. I got a bad one in Bangkok one time, and it didn't get me to Phnom Penh.

[ilovebdt]

There is a North Face shop in Itaewon which sells backpacks

[trevorcollins]

Whatever you do, in this area DON'T be a cheapskate.
If a zipper breaks or the pack tears in the middle of a filthy, muddy slum-esque bus terminal in a place like Jakarta or Dhaka you seriously will wish you were dead.
It also has to be comfortable, so try them on on if it digs in or rubs even slightly, *beep* it. Unlike shoes you WON'T grow into it.
My logic always was if you can't carry the thing for at least a mile in the SE Asian sun you've either got the wrong pack or are doing the wrong style of travelling...i.e buy a Frommers Guide and hire a porter.
My current pack which is slowly, slowly dying has seen action over the past 8 years in 4 continents, it's been absolutely run through the wringer.
It's lasted longer than me, had fewer fungal infections, tossed all over the place by bus drivers, airline baggage handlers, hit by a bus once even.
Anything that doesn't hold up as long as this IMHO is junk.

[Xerxes]

I like going in style *blush*. Where can I buy hard or soft case Samsonite with reasonable selection in Korea? The real thing, of course.

[peppermint]

I think there's a samsonite store in COEX

[sojukettle]

There is a Samsonite store at ground level, Exit 4, Nonhyeon
Station ( Line 7).

[tzechuk]

There is a Samsonite outlet store in Itaewon.

[joe_doufu]

L.L. Bean is the best brand for gear. You can buy their stuff by mail-order and it's all guaranteed for life. If a strap breaks 20 years later you just send it in and they'll replace it with a new one.

But if you need something quick, just go to Dongdaemun market. Be sure to test the bag you choose by tugging at the zippers, making sure you can't rip the straps off, etc. Don't trust that the bag will be waterproof even if they say it is. But you can get a decent pack that you can carry stuff in for a few trips.

[Xerxes]

Wow, thanks, all, for that info! I'm really trying to buy bullet-proof suitcases that will last, so LL Bean is best then? Or, what is the sexiest in suitcase lines? assuming money is no limit (fantasy).