Man with a backpack practicing mindfulness while looking at a valley, trees, and mountains in the distance.

Best Adventure Travel Backpack 2022

When you’re deeply immersed in nature and moving through rugged environments, a good travel backpack is a game-changer. The less you have to worry about your pack, the more you can focus on being present in your own wilderness experience. In order to have a transformational and mindful adventure with Recal, we’ve taken a close look at how to choose a good travel backpack based on your personal packing style.

Why is a travel backpack so important?

Backpacks are arguably the most integral part of a traveler’s equipment. Seasoned travelers know this, and they often form very strong opinions on what constitutes a great travel backpack. The best pack is one that you hardly notice when it’s on your back. It keeps your gear clean and dry in nature’s moodiest conditions. It needs to be durable, comfortable, have fast access, and be able to hold all the gear you choose to carry with you. A good pack will have your back even in the toughest of challenges, while a bad one will weigh you down and make it difficult to move around freely.

At Recal Travel, we typically favor small and medium-sized backpacks for travel. Big packs invite more things, which translates to more weight on your back. Packing light encourages you to favor needs over wants and cut out unnecessary items from your bag. The beauty of bringing less means you will focus more on the experience. Nothing beats the simplicity of passing through the airport (if you are flying) with a single piece of luggage. It’s much easier getting to your destination without the worry of portering an unnecessarily heavy backpack.

For adventure-minded folks like us, a travel backpack also needs to be waterproof and support long hikes or even overnight trips. We find that packs within the 30-50 liter range work well for these tasks.

We put together a list of the best adventure travel backpacks for 2022. These packs will work well for many different trips, even those that include hiking, kayaking, camping, and other spirited outdoor endeavors. In essence, this is a list of bags that would work well on any of our trips whether it’s backpacking through Navajo land or kayaking in the everglades. With sustainability also in mind, we decided to choose packs that will last many years if treated well, and spotlight packs that are produced using responsible methods.

Best ultralight travel backpack – Zpacks Nero 38

Once upon a time, the popular image of a hiker was somebody begrudgingly hauling a giant, heavy external frame backpack, probably with a grimace on their face. Things were a lot less simple back then, and backcountry travel entailed a lot of sweat and strain in order to carry in the necessary equipment. Thankfully (for our lumbars), new school technology has made camping gear and backpacks much lighter. Enter the Zpacks Nero. Unlike traditional backpacks, the Nero doesn’t rely on an external or internal frame to keep its shape and provide weight distribution. Instead, the Nero relies on you packing lightweight gear and sliding a sit pad onto the back as a super-light frame. It comes in two fabric options, both weighing in at under a pound yet still providing durable and waterproof performance.

The core pack comes with hiker-friendly features such as mesh side pockets, a large expandable mesh compartment on the back, and daisy loops for attaching shock cord. It’s important to keep in mind that ultralight bags like this one are meant to inspire you to take less and carry lighter items. Its frameless nature is optimized for folks who carry less than 25 pounds worth of gear/essentials. For many this is not a drawback or limitation. Instead it offers space (albeit a tight one!) to practise mindfulness by cutting out the excess and carrying only what’s most important for your trip.

Best all-rounder for the long haul – MEC Vektor 45

MEC Vektor 45 - Travel Backpack

MEC is a gear co-op and outdoors emporium operating out of Canada. Much like REI, they stock a variety of well-known outdoors brands as well as producing their own line of MEC branded clothing and gear. Over the years, many outdoors enthusiasts have noted the superior quality of their backpacks. The Vektor 45 is no exception, offering subtle styling paired with smart features and high-quality materials built to last. The Vektor is designed with ergonomics in mind—the air-mesh harness keeps your back from getting sweaty and sticky on long ascents, large side pockets offer space to quickly stow a water bottle and rain jacket at arm’s reach.

Many of the same features that make this a great hiking backpack also make it an excellent travel backpack—heavy duty reinforced fabric on the bottom of the pack resists wear year after year, a partial zipper near the top makes accessing the main compartment a breeze. Daisy chains on the outside of the pack make it easy to tie on extra items when you need to expand the bag’s capacity. At 45 liters, the Vektor is the largest bag on this list. It makes a good companion for extended trips and more involved excursions where you will need to bring more specialty gear.

Best small travel backpack for minimalists – Patagonia Black Hole 32

Patagonia Black Hole 32 - Travel Backpack

For those who have truly mastered the art of taking less with them while traveling, the Black Hole 32 from Patagonia is a great lightweight and eco-conscious option. Coming from a brand that is well known for their environmentally friendly manufacturing, the Black Hole 32 was designed using recycled material for the body fabric as well as lining and webbings. At 32 liters, this pack doesn’t leave any room for overpacking, which is exactly why we love it. For those taking public transit and staying in hotels, it dutifully keeps essentials protected and accessible. A large zipper across the top half makes getting to your items easy, even if they’re buried at the bottom of the pack.

The Black Hole has a sleeve that can be used for either a laptop or a hydration bag, making it a great choice for travelers who need a bag that moves seamlessly from the city to the mountains. Other trail-friendly features like mesh side pockets and daisy chain lash points help extend the bag’s versatility even further into the great outdoors. While not suited for extreme backcountry pursuits, the Patagonia Black Hole is an awesomely durable backpack built with the urban adventurer in mind. If you need a bag that works well for traveling in between cities and countryside frequently, the Black Hole is a great pick.

Best fully waterproof travel backpack – Exped Serac 35

Exped Serac 35 - Travel Backpack

In terms of the best backpack for keeping your gear dry, roll-top packs are undoubtedly the champions of waterproofness. The Exped Serac 35 has you covered, with a bomber design that protects your belongings from wetness and still makes it easy to access the bottom of your bag with a thoughtful side entry pocket. Ripstop nylon is a heavy-duty yet lightweight fabric that has been trusted by mountaineers for years to hold up in rugged conditions, so there is no question about the longevity of this backpack. We thought the 35-liter option would work well for many travelers, but Exped also makes the Serac in both 25 and 45-liter options depending on how lightweight or committed your travels tend to be.

One great feature for travelers is the Serac’s low-profile straps and hip belt, making it much easier to stow in the back of a tiny trunk or in a baggage locker. Another thing we loved about the Serac is the metal rapide hook closure on top, which helps to stabilize the load and keep it from swaying on longer hikes. This backpack is great for anyone who wants a travel bag with ultimate backcountry functionality, and it feels just as “at home” on an alpine ski trip as it does on the cobbled streets of Bombay.

Final thoughts

Once upon a time, the popular image of a hiker was somebody begrudgingly hauling a giant, heavy external frame backpack, probably with a grimace on their face. Things were a lot less simple back then, and backcountry travel entailed a lot of sweat and strain in order to carry in the necessary equipment. Thankfully (for our lumbars), new school technology has made camping gear and backpacks much lighter. Enter the Zpacks Nero. Unlike traditional backpacks, the Nero doesn’t rely on an external or internal frame to keep its shape and provide weight distribution. Instead, the Nero relies on you packing lightweight gear and sliding a sit pad onto the back as a super-light frame. It comes in two fabric options, both weighing in at under a pound yet still providing durable and waterproof performance.

The core pack comes with hiker-friendly features such as mesh side pockets, a large expandable mesh compartment on the back, and daisy loops for attaching shock cord. It’s important to keep in mind that ultralight bags like this one are meant to inspire you to take less and carry lighter items. Its frameless nature is optimized for folks who carry less than 25 pounds worth of gear/essentials. For many this is not a drawback or limitation. Instead it offers space (albeit a tight one!) to practise mindfulness by cutting out the excess and carrying only what’s most important for your trip.