Travel news and deals of interest to YOU from around the Web compiled and edited by NoDebtWorldTravel.com:

If you know any great travel stories or tips we all should read, please send it to me and I will put an acknowledgment of your contribution in the posting.

How Much Can You Save Staying In Hostels? The REAL Numbers

I had to repeat this post only because I think it is so important to restate. For those that missed it, I broke down the costs of my hostel stays vs. a 3 star hotel in the same city on my round the world trip.

American hostels easy on the wallet

I spoke with Jim, the writer of “The Hostel Handbook” mentioned in the article. Largely a European phenomenon, more hostels are coming to America. For the large cities, these could be a major boon for budget travelers who don’t want the high prices. Hostels are not just for long term travel.

8 Essential Tips for Your Next Flight

Helpful tips, including the best days to fly and how to fly in business/first class at discounted rates.

Hitting out over travel insurance nightmare

A woman gets sick abroad and she has travel insurance. But the insurance company claims that she has a pre-existing condition that she did not tell them about. When you get travel insurance, don’t give the policy issuer an out. Tell them of any serious pre-existing condition.

Hospitalized Abroad? Here’s the truth about the care

Many more stories about needing medical attention when travel and the use or lack of medical travel insurance.

More parents take kids out of school to get cheap travel deals

Some people are saying it is now or never with their travel plans. Airlines are cutting capacity to keep flights full and raises prices. Folks are not only pulling kids out of school for short trips, but long term travel.

Cool Travel Intern Job

GAP Adventures is sponsoring an internship in their offices in Toronto. If you’re interested, apply and good luck.

In Nepal, a Long, Cold Climb to Inspiration

An account of backpacking up Thorong La, a passage in the Himalayas that reaches over 3 miles (5.4km) high into the sky.

World’s most over-rated tourist sites

It’s not all it is cracked up to be. I know alot of people who will never go to Hawaii again, people who think that Las Vegas is tacky and over hyped. You certainly can’t please everyone.

For me the ruins of Chichen Itza in Mexico were really disappointing. I thought they would be these huge magnificent structures. They were far from it for me. I know many have said the same about Stonehenge.

Are airlines heading towards a cruise ship revenue model?

Don’t be so overjoyed about the airlines cutting prices. They are always looking to take it out of your wallet in some way. First it was the box meals on flights that started at $5 and now go to $7. Now choosing your seat and other parts of a standard airline flight ‘experience’ are going to quantified with a price.

Win a Flip Camera in Our Travel Inspiration Competition

Another competition, this time for a Flip HD camera. I bought one a few months ago and have been generally happy with it. Remember the days when a ‘personal’ video camera was so big you had to support it on your shoulder? Those days are long gone.

Preparing your iPhone for international travel

I talked about $5000 charges for an iPhone user in a previous post when they traveled. Here is a guide to prevent that exact situation from happening.

But now in my third year abroad, I have amassed a collection of gadgets that I would go so far as to say I can’t live without (at least not happily). I even joke that I would throw myself in front of a bus to save my laptop, except for the lack of usefulness my laptop would serve if I were dead.

Still, everything I own fits into a backpack, which I generally check on flights – plus a small(ish) carry-on bag that houses all things electronic. My boyfriend and I are a comical disaster at airport security; unloading the contents of our respective carry-on bags crammed with laptops, midi keyboards (my boyfriend is a musician, carrying a scaled-down music studio in his pack), and cords galore for the bemused security officers. We’ve never been extensively searched, likely because we are such a sight to behold that they feel sorry for us while we try to stay out of the way, hurriedly playing Tetris with our packs in an attempt to re-stuff them with the unloaded electronics before we can move on to our gate.

When you travel full-time and make a living in a location independent manner with an Internet connection, flashpacking becomes a necessary evil.

Recently, I took a six week side trip from our current digs in Australia, to return home to Canada where I could visit with family and friends, and take care of some business. In doing so, I decided I would embrace packing light – really light – flashpacker style. I managed it with carry-on luggage only.

When I survey other travelers’ packing lists, mine still seems extensive. I have more clothing, and in some cases more gadgets, and I’m pedantic about carrying more official documents around with me than I probably need to. Yet I still managed to survive with carry-on luggage only.

Here is what I brought:

Purse:

1. Wallet
2. Sunglasses
3. Camera
4. Tiny collapsible tripod for my camera
5. Cell phone
6. Cell phone charger
7. Re-useable collapsible bag (for grocery shopping and such)
8. Nail file (which just found its way into my purse one day and decided it liked to be there)
9. Copy of my passport (kept in a separate bag from my actual passport)
10. Extra memory card for my camera
11. Journal/notebook (one of my best pieces of travel gear)

Technology Backpack:

1. Laptop bag with 12” laptop
2. Laptop power cord
3. Mini laptop mouse
4. Camera charger
5. USB cords serving various purposes to help all my gadgets play nicely together
6. Earbuds for Skype conversations or listening to music
7. Installation CDs
8. Expandable folder of official documents (which include copies of passports and other photo id, tax documents, visa information, flight details, and other miscellaneous items; this is another article unto itself)
9. Passport wallet with passport and flight itinerary details
10. Inflatable pillow for airplane and bus rides
11. Book for reading

Clothing Backpack:

1. 2 T-shirts (one of which I wore)
2. 2 Long-sleeved shirts (one of which I wore)
3. Tank top
4. Jacket (which I wore)
5. 3 Pairs of pants (one of which I wore)
6. Capri pants
7. Skirt (I will be required to look somewhat businesslike for some of my meetings)
8. Sarong
9. 4 pairs of underwear
10. 4 pairs of socks
11. Scarf (which serves as a belt, or accessory for business-like elegance, or warmth)
12. External Hard Drive (with a recent backup – notice that I keep this separate from my laptop itself)
13. Walking sandals
14. Pretty (and pretty small) sandals
15. Walking shoes (which I wore)
16. 2 plastic bags for dirty laundry or miscellaneous needs

Toiletry bag:

1. Solid crystal deodorant
2. Makeup (before you jump to conclusions, a full application of make-up for me is eye shadow pencil, eyeliner, and mascara; remember – I had business meetings to attend)
3. Toothbrush
4. Toothpaste (travel-sized)
5. Hair tie
6. Hair goop (travel-sized)
7. Shampoo (travel-sized)
8. Body/face wash (travel-sized)
9. Feminine hygiene product (space & waste saving)
10. Pack towel (the really small kind that absorbs way more water than it looks and dries faster than you’d think)

Not only did I manage to fit all this into my carry-on entourage, but I also had gifts for people at home and hosts along the way.

Here are some of the ways I managed to keep my packing volume small:

• My clothing bag was soft-sided and thin, with compression straps to keep the overall size down. Although the bag itself doesn’t have much integrity, the contents therein don’t require much protection.

• I am not averse to buying toiletries along the way, to reduce the load I carry from day to day.

• I (accidentally) lost my jacket as soon as I landed in Canada, which is okay since it is summer here. I think it is at a friend’s place – at least I hope it is. (Although I rarely recommend losing things to reduce packing volume, it is nonetheless effective).

• I wore everything I possibly could on the plane. Not only did this keep me warm under the inevitable blast of cold air above my seat, but it saved space. I tied extra unwanted layers around my waist during layovers.

• The season worked in my favour. Knowing it is summer in Canada made the volume of clothing I had to bring much smaller. If it were winter, I would have brought fewer items (but with more girth), as well as bought an extra layer or two at my destination.

• I specifically chose clothing (with the exception of a pair of jeans) that could be rolled up (and later on in the trip, bunched up in a rush) and crammed into my bag, yet come out relatively wrinkle-free and ready to wear. Quick-drying clothing is also a necessity, given that hand-laundry is inevitable at some point.

Really? Is This Much Stuff Allowed as Carry-on?

Technically you are allowed to have one official carry-on bag, plus a laptop bag or a personal bag like a purse. However I have not yet found any difficulty in making my purse look invisible, and neither of my other two bags are particularly close to the carry-on size or weight limits. I use compression straps to make my clothing bag look nice and small, and it gets stowed in the overhead bins – even on small planes. The technology backpack fits easily under the seat in front of me, as does my purse.

Although I envy those who walk onto a plane with little more than a purse and a book to read, I’m pretty sure those people in turn envy me when I’m the first out of the airport while they’re still waiting for their luggage to (hopefully) arrive.

Reach Nora @ The Professional Hobo – www.theprofessionalhobo.com