Travel Photography - Point and Shoot Recommendations

Hi all, I am in the market for a new point and shoot digital camera, and though there seem to be a great number of choices, I cannot for the life of me find one which would be most appropriate to my needs.

I am not an avid photographer. The only occasion I really find a need to whip out my camera is during travel, as I enjoy documenting my journeys, and occasionally posting trip reports. Thus, I'm looking for something that would suit this purpose - something which takes great quality photos, has good optical zoom (think 15x and higher), incorporates image stabilization, records 1080p video, and lastly, but most importantly, works well in low light conditions (ideally without flash), as most of my travel seems to occur in the night time.

I have looked at some options, such as the infamous Canon S100 - it looks like a fantastic product, but the zoom is less than stellar. I have also come across ones such as the Samsung WB850 and Nikon COOXPIX S8200. However, I haven't been able to find many aviation related pictures taken with these, and thus don't want to jump into the purchase without knowing what to expect.

I would appreciate some suggestions. Although I do not technically have a budget, I would think something at $550 or under would be realistic. Thanks in advance.

Hello,

I have the perfect camera for you and it's well under your budget. Try the Canon 300HS. It's an awesome camera. It's also tiny and discrete. It takes gorgeous photos and the Full Video HD is incredible. It is also a very good low light camera as well.

I recently picked one up to compliment my Canon 30D which is a brick to carry around compared to the 300HS.

Cheers!

You may want to take a look at this ("http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/Q311TravelZoomGroupTest) group test by DPR for some ideas.

Cheers,
T.

Check out this camera: LUMIX® DMC-ZS20 (http://shop.panasonic.com/shop/model/DMC-ZS20W)

20x zoom and full HD video and a good price too: $350.

I've got a Panasonic P&S and love it - much more so than my Canon.

hard to go past a canon s100
I have had an s90 for years and its low light performance and size is amazing still

Sony DSC RX100 is coming soon and looks fantastic, a massive sensor, should work well in low light

I dislike the fact that the S100's zoom is in steps rather than smooth but I don't really see the need of more zoom on a P&S. I find it hard to use the full zoom on the S100 as it is because it's so small.

what about the panasonic TS4? It is a good point and shoot and the best part of it is that it can do underwater filming so it is best for travel to the beach or in the rain.