travel jacket recommendations
 

I have some international travel coming up (France, West Africa), and I'm sold on the idea of having a light coat or jacket that I can wear on the plane and that will have plenty of secure pockets for documents, phone, etc. One option is something like an Orvis travel blazer (I suppose even just an Anderson Little blazer might in fact do the job); there are also more military-style jackets.

I like the look of many of the 'chore coats' that lots of companies sell, but I don't think the pockets on those are particularly functional, and at the very least I need something with inside pockets. I do own a Barbour Beaufort, but I find it too heavy for travel purposes like this unless I knew I was going somewhere cold and wet, which is seldom the case.

Any preferences?

I too will go to France and West Africa. France can be quite cold this time of year. I think a Blazer would not be a good idea. I wear a shell jacket from Columbia. I remember my first international trip. This was before cellphones and the internet. I was on my way to Romania. I had packed all my jackets in my check-in luggage as it was August. I stepped off the plane, and I was hit by 40-degree weather and wind gust up to 20 miles an hour. Needless to say, I always carry a warm jacket when going to Europe.

A lot of people I know swear by the SCOTTeVEST line. I personally just use either a travel blazer from Orvis or a jacket from 5.11 depending on what the dress code is on the other end.

Do you need to look business casual or just want a jacket with lots of pockets? My husband has the Eddie Bauer Voyager jacket in a couple of colors and loves it - it's a nice weight for warm weather/air conditioning travel.https://www.eddiebauer.com/product/m...izetype=&size=

Looks like there's a new version that has an insulated vest that snaps in/out if you want more warmth https://www.eddiebauer.com/product/m...izetype=&size=

I'm a fan of Scottevest for vests, q-zips, and the ladies trench. For jackets I like Eddie Bauer. But for pockets, it's Scottevest all the way.

Any of the military style "field coats" would have 4 large, square pockets, usually secured with button. So meets all the requirement. and they're made up from different material and thicknesses.

I have something similar to these, unlined and in polyester, so it works by itself as lightweight wind jacket in summer, and can be layered over anything in any other season. Packs very very compact.
Has 2 fastened internal breast pocket (e.g. for phone + wallet), sized enough for passport, in additional to the 4 external pockets.

Also looks city-appropriate and not like you're trekking in patagonia :)

https://eu.suitsupply.com/en_GB/coat...cket/J604.html
https://eu.suitsupply.com/en_GB/coat...cket/J706.html

I kinda go the opposite direction and do layers. So a pullover with a chest pocket underneath an Outdoor Research ultralight down vest/hoodie (limited pockets, but it is very slim and does well as an inner layer), covered with a Patagonia Nano Puff (great for cool to cold weather (I'm comfy down to 0C when layered properly), and when it rains I have a North Face rain shell. Seems like a lot, but every piece packs down to pretty small when needed, and gives me a lot of options (days warm up, the Patagonia jacket packs tightly into my backpack and I just wear the vest, starts cooling off, out comes the jacket and it's usually warm enough.

Of course, it also all depends on the weather at your destination... if I'm going to do winter in Switzerland or western France, for example, then the Patagonia becomes a midlayer and I have a much warmer Columbia shell that I'll wear over that. I end up with plenty of pockets for what I need in them (phone, earbuds, wallet, camera, battery pack).

Button pockets are probably NOT the way to go if "secure" is a desired metric. Full length zippers will keep your passport/wallet/etc from sliding out as you wad that sucker up and put it in a carryon, or use it as a pillow onboard, etc. Not to mention pickpockets and the like once on site.

Looks like you're trying for a little more corporate-casual dressy look, or I'd toss out my usual Arc'teryx ATOM-LT recommendation. (very lightweight, packs down to near-nothing, inside-chest + two hand pockets, all with low profile zippers, makes a great pillow, super warm even when wet.) But - while a classy brand name - that's a more activewear jacket than a barn coat might be viewed as.

I've gone to "not so many pockets" because that's a great recipe for slapping down all your many storage compartments and hidden pockets frantically looking for which one has your boarding passes. I don't need more than the three (chest for passport and wallet, hand pockets for immediate boardingpass/sunglasses/etc.) pockets. Add a shirt or pants pockets (safe assumption: You'll be wearing pants.) and that's already enough to carry phone, wallet, and the other usual things + the travel necessities (boarding pass, passport.)

Look at "casual" blazers, more along the lines of chore coats, but preferably wool (at least for cooler weather). There are pockets for stowing things (interior blazer pockets are a good defense against pickpockets), it'll keep you warm on the plane, and one more important factor - you can look reasonably put together when you land (vs wearing a scottevest fleece jacket that's carrying all of your worldly possessions)

I have an arsenal of these airport jackets from a brand Engineered Garments. This is a Fashion brand, not another Kickstarter Travel Brand, but they're made well in the US, and pockets are always practical. (There are plenty of other brands that make great casual blazers)

Another benefit - you can stash everything in your pockets in the jacket when you go through security. You can put the jacket in the bin and don't have to deal w/ all the loose materials in the bin (or needing to dig them out of your bag)

With that said, on a couple of trans-Atlantic trips to Spain over the past few weeks, my blazer was packed in my luggage. I used my Beaufort for cargo duty at the airport and stashed it overhead during the flight. To stay warm on the flight, I brought a travel blanket

II'm a fan of Columbia jackets. France is really cold right now so bring it to stay warm.

TravelSmith has a good travel vest with loads of pockets that can hold passports, etc. I pair this with a fleece jacket to wear on the plane. I find it helpful to keep the warm-up layer separate from the functional layer, especially when traveling to a warm climate.

wg

You may wear your jacket *onto* the plane, but I suspect you won't want to spend the whole flight in it. So if you wish to keep things like your passport close to your chest en route, I'd recommend also looking at shirts with breast pockets. This one by Rohan for example has a zipped security pocket as well, could be worn under a jacket (+1 for the Orvis, btw) or open on its own over a t-shirt when somewhere hot. https://www.rohan.co.uk/mens-travel-and-outdoor-shirts-Expedition-Shirt?ocode=05327K86&cr=MensShirts#product-spec

Currently traveling for business and a blazer is required, ugh. I got a Bluffworks. It has never wrinkled so far in 7 days of travel TPAC, rolled up in a back pack, in the back of the car with luggage on it, etc. It has zipper pockets. I think it might size a little small but I have lost weight since I got it, and now it is perfect. My go to and lighter than my old travelsmith

https://shop.bluffworks.com/collections/blazers

just pulled my bluffworks blazer out of my rollaboard for this last leg and even my wife said it looked pretty good. Have never washed it, so what are the instructions, or I can look it up myself, but jet lag + lazy.
never mind- next flight delayed. machine wash 104 F, medium dry or hang to dry.

Also if you are a vest person, going to somewhere a jacket for cool weather might work, i stumbled on to this and I love it. Interior zip pockets for security. My new favorite. but dont discount the bluffworks vest. don't have it yet but considering.

https://www.exofficio.com/round-trip...543826305.html