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Preparing for Costa Rica as a Family of Four

As a dad and a gear nerd, this is a challenge I am facing head-on. Below is a running list of everything that has been purchased, with a quick review or justification for each.

Preparing for Costa Rica as a Family of Four

This past week, we took our first international trip as a family of four. The flights and Airbnb were booked, the itinerary (with the help of a travel agent - highly recommended) had been mostly set, and the PTO had been scheduled. All that's left was to buy the massive amounts of gear needed to make this trip possible. As a dad and a gear nerd, this was a challenge I am facing head-on. Below is a running list of everything that has been purchased, with a quick review or justification for each.

Please note that some of these are affiliate links, and I will make money off of them should you choose to use them to also purchase these items (and I hope you do!).

The list kept growing and growing, so I have tried to break it out into subsections as best as I could. Let's start with Clothing & Wearables.

  • Columbia Men's Summertide Water Shoe - I really didn't know what to expect from these, since I've never bought Columbia anything other than outerwear, but they're surprisingly comfortable. These are quick-drying and immensely breathable, and the branding is minimal.
  • melin A-Game Crushed Hydro - Big fan of the hats that melin makes; I also have their Coronado and Thermal hats, albeit in color-ways that are no longer available. I think the branding on this one is tasteful, and it's lightweight, breathable, and water-resistant, which is going to be ideal for a hot & humid environment.
  • Vertx Delta LT 8 inch shorts - I was initially skeptical about these in terms of fit and looks, because they are essentially "tactical" shorts, and I'm not... that. However, when they arrived, they looked great and fit me very well. The hem falls just above the knees, which is perfect. The pockets are well-hidden and the entire presentation doesn't scream "cargo!" - which is just what I wanted. Curious (and excited) to see how these will fit all the stuff I want to carry and execute on being the perfect travel shorts.
  • 686 Everywhere Featherlight shorts - I also bought two pairs of shorts by 686, mostly for hiking/walking. I like that these also have plenty of pockets while just looking like a regular pair of shorts.
  • Danish Endurance Merino Wool Hiking Socks - Merino wool all the things, right? I would love to eventually replace all my socks with merino Darn Tough or Bombas, but for the price of these, I figured they were up for the task at the moment. Cushioned sole, temperature regulating material, anti-blister, and made in Europe.

Let's move on to Technology.

  • Motorola PIP12 Travel Baby Monitor - Anyone that has traveled with kids under 5 knows that audio monitors are an absolute necessity. Our Airbnb has multiple rooms, and the kids will each get a room. I bought one set of these specifically for our 3-year old daughter. Love that they magnetically connect to each other, have a super small profile, and use USB-C to charge. From briefly testing them, the connection seems great, too.
  • Hatch Rest Go Portable Sound Machine - We're big fans of the Hatch sound machines. Both of our kids currently use the full size Rest. We got two of these smaller, travel-sized ones. I like that they don't rely on any app or Bluetooth/WiFi, and I like that they charge via USB-C.
  • Puro Sound Labs BT2200s Bluetooth Headphones - We're not big on using iPads and screens as a crutch, but when you're strapped into a plane and can't do much as a kid, you gotta do what you gotta do. These are on the expensive side, but they're volume-limiting, super lightweight, passive noise canceling, charge with USB-C, come with a great hardshell carrying case, and can swap between On-the-Ear and Over-the-Ear for comfort. We got two, one for each kid: one in green and one in pink.
  • GoPro Hero12 Black - Ok, so I didn't drop $350 on a brand new GoPro just for this trip. I had a Hero9 that I traded in, and then I used that to buy an open-box Hero12 at Best Buy. I ended up spending about $150, which is not too bad for the quality of the upgrade I'm getting in return. The use-case for this will be to take quick videos and ideally mount it into the molle straps of my backpack for some POV shots while we're hiking.

I wasn't sure what to call these items, but let's just call this section Travel Gear.

  • Blue Ridge Overland Gear's Small First Aid IFAK Velcro Pouch - BROG has since updated this particular pouch, which I might also end up getting (you can never have too many first-aid pouches, right?). For this trip, this pouch would meet my shipping deadline, and I might prefer the clear window of this one to the all-Velcro front of the newer model. Solidly and proudly Made-in-America with plenty of little pockets and dividers - what more could you want? I believe having a dedicated pouch that you can grab in a pinch for any and all "first aid"-related issues is ideal. I may just do a separate post on the load out here, but for now I look forward to using this for many family trips to come. I also bought the Insert Pouch, which will travel with my day-to-day in my backpack.
  • WAYB Pico Travel Car Seat - This car seat, which is very expensive, but also the only one of its kind, is going to be used in the plane and in the various cars that the travel agent has arranged for us. I'll try to post a full review of this later, but the big draw is that it's immensely portable while also having a full harness which is essential for our 3-year old.
  • Ride Safer Travel Vest - Also somewhat expensive, but is for our 6-year old for the same purpose. I bought both of these with the intention that they'll be used for years as we travel to various places with our kids.
  • Bravo Leather Passport Holder by Vaja - I know I definitely overspent on this, but I am a sucker for fine leather goods, and there is nothing else like this that holds passports for our entire family of four. This one is close, but not leather. I will do a full review on this afterwards.
  • LARQ Bottle Movement (filtered) - I bought two of these filtered water bottles, in the non-insulated variety to try to keep our backpacks light. I hope to use these bottles for years to come, just swapping out filters as needed.
  • EVERGOODS CIVIC Access Pouch 1L - I might be an EVERGOODS and CAP convert now. I want one in multiple colors. I've been on the search for a functional "tech Dopp kit" for all my wires and knick-knacks for a while now, and the simplicity combined with the well-organized nature of this pouch might be just what I needed. Full review of this coming after.

A few miscellaneous things that are pretty straight-forward, but should be considered are below as well. I would consider the majority of these to be "First-Aid & Wellness," and most of them fit well into the aforementioned IFAK pouch(es).