Apr
22

The Jeans vs Travel Pants debate may finally have an answer.

One of the greatest packing debates for just about every traveler is the “Jeans” vs “Travel Pants” debate and for me the answer has always been jeans, until now that I actually found great travel pants and want both.  If you have read any of my backpacking packing list you know I loathe travel pants and love my blue jeans. I think travel pants look ugly and tacky with their million pockets and even worse if they zip off into shorts. No matter what you wear them with or how you wear them they will never look good. As for jeans I’ve mentioned before that they  are a UNIVERSAL clothing item… just about anywhere you go in the world people are wearing jeans. You will wear them to the bar, out to eat, on chilly days, in countries where you can’t wear shorts, to hike a mountain or volcano. You will wear them just about every day you are not in a beach town or melting from the heat. Well now I have found a pair of travel pants that will do just that too.

I was contacted recently by Bluff Works to try out their newly designed “Work, Play or Travel Pants” and my first thought was “NOPE”, because I thought they would be another pair of ugly travel pants. Oh how I was so wrong.  I decided to give them a look and I was left speechless. The pants look like high end working slacks for men, but with all the features of regular travel pants discretely placed/hidden on the inside.

Bluff Works Pants

Every pair of Bluff Works pants features:

  • 100% technical, breathable quick-dry polyester. Nylon pockets.
  • Zippered front hidden internal security pocket to deter pickpockets. Large enough to hold your passport.
  • Rear zippered pocket sized for an oversized travel wallet.
  • Discrete side pocket phone storage to keep you from sitting on it. Fits an iPhone or a Galaxy S4.
  • Hidden loop to clip keys or a security badge inside your front pocket.
  • Nickle-free jean tack closure.
  • Interior pocket images made to inspire.
  • Designed and manufactured in New York City, of imported fabric from Taiwan.
  • Machine washable. Line or tumble dry.

Those are all features most travel pants come with, but normally on the outside that give them the bulky and ugly look. The Bluff Works pants were designed by travelers who were tired of that too. They were on a mission to create a pair of fashionable pair of pants that would work for any occasion “Work, Play or Travel” and that they have done. I have been wearing the pair of pants they sent me to the office the last few months and they are great. To everyone they look like regular office slacks, but to me I know they hold many features that are going to be very beneficial  for me on the road.

Since I started wearing them I have started to get to know them better and actually appreciate them a bit more than my jeans. I know shocking, but it’s the truth. They are very breathable with plenty of leg room and the material actually feels like it can sustain some damage and not easily tear like other slacks normally feel. My favorite features are the two zipper pockets it comes with to secure your valuables.

One of the zippers is for your back pocket. Any one who has traveled knows not to walk around any city with your wallet in your back pocket, because chances are it will get pick pocketed in touristic areas. With a zipper discreetly covered to make it look like a regular pocket chances of that happening are slim, because you would feel someone trying to unzipped it.

Bluff Work Pants

The other zipper pocket is actually an additional pocket inside your regular side pocket. That will allow you to carry your money or anything else you may be carrying of value in your pocket zipped up as well. Pick pocket-ers (is that a word) are pros at getting what they want, but with the zipper hidden inside the pocket chances are they won’t be getting to it.

Bluff Work Pants

An additional feature that I like a lot is the back side pocket for your cell phone. I personally don’t have a cell phone, but use my iPod Touch for everything. It slides right in & out of the back pocket with ease and does keep you from sitting on it.

Bluff Work Pants

Not only does it have those great features, but they are also very light weight and dry very fast. As if they couldn’t get any better than that they actually do… they are WRINKLE FREE. They don’t wrinkle… and trust me I tried. I put them under a book, left them sitting there after I took them out of the dryer and still didn’t wrinkle. That is something all backpackers look for in clothing because the majority of the time we do not have an iron to iron our clothes with.

So why do I think the “Jeans” vs “Travel Pants” debate may finally have an answer, because thanks to Bluff Works travelers now have an option of nice great looking travel pants to travel with. These will be great for any occasion and the thing is when you are planning to go on a trip around the world you realize you will only be traveling with what fits in your backpack. In my case it’s a small backpack because I like traveling light. So when I pack I make sure everything is interchangeable and everything matches with everything and actually looks fashionable. I will always be a jean traveler, but thanks to these perfectly designed pants I will be traveling with two pants now a pair of jeans and a pair of Bluff Works slacks on my next trip around the world. If you do not like traveling around with jeans and want travel pants I’d highly recommend these.

Bluff Work slacks are priced at $88 (free shipping in the US) and offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. They can be purchased directly from BluffWorks.com.

I was sent a pair of Bluff Work slacks in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Comments

  1. Those actually look good. I also hate regular travel pants, they are just ugly. But these look really good.

    • Jaime Davila says:

      Suki, these really are great. I am wearing them right now. I love them more and more each time I wear them.

  2. Woah, what a cool design! Thanks for sharing.

    Happy travels 🙂

  3. I’m a big fan of bluffworks – seriously tough, comfy and smart enough for a business meeting. To compliment them check out Rohan Jeans+. [No affiliation]. I picked up a pair in the UK recently and they are great. Similar features to Bluffs, hidden pocket, lightweight, quick drying [they regularly dry faster than my socks and tshirts]. My only issues with the Rohans is too few belt loops and the watch pocket, while enlarged to fit a credit card is a pinch too shallow to fit my phone. If they solve these two issues then they are the perfect travel jeans.

    In my opinion they fill the other half of the Jeans v Travel pants debate that Bluffworks [and now Rohan] have pretty much settled. Bring both and you’re set for every occasion.

    So far I’ve only got the Charcoal grey Bluffs because in some reviews the light grey looked a bit too light and plasticy. Maybe that was just the 1st generation. In your photos they look pretty good. Are yours light grey or charcoal?

  4. These pants look better than the other “travel pants” I’ve encountered. I generally only wear the travel pants when I’m camping and trekking. Never saw the use for them in any other situation- regular jeans always worked for every other part of travel!

  5. Which color are these? Charcoal? Do you think they would look ok with just a hoodie?

    • Jaime Davila says:

      Yes they are Charcoal & yeah I think they would look great with just a hoodie. I liked them a lot and wore them all the time.

  6. Using “TFC” as a promo code on their site will get you a discount on your entire purchase.

    Use promo code TFC and get 10% OFF your entire order on Bluff Works.

    • Looks like TFC code no longer works. Using TFC10 as a promo code on their site will get you a discount on your entire purchase. 10% OFF your entire order on Bluff Works. No expiration.

  7. Carl Albertson says:

    I have 4 pairs of pants which I like but in less than a year they have shrunk from 30″ inseam to 29″. No satisfaction from the company, sadly. Don’t buy them unless you buy them an inch long

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