Travellious Test Lab: Ex-Officio Travel Underwear

When it comes to underwear and travel, most people simply don't give the combination that much thought. "I'll be traveling X days, so I'll pack that many pairs..." Or, if they're lighter packers, they'll wash and cut that number down. But have you ever thought of drastically cutting the number of skivvies that you pack down to two or three, even for a long trip?
For the longest time, I hadn't thought that travel underwear would live up to their promise of drying quickly. Recently, a long trip forced my hand, and I decided to bite the bullet and give them a try...ostensibly becoming an underwear testing extraordinaire. ExOfficio's travel boxer briefs were my underwear of choice for this trip...I picked up 3 pairs, for 3 weeks in Italy. How did they stand up to the rigors of the road? Check out my review below.

If I'm going to be wearing the same type of underwear long-term, they'd better be as comfortable, or nearly as comfortable, as my normal cotton ones. These ExOfficio boxer briefs, while unmistakably synthetic, are pretty darn close to the same level of comfort as what I normally wear. In fact, they were good enough to warrant making it into my normal rotation once I'd returned home from my trip.

This test was the most important to me, the light packer. If they didn't dry quickly enough (say, overnight or over the day) my whole 3-pair plan was borked. But, luckily for me, the folks at ExOfficio chose an exceptional fabric that dries very quickly. My boxer briefs dried reliably in a few hours with good ventilation (hanging from a clothesline at our Rome apartment) and overnight...in a closet. A closed, non-ventilated closet. (so nobody would know we were drying our underwear in their guest room.) Kudos to you, Mr. (or Ms.) underwear designer, you've outdone yourself.

On the package, it says that the super high-tech fabric fights odors, so you can wear them longer between washes. For the most part, they weren't kidding. On one stretch of our trip, we found ourselves without a chance to wash, so they went 2 days straight without changing, without leaving me smelling like a hobo. I didn't press it for three days, after all it was very hot and I sweat like a pig. Not a great combination even for super underwear. Overall, I was impressed by their anti-stinkiness. However, I have one complaint. If you wash by hand exclusively, eventually they'll start to have a persistant odor. It wasn't anything horrible (certainly not noticible to anyone but the wearer) but just be aware that they're not completely funk-proof.

There isn't much to say; ExOfficios hold up as well as normal undies under regular wear. The fabric didn't seem to stretch or thin out any more or less than cotton. Exciting, no?

Overall, I consider my underwear experiment a success. I was able to rely on my three pairs of Ex-Officio boxer briefs for three weeks straight, without having to small bad or go without. Both hand and machine washing worked well, although I have to say that a machine did a better job cleaning than I did. As far as being quick-drying, I was exceptionally happy with the results. Even if you've only got a half day for them to dry, you'll be ok. So, the next time you're packing for a long trip, consider getting yourself a few pairs of quick drying undies and save space in your pack for something more fun (or nothing at all!)

UPDATE (July 2011): After two years of travel and regular wear, my ex-officios are still hanging in there. No holes and they still dry quickly. They've kept their shape better than all of my cotton boxer briefs, and are still my go-to travel underwear.

Want some of your own? Men's Boxer Briefs ( @Amazon $25) or Ladies Bikini Briefs ( @Amazon $18 )