Acoustic for Traveling

[PlanetHoff]

Hey el34world members, hope you are all doing great today. I am having a great time on the site so far, there are so many diverse topics to learn about. That is why I thought this would be a great place to ask for some suggestions.

I am going to be travelling around Europe later this year and I want to bring a guitar with me so I can jam out with people/possibly play some small gigs. Issue is that I really don't want to bring my guitar with me as I built it with my dad who has now passed away so if anything happened to it I don't know if I would be able to forgive myself. What would you all suggest for a cheap, durable acoustic guitar that isn't too big, or better yet something that I would be able to take apart for plane and train journeys. My budget is $200, but if I can find something closer to $150 that would be great too. I am not only looking for a new guitar, I realized that at my price point a new guitar that is any good might be a bit difficult. Thanks for any advice that you guys have!

I thought that I should narrow down my search a little bit, and instead of just looking through all the acoustic guitars to find the right one I just started looking for a travelers guitar. I was really hoping that I could get one similar to the backpacker guitar that was posted here, and I found lots of those style of guitars on http://www.for-sale.co.uk/traveler-guitar that were way under the budget I was hoping to spend. The seller even came and met me by my house so I could test it out, and 30 minutes later I was the proud owner of an Anygig guitar. Thanks gang :)

[pompeiisneaks]

I've played these before, and thought they sounded pretty nice for a travel guitar. 

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/martin-steel-string-backpacker-acoustic-guitar?cntry=us&source=3WWRWXGP&gclid=Cj0KCQjw--DLBRCNARIsAFIwR27M9MtyAbrAZpW2SGA4NpnredVNIMSXwH8BErOnqnvb4GR7vUYaMvEaArHsEALw_wcB&kwid=productads-adid^156403583515-device^c-plaid^143123406762-sku^512392000000000@ADL4MF-adType^PLA

[drgonzonm]

Have you considered a used guitar purchased in Europe, say a pawnshop special?  After your travels, sell at a pawnshop before leaving. 
f

[jjasilli]

Buying and selling in Europe is a great idea.


I bought a Sigma (Martin subsidiary) at Guitar Center for $99.  Korea model circa about 1980.  I needed to sand the bridge down & lower the action.  IMHO it plays and sounds as good as any $1000 and under guitar.  Experienced musicians mistake it for a Martin all the time.  I almost bought a newer used Fender at Guitar Center for $100.  The newer Fender acoustics are not bad.  The choices are too numerous to mention.  You can definitely get a suitable acoustic for $200 or less.

[PlanetHoff]

Have you considered a used guitar purchased in Europe, say a pawnshop special?  After your travels, sell at a pawnshop before leaving. 
f

I thought of this, but I don't want to get in the situation where I don't have a guitar at the beginning of the trip. I tried this when I went traveling before I just kept postponing buying the guitar because I had traveler things to do.

[PlanetHoff]

I've played these before, and thought they sounded pretty nice for a travel guitar. 

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/martin-steel-string-backpacker-acoustic-guitar?cntry=us&source=3WWRWXGP&gclid=Cj0KCQjw--DLBRCNARIsAFIwR27M9MtyAbrAZpW2SGA4NpnredVNIMSXwH8BErOnqnvb4GR7vUYaMvEaArHsEALw_wcB&kwid=productads-adid^156403583515-device^c-plaid^143123406762-sku^512392000000000@ADL4MF-adType^PLA

That looks so cool, I will be keeping that one high on my list. Thank you.