Royal Robbins Expedition Shirt Review
Hello there, adventurers. I’m Traci, a full-time guide for Wildland Trekking, and today I’d like to introduce the Expedition Shirt from Royal Robbins. Button-up hiking shirts are still a relatively rare sight in the backcountry as they try to shake the preconceptions of being overly bulky and restrictive. That’s why I was intrigued to give the Expedition Shirt a try as my first ever foray into a collared, button-up hiking shirt. Would it open my eyes to the potential of hiking button-ups, or would it make me feel secure sticking to my go-to tanks and sun hoodies?
I’ll answer this question as I dive into my experience wearing the Expedition Shirt while leading Wildland Trekking’s Bryce Canyon, Zion, and Escalante hiking trips. From an overall look at the shirt and its unique Mosquito Protection Technology to specific takeaways from my time in the field, this Expedition Shirt review will hopefully provide all the information you need to know if this will be your next hiking layer.
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Expedition Shirt Quick Look
Let’s review the Expedition Shirt’s basic characteristics before we jump into the full review.
- Price: $95
- Material: 100% Polyester
- Shirt Type: Button Up
- UPF Protection: 40+
- Weight: 4.5 oz.
- Fit: Relaxed Fit
Intended Use
The Expedition Shirt is designed for most non-technical outdoor adventures, with a particular nod towards hiking and trekking. The intentionally lightweight and breathable material is ideal for long days on the trail, while Royal Robbins’ signature Mosquito Protection Technology is ideal for the backcountry. More advanced adventures like mountaineering and rock climbing are likely out of this shirt’s wheelhouse, but hours to days on the trail are the ideal environment for the Expedition Shirt, as my testing revealed.
Notable Features
The Expedition Shirt has a few eye-catching features I was very happy to explore and test in the field. Let’s take a closer look at these features and how they make this shirt unique.
Mosquito Protection Technology – provides a unique, non-chemical barrier to those annoying biting insects. The MPT material features an exceptionally tight weave that insect bites cannot pass through. So, the shirt isn’t “repelling” mosquitoes, per se, but instead acts as a layer of armor they can’t penetrate. But, most surprisingly, Royal Robbins MPT fabric is still remarkably lightweight, breathable, and comfortable.
100% Recycled Material – makes the Expedition Shirt a low-impact garment created with an eye on sustainability.
Royal Robbins Company Background
Royal Robbins has the same name as one of its founders, an accomplished rock climber who spent years chasing crags around America in the 1950s and 60s. During that time, he met his future wife, Liz, and together, they set out to provide climbers and adventurers with quality clothing that better served the outdoor community than what they could scrounge at local army surplus shops. From its start in the 1970s, Royal Robbins has put significant emphasis on sustainable and ethical clothing combined with a durable and comfortable build, launching the first ever pair of shorts designed specifically for rock climbing in 1973. Since then, Royal Robbins has continued to provide quality clothing to the outdoor community and is heavily involved in land conservation and protection efforts across the country.
THE TEST – QUICK OVERVIEW
I tested the Expedition Shirt while leading trips throughout Utah, including Bryce, Zion, and Escalante.
Late spring weather brought extremely hot temperatures around 90º Fahrenheit most days, along with relentless sun exposure and plenty of windy days.
The Review
We’ve discussed the Expedition Shirt’s basic features, along with where my testing took place. Now it’s time for us to jump into the full review. Below, I’ll cover the important categories for hiking clothing performance (such as comfort, durability, packability, and so on) and give each category a score from 1 to 5 along with firsthand information from my testing. The key to the scoring system is below, so let’s see how this Royal Robbins shirt did!
Test Score Key
1/5 – Poor
2/5 – Tolerable
3/5 – Fair
4/5 – Good
5/5 – Excellent
Durability – 4/5
I immediately found a secondary benefit to the shirt’s Mosquito Protection Technology (MPT) in the durability arena. The extra-tight weave that keeps mosquito bites at bay also toughens up the shirt as a whole to prevent snags and tears.
My test included rough desert slot canyons where I’d occasionally slide against abrasive sandstone. However, I’m pleased to report absolutely zero rips, tears, snags, or pilling at the end of my test. I’m very impressed with the Expedition Shirt’s overall durability!
Naturally, I can’t yet judge the shirt’s long-term durability over multiple hiking seasons. But I can say that I’m very optimistic this shirt will be with me for years to come!
Breathability – 5/5
Packability – 5/5
My gut reaction to the idea of a button-up hiking shirt was that it simply must be bulky, hard to pack, and more of a style aesthetic than an asset in the backcountry. Testing the Expedition Shirt sure proved me wrong!
I was delighted by the lightweight feel of this button-up. It just “feels” ready to hike, and rolls up extremely small when I wanted to pack it. Unlike bulky layers or flannels, the Expedition Shirt literally disappeared into my backpack when I wanted to go down a layer or pack it for the day.
So another high score for the expedition shirt for packability. This shirt brought zero excess bulk to my pack and took up the same (or even less) space than my go-to hiking shirts.
Weight/Bulk – 5/5
Overall Comfort – 5/5
Put simply, I adored this shirt.
It was my first time wearing a collared shirt for hiking, rather than a sun hoodie, and I couldn’t be happier with how it played out.
The material was very soft next to my skin, not itchy or scratchy at all. Additionally, I felt no seams rubbing, even when wearing my backpack, which is a huge positive for a hiking shirt.
I love the relaxed fit and cut of the shirt. Some women’s active clothing is super form-fitting, which can be useless when you are trying to move around under a weighted backpack. But the Expedition Shirt has a comfortable, relaxed fit and flexed well under my pack without rubbing, and felt very airy and light while in 90º desert sun temps.
Price – 3/5
After comparing the Expedition Shirt to other hiking tops on the market, I have to say that the overall price is very fair. It’s not a low-cost steal, but also not overpriced. In my opinion, it nestles in quite nicely with other quality hiking shirts on the market and provides excellent value for the price you pay.
Speaking of value, Royal Robbins Mosquito Protection Technology further boosts the Expedition Shirt’s overall utility and durability, adding to its value. So overall, I feel very comfortable with the pricing for this shirt, and believe it’s well worth the cost.
Overall Quality – 4/5
Let’s zoom out for a moment and look at the general quality of the Expedition Shirt.
With an active button-up shirt, there’s always the worry that the sewing for the buttons or seams might be on the weak side. I imagine it would be such a downer to lose a button mid-trip! But no such worries here. I found this shirt to have an exceptionally sturdy build, and all the buttons and seams appear to be solidly put together. Zero complaints in this aspect.
Also, the general aesthetic of the Expedition Shirt shows excellent quality. From the buttons and seams mentioned above to the cut, feel, and material, this shirt is well put together. Durable and comfortable enough for the trail, but sharp enough for dinner with my guests.
Moisture Control – 5/5
It was 90º out there in the desert, so no shirt on earth was going to prevent me from sweating. BUT! It provided an excellent opportunity to test how the Expedition Shirt could handle being saturated in sweat.
And, the results were truly phenomenal. First, the Expedition Shirt did a remarkable job pulling sweat off my body and preventing me from feeling swampy. Then, the shirt dried VERY quickly as soon as I took my pack off, and did a great job of cooling me off in the process.
Some materials, like cotton, just feel gross and heavy when wet. But this shirt consistently felt flowy and cool, no matter how much I sweated. That is a remarkable trait to find in a hiking shirt, and I loved everything about how this shirt performed in a hot setting.
Bringing it Together
Whew, we’ve covered a lot of points of the Expedition Shirt. To help reconcile all those points, I’ve gathered all the main pros and cons from my testing below for us to easily see where this shirt stands out.
Pros:
- Shockingly lightweight and airy for a collared shirt
- Quick drying
- Highly durable
- Comfortable, relaxed fit with good mobility
- Mosquito Protection Technology’s tight weave prevents bug bites (largely untested during my time in the desert)
Cons:
- Aggressively wrinkles in the wash
- Pricy investment – but worth it
Mosquito Protection Technology (MPT)
As I’ve mentioned a few times in this review, the Expedition Shirt utilizes Mosquito Protection Technology. This MPT features an extra-tight weave in the fabric to prevent bug bites from penetrating and reaching your skin. But why is Royal Robbins putting such effort into producing a “chemical-free” mosquito-resistant shirt? Let’s discuss.
In short, synthetic chemicals can potentially add environmental and health concerns to your clothing. Long-term exposure to the most popular chemical bug repellents has a muddled background of research concerning health concerns, varying from length of exposure, inhalation, skin contact, and dose. Additionally, synthetic chemicals add another dimension of industrial processing and production to a business actively trying to lower its carbon footprint and environmental impact. For these reasons, Royal Robbins took the physical bug barrier path instead of chemical, focusing on a material that doesn’t actively “repell” bugs, but instead prevents their bites from reaching you.
Final Thoughts
I’ll admit that I was skeptical about taking a collared shirt out hiking for the first time. I was expecting a bulky, restrictive experience that wouldn’t jive with my hiking trip. But, I hold up my hands right now and say I stand corrected. The Expedition Shirt from Royal Robbins was truly OUTSTANDING!
I loved the incredibly airy and lightweight feel in a relaxed cut that moved perfectly with me and my hiking pack. It smoothly wicked sweat from my body without feeling gross and saturated, while seamlessly drying quickly and cooling me at the same time. The tight material weave from the mosquito protection technology (which I didn’t have an opportunity to test due to a lack of bugs in the desert) resulted in a very durable material that held up against abrasive sandstone and desert conditions extraordinarily well while still managing to feel lightweight and flowy.
Honestly, I found only two downsides, and neither has to do with the shirt’s fit, comfort, or performance. The first is that washing this shirt takes some extra care since it tends to get extremely wrinkled. I haven’t yet found the easy workaround for this, and it seems a little silly to iron a hiking shirt, doesn’t it? So, just be aware that the Expedition Shirt needs some extra thought in the washing process to limit wrinkles. Secondly, I need to make it clear that the expedition shirt is a definite investment in your hiking wardrobe and isn’t a low-cost steal. That said, my testing experience makes me believe this shirt is worth the price and delivers on that investment with excellent value in the backcountry.
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