Getting the Macpac Pisa Jacket was a big deal for me.

When it’s normally time to buy a new hoody, it’ll cost less than $50. But this time things were different.

I got the Pisa Jacket (check it out here) in early July 2021 to help me get through the Queenstown winter. Would the fancy tech be worth it?

Update July 2022: I’ve now had my Macpac Pisa for over a year and I’ve worn it A LOT. I’d say on average I wear it six days a week. Love it! And it’s still in good condition so although they’ve got new colours out this year, there’s no need for me to get another. The colours for 2022 are a blue and black one for both men’s and women, with the blues a slight different tone.

At $300 (full retail price), it’s one of the most expensive, if not the, most expensive piece of clothing I’ve owned. I’d be gutted if it was crap.

These are my thoughts after owning the Pisa Hooded Jacket for about 10 weeks and wearing it most days.

Note: I was working for Macpac at the time of purchasing the jacket so I did get a staff discount. It’s fair to say I would never have considered buying the Pisa at the Macpac Club Member price (20% of full retail). I’ll do my best to be as unbiased as possible in this Macpac Pisa Jacket review. If it was shitty I wouldn’t wear it…simple.

What I’ll talk about.

1. My Priorities When Buying A Jacket
2. Macpac Pisa Jacket Specs
3. What I Like About The Jacket
4. What I Don’t Like About The Jacket

MY MACPAC PISA JACKET REVIEW

In three words: I love it.

Designed as a jacket that provides active insulation, this is a core product of Macpac’s Alpine Series. But that doesn’t mean it has to be used for that purpose only. If only we could spend every day in the wild.

I use the Pisa as my daily jacket. That could be while out and about on day-to-day activities, heading for dinner or hiking in the backcountry.

I’ve carried it in my pack on a couple of long track runs, but usually choose to pack my thermals and Macpac Tempo Jacket instead.

1. MY PRIORITIES WHEN BUYING A JACKET

I need to happily wear it every day. As someone who owns minimal things, if I buy something it needs to be something I’ll wear regularly…especially a jacket which I’ll wear most days in cooler weather.

Has a hood. This is a personal preference, but I’ve always had hooded tops.

Warm. I run warm in general, but if I wear a jacket I want to feel the warmth as soon as it’s put on.

Isn’t bulky. As I mentioned earlier, with minimal belongings, every needs to have a purpose and not be overly bulky. The jacket needs to fold down to a reasonable size.

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2. TECH SPECS

You can head to the product page for the specifics but here’s a quick run down:

• Inner material is Polartec® Alpha® Direct 100% Polyester
• Outter material is 100% ripstop nylon
• The materials are bluesign® approved
• Total weight of a medium sized Pisa Jacket is 380 grams

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3. WHAT I LIKE

Sneaky waterproof. I’ve scoured the product page to make sure I didn’t miss anything, but other than ‘reliable moisture management’, there’s no mention that the Pisa Jacket is waterproof/resistant.

I’ve found that the jacket deals with light showers good as gold, you can even see the water bead off the jacket. If it does get a little wet it dries quick.

Easy to fold up. If I’m just putting the jacket in a bag I can easily roll the jacket up and tuck it inside the hood. But if I want to have the jacket as compact as possible, it folds into its own pocket (the left one). And it’s a lot easier than trying to put a down jacket into a stuff sack! It folds up much smaller than the last two hoodies I had!

Great colour choice. A lot of Macpac products are in black which is boring. That’s not an option for the Macpac Pisa Jacket though with the two colour options (available at the time), phantom/pearl and red. I went with the former, and a friend who has the red loves it…and both look good (not that I’m a fashion guru).

Thumbs loops! I’ve never had a jacket that’s had built-in thumb loops before (I ripped a hole in the first hoody for my thumbs), but they’re a handy little feature I like playing with.

The chest pocket. I have found myself putting coins, cards, and comb in the chest pocket. They don’t make the jacket look awkward nor do I notice them while wandering around. Win!

I like how it feels on the arms. When I first tried the jacket on, I noticed the polyester was like sitting on the skin, but not in a bad way.

It’s like when you’re with your best friend on a hike…you don’t need to talk, you like to know they’re there. The material was definitely there, but not in an overbearing way. It’s fun!

Ripstop material seems to work. There’s been a few times when I’ve gotten a little lost on hikes around Queenstown (don’t ask) while wearing the jacket and have had to bush bash a little and there’s been some branches with thorns on them grab the jacket. So far the jacket has held up well, with no tears.

Others like it. I’m not worried about what others think about what I wear for the most part, but people have mentioned the jacket regularly as something they think looks good.

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4. WHAT I DON’T LIKE

Cleaning isn’t exactly straightforward.

Update: It took me about 6 months before I was brave enough to put the jacket in the washing machine with the regular powder I use. It works good as gold on a cold wash for me!

I’ve owned and worn this jacket for over two months now and have worn it at least 90% of those days. I’ve yet to clean the jacket…but I make sure to ask friends if it smells bad, and unless they’re all being really nice.

That said, I’d love to be able to just throw it in the washing machine with everything else.

On the Macpac website, the care product says:

“Cold gentle machine wash separately using a non-detergent soap (use a specialised product like Nikwax® Tech Wash®)”

Washing garments separately is so annoying. And what are non-detergent soaps? I’m not interested in learning about non-detergent soaps, it seems complicated and something I’ve continued to avoid for now.

I could use Nikwax products but they’re not cheap, so suddenly you’re paying 20+ dollars to wash your jacket. I can’t get my head around that.

Maybe Macpac could help with alternative instructions for how to clean the Macpac Pisa Jacket (and other products) with everyday products.

Rolling up the sleeves isn’t easy. As mentioned, I run warm so when the sun breaks through I find myself pulling up the sleeves. But the elastic is just a tad too tight to make this comfortable for long periods of time.

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I definitely am a fan of the Pisa Jacket and will rave about it in person if asked about it.

If you’ve got any questions, drop a comment below or email jub@churnewzealand.com.

MORE MACPAC PRODUCT REVIEWS:

MACPAC MINI LANTERN

MACPAC TEMPO RAIN JACKET

MACPAC’S BIVVY BAG – BUSH COCOON