lynn

We plan to buy two 22" luggage for our Italy trip. We couldn't decide which brand to buy. Since we travel at least once a year, we want somthing could last for a while. And about the size, is a 24" one really can not fit in the train overhead? We are two adult and one little child, it seems very hard to pack all the necessary things in two 22" luggage even you try to travel light. Please give us any suggestion. Thank you.

Leslie

Whichever brand you choose, I suggest that you make sure that it has wide, durable nylon zippers, and inline skating wheels. There are so many options to choose from, but I like the Eagle Creek brand, but I use the wheeled duffle bag. Also, I suggest that you not worry about putting the luggage in the overhead compartments on the train. There are areas where you can store your luggage as you board, but I suggest you buy one of those bicycle chains with the plastic around the wires, and a good lock. Take the chain and loop it through the straps or handles of your luggage and then around the pole in the train to keep your luggage secure.

kathy

I buy soft sided luggage at TJMaxx (a discount store) I bought my first piece 6years ago for $39. It's been to Italy, Egypt, Spain, England, Mexico and various spots around the US and it's still intact and looks great. I have purchased other pieces there since then = never paying more than $79. There is no reason to spend hundreds of dollars for good, servicable luggage.

John G

I have three pieces of Louis Vuitton that my grandmother bought in Paris in 1929 and I still use it. This luggage has been thrown out windows, left standing in the rain for hours, and used as furniture, and it is still in fabulous condition.<BR><BR>Remember, you get what you pay for.<BR><BR>T. Anthony also makes very durable luggage, although it is very expensive. There is a store on Park Avenue.

Rex

I subscribe to the Elvira viewpoint on purchasing luggage. Go to K-mart, spend $20. It won't last forever, no luggage ever does, but the cheap stuff gives you more service for dollar spent than the expensive stuff.<BR><BR>Won't be long you can take $20 to K-Mart and make 'em an offer to buy the company!<BR><BR>And maybe "that's a good thing".<BR>

katherine

check out Swiss Army Luggage.

Tony Hughes

A bright-coloured hardshell, Lynn. It will get scuffed and whatnot but you can always spot it!

xxx

John G - serious question - is LV quality the same now as it was then? I ask, only because I see so much stuff being carted around by people which says LV but looks like cheap crap (purses mainly - but PLASTIC?) <BR><BR>Is all of their luggage line as good? or have they succumbed to 'marketing' and made a starter line which isn't much better than some stuff you'd find at Kmart?<BR><BR>btw, one of my carryon suitcases is a $20 one I found on sale at Macy's - and still use it 3 years later, I love it (yeah it's cheap though).

best brand

buy SAMSONITE. It's the best.

Julie

Does anyone have Tumi luggage? I've seen it and it looks terrific. I have the handbag but nothing to really pack in and I'd sure like to know if it's as wonderful as it's advertised before investing (and it is an investment at the prices they charge) in it.

Wayne

Gotta throw in my two cents' worth and side with those who say that you don't need to buy a "name brand" luggage at a much higher cost. Even the name brands are selling poor quality luggage these days. What you should look for is a soft-sided suitcase made of a heavy fabric material, usually nylon. All you need to do is look around the choices in places like Target, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, or other discount houses, and you will see which pieces are heavier than others. Also, you want the frame (the outside structure of the luggage) to be stiff enough to withstand a lot of things stacked on top, so check the rigidity of the piece by trying to twist or squash it. Then there are the zippers; look for heavy duty zippers that operate easily. Again, all you need to do is to compare pieces a bit and you will see what I mean. And you have been advised about wheels; but when you look inside the luggage, see how the extending handles are accommodated and whether the handle enclosures are well protected with an internal lining.<BR><BR>If you belong to AAA, you can get very good luggage at any major AAA facility for huge discount prices. Never, never, ever pay full price for name brand luggage, especially in a luggage specialty store; it's a ripoff.

J T Kirk

<BR><BR>There was a thread like this not too long ago and most of this was covered. <BR><BR>Anyway, I'd opt to steer away from less expensive luggage because it definately WON'T last. If you plan on doing a lot of travelling like I do, I think it pays to get good quality stuff. Sure, look for sales, but pay up for good stuff. Wheels have to be roller-blade quality. Zippers have to be durable and large and easily zippable. Handles have to be strong.<BR><BR>I like Swiss Army, Patagonia and Hartmann.<BR><BR>Getting on and off trains, particularly when the train is crowded, is a major pain with a large, heavy bag. Keep that in mind. Most trains have a compartment at the front (or rear) of the car, but it can fill quickly if it's crowded.<BR><BR>I think a 24" is a good size for a family, in addition to a 22" and maybe a carry-on.<BR><BR>I have never learned the "art" of packing light. I think it's a figment of people's imagination.

Rich

<BR><BR>I have a half dozen Samsonite Oysters, various sizes that I have taken all over the world and never had problems with them. KLM knocked the wheels off one about 20 years ago and paid to replace them in Cairo, and that is the only damage they have sustained. A couple have some pretty deep scars that would have opened up most luggage I see being used. Not so pretty, but sturdy as a rock!<BR><BR>Rich

Gerry K

Try LL Bean. Mine's been great.<BR><BR>GK

Wayne

Lynn--Once again, I will say that brand name and cost are not the determinants of good quality. If you follow the advice I provided in an earlier answer to your question, you can buy the luggage with confidence no matter what name is on it. The best luggage I have ever owned has been "off-brand" stuff purchased in K-Mart. And that is comparing it with Samsonite, Luis Vuitton, and Sassoon---all of which were good, but not quite as good as the no-name-brand luggage. <BR><BR>It is certainly possible, though, with a little shopping in discount stores, to find name-brand luggage at a cost lower than typical shopping-mall luggage specialty store prices. And if the luggage you pick is a reasonable price and it meets the criteria I provided, you should but it with confidence---whether you know the brand name or not.<BR><BR>By the way, those who say "I've owned such-and-such luggage for many years" aren't really telling you anything new. I still have perfectly usable luggage that I bought 45 years ago. From my experience in 40 years of traveling, I can tell you that durability is only one parameter. You also have to look at convenience of use (interior and exterior compartments, opening and closing, locking, handling, etc.). And many people also go for style or appearance, which is perhaps the biggest reason why luggage continues to sell. <BR><BR>By the way, once you purchase luggage, if you want to be sure you can identify it quickly, get out the spray paint and mark it with spots, stripes, or whatever, in various colors of your choice. Might sound kooky, and if you are planning on entering the Ritz in style it might cause a little embarrassment; but it's a great solution.

elaine

I'm with Wayne on this one.<BR><BR>I will add that magazines like Consumer Reports recommend "ballistic nylon" as being much more durable than microfibers like polyester.<BR>But it is also important to look at the hardware like zipper pulls, and also look at the handles for comfort and ease of extension or retraction. <BR><BR>I have bought luggage cheap and not so cheap, and I have terrible luck with having the zipper pulls break off, which means the cute little locks that I put through the zipper pulls to secure the bag have broken off and disappeared, leaving my bag unlocked. The bags weren't rifled, the pulls just broke off, perhaps they get caught in machinery.<BR><BR>As for identifying my bags, I use colored fabric tape to mark the sides in a bright color. I suppose paint might be more durable.

Guido

Tried the TJ Max / K-Mart type luggage and did not last very long. Plus the wheels don't really 'glide' so well.<BR><BR>Since then, invested in Land's End wheeled luggage and it has been great.

Duke

We buy Samsonite hard side on sale. Use it till it wears out...and it does...then buy more. Don't get any luggage to "last a lifetime" as it seems that those are the ones that the baggage guys pick on. Just get something to do the job, use it when it will and dump. I would hate to be responsible for my grandmother's luggage from 1929 as poster above is.<BR><BR>Fact: We were just on a trip where we were given a piece of very expensive Hartmann luggage...a carry-on. The carry-on we purchased at Costco for under $100 is as well built and has more features than this Hartmann. It just lacks the brand name. The Hartmann will probably stay home while the Costco carry-on travels the world. Then I can give the Hartmann to my relatives to cherish when I am gone although it never left town.

elvira

Because I pack light and tend to go to just a couple of places per vacation, inexpensive luggage works great for me. If I pack heavier (when I stay in Paris for several weeks), or cover a lot of territory (10 days on 3 hour train rides each day), or decided to do a trek (like to Nepal); my choice of luggage changes. Hard sided American Tourister to lug all my stuff for a stay in Paris (heavy duty wheels, bolted metal handle); a more rugged wheeled bag for lots of train trips; a really REALLY good backpack for a trek.<BR><BR>My cheapie KMart $20 rollaboard has lasted about 3 years and a dozen or more trips. Oh, and it has 2 zippers that meet to close it, one zippered pocket. The fewer the zippers, the less likely to get broken. A piece of duct tape over the zippers helps.<BR><BR>To ID your bag easily without grossing up the front or sides, use the idea I saw last trip: mark the BOTTOM of the suitcase with tape or paint or whatever. The bags come off the carousel with the bottoms showing; no turning it over to see the face or read the tag....and once the suitcase is on the ground, the markings can't be seen!

Christina

I've bought a variety of different luggage brands and styles over the years, and have never had a zipper break or any damage occur except one cheaper piece I bought at Sears which had too small wheels that chipped and then it didn't roll as well. That was a 21" "Ciao" label pilot case in black that I really like the interior and layout, so now I use it for short trips where I won't need to roll it a lot--other than the chipped wheel, it's perfectly fine and that cost less than $50. Partly, the small wheels were because it is older, most all bags tend to have larger wheels nowadays.<BR><BR>I've bought cheap (meaning $50 or less) roll-ons of that size (19-22")at Penney's also (Their own brand, Jaguar) and they are still fine after several years of use (using a couple times a year).<BR><BR>Recently, I splurged and bought a new set at Target, Somerset model by Moda. This is nice stuff, you can tell the quality in comparison to some of their cheaper stuff (size of wheels, quality of zippers, etc), and that was only $100 for a 25" rollon case and $30 for a carryon tote bag. The 25" was the best size I could find between the 21-22" and the too big ones for what I would consider (28"+). So, I'd recommend that as an option. Some models call themselves 26" but are really the same size as that 25" one, they include the wheels or something, so you have to measure.<BR><BR>I was going on a longer trip and needed clothes for a variety of weather possibilities and activities, so I wanted something larger than 21-22". I'm afraid I'm not one of those who will ever wear daytime walking shoes in the evening, and I won't wear my sightseeing clothes at night either, I just like to dress with a little more variety and have a variety of shoes. Anyway, people have different opinions obviously, as I think some guy on here said ANYONE who took a bag bigger than 24" was a complete idiot. So, that is me. Having that size didn't bother me in the slightest, though, it was well-made with big wheels, I had no problem handling it myself and I even got on and off trains several times. I prefer one larger piece of luggage to a bunch of smaller pieces for convenience, some others prefer the reverse. I'm fairly strong, though, even though not that big a woman, and I do work out with weights so maybe it's easier for me than some others as I usually can lift what a man can (or more). It was a little heavy lifting it up the train steps, but that was about it, and I did handle that without any major problem. However, I did not put it into the overhead racks on the train as it was a little big for that (although I think it would have worked if I had to, I think a 24" would). There was plenty of room to leave it in my train compartment on the floor, actually, as the train wasn't full, but there was also room at the end of the car for baggage. If I were you, with a child, I definitely would take a 24" one if you think you need to.