Best carry-on brand? Price?
 

My husband and I are going to Italy in May and want to have only carry ons. We have wheeled ones but they don't work very well so we are wanting to buy new ones. The question is which one? I have looked at a few but I thought I would ask here for suggestions. I know the wheels should turn easily, and the handle should be at a comfortable height.
I found a 21" Swiss Air, I think , at Wal-Mart for $70 that seemed to have these requirments but I don't know if this is a good price or brand. I want what I buy to last more than one trip. When I checked online the SwissAir I saw were very expensive ($250-300). I also checked Rick Steves' site. His were quite expensive. Are they worth $140 for 21"?
Which brands are considered the "best"?

I haven't checked Target or TJMAXX but I know they carry some nicer brands.

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

I have two wheeled suitcases (a 22" and an expadable 24"). They came from TJ Maxx and Marshalls. Each cost ~$50, no special brand. I've had them for years & years they are holding up great.

I have the Rick Steve's 21" rolling bag. Works well for me. Plus it is lightweight and so if your airline has a weight limit, that sure helps. I did see it on sale at the REI outlet (online) a week or two ago for only $85. So take a look there. But it is durable. Three of us each had one of those for France this summer, and we did carryon only and the bag worked great.

Louis Vuitton classic Carry-All--$980 at Louis Vuitton King of Prussia Mall. Tres chic and will last a lifetime.

Goyard also has some very nice carry-on luggage. They sell it at Barney's on Madison Ave.

T. Anthony is another good brand. There is a store on Park Avenue.

Thingorjus

We have also had good luck with the Rick Steves rolling carry on. Several trips - no problems so far.

Do you know how much the Rick Steves one weighs?

I was looking at the Hovercraft by Eagle Creek. It weighs 7.25 pounds, but I'm a bit worried about wheels. To make it lighter, they don't have the in line skate type of wheel. I can't decide if that's going to be a problem or not.

I don't think you have to worry about quality that much unless you are buying those complete sets for $50 you can see at some discount stores. I'm sure there is a difference in a $500 suitcase and a $75 one, but if you main criteria is lasting more than one trip, this isn't an issue. I've bought cheap discount suitcases at JCPenneys, Sears, Target, etc., and have never spent more than $100 for that size, and they've lasted for years and years.

I just think you have to go look at them, as when I pick one out, I like to actually measure it to see the difference on the inside, and just get a feel for it and the various compartments. I think Delsey is fairly good, Travelpro, lots of names. I have shopped at Target this year as I wanted a lightweight 25" one to replace my older heavier suitcase, and Target really didn't have much of a selection of good brands, in my opinion. They only have a couple brands, as well as the really super cheap stuff. I don't think $140 is that much for a 21" suitcase, if it is really good.

As for the lightweight aspect (Delsey Helium is one brand that specializes in that), it really doesn't make that much difference in the weight until you get to a 25" bag, I found.

The Rick Steves bag weighs seven pounds.

If you want light , cheap, and fairly well made, look at the Skyway Sigma 2. Their 22" carryon weighs 7.4lb. Buy.com has it for $39.99; $29.99 if you use Google checkout.

I bought my mom one and she likes it.

The Briggs and Riley line are a bit pricey - about $250 for a carry on size, but are guaranteed for everything including airline damage for as long as you have them.

Caveat...price is an indicator of quality! Learn the maximum size that your airline will accept as cabin baggage. Shop. The mass merchandisers buy a single model of a product, it will be sold at a low price. Only black! A luggage shop will stock dozens of models of similar products and offer them in many price ranges. You are not going to find that 'best carry-on' at super store. You have half a year to shop. Let us know what you buy. Personally I buy Patagonia.

Hi
We've been using Delsey carry ons for many years. Last winter we had to replace one because the wheel broke. We bought a Delsey feather weight 21" expandable. Came back from france last week no problems. Infact we use it often when we travel.. I wait for the Dept. store sales Macys etc usually in February I believe.

We have the Eagle Creek Load Warrior 22" and 30", and they are fantastic. Extremely lightweight, hold a ton, and handle so easily. We have a set of Briggs and Riley, but they are pretty cumbersome and inefficient compared to the Eagle Creek bags. The Eagle Creeks were on sale a while back at Container Store, so were also a good deal for us. Don't know if the Hovercrafts have the same wheel design as the Load Warrior, but, if so, they are great.

Delsey feather weight at Marshalls $50.00. great for many trips

I used the Eagle Creek Hovercraft 25 on a trip to Europe in July. I did a careful weight comparison online, using mfg. specs. The Eagle Creek Hovercraft was the lightest luggage.

I was concerned about the wheels, but they performed well on cobble stones, stairs and grass.

My only problem with the Eagle Creek was a very annoying tendency to tip when upright. I had to steady it when standing in line.

I solved the problem on the last week of vacation, but am not happy with the solution. I use the Eagle Creek system to pack shirts, pants and skirts. The sales person showed me how nicely these packets fit in the large zippered compartment in the suitcase. T was able to fit 2 packets in the space and this left a lot of room in the suitcase itself for larger packets and misc. The pouches on the outside of the suitcase are large but I only packed an Oprah magazine and a small paperback book.

Good so far. However, the weight of the packets in the inside zippered compartment, combined with the reading material caused tipping. I couldn't get the suitcase to balance until I replaced the packets with lightweight undies and sox, and removed the Oprah magazine. I've never had the weight of a magazine cause the whole suitcase to tip. Three weeks of clothing must weigh a lot more than a magazine, but I couldn't keep the suitcase upright and balanced with this item in the front pocket. The whole thing just tipped forward. So, I had 3 very spacious, and virtually useless pockets.

Most of my less expensive roll ons have a hard plastic or metal part on the front. The weight of the suitcase rests here and on the wheels. Everything balances, and the part also stops the suitcase from rolling away. The Eagle Creek part is either too small or poorly placed. It doesn't do the job.

The Eagle Creek is a great suitcase in every other way, but this one design flaw is annoying.

I am so glad you posted that. I have another bag that does the same thing and I just finally gave it away. You'd think that would be an easy thing to fix.
I may go with the Rick Steves model at 7 pounds for the 21"

The Eagle Creek Load Warriors don't have the Hovercraft's tipping problem because they have a different center of gravity -- pretty clearly caused by the Hovercraft's exterior pockets. The LW has 2 great compartments on the exterior and bottom just for stuffing shoes or dirty laundry. Really keeps stuff separated well.

This is helpful info. We went out looking today for a carry-on size for 3 weeks in France (7 night river cruise and 12-14 on our own using train transportation). We are wondering about the Eagle Creek 22" or 25" load warriors. They are expensive for us but the 25" looks like a compromise that might work - smaller & lighter than our current 25" boxy roll ons but larger than the usual 21-22". We are 60+ and need to be able to lift the suitcases in the trains, etc. We'll check them on the flight over & back. Your thoughts?

Before going on my recent trip to Europe, I agonized over spending money on luggage or just "making do" with what I had. I ended up buying to very nice carry-on size bags from Marshalls. Brand- Diane Von Fustenburg- Both pieces 130.00 USD
Everyday of my trip, I was glad I had made the purchase. One piece had the four wheels instead of two...that made rolling, turning, and anything else I needed to do very easy.
If you have a Marshalls...check there...they have very nice, good brand luggage at reduced prices. You can also do lots of internet searching and compare features.

Here's a good internet site.

http://www.ebags.com/luggage/departm...sub_site_id=16