aranda

Carry on luggage suggestions please for upcoming trip to Italy. I'm considering purchasing a backpack, that could also be wheeled, lightweight, to be stored in the overhead, and a carry on. I would appreciate any suggestions, and I am also open to something other than a rolling backpack if you have a better suggestion.

If this topic has been discussed recently perhaps someone could turn me on to where the posts are.

Thanks and happy trails,
Aranda

Jean

I'm not a fan of the combination backpack and rolling luggage.

(Are you planning to hike with your backpack, or do you think this is the best way for you to carry your luggage?)

In order to function as a backpack and rolling luggage, there are shoulder straps, waist belt, retractable handle and wheels, and that's a lot of weight before you pack anything. In order to keep the total weight to something you'd be comfortable carrying any distance, you're limited to how much you can pack.

Another downside to many backpacks is the way the main compartment opens. If you decide on a backpack, make sure you can get to things at the bottom of the bag without emptying most of the contents.

dsm22

I happened to find a really cheap back pack in a clearance store, and I like mine. It has the wheels and a lot of small pockets for things, and pockets on the sides, and it opens nice and wide in the main compartment.

I think that the name is Eastport. The only thing I do not like, is sometimes the straps for the back pack part fall out of there pocket that I tuck them in when you are using the wheels. I just secured them on with a big safety pin.

janisj

Are also checking a bag - or are you travelling w/ just carry on? I perfer a rollaboard myself - hate lugging a pack. But I am very short so that is part of the problem. I find a pack to be bulky and more worrying walking in crowds. You can't keep tabs on what is happing behind you - things can be stolen from a backpack w/o one ever knowing it happened.

dsm22

The way my day back pack is constucted, the zipper is almost laying on my back. I also safety pin the zippers shut. Much harder to get into and I would more than likely notice. I keep anything valuable in the interior zippered pocket.

GianniFL

Hello aranda, Wanting a mostly roller carryon that I could backpack up stairs, etc, for short distances, I just bought an Eddie Bauer Carry-on Convertible Travel Pack at Target for $100. It weighs about 2.5 lbs., is 21" x 13" x 9" for 2,457 cu. in. cap. It is very nice, but I am under no illusion that it would be comfortable on my back for more than a short walk. My first trip with it is the first week of August, so that is when i can really critique it. Good luck! Gianni

hopscotch

JMO but I think that a backpack and a wheeled bag are two different animals. I use the wheels, not my back. A 21" plus a shoulder daybag recently got me through a month of Europe on the rails. Look at the 3 bag sets in Staples, etc. Leave the big one at home.

RosieinOz

Hi Aranda
I have been looking for a similar pack here in Sydney this week. I was looking at the Eagle Creek bags often mentioned on this forum but they are very pricey, here at least.
I saw one I really like called a Tatonka
http://www.tatonka.com/

It wasn't cheap but was very userfriendly and sturdy. It's no good having a back fall apart mid trip!!

Hope this helps
Good luck
Rosie

ascl

Something else to be aware of - some airlines have a weight limit for carry ons. We just returned from our trip to Italy and didn't find out until we were checking in that Virgin Atlantic has a weight limit of 13 lbs for carry ons.

Gretchen

The weight limit is mostly on British airlines--Virgin and Ryanair and British Air.

AllyPally

I also bought an Eddie Bauer rolling backpack (with detachable mini backpack) and never travel without it. It is very light and has several pockets inside and out to help with toiletries, papers, etc. It is amazing for just lifting on the back in the case of cobblestones (how noisy is a rolling suitcase on those things!), up stairs, etc. I decided that this is the best way forward since I live in London and I always take the tube/trains to the airports. There are a lot of stairs to be negotiated on an average journey and I like the workout it gives my legs! I also like the balance I get in crowds, rather than having to lift a suitcase in one hand. The other thing is travelling this way has really helped to weed out all the unnecessary rubbish I used to take on my travels. I have now learned the art of looking chic on less!

Here are some tips from Laura Fraser, the author of the divine "Italian Affair", about travelling light:

http://www.randomhouse.com/pantheon/...ckingtips.html

alanRow

Where does this airline "British Air" fly to? Are it's prices lower than "British Airways"?

British AirWAYS has no limit on the weight of it's carry on, just the size.

Presumably it's to cope with the folk who bought a combination wheeled bag/rucksack/kitchen sink who found that it was so heavy that it had to travel empty as cabin luggage.

However MOST inter European airlines DO have weight limits on cabin luggage and as I pointed out these combination bags are so heavy that you can't put much in them without going over the weight limit.

Plus they are uncomfortable as hell to use as a rucksack as invariably the handle goes down the place where your spine is.

Why not instead get a proper rucksack & strap a luggage trolley to it

Sarvowinner

I understand that British Airways only removed its weight restriction on July 5th so it is quite understandable that some posters are not aware that the rules hav been changed.

Qantas also restricts its carry on weight to 7 kg or 15 lbs and they do enforce it.

massagediva

Good to know about the Qantas rule.I'm flying from LA to Oz and was hoping to just go with a carryon.I'm sure it will weight more than that,though.

AllyPally

Geez, Alan, have a cocktail and chill out...

I have always been able to take my backpack on as handluggage. Some manufacturers are making great strides to refine the design of said bags and make them lighter. My backpack has padding down the back so it's very comfortable.

As for Australia, beware that they can and will weigh your bags AFTER security so watch out if you try and sneak one past the check-in staff!!

suze

I don't like combinations because I believe it gets you the worst of both. I would choose either a small roller suitcase or a regular small backpack without wheele.

The mechanism and frame required to get the wheels gives added weight and makes it uncomfortable to carry.

My suggestion for a carry on would be a duffle bag, very small pack, or normal 19" roller.

Is this your only bag you are taking? Or just your carry-on piece plus you'll check another?

aranda

Had trouble with my computer (a Mac which doesn't work all that well with AOL) and I had difficulty logging on to this site which is why I have not been able to respond quickly.

Thank you all SO very much for sharing your expertise with such detail. You have me thinking, and reconsidering the right move in terms of what luggage to buy to bring to Italy with me in October.

My main concern is that I do not want to check any bags, I want to carry everything on with me.

I will be visiting Positano in Italy, which has many steps plus I will be hiking, which is why I wanted a backpack.

However, the comments about the weight and the movement of a backpace with wheels is making me think twice. I don't think this would be good for hiking, would it?

So would you recommend a smaller backpack to store under the seat, and a roll on duffle to store in the compartment?

I will check out all the suggstions made for rolling backpacks.

Anyone have a suggestion on a roll on duffle?

This is so great.

After not traveling abroad for 30 years, I am finally going to Italy (not on a tour,just traveling on own own), I will be the first person in my family to travel back to my homeland in over 100 years, plus it is my 30th wedding anniversary, so I am so excited.

All these details of traveling has got me worried but this forum is calming me down and helping me to focus also on the fun part of traveling.

I will be flying on American, do they have weight restrictions for carry ons?

Thanks for everything, really and
Happy trails,
Aranda

TimS

For comparison purposes, check out the travel store at www.ricksteves.com. You'll find two sizes of carry-on expandable backpacks, a carry-on size expandable rollaboard, and several sizes of day packs. I have a Civita day pack which I love. It's spacious but very lightweight. My expandable carry-on rollaboard is from another company (Atlantic), but it's comparable in size and weight to the one RS carries and I'm well pleased with it.

ronin

I got caught up in the whole "carry-on" frenzy before our trip this past spring & bought a Victorinox rolling back-pack back that fit the 22" carryon size criteria - totally unaware at the time of Alitalia's new carryon weight limit. I did all I could and the thing still weighed in at 18.5 pounds BEFORE souvenirs ;-) We were able to carry-on on the Delta flight we took into New Orleans on the way to Italy, but there was (still is?) so little air traffic into NOLA that once we'd stopped at the terminal restrooms the checked luggage was already coming off the plane. We all wound up in the same taxi line anyway. I used the backpack straps exactly once - in Vernazza... the wheels I used constantly elsewhere. I am proud of myself in getting 3 weeks' worth of stuff into that small a bag, but I think I'd be tempted to get a 26" roller with a little more armor if I'll be checking the thing anyway on future flights overseas.

suze

Any small roller bag is fine (19-21"). Check with your airline for exact dimensions and if there is a weight restriction.

Then I'd suggest a normal medium size unstructured "day" backpack which could ride on top of the suitcase thru airport but be used for hiking after you arrive.

You definitely don't want to bother hauling the weight of wheels and a framed backpack hiking with you imo!