Luggage styles, sizes, brands
 

Hi all,

After 17 years, I am replacing my Samsonite soft side luggage set! I'd love opinions on what you all use for a 2-4 week trip to Europe. Our traveling style is everything from Barcelona walking tours and Edinburgh hikes to the London theatre and Paris rooftop bars.

I've narrowed it down to:
-Briggs and Riley expandable hardshell in medium (lifetime warranty for everything)
-Victorinox Airox hardshell (non-expandable) in large or medium (11 year warranty except exceptions of seams, stitching, fabric & zipper tape after year 1
-TUMI V3 expandable hardshell in large or medium on sale then on sale again (about the same price as as the Victorinox!) (1year warranty of everything, 4 more years on normal wear and tear)

I don't want to get caught up with labels and brands. I want good quality and a good value. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

OK -- for me 2 night, 2 weeks, 2 months makes no difference. I only ever take a 21 or 22 inch roller bag. (I actually take an 18 or 19 incher for the really short 2 to 4 night trips). I used to prefer hard shell but for the last 6 or 7 years I've converted to soft sided and the lighter the better. Since it is almost always carried on, it doesn't have to be the most sturdy option. My new best friend is a Lipault 22 inch spinner that weighs 4.8 lbs. (I really prefer 2 wheels to 4 wheel because there are lighter and can't roll away from you on every ramp or slope, but two wheelers are getting harder to find)

I also prefer two wheelers. The ones we use came from tag sales.

I'm another fan of two wheelers, and however long the trip I don't travel with more than I can carry, and that means nothing bigger than 22 inches. My current bag came from Eagle Creek and they don't make that exact style any more, but I think this is closest (they still offer two wheelers):

https://www.eaglecreek.com/shop/2-wh...ariationId=199

We bought two sets of Tumi Latitude luggage about 3 years ago and like them a lot, so much so that we gave away all our other luggage. They are light weight, hold a lot of clothes and very sturdy and "free wheeling".

We have lipault in 18, and 20 inches. I just bought a hard sided 20 inch lipault and gave my husband my 20 inch so he would lighten up his back pack. He was using the 18 inch. My hard sided is a spinner. My niece loves her Away bag. We use trains often and have to pack light for the back. They make a great tote that slips over the handle. I watch their sales.

I’m so impressed that you all travel with a carry on to Europe! I just can’t quite do it but definitely want lighter luggage.

My packing list dates back to when I was traveling with a backpack instead of a two-wheeler, but aside from fewer and smaller electronics hasn't changed much. I'm posting the link to Part Three, the clothes section, links to the earlier sections are at the top left:

https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...ke-part-three/

I'm pretty sure janisj has a list, too. Note that I do my laundry in the bathroom sink, and these days I take three lightweight plastic clothes hangers. If you're going to Europe you could drop laundry off at a laundromat instead.

We do laundry, in apartments with a washing machine or in a sink. On the upcoming trip, we have no washing machine for four days so will do some sink washing or do a load at a laundromat. I have already found one close by. The one in Brussels even has a dryer. I have a travel friend that wants another suitcase. She was wheeling all my suitcases through my house this morning and said mine was just too small for her as she is single and has to look good. WTF? My husband said he is not even helping her get her suitcase in the overhead or up a flight of steps. You pack it you carry it is my motto. Seriously, one time someone eyeballed my suitcase on the way to the airport and said my case wasn't bulging and could they put some of their stuff in my case. Hell no. Duty free is where I souvenir shop.

I much MUCH prefer carry-on sized wheelie bags and can manage to pack everything I've ever needed (even on one trip that included formal wear for Royal event. Even manage on 7 or 14 night cruises). And I'm not a one-pair-of-shoes, same outfits for days on end, super casual traveler. But for those who just can't imagine downsizing - I recommend nothing larger than a 24 inch bag. It would have to be checked, but that little bit more space lets you cram in more 'stuff' but its still pretty easy to handle on trains, buses, climbing stairs, in car trunks etc. Bigger than that just get heavy / unwieldy

One hint that folks in my packing classes glom on to is to not think of it as a 14 (or 18, or 21) day trip, which can be overwhelming. Pack for a 4 or 5 day trip.. By doing a little laundry and mix-matching and incorporating layers you can fit 20-30 unique outfits into a rollaboard.

Sorry I got off the subject. I do like my Lilpault and the soft side ones have a great handle on the side for easier handling on steps. Many compartments and still like eagle creek compression bags if I need a goose down coat.

Irice, luggage is a necessary evil and having less of it is liberating. If you can't imagine travelling with less, I'd use a small rolling suitcase and a day pack. Together, they will give you the capacity of a large suitcase but it is much easier to manage two small bags. Like others, I prefer a rolling case with two wheels and I'm totally mystified as to why four wheeled cases are so popular in shops. Once you move beyond the airport or marbled floored hotel foyers, they are just not as good as two wheel cases. I also prefer wheels which are recessed as they are sturdier.

I suspect a lot of traveler's don't move beyond them, at least not with their cases. That's why somewhere like Eagle Creek is a better bet for finding two wheelers.

Because four wheelers can be turned to go down narrow airline aisles easily. And can be pushed in front of you. And are easier to maneuver in general .

I also have an Eagle Creek rolling suitcase, which I find great. And it could easily move down the aisle on the plane and I can push it (on smooth surfaces) or pull it. It's of a size which even when stuffed to the gills I can still lift it, even though it's a bit heavy for me (I'm not very strong). When I travel to Europe I go for at least 5 weeks and find that and a day pack is more than enough, summer or winter. Mine is 45litres and expands to slightly more but I've never needed the expansion. I typically have 12-14kg across both bags. Next time, though, I'd like to take less if I can. I invariably come home with something I haven't worn. My problem is always shoes as, outside of winter, I can't seem to get by with less than three pairs because of the different activities I like to do.

Australian airlines mostly have a 7kg limit on cabin baggage so even though my case measures within the boundaries of a carry on bag, I usually check it because it weighs more than the limit. 'Carry on' means different things for different airlines.

Which model of Eagle Creek, dreamon? They make both 4- and 2-wheeled. I assume if you are wheeling a two-wheeled one down the aisle, it isn't side ways, but being pulled or pushed?

If you follow the link I posted, I have pulled that Eagle Creek two-wheeler down airplane aisles. I have pushed it on occasion, too, and not worried about it taking off on its own, lol.

Edited to add: how wide is your four wheeler that you need to turn it sideways?

I can't remember the model but it's a bit different to the one posted by thursdaysd - slightly bigger capacity, with fewer external pockets (which do looks good) but lighter. From memory, mine is 41litres, expanding to 45litres and weighs 2.4kg. I suspect mine is an older model (I've had it a good few years now). It has two wheels (recessed). I can push or pull it through narrow spaces. It doesn't need to go sideways (that spells too big to me). It's okay on rough surfaces, such as cobblestones (although I hate the noise you get from wheeling cases over cobblestones). I can put my daypack (if I have one) on my back or on top of the case but I find it easier to do the former most of the time.

I should have mentioned in my previous post that I think that weight when empty is important. A heavy case is unwanted weight. It pays to check empty weight when buying. I remember a friend had a great case but it was nearly 5kg empty, which was a problem for her so she ditched it after one trip. If I have a 10kg bag and a quarter of that is the case itself, that makes a difference to how much stuff I can haul.

I agree with whoever said that the length of time away doesn't make much difference. I pack the pretty much the same amount whether I'm away for a week or several months.

All this talk of packing is making me wish - more than ever - that I had plans to go on holidays, but sadly that's a long way off. I love to travel so much! So while I'm stuck at home I dream and hope - and check forums like this one.

dreamon: "My problem is always shoes as, outside of winter, I can't seem to get by with less than three pairs because of the different activities I like to do."

I typically take 3 pair of shoes on most trips, occasionally 4. One pair on my feet on the planes and 2 (or 3) pair in the rollaboard. Shoes is definitely one thing I won't skimp on. Sore feet can ruin a trip. I haven't taken heels in years since a nice pair of flats is fine for all but the dressiest of events. I stuff the shoes with small miscellaneous things like chargers, socks, cords, gloves, etc so they really are storage spaces.

About 14 inches wide, the max for carryons. How wide are your aisles that you don't need to, LOL?

I agree that weight of the empty bag is important. Too many of them have extra zippers and seem to creep up to the 7-8 lb and more range.

I'm packing today for an Alaskan adventure and struggling with the "bring rubber boots or not" conundrum. We have two days with tundra hiking.

Ooops, the mind can play tricks. When I typed my last post I had an image in my mind of pulling my case down an airplane aisle, but when I though it about it more I remembered (haven't flown lately) that I always check my two wheeler and just carry my day pack on. The aisles I tow it down are on trains. However, I measured my bag, and then checked the aisle width. My bag is 14 inches wide and in the US the relevant FAA regulation (Sec. 25.815) requires planes with 20 or more passengers to have a minimum aisle width of 15 inches. I thought that other countries required smaller carry-ons, but this says otherwise: https://upgradedpoints.com/travel/ai...ge-size-chart/

It's usually the problem in countries using metric. For example Air France is pretty standard for European at 21.7 in (55 cm) x 13.8 in (35 cm) x 9.9 in (25 cm) . There are a few which reduce the width to 20 cm (7.9 inches!) which is ridiculous.

If the agent doesn't like you and makes you put your wheelie in the sizer you will fail, as happened to a friend on an Air Canada flight we took back from Vancouver. Of course when we got to the waiting area there were plenty of bags just as large as the one she was forced to pay the checked bag fee on.

Anything other than an executive jet sized plane will have aisles between 16 and nearly 20 inches wide in coach. Was on one Allegiant flight (never again) that may have had a 15 inch aisle - I know it was pretty tight. But even Vueling and easyJet have aisles wide enough that any wheeled carryon easily rolls

Lots of regional carriers in South America have narrow aisles.

No worries if you're only going on major international carriers and don't have a seat in the back of the plane.

We have two AWAY brand international carry on sized suitcases, hardside and spinners that our kids bought us for Christmas. They are very nice and held up really well on the one trip we have been able to use them in the last two years, lol. I like them but I would have probably bought the one that is the American sized carry on because it would have given me just that little bit of extra room.
We have two 24 inch hardside London Fogs we got on sale at Macys that hold quite a lot and they make a good checked bag for a longer trip.
I have always liked travelpro brand and have a few of their 21-22 inch carryons in soft side version. I have had them for years and they hold up very well.

I personally love spinners. No dragging suitcases. The spinners glide next to you and don't tip over as easily as the 2 wheeled. I like lightweight and usually always look to see what they weight before I buy. I also think for checking a bag, the hardside will hold up longer and they are made very lightweight.
I would travel everywhere with a 22 inch suitcase carry on, but some trips are just a little long for that. We have a 15day trip overseas coming up in October if everything is opened and ready for us to go. We are on a tour and will be moving from hotel to hotel. I might just check a 24 inch to go with us to hold some extra stuff.

If your bag is within the regulation size for your airline and the aisle was too narrow, wouldn't you just pick it up and carry it? Not sure I see this as a significant problem.

When travelling internationally, I check my bag in the plane hold as it's always over the 7kg weight limit (and we're supposed to have only one bag). I don't see checking my bag as a problem and in fact I get really grumpy when some people take up the entire plane locker space with their over limit luggage.

For land travel, I try to make sure my bag is of a weight that I can fairly easily carry it up and down stairs. If I can sling it into the overhead luggage rack on trains, well that feels great.

Hell of a lot easier, faster and safer to the seated passengers to push it.
I hate nothing more than passengers swinging their stuffed to the gills backpacks at face level down the aisle.

Airline crew are not helping passengers load the overhead bins at the moment. COVID rules, I think. A good test is to see if you can lift your bag as high as the top of your refrigerator. I put the heavier stuff in the underseat bag.

I have not had a problem staying under the weight limits with that small roller bag.

+1 for two wheelers

One thing you might think about is the metal bars that you'll need to work around. On the Briggs and Riley, they are outside so you have a flat packing surface. For Victorinox and Tumi (last time I checked) they are inside so you have to work around the "lumps" they make inside. That may make a difference for some people.

will be moving from hotel to hotel.

That IS the time to pack light. I check a 24" but I'm going to only one place and staying in the same apartment for the entire time.

I read all the advice we have not used thread and I now say buy the biggest suitcase you want. Those big Delsey hard side cases would be perfect. Get a bright color strap to go around it in case it pops the locks which they have a tendency to do. Go to the saran wrap guy at the check-in counters and have it wrapped. I always wonder how many of those saran wrapped bags get sliced open. Make sure the rental car has a big trunk and if using the train try and get the bottom seat compartment, the upper seat compartment has a narrow stair. If you get a fastback park in a safe location as your big suitcase is very hard to hide.

As Zebec would say, over and out.

Are the people who don’t realise a four wheeled case automatically becomes a two wheeled case when you pull it along the same ones who don’t realise the hoses on a petrol pump reach round either side of the car??

In answer to the OP, I’d just go for another Samsonite - but a hard-sided one this time. It’ll almost certainly be lighter than the other brands you’ve outlined which I think are priced extortionately and a magnet for thieves. I’m currently using a Muji case which is teeny (19 litres). No matter how stuffed it is, I can easily lift it above head height. The only downside is it has a key lock rather than a combo, but the compact size and lockeable wheels compensate for that imo.

To the OP, I like the polycarbonate clamshells for strength and durability. Better than cloth. The cloth bags I've had get stained and torn up eventually. The weak points are typically zippers and wheels but so far I've been lucky with my old Heys one.

I prefer a smaller bag and when I've traveled with a larger one I tend to bring too much crap I never use. I also like the two even sides on the clam shells, makes it easier to sort clean clothes on one side and need to wash on the other. I never have a problem with the rails inside the case, socks and other things fill in the hollows. I like a bag with a variety of mesh pockets built in rather than resorting packing cubes.