I LOVE luggage and purses. I can't seem to stop buying them. My husband absolutely detests our 26"Tumi on wheels, because it topples over. It's about 15 years old with the smaller wheels. It still looks like new though after countless trips.

I have several pieces of Hartmann, both leather and leather and fabric, plus numerous other brands and pieces.

For a long time we used Rick Steves' rucksacks as carryons - no wheels. His new pieces look basically the same as our 17 year old pieces, but I don't know if they are made as well. These things are like that battery bunny - they just go on and on, and look like as good new. Not fancy, but worth looking into for their durability.

The brand that we now use most of the time, is Eagle Creek - carryon wheelies, duffles etc..
I have been very satisfied with them and they wear very very well. Eagle Creek has a great customer service dept. They have repaired a few smaller items with no charge. The damage was caused by normal wear and tear, through no fault of the manufacturer, but they still repaired them free of charge just the same. They also don't send out a 'steal me' signal, as they don't look like expensive luggage.

A few years ago I couldn't resist a $29.95 duffle on wheels at Target. When I brought it home my husband thought that my 'addiction' had reached a new level - rock bottom. (Sorta like drinking cheap gin.) Long story short, that 'cheap' duffle has been to Europe many times, NY, Washington DC and a few other destinations. It looks great and functions beautfully. What a bargain!!!

I think that some of the factories in Asia make the cheap stuff as well as some of the top brands. They contract with anyone who wants their services.
I keep my luggage for years and years. Maybe because I buy so many pieces, they tend to last forever.

When I die I want to be buried in a very expensive luggage store with lots of travel accessories.

Our dtr has a wheeled duffle that we bought at Target that actually wheels well (says it is Eddie Bauer brand - but I suspect that is a label, and no assurance of anything). It has at least 6 pouches/pockets, both inside and out, and zipper opens like a big "U" - so it is not like a big gym bag that everything gets stuffed into.

If I were buying any luggage today, my first thought would actually be color - trying to find a black suitcase on the luggage belt is maddening, and I think one of the prime reasons bags disappear. Hers i bright red.

Bob, Lessons on luggage and parenting!I hope my kids are not the ones that will be drunk and having sex every night! They have a few years left till we are at that stage in their lives...thank god...
On the luggage issue...my target bags do last...and I would like to also find more colorful bags too like Gail. The 15 black suitcases we own are a pain in the a.. to find on the belt.. Nina.. I think the idea of being buried in very expensive luggage with travel accessories was hilarious. The problem is that I always buy cheap stuff. So, in death I would be buried in the good stuff? or heaven forbid ..target specials!

GoTravel states: Whatever you buy, make sure it has a warranty. Five years minimum.

Sorry, but if you read the fine print - the warranty excludes "normal wear" which unfortunately covers just about anything that would happen to a piece of luggage.

Rarely do I check my luggage. I overpack a duffle that I strap on to my pullman as does my husband. My pullman must have 100,000 flying miles on it and the duffle is usually 2-3 times its weight. It should have fallen apart by now but it is a work horse. The five year warranty has long passed but the bag still looks fairly new.

Bob, your 'college tales' reminded me of my daughter's experience during a college visit when she was a senior in HS. Her student host for the weekend had a fax machine in her room which she used to send copies of her papers home so that mommy and daddy could red pencil them and then fax them back. I can only imagine what must go on now with e-mail..... Student sends the paper home via an attachment. Mommy and daddy edit in a different color and send it back. I'm soooo glad that we're both retired!

I have all kinds of luggage and have taken out all the inside compartments of the $199 and above pieces because, just as someone said, they are all too heavy with the inner bags, plastic, slots etc. all in there. My very cheap floral soft-sided K-Mart set I gave to my daughter and it is still going to the lake and back two or three times a month.

We always mark our bags with red yarn or some colored tape and stay away from black, as I get sick of trying to find it on the turnstyles. I think my 4 piece set is American Tourister and it is tough and wheels are great, not small and not sticky. Handles also are very smooth, slide out to expand with just a button. Duffle is duo strapped and you can use either or both. Both is too heavy and I use it with longer one as carry on.

To the profs, drink me a toast tonight, as it's finals week and things are not any better than when you left. And you know what, I actually feel sorry for these students. They've had so much support and so few times that they have had to take any of the world's disappointments that they feel absolutely "entitled" and I believe they will have nowhere to "feel" but down. There are men and women of 20 or 22 that can't pick up ANY of their own pieces. They are basically good kids, people, let them suffer a bit so that they can get stronger and tougher. They aren't. Some of them are emotion wimps and can never be wrong, or take complete responsibility.

girlonthego .... of course you can be buried with the 'good stuff'.

We'll make a much better impression checking into the big first class cabin in the sky. And you know my dear, how important first impressons are.

We've stayed at some nice hotels in Europe and we must look like ragamuffins slepping in our Rick Steves, Eagle Creek and Target cases, with a 'name' brand mixed in here and there. We have raised a few eyebrows at some of the smaller hotels. I used to be conscious of things like that, but then I realized that if we could afford to stay there, who are 'they' to judge us by our luggage.

The majority of my cases are black, love that color - clothes, shoes, purses etc.. We tie brightly colored bandanas tightly around the handles.

Forgot to add, that Go Travel is correct about pricing. My better set was a present from my children one year and they got it at J.C. Penney's during a considerable sale, and yet at T.J. Maxx, I later saw one of the pieces there for about 2/3rds of what my daughter said she paid. But they did not have all the matching pieces to my set, but several others were complete and priced very, very well.

I have been reading this thread with interest as I'd like to replace my luggage. I'd really prefer to get something cheap as I don't travel super often, but I'm concerned about two things. I tend to stuff my suitcase full when I go on trips. This causes two problems 1.) the suitcase tends to topple over when it is upright and I am not supporting it and 2) the telescoping handle can be difficult to pull up when it's that full. I've noted that some of the descriptions listed with the more pricey luggage claim they are built so that you don't have these problems. I don't want to buy a larger size suitcase. These problems are the reason I am replacing my suitcase and I don't want to buy another with same. Is there a way to test luggage for this, or does anyone have any experience with this?

For lisatravels above- What about using two pieces instead of stuffing one suitcase so full? It would be much easier to manage. I'm thinking of a 22-24" rolling bag with a second smaller bag attached (either by a strap provided so it rides in front or by a sleeve that slips over the handle of the 1st bag).

lisatravels: You could go into a department store, pick up a suitcase you like, fill it with stuff in the store(towels,etc), than wheel it around and see how it feels. As long as you don't try to wheel it out, I doubt anyone would care if you try them out!

My sister bought Swiss Army luggage and it flips over when you try to pull it. I buy cheap luggage and just try to make sure it's comfortable to pull as some luggage seems to bump into you while you are pulling it.

I also have found good deals on luggage at Value City Department stores--many times you can find that "extra" piece you need in a particular size in American Tourister, Samsonite. Just last year found a four piece of Oscar de la Renta for $79.00, each piece was small enough to zip inside the next larger piece. This makes it great if you want to pack an extra bag for the trip home. For the price, they are working great and I have a bag of each size for longer trips or shorter conferences! The main thing I look for is noise when pulling--I'm sure people shopping think I'm nuts when I attempt to wheel the luggage somewhere in the store where there is tile floor. I had one particularly noisy piece in the past--admittedly a cheaper piece, so will not make that mistake again.

Bob, I empathize with you but trust me, working in the public education system these parents have gotten a lot of practice "getting their way" waaaay before they ever get to you. It's incredible what parents will defend in their children these days. I had a student who had charged up to $10 on the school cafeteria account, knowingly, and when he was finally refused another charge, he ran out screaming obscenities, found a phone somewhere, called "mommy" at work, who told him that she didn't care what he was told at school, but he was to go in and take a lunch and walk out--which was exactly what he did!! There is more to my story and millions of other stories like this (and yours) to be told, so hang in there!!!

I also agree with the frugal luggage. I however take exception with Bob's notions of the younger than 21 set. Having 7 kids who are now ages 27 to 12 and having had 5 who have gone to college or are now there, I have met many people in the age bracket. Most are hard working, polite, kind, and deserving of our respect. A very few are spoiled, nasty, and lacking in social graces. I really dislike the tendency to downgrade the youth of today. I also work at an elementary school and find that most parents do a pretty good job.

I do agree with your sentiment shaz60, but Bob had a reason to object to this kind of behavior. If you are IN the college, it is quite different that what you see as a parent. I have been both and for many, many years.

I actually think the drugs, alcohol are less and things are somewhat better in that area now than they have been at times in the past. BUT, in the area of moral values- cheating, stealing, not taking any personal responsability for their own true success, work ethic etc.-these things are much more common then they were, even 5 to 10 years ago.

Respect for the professors and teachers as adults/ mentors or the "superiors in charge" is not a "given" as it once was.
Parents feel more now, when you speak to them, that they are buying a "product" and that the student himself/herself is entitled to "get" everything with no exceptions for laziness or behavior problems. Many not yours, but lots of kids today are coddled way beyond the boundary where they can develop their own strength and perseverance. It's scary if you see it once or twice every day, when you used to see it once a week at that.

Retired Teacher, my son is in the Army and currently in Iraq. The luggage was ruined when he came home on leave last summer, and now he's back in Iraq. That's why I have to buy the luggage instead of him.

bob, read with great interest what you wrote.

My stepson's mother would regtularly visit him at college and on a few of those occaissions spend the night in his dorm room. It creeped out his father and me.

As for the luggage I just bought husband and one stepdaughter, it is Delsey.

Postal, I sure wish your son a safe tour in Iraq. God bless him!! And can only imagine how difficult it is for you, especially during the holiday season.

Prayers and wishes to you and your family that your son returns home soon, safe and sound. And hugs to you and all families that have loved ones in Iraq. I do too, and know how difficult it is not to worry and fret.

May 2005 bring joy and peace to you and to all.

Thank you, LoveItaly (I love Italy too!) Only 43 days till he returns to Germany!