luggage suggestions for a newbie

[luggagelover]

hi frequent flyer friends,

Just joined here to pick some brains about luggage, I am travelling to europe next year and really don't know what luggage to take! there are soooo many options out there to choose from....I'm not really a backpacker kind of person and I'm mainly doing train and boat travel and staying at some nice places so I want classy looking stuff! (but at a good price) any suggestions/ideas would be great! thanks...

 

[Andyzx]

Welcome to AFF LL

If you use the AFF search function you will find several (including recent) threads on the luggage issue including websites etc. "the luggage professionals" is one

Look for strong and lite but its really about how much you wish to afford. Look for the specials at DJ's and Myer but there are several online luggage sites too. If your travelling Y (economy) you will have approx 23kgs so if your bag is 7kg's it leaves 16 if its 5kgs you are left with 18kgs and that does make a difference

Go try a few out but general discussion is hard or soft shell, 2 or 4 wheels, suitcase or duffel bags - there are some great ones on wheels now.

Try a non black color to stand out on the bag pick up at airports and train stations.

Best advise pack light and don't worry about the rest:arrow:

 

[straitman]

hi frequent flyer friends,

Just joined here to pick some brains about luggage, I am travelling to europe next year and really don't know what luggage to take! there are soooo many options out there to choose from....I'm not really a backpacker kind of person and I'm mainly doing train and boat travel and staying at some nice places so I want classy looking stuff! (but at a good price) any suggestions/ideas would be great! thanks...

Hi luggagelover,

Welcome to AFF.

As suggested, get something that standout on the baggage carousel and that is sturdy and light.

I personally do not worry too much about expensive and as you put it, classy looking stuff as the airlines will manage to make it look ordinary quickly enough.

 

[JohnK]

Welcome to AFF luggagelover!

Personally I would not spend too much money on luggage as you will find with a lot of travel that it gets damaged very quickly. I went through a patch there where Qantas had to replace my luggage twice in <12 months.

I have had an American Tourister for the last ~2 years and it is quite sturdy and nice looking. It is not expensive and i believe it is a budget Samsonite brand.

 

[AusTim]

Hiya luggalover,

Welcome to AFF. I am an advocate of Samsonite - Hard cases. As someone who believes in function over form, my luggage are in all colours of the rainbow. Bright fluorescent orange, luminescent magenta and subtle, but distinctive, cream. These colours makes luggage identification and retrieval far easier at baggage claim.

I am a firm believer of, you get what you pay for. Even though Samsonite is far from being Tier-1, they do attract a slight price premium but certainly sturdily built and comparatively lightweight.

Rgds
Tim

 

[Major]

I like the Antler range and buy from

Luggage Direct

I have bought from their store and have also bought online as they have free delivery. Their prices are very competative.

 

[luggagelover]

wow thanks for all your helpful ideas!

I have just been trawling the web looking for good deals on Samsonite and Antler bags...people seem to like the hard case Cosmolite and Liquis but they seem very exe

I Found this site-

"luggagegear" it seems to been very competetive in their prices and very similar free shipping etc. to that luggagedirect site (thanks Major!)


should i be taking a 4 wheeler siut case, a duffle bag the rolling kind or a regular 2 wheeled rolling case? does anyone know how the 4 wheeled ones go through the pebbled streets of europe?

also i have come across a lot of travel websites suggesting to "take cabin luggage only" scary! but has anyone tried this?

thanks again!

 

[TonyHancock]

also i have come across a lot of travel websites suggesting to "take cabin luggage only" scary! but has anyone tried this?

After a long period of checking luggage I'm back to traveling with carry on only on my long haul trips. There are some good tips here on AFF, and the driver for me to restart my Carry On only trips was this article. (Thanks to jdlover23 for posting the link originally!)

This thread includes that link, as well as many other useful tips.

It has become a bit of a challenge for me now. I don't miss the hustle and bustle of the baggage carousel at all.

 

[luggagelover]

Thanks Tony, great pictures of how to pack 1 cabin bag for 10 days travel! whoa what a challenge, I am
over there for 3 weeks so I strongly doubt I'll be able to do that! its good to think about though...

I have been looking at soft suitcases (generally lighter in weight than hardcases) and there is a brand I have never really heard of called Delsey, they look like fairly good quality and decent pricing on this Luggagegear website I mentioned before Delsey | Fiber Lite Purple 65cm Expandable Spinner | Luggage Gear.... they also come in purple!

But.... does anyone know about delsey as a brand? basically are they as good quality and they are priced?

thanks!

 

[JohnK]

After a long period of checking luggage I'm back to traveling with carry on only on my long haul trips. There are some good tips here on AFF, and the driver for me to restart my Carry On only trips was this article. (Thanks to jdlover23 for posting the link originally!)

You obviously don't play golf on your long haul trips!

 

[ozmille]

Thanks Tony, great pictures of how to pack 1 cabin bag for 10 days travel! whoa what a challenge, I am
over there for 3 weeks so I strongly doubt I'll be able to do that! its good to think about though...

I have been looking at soft suitcases (generally lighter in weight than hardcases) and there is a brand I have never really heard of called Delsey, they look like fairly good quality and decent pricing on this Luggagegear website I mentioned before Delsey | Fiber Lite Purple 65cm Expandable Spinner | Luggage Gear.... they also come in purple!

But.... does anyone know about delsey as a brand? basically are they as good quality and they are priced?

thanks!

I think Delsey is like American Tourister a cheaper offshoot from Samsonite. I always use The Luggage Professionals and a while back they also posted a discount code for AFF members when buying online. Think it was AFF
I am a hard case fan myself and my next purchase will be the Titan X2


Sent from my iPad using Aust Freq Fly app

 

[TonyHancock]

You obviously don't play golf on your long haul trips!

Indeed. Carry on does rather limit that!! I haven't played for years, my last game was in Buenos Aires in January 2007 and I played, very badly*, with a rented set of clubs.

* I always play very badly, but am philosophical about it. I work on the basis that I'm getting better value than good golfers because I get more shots.

 

[Walter_Plinge]

I like the Antler range and buy from

Luggage Direct

I have bought from their store and have also bought online as they have free delivery. Their prices are very competative.

My daughter worked for Victoria Station for a while and swore by Antler. She uses it herself.

 

[BBoomer]

Hey Luggagelover,
Lots of good advise here, except I'll take JohnK to task on a few items. Firstly you kind off get what you pay for, and sure I wouldn't spend 1000's on LV and see it get hammered by the airlines, but I still believe in buying reasonable quality and it will stand up to the abuse better than cheap stuff. Secondly, Americantourist in some cases ( no pun intended ) can be identical to Samsonite. We have a red hard case in both Brands that are identical except the badge. One lock was smashed by Q, but other than that they are brilliant. Been around the globe many times.
There is a down side of having something a bit unique. Saw a lady boarding at Denpassar with us on SH#TSTAR last week. Same red hard case. You guessed it-got to Syd and she had taken off with ours.
Ours had Qclub tags, hers had nothing. Go figure!

 

[Alanslegal]

My preference is a hard shell case with 4 wheeler; gives it loads of toughness with ease of rolling it around. However the penalty is, more weight.

Also if your chosen luggage has built-in locks, ensure they are TSA compliant in case you do travel to the USA one day. And if you buy your own locks, again TSA compliant AND more importantly, I prefer combination locks instead of locks that require keys. (You see I worry that I might lose the keys so deleting this worry is very beneficial for me).

 

[Sprucegoose]

You are a very savvy traveller when you don't check anything in IMHO.

In Europe you will find clothes alot cheaper there.buy everything there.

Keep it very light. You dont need half the stuff you think.

 

[N860CR]

I consider myself to be quite the "luggage cough". I've actually been told to seek help regarding my odd love of buying luggage! Anyway, here's what I've discovered.

- If you need a very big suitcase for whatever reason (slightly more important now that Qantas have their "1 Bag" rule), don't go cheap. They get very heavy and it needs to be a good quality one. I bought a mid-range bag from Myer and the roller handle snapped off mid-trip. My previous large bag was a lime green Qantas branded one and it lasted about three years of good solid travel. Eventually the fabric on the side gave out. I've decided now that for a large and often heavy bag, you should go hardshell as it's less likely to break. I now have a blue Samsonite hardshell that has click latches on the front and both sides (with turn locks). I'm pretty happy with it, however I'd probably go a zipper next time as it makes it a little easier to squeeze shut. Be careful, as this large size will always be about 30KG and that can upset a lot of airlines. I purchased the current one in New York for a bargain of $160. Expect $300+ here.

- I have a "mid-size" bag that I use for trips of about 7-10 days. It is a black Samsonite fabric with orange accents. From memory it came from Strandbags and was about $200. It's a good size to usually weigh in at 20kg. I have done 4-5 RTW trips with it and it has realistically been on ~300 flights and is going very strong still. I had one repair when the front pocket ripped however that was handled well by Samsonite and they have a good network of repair shops (took a week and cost me nothing).

- I've just swapped Cabin Bags. I previously had a Tosca 115CM bag that Qantas were always happy with, however Virgin have kicked up a stink and I had to replace it. It was nice and solid, but a little big and the bag itself weighed in at 4kg so it realistically wasn't the right option. I bought a nice Antler 105cm cabin bag online from Luggage Direct. it was ~$100 delivered. So far, so good. Weighs 2.4kg empty (so leaves about 5 for you) however it is a little smaller than what I'm used to. Does the job for overnights or weekends though (provided you can wear your jacket). The quality of the Antler bag seems very good (on par with Samsonite) and its got nice touches like leather handles instead of plastic.

My rules are don't go cheap and nasty but stick with quality, well known brands. Can't go past Antler or Samsonite (I'd never buy anything else). I have used a Jag bag in the past however it didn't last long. Myer or DJ's often have 40-50% off sales or Luggage Direct etc always have them heavily discounted with free postage. You'd be stupid to pay full price for any luggage items in the current discount climate.

 

[ozmille]

I consider myself to be quite the "luggage cough". I've actually been told to seek help regarding my odd love of buying luggage! Anyway, here's what I've discovered.

- If you need a very big suitcase for whatever reason (slightly more important now that Qantas have their "1 Bag" rule), don't go cheap. They get very heavy and it needs to be a good quality one. I bought a mid-range bag from Myer and the roller handle snapped off mid-trip. My previous large bag was a lime green Qantas branded one and it lasted about three years of good solid travel. Eventually the fabric on the side gave out. I've decided now that for a large and often heavy bag, you should go hardshell as it's less likely to break. I now have a blue Samsonite hardshell that has click latches on the front and both sides (with turn locks). I'm pretty happy with it, however I'd probably go a zipper next time as it makes it a little easier to squeeze shut. Be careful, as this large size will always be about 30KG and that can upset a lot of airlines. I purchased the current one in New York for a bargain of $160. Expect $300+ here.

- I have a "mid-size" bag that I use for trips of about 7-10 days. It is a black Samsonite fabric with orange accents. From memory it came from Strandbags and was about $200. It's a good size to usually weigh in at 20kg. I have done 4-5 RTW trips with it and it has realistically been on ~300 flights and is going very strong still. I had one repair when the front pocket ripped however that was handled well by Samsonite and they have a good network of repair shops (took a week and cost me nothing).

- I've just swapped Cabin Bags. I previously had a Tosca 115CM bag that Qantas were always happy with, however Virgin have kicked up a stink and I had to replace it. It was nice and solid, but a little big and the bag itself weighed in at 4kg so it realistically wasn't the right option. I bought a nice Antler 105cm cabin bag online from Luggage Direct. it was ~$100 delivered. So far, so good. Weighs 2.4kg empty (so leaves about 5 for you) however it is a little smaller than what I'm used to. Does the job for overnights or weekends though (provided you can wear your jacket). The quality of the Antler bag seems very good (on par with Samsonite) and its got nice touches like leather handles instead of plastic.

My rules are don't go cheap and nasty but stick with quality, well known brands. Can't go past Antler or Samsonite (I'd never buy anything else). I have used a Jag bag in the past however it didn't last long. Myer or DJ's often have 40-50% off sales or Luggage Direct etc always have them heavily discounted with free postage. You'd be stupid to pay full price for any luggage items in the current discount climate.

But don't be like me and buy a AUD900 carry on because you will get very distressed when they want you to check it in at the gate

 

[Limewood]

We recently purchased 2 Antler Zero cases, light as a feather, well made at $99 each at Luggage Professionals (have no associaition with them).

 

[joeymelb]

Just my 2 cents. I have just returned from a trip to Germany/Austria on a 3 week holiday. I left Melbourne with a tattered old 2 wheeler (Antler 76cm case), and bought a Rimowa Topas 4-Wheeler 26" Case in Berlin (in a department store) for €399 with another 19% VAT refund at Frankfurt Airport. I love the strong metal case and it protected all the precious model cars that I picked up from the motor show. I checked the same case in Myers Melbourne, $1,170!!!

If you are going to Europe, may I suggest that you use a cheap throw-away luggage and then get a decent one over there? My partner used Mandarina Duck 76cm Case, and she swore by it... and she picked that one up in Singapore for SGD$249 (and then VAT refund at airport). The same case is AUD$749 at Myers Melbourne.

Try transit in Singapore or Bangkok or Hong Kong.... pick up a brand new case there.