Good Luggage?

[agridealer]

I know many of you have cruised a lot, we've been on 7 ourselves. When we got married, we bought what we thought was a great luggage set, good brand (Samsonite), high-priced (expensive=quality, right??), good warranty. Wince then, it has begun to fall apart over the last seven years. I know its still warranteed, but I'd rather just have a set that doesn't fall apart. Anyone have a great set of luggage or luggage suggestions that stood the test? Ours is denier, I wonder if maybe going back to hard-side wouldn't be the way to go. Any comments would be appreciated!

[cusyl]

I ve had great luck with my Atlantic luggage. It is softside and easy to spot because it has a pattern on it.

[nanners]

I have had very good luck with my American Tourister luggage. I bought the sets when K-Mart had them on sale. They have a good 5-piece set, plus a bonus rolling duffle, on sale this week for $69.99.

 

My husband and three kids each have a set. We have flown from the east coast to Hawaii, Colorado, London twice, several cruises and road trips and it is still holding up great.

 

Good luck with your selection!

 

 

Nanners

[jakesmommy]

It seems to me there is no use in buying really expensive luggage, the way it gets thrown around, something is bound to break or tear. My husband and I bought hard sided luggage for our honeymoon and have not used it since because it is always so heavy, especially with the weight limits on airlines now. With that said I would look on overstock.com, great deals for nice luggage.

[Bonnie Voyager]

I recently did a lot of research on the same subject. I ended up purchasing a couple of pieces of Atlantic Professional luggage. It is very durable and was not very expensive for the quality of the luggage. I highly recommend it.

[mared1]

I, too like Atlantic luggage - also Delsey - they have a lite luggage which is durable but much lighter is weight thanthe Atlantic brand.

I have been told by several sales people at stores that specailze in luggage not to get hard sided because not only it weighs a lot but also does get damaged more than soft sided.

[hvsteve1]

Fable #1: "My crappy lugggage got destroyed,so I would be wasting money on good luggage. I'll buy more crap."

Fact: Luggage,as with any other product,gives you what you pay for. Good luggage has strong construction and a lifetime warranty. Junk is easily damaged. You're better off paying more for one good piece rather than three cheap ones. The inconvenience of broken luggage in the middle of a vacation isn't worth the savings.

 

Fable #2: "I bought a name brand (Samsonite,American Tourister,Atlantic,etc) so I know it was good stuff,but didn't last."

Fact: Most major brands make a variety of qualities,ranging from very good to pure garbage. There are a few brands,such as Travel Pro,Toomey or Kipling,who have no low end. But,they are the exception. A five piece set of American Tourister for $69 at Costco is junky luggage,no matter what the brand. It may last but,odds are,the first real abuse will result in damage

 

Fable #3: "The luggage has a warranty,so I'm o.k."

Fact: Most warrantees exclude airline damage. The airline is responsible,but will generally not pay for anything involving handles or wheels. Also,a warrantee on a $79 suitcase isn't worth much if it costs thirty or forty dollars to ship it somewhere before you even know if the damage is covered. Good luggage usually has a lifetime warranty and some have no exclusions as to cause of damage. A few,such as Pathfinder,have a warrantee that says to return it to the store for life.

 

Fable #4: "Good construction isn't worth the additional cost. It will get destroyed anyway."

Fact: Construction is everything. Good luggage will have a ballistic nylon fabric and hard,flexible shell under the fabric. Handles will be screwed or bolted on,not held with a flimsy rivit. The best will have leather handles which do not dry and crack as does vinyl. Top rated luggage has specs such as the shell being crush tested to 1,200 pounds and handles being pull tested to 500 pounds. Wheels will have lubricated ball bearings and be well protected. Telescoping handles will be heavy duty and work smoothly.

 

I have good luggage and have seen it stand up to terrible abuse that would kill cheaper luggage. For example,I once saw my my bag drop from the conveyor just as it was to go into the belly of the plane. It dropped 20 feet or so and bounced off the tarmac. If I hadn't seen it,I would never have known my bag had any sort of mishap. A bag with a cheap metal frame would have probably been crushed.

 

I'm not trying to flame those who disagree with me but,as someone who knows about luggage,I don't feel a poster who asks what luggage to buy is well served by being told to buy cheap stuff because it will get wrecked anyway. BTW,some of the luggage named in the posts is a pretty high-end ballistic line.

[Bonnie Voyager]

I agree wholeheartedly with hvsteve1! That is precisely why I ended up selecting the Atlantic Professional luggage. I think Atlantic is probably a middle of the road company (not cheap but not high-end either), but their "Professional" line is their high-end product and is constructed from a 2520 ballistic nylon fabric, which is very strong and durable. Quality of construction is definitely the key factor to consider when purchasing luggage.

[agridealer]

Appreciate your comments hvsteve. Any suggestions as to brands to buy? What kind is yours?

[agridealer]

jakesmommy, what do you take now? Wrap your clothes in black garbage sacks?

[LHT28]

We have no-name brand of rolla board...no problems been on serveral trips/cruises and still intact. We have had them for 10 yrs ...I just replaces one this season because the catch on the handle was broken and would not stay down.

We bought a Samsonite one and the first time we used it on HAL it was coming apart...after seeing how they treat the bags in the dock area ...cheap and sturdy is the way we go now.

[kitty9]

I purchased two very good pieces of Tumi Luggage about 9 years ago, one big rolling garment bag and one 29" rolling case. Those two bags have gone literally all over the world, they have been shipped via Fed Ex or DHL to places like Sydney, Cape Town, Hong Kong, Dubai, and they've never had a problem. Yes, the initial investment was big, but I don't plan on buying luggage every two years like you do with the really cheap brands. With those cheap brands, you lose wheels, they tear up at the slightest bit of wear, the handles fall off, and anything else you can think of. My Tumi's have been on more than 20 cruises, and will be going on three more in the near future. And if something does go wrong, like the airlines breaking something, Tumi backs up their warranty and never charges a dime for repair. Delta destroyed my sister's 26" Tumi by trying to lift it by the telescoping handle, and Tumi replaced it in less than a week, for no charge.

[agridealer]

with Tumi, do you have to provide receipts for warranty work? I mistakenly threw away my receipts for my samsonite so now they won't warranty. Plus, not sure if I want them to fix or replace luggage that goes bad every five years. I guess what I'm asking is anyone using what they would consider "lifetime investment" luggage? Price is relative if you figure it over a long span of time.

[hvsteve1]

Agridealer...I use Pathfinder Presidential,but there are other goods brands out there. So far as needing a receipt for warranty service,Samsonite only gives ten years or less, so when you purchased the luggage is more important than Tumi or others that cover their product for life.

 

Some things to keep in mind:

 

Airlines are getting tougher on weight..50 lb for domestic and,usually,70 lb for international. As a result, most of the newer lines of luggage are lighter. New lines also max out at a smaller size..28 or 29 inches as opposed to the older 30 inches or larger. Weight of the luggage is only one factor as size of the luggage determines weight of the contents. The airline handlers also HATE hard luggage. The stuff can pop open and scatter contents all over the place. Despite what the airlines say,baggage handlers DO take it out on the luggage.

 

Lock your luggage. Use combination locks. The new Travel Sentry approved locks are allowed by TSA who can open and reclose them without knowing the combination. Lock your luggage especially if you are visiting a place where the baggage handlers earn less in a year than your luggage is worth. In those places, ANYTHING is worth stealing.

[cjn]

Whether your luggage be inexpensive or expensive, be sure to select the correct size for the trip's contents, making sure the luggage is packed full.

I made the mistake of leaving space in my suitcase on the last cruise. When

other cases were heaped on top of it, it caved in ruining the structure and

zipper of the suitcase. I should have wadded up newspaper to fill in

that extra space!

Next trip, though I have a 29" and 26" Delsey, I will opt to fill up the smaller

case rather than take the larger one less than full!

[rkacruiser]

While most will disagree with me, I am a fan of hard side luggage. I have three pieces of American Tourister luggage(two-three suiters and one-one suiter) that I purchased in 1983 and they still have more cruises and other kinds of trips in them. They were expensive when I bought them, but they have held up well.

 

I also have one Swiss Army soft-side bag that is sized as a carry-on bag and I am most happy with it, also. I have used it as "checked" luggage a couple of times with no mishaps. Only disadvantage is that some interior space is used by the telescoping handle. But, that can be "packed" around without difficulty.

[Lsimon]

I have two recommendations:

 

1. Consider the weight - with the airline 50 pound limit it is a problem. I've found large roll on bags of the same basic style can range from around 10lbs to 20lbs. Unfortunately ours are closer to the top of the range.

 

2. If you select a relatively, or very, expensive bag - check Ebay - I've found some great deals there on bags that are new with tags.

[kitty9]

agridealer, no you don't need the original receipts. All you do is take the Tumi bag back to the place you purchased it, and they handle everything from doing the repairs themselves or sending it back to Tumi. I purchased my Tumi at a luggage store called Landmark Luggage, which I think is a national chain. They are an authorized dealer for Tumi.

[klauer]

I agree with you about hard luggage for longer trip. The newer models are much more lightweight than older ones. And I find that they keep my clothes in very good shape. Oh, and I have never had one "pop open and scatter contents all over the place", LOL! (And I travel alot.)