Ideal (or not) cruise trunk size?

[FlyerTalker]

57 minutes ago, clo said:

Holey moley. Over $400!!!!

 

That's quite reasonable for quality luggage.  Take a look at prices for Tumi and Rimowa.

 

Your average $100 bag won't stand up to anything more than infrequent travel.  You get what you pay for.

 

 

[Kay S]

1 hour ago, clo said:

Holey moley. Over $400!!!!

clo, you need to get out more. 😄  That is not an unusual price for a quality bag these days.

[clo]

11 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

That's quite reasonable for quality luggage.  Take a look at prices for Tumi and Rimowa.

 

Your average $100 bag won't stand up to anything more than infrequent travel.  You get what you pay for.

 

 

$100ish bags have lasted us at least 20 years.

[riversights]

1 hour ago, AMHuntFerry said:

There is everyone from carry-on-only (us except for cruises) to Paris-Hilton-luggage-quantity on this site. I know you've chosen size, but if you haven't purchased yet, I have been eyeing a Brigg's and Riley bag lately that is a rolling duffle. I also looked at the hard sided 28" trunk (~ 10 liters more), but I leaned toward the rolling duffle since it will fit under the bed to use for either clothes headed for the laundry, or rarely used (or "out of season") items. I was getting ready to buy, but there is now a 20% off sale on one line of their more traditional compression luggage, so now I'm waffling (I'm the slowest shopper ever!). Anyhoo, if underbed storage is appealing and you go with the trunk, you could always pack some fabric underbed storage bags. Enjoy your cruise!

 

[riversights]

Love the logic in play here.  The "rolling duffle" suggestion is very keen.  

[FlyerTalker]

2 hours ago, clo said:

$100ish bags have lasted us at least 20 years.

 

A hundred dollar bag 20 years ago isn't like a hundred dollar bag today.

 

 

[Kay S]

1 hour ago, riversights said:

Love the logic in play here.  The "rolling duffle" suggestion is very keen.  

I used to have one of those.  Eagle Creek.  It had two wheels at the long end and a pulling handle at the other.  It packed from the top just like a duffle bag.  Worked great (till it was unfortunately  lost in a fire.)

[clo]

37 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

A hundred dollar bag 20 years ago isn't like a hundred dollar bag today.

 

 

Shh. Don't tell my frugal, Scottish husband or we'll like never travel again. J/K

[clo]

15 minutes ago, Kay S said:

I used to have one of those.  Eagle Creek.  It had two wheels at the long end and a pulling handle at the other.  It packed from the top just like a duffle bag.  Worked great (till it was unfortunately  lost in a fire.)

We still have a very big one of those. More for car trips and moving these days.

[ORV]

4 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

That's quite reasonable for quality luggage.  Take a look at prices for Tumi and Rimowa.

 

Your average $100 bag won't stand up to anything more than infrequent travel.  You get what you pay for.

 

 

I'm huge proponent of quality luggage, worth every penny. I like Briggs & Riley, Rimowa, Tumi and down from there Travelpro. I have B & R bags that have traveled for years and still look brand new. And of course they have that lifetime guarantee, for any reason. It doesn't get any better. 

[ak1004]

9 hours ago, halfapair said:

Discover the joy of traveling with carry-on luggage only. No waiting to see if your bags show up, or not. No wrestling giant suitcases. No dropping heavy bags on your toes.

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy.

 

Yes!!

 

We started travelling like this last year. Each of us one carry-on and one personal item. No more overpacking of clothes (half of them were staying in the suitcase anyway). We managed to travel like this even on SS with their archaic 3 level dress code. 

[ak1004]

5 hours ago, clo said:

$100ish bags have lasted us at least 20 years.

 

Our Samsonite carry on from 2018 still looks like new. We travel 3-4 times a year. It was around 150 euro then, probably around 200-250 euro now. 

 

I never buy the cheapest product, but also not the most expensive. Mid range usually provides good value for money. 

[AMHuntFerry]

5 hours ago, ORV said:

I'm huge proponent of quality luggage, worth every penny. I like Briggs & Riley, Rimowa, Tumi and down from there Travelpro. I have B & R bags that have traveled for years and still look brand new. And of course they have that lifetime guarantee, for any reason. It doesn't get any better. 

Do you have an opinion about B&R's soft-side/fabric vs. hard-side plastic luggage for checked baggage?

[sunlover12]

19 hours ago, halfapair said:

Discover the joy of traveling with carry-on luggage only. No waiting to see if your bags show up, or not. No wrestling giant suitcases. No dropping heavy bags on your toes.

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy.

That’s fine if you’re traveling within the US or on a US carrier. If you are traveling out of the country on a non-US airline you will be subject to a strict carryon policy.  You’re allowed one carry on bag that cannot exceed 8kg, 2 bags not to exceed 8kg each if you’re in First Class. 
 

Even someone with efficient packing skills who packs light will have a very challenging time not checking a bag. 

[ak1004]

36 minutes ago, sunlover12 said:

That’s fine if you’re traveling within the US or on a US carrier. If you are traveling out of the country on a non-US airline you will be subject to a strict carryon policy.  You’re allowed one carry on bag that cannot exceed 8kg, 2 bags not to exceed 8kg each if you’re in First Class. 
 

Even someone with efficient packing skills who packs light will have a very challenging time not checking a bag. 

 

We are travelling to Europe all the time with one carry on and one personal item. Something like this (we have the next model, but same idea). No issues at all.

[sunlover12]

34 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

We are travelling to Europe all the time with one carry on and one personal item. Something like this (we have the next model, but same idea). No issues at all.

On what airline?  If you're not on a US airline, you are subject to a much stricter baggage policy.  I will be traveling on Swiss this year.  Carry-ons cannot exceed 8 kg (18 lbs) and it cannot exceed 55 cm (22 inches). If you're only traveling on United, American, Delta, etc with no connecting flights within Europe you won't have an issue. 

 

I have traveled on Swiss before and, yes, at the gate they are monitoring the luggage that people are bringing onto the plane.

[palakika]

You might consider shipping your suitcase directly to the ship avoiding the hassle of the airport and airline.  I've used Luggage Free a number of times with great success.  Luggage Forward is another one.  

 

I use a soft- side  28 in. TravelPro without having to do laundry for 3 weeks.  It fits very nicely under the stateroom bed.  Happy Travels!!

 

 

[ak1004]

16 minutes ago, sunlover12 said:

On what airline?  If you're not on a US airline, you are subject to a much stricter baggage policy.  I will be traveling on Swiss this year.  Carry-ons cannot exceed 8 kg (18 lbs) and it cannot exceed 55 cm (22 inches). If you're only traveling on United, American, Delta, etc with no connecting flights within Europe you won't have an issue. 

 

I have traveled on Swiss before and, yes, at the gate they are monitoring the luggage that people are bringing onto the plane.

 

We travelled on Air Canada, Swiss, TAP and couple more European airlines.

 

If you travel in business, they don't even check (unless the size exceeds by a lot). In economy, sometimes they tell you to put it in a sizer, so yes, size should usually not exceed 55x40x23 cm (with AC, and something similar with others). But weight - I have never seen them enforcing it, and not all airlines even have weight limit. For example AC mentions "Although no weight limit applies to carry-on baggage, your bag must be light enough that you can store it in the overhead bin unassisted."

[ORV]

7 hours ago, AMHuntFerry said:

Do you have an opinion about B&R's soft-side/fabric vs. hard-side plastic luggage for checked baggage?

I have no experience with the hard side, but I do have 4 pieces of the black Baseline soft side. I have had good luck with it, although I did have to send my carry on in to have it repaired. I don't know the weight of the hard side, but if it's lightweight that might be a factor. 

 

I am worried about some of the new restrictions as my carry on is the shorter, but wider international version with 2 wheels. If I had it to do over again I'd get the 4 wheel spinner that is narrower, but a little taller. I do like the compression feature. 

[JDincalif]

On 4/3/2024 at 9:06 AM, riversights said:

Mutatis mutandis, we've settled on the 28-in. wheeled trunk and one suitcase of lesser dimensions.  Cumulative conversation contributed to our peace of mind (hard to come by in 2024).

We've found that our 28" Briggs&Riley cases have been slightly too large/deep, even unzipped and opened, to fit under beds in Oceania R class OV cabins. Cabin attendants will such store bags at your request until you need them again.

[riversights]

19 minutes ago, JDincalif said:

We've found that our 28" Briggs&Riley cases have been slightly too large/deep, even unzipped and opened, to fit under beds in Oceania R class OV cabins. Cabin attendants will such store bags at your request until you need them again.

Being able to stow one's luggage goes to the heart of the matter.  Thanks for the insight.  We haven't sailed yet, so what you've said now enters into our conversation.

[FlyerTalker]

48 minutes ago, JDincalif said:

We've found that our 28" Briggs&Riley cases have been slightly too large/deep, even unzipped and opened, to fit under beds in Oceania R class OV cabins. Cabin attendants will such store bags at your request until you need them again.

 

One should consider - does the case open up so that it is roughly 50-50 on both sides, or is it more of a "single compartment" with a small (if any) "lid" area?  The former would be able to slip under beds when opened, but the latter might have some difficulty.

 

My Aleon is the latter design, and it does have issues going under a cruise bed.  So it stays home for cruises.  (great bag otherwise)

 

 

[basor]

We found that there is a low rail around the outside of the bed frame on O.  We just lift up the side of the bed a little, or ask the room steward, and our case easily slides in.  We have a hard sided 29' and no problems on all 6 O ships we have sailed on without opening.  It does add a bit of extra work if you use your suitcase for storage but rather do that than lose space in closet.

[Cliff-FLL]

On 4/3/2024 at 1:25 PM, halfapair said:

Discover the joy of traveling with carry-on luggage only.

No!  Not a chance!

When we travel, we each take a 30-32" suitcase, a shared 26" to accommodate the wine, a small backpack each for miscellaneous items we don't want to check, and 2 laptops with assorted accoutrement.  Since we're normally flying to an international destination, the two large cases will weigh about 60 lbs. or so.  It seems as if there is always someone around to help with the luggage - a porter, a taxi driver, a bellman, a perky college student traveling light - and I can actually deal with it on the rare occasions when no one is available.  We avoid bringing more, we do laundry as needed.  Don't ever let anyone convince you to "travel light".  I've never found any advantage to it.

That's the truth and I'm sticking with it.

[ak1004]

2 minutes ago, Cliff-FLL said:

No!  Not a chance!

When we travel, we each take a 30-32" suitcase, a shared 26" to accommodate the wine, a small backpack each for miscellaneous items we don't want to check, and 2 laptops with assorted accoutrement.  Since we're normally flying to an international destination, the two large cases will weigh about 60 lbs. or so.  It seems as if there is always someone around to help with the luggage - a porter, a taxi driver, a bellman, a perky college student traveling light - and I can actually deal with it on the rare occasions when no one is available.  We avoid bringing more, we do laundry as needed.  Don't ever let anyone convince you to "travel light".  I've never found any advantage to it.

That's the truth and I'm sticking with it.

 

It's your truth. Others truth might be very different.

 

We started travelling light, never looked back. No risk of lost luggage, no overpacking of things half of them we never use. No waiting for luggage.