Very lightweight luggage

[LeslieSJ]

Have sworn by Tumi forever but my 26" piece weighs 15 lbs and I think I need to find something much lighter. I'm planning an 11 night trip where the limit is one bag at 44 lbs max. Yikes.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a brand that makes extremely lightweight pieces that are somewhat durable? I've been looking at TravelPro but the 26" is still 12 lbs.

 

Also, would a large rolling duffle be a bad idea? I think it would be harder to move around an airport/wait in line with one since you can't rest it upright. They do seem to be a lot lighter than uprights.

 

Thanks for any advice.

[jschutz]

We just bought some at a travel store, I believe the label is Eagle Creek. Their luggage is about half the weight of Tumi which we just happily tossed. This brand is absolutely the lightest weight of any luggage we have shopped.

[Lsimon]

Take a look at the Skyway Ultra N0-Weight bags.

 

We've had a couple of their 29" cases which are huge and weigh right around 9 lbs. luggage.com has specs of weight and internal capacity. And these are inexpensive too - at least compared to some of the premium bag lines.

 

These are very basic bags, a zipper compartment in the front but no internal compartments or dividers. Initially we thought they looked very flimsy, especially side handles, but they've held up well on several trips and now I think it is just the lightweight construction. We just bought some smaller cases too.

 

BTW - I do have a very large rolling duffel too. We use it for excess stuff on some cruises, like snorkeling gear and extra shoes, winter coats (taken off as soon as can when we're on our way to the tropics in Feb. or March), etc.

 

Now if we could only find a large rolling garment bag that is lightweight....

[Desertbelle]

Be aware that lightweight luggage, at least the brands we have bought, doesn't hold up very well.

 

We have bought well thought of brands, at various prices from cheap to very expensive and all of them are torn, some have broken handles, one of them the frame is bent, and one brand the zipper tabs are all breaking off. Apparently lightweight means they are using materials that are light and not very durable.

 

If you are buying new lightweight luggage I would recommend inexpensive pieces with the plan to replace in a couple of years...such as one of those great deals at Costco, or buy luggage with a lifetime warranty, such as Eagle Creek, because it will need replacing if you travel often enough.

[Desertbelle]

Take a look at the Skyway Ultra N0-Weight bags.

 

BTW, it's our Skyway luggage that has all the broken zipper tabs. The metal just twists off and snaps. Also, the fabric on them are snagged and torn. Sad too since I bought a set of this luggage for two of my children.

[Lsimon]

BTW, it's our Skyway luggage that has all the broken zipper tabs. The metal just twists off and snaps. Also, the fabric on them are snagged and torn. Sad too since I bought a set of this luggage for two of my children.

 

Our Skyway No-Weight bags have held up well on 4 or 5 trips over about a 2 year period. Only sign of any damage is one of the logos fastened to the middle of the front of one came off. Not a big concern. They were relatively inexpensive (well under $100 each) so if we need to replace them more often than some of the more expensive luggage we've bought luggage I'm not going to be too upset. Frankly, I think an extra 5 to 8 pounds of stuff I can take and remain under the airline weight limits is worth a lot to us.

[mydogs]

We bought 2 Ricardo 26", 11lbs.8oz. used them for 17 days all over Germany and on 3 flights . They held lots and seem to be durable. We will be using those 2 plus a 21" for 13 night TA Navigator in Nov. Our other Ricardo 26" wighed 15 lbs. amazing how much more I can pack with those extra 3lbs. 8oz. when there is a 44lb. limit per bab.

[upwarduk]

Has anyone in the UK experience of the above Luggage Brands?

We are interested in buying for our Mercury Cruise to Australia & New Zealand next Jan.

Our Luggage allowance is only 20 KG P.P, so any suggestions will be considered.

[Desertbelle]

Personally I have no problem with replacing inexpensive luggage every few years....I guess the days of getting a set of luggage for High School graduation that lasts a lifetime are gone. :D

 

I hope that Skyway has addressed the zipper pull/tab issue, the pieces we have are 3-4 years old, and I think the only zippers not affected are the ones on the side pockets.

 

I totally agree with you about getting that extra weight of clothing, every little pound counts!!

 

Here's a link to an article in Money Magazine about luggage. http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/moneymag/0704/gallery.durable_suitcases.moneymag/index.html

 

I plan on buying a set of Eagle Creek before our next cruise.

[SusieV]

We have Skyway luggage as well and love it. We're very frequent travellers and have no problems with it at all.

[Nonna and Papa]

We had purchased a large rolling duffle bag several years ago, but only ued it once. We found that the handle isn't long enough, so as we tried to pull it, the bag kept hitting us in the back of the legs or on our heels. If you look to purchase a rolling duffle, walk around with it to make sure this doesn't happen to you.

 

Mary

[sasset]

We've got four pieces of TravelPro Walkabout Lite. It has held up well.

 

Regards

[Karynanne]

We just bought the Skyway Ultra Light thru Ebags.com Our previous luggage was just too heavy...empty! It was relatively inexpensive, and if it holds up for a couple of years...great.

 

Karyn

[Jade13]

Have sworn by Tumi forever but my 26" piece weighs 15 lbs and I think I need to find something much lighter. I'm planning an 11 night trip where the limit is one bag at 44 lbs max. Yikes.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a brand that makes extremely lightweight pieces that are somewhat durable? I've been looking at TravelPro but the 26" is still 12 lbs.

 

Also, would a large rolling duffle be a bad idea? I think it would be harder to move around an airport/wait in line with one since you can't rest it upright. They do seem to be a lot lighter than uprights.

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

Try LL Bean. They have a lightweight microfiber collection. Besides, they back everything 100%. I called about a missing zipper hook, and they just said they'd have a new piece of luggage to me in a couple of days, plus a pre-paid UPS label to return the used suit case. I didn't even ask...

[Leela]

We've got four pieces of TravelPro Walkabout Lite. It has held up well.

Mine has too, and I travel a lot of miles. Plus, I use my 22" TravelPro Walkabout Lite to haul computer equipment to events that I work at.

 

I had a Skyway that I loved for the size and layout, but the zipper coil started separating from the cloth zipper tape and eventually became unsafe for checked baggage, and then unusable for carry-on. Haven't had any zipper issues with the TravelPro Walkabout Lite stuff, other than the little plate with the logo on it popping off.

[BILLP1]

Would it not just be cheaper to pay the over weight fee the airline charges ?

[Leela]

Also, is that weight limit total or per bag? I thought it was per bag, that people were allowed to check two bags, neither of which could weigh more than a certain amount.

 

Of course, this all depends on airline, but I have often found that people think the weight limit (for United at least) is a combined limit, when it's really a per-bag limit.

[Karynanne]

Would it not just be cheaper to pay the over weight fee the airline charges ?

 

 

We did that for quite a few trips. We weighed our large 28" piece...and empty it was 18 lbs. Our new one is 7.5 lbs. Quite a difference...

 

If you travel a lot, then looking into light-weight luggage achieves two objectives.

 

1) It's easier on the back...

 

2) Avoids overage fees...

 

Karyn

[NJEWERS]

We have a set of Delsey featherlight that we love--25" weighs 11 lbs and the 29" weighs 12.2 lbs. Tons of space and pockets it's expandable and VERY durrable. Purchased ours at TJ Maxx but they also carry it in other stores such as Macy's.

[Fatfish]

I could take a cruise for the price of Eagle Creek!

[hermang]

BTW, it's our Skyway luggage that has all the broken zipper tabs. The metal just twists off and snaps. Also, the fabric on them are snagged and torn. Sad too since I bought a set of this luggage for two of my children.

 

BUT - Skyways sent us to a luggage repair place who replaced the tabs for free. On the other hand we also have the "wear issue"

 

Used to buy Travel Pro then they got outrageously over priced so we went to skyways - heck if you are going to destroy luggage it should be the cheap stuff - I figure a bag we bought for $69 bucks that makes it through 3-4 cruises is better than a $200 bag that also survies 3-4 cruises.

Check out Ebags

[NewMexico]

We bought lightweight luggage this year - post-cruise we are managing trains and cars, and with some physical limits with arthritis, I wanted something easy to manage. I ended up with Victorinox - the luggage is lightweight and the handle can be flipped so that it is a much more natural feel when pulling - I have taken two trips this year and decided it was well worth the cost! My DH purchased Eagle Creek after researching what he wanted in luggage. He's a fan of lightweight everything being a hiker/climber. Of course, I have enough miscellaneous electronics to totally weigh down my carryon . . .so am grateful it has wheels as well! We sent our son to Europe post high school graduation four years ago with a large wheeled duffel and a roll of duct tape - which he used up fixing his bag and a good portion of the luggage the other students took along. So, buy light - go cheap or go expensive, but take duct tape!

[fsdorado]

We purchased an Athalon 29" 15-pocket rolling duffle bag (http://athalonsportgear.com/catalog/display_product.php?prid=151) for under $100 from Smart Bargains. It rolls very easily and can stand upright on its own. It has lots of pockets to keep you organized. They also make smaller 25" and 22" rolling duffle bags. They have held up very well and are very light weight.

 

 

Frederick

[dutchess43]

Also, is that weight limit total or per bag? I thought it was per bag, that people were allowed to check two bags, neither of which could weigh more than a certain amount.

 

 

Some international airlines like British airways & Alitalia(44 lbs) are limiting you to 1 bag. A lot of the int'l airlines are also weighing your carry ones as well. Had to empty out my carry on & add some items to my checked luggage this happened on a British airways flight 14 lbs max. It's getting tougher & tougher tp pack these days. Gone are the 70 lbs per person especially on the int'l fights.

[slivers]

I, too, weighed our ridiculously expensive (and no discounts) Tumi luggage. The expandable 28" rolling case was 18 lb, the nonexpandable same size was 15 lb, the Boyt folding garment bag (no wheels) was 11 lb. Even a 20" rolling Tumi carryon was 11 lb. British Air's current limit is 53 lb PER BAG; 1 bag per coach pax, 3 per biz class. For 2-week cruises (+ 4-6 days before or after) we've checked 3 or 4 bags for the two of us -- fully packed, but that was when the weight limit was 70 lb ea. We're in biz class this Oct., but we'll never make under 53 lb ea., and I will not expand to the max of 3 bags apiece. (Yes, I know, pack less!!)

 

I've spent hours web researching. The only soft side 28" rolling case I've found around 10 lb is Eagle Creek ($250 -- NO discounts) and another Eagle Creek at about 12 lb ($310). There is also the Rimowa line of polycarbonate semi-hard side. There's one new model at $450; all the rest are $600 and up -- no discounts.

 

I'm going to look at the Eagle Creek. Thanks for the other comments posted here. I'll take a look at some of the brands mentioned.

 

Steve