help me find the best bag ever
June 30, 2006 11:23 AM Subscribe
Looking for nicely designed, functional, stylish luggage for trips of a two-week duration.
I'm flying to NYC in a week or so to stay for two weeks, and just realized I don't really have a rolling bag or any sort of luggage at all. I'm also going to Cambodia for two weeks in November, so I'd like to find a bag I can use for both trips. I'm kind of design-snobby, so something that looks professional, stylish, and maybe even interesting would be ideal.
It also needs to be:
-portable, with wheels
-secure
-sturdy
-able to fit stuff for two weeks, plus gift items that come back with me
bonus points if i can somehow carry it on my back for a short while when i make the trip from phnom penh to siem reap up the mekong, or for future trips where i might want it closer to my body rather than being wheeled. any suggestions? does anyone know of a good place in san diego to look for this type of thing?
I'm flying to NYC in a week or so to stay for two weeks, and just realized I don't really have a rolling bag or any sort of luggage at all. I'm also going to Cambodia for two weeks in November, so I'd like to find a bag I can use for both trips. I'm kind of design-snobby, so something that looks professional, stylish, and maybe even interesting would be ideal.
It also needs to be:
-portable, with wheels
-secure
-sturdy
-able to fit stuff for two weeks, plus gift items that come back with me
bonus points if i can somehow carry it on my back for a short while when i make the trip from phnom penh to siem reap up the mekong, or for future trips where i might want it closer to my body rather than being wheeled. any suggestions? does anyone know of a good place in san diego to look for this type of thing?
i've not purchased any such luggage, but i do like the look of mandarina duck.
also, a good place to check for cool-looking bags is flight 001, which carries several mandarina duck bags, among others.
posted by dytiq at 11:44 AM on June 30, 2006
also, a good place to check for cool-looking bags is flight 001, which carries several mandarina duck bags, among others.
posted by dytiq at 11:44 AM on June 30, 2006
This may come under the heading of advice not asked for, but I would recommend seriously thinking about getting a straight-up backpack. (If you can find one that doesn't make you hurl. I think Marmot bags are okay, but they still do look like backpacks, with straps & stuff.) Every time I have travelled with people with roll bags, they have been utterly jealous of how easy a backpack is.
posted by dame at 12:13 PM on June 30, 2006
posted by dame at 12:13 PM on June 30, 2006
dame, it depends on what kind of traveling you're doing. For work/extended vacation travel, when you're toting the thing only from the airport/station to the hotel/checkpoint and back, a rolling bag is dog's blessing.
booknerd, I've been happy with the Skyway rolling weekender I bought at ebags a couple of years ago -- it hits the right point among the multidimensional criteria of price, quality, and looks. It's survived multiple trips with nary a ding and its interior is well-designed and remarkably expansive.
Regardless of what you end up taking, pack a mid-size duffel bag.-- any brand, or no brand, is fine. Chances are, you'll want to bring back far more than you can possibly fit into your original bag. (If you're buying something large, from a not-mom-and-pop shop, ask about having them ship it.)
posted by vetiver at 6:46 PM on June 30, 2006
booknerd, I've been happy with the Skyway rolling weekender I bought at ebags a couple of years ago -- it hits the right point among the multidimensional criteria of price, quality, and looks. It's survived multiple trips with nary a ding and its interior is well-designed and remarkably expansive.
Regardless of what you end up taking, pack a mid-size duffel bag.-- any brand, or no brand, is fine. Chances are, you'll want to bring back far more than you can possibly fit into your original bag. (If you're buying something large, from a not-mom-and-pop shop, ask about having them ship it.)
posted by vetiver at 6:46 PM on June 30, 2006
Response by poster: thanks for all the tips! i really love the mandarina duck bags, but they're not carried in san diego. maybe my best bet will be to borrow something to take to nyc with me and try to go to the flight 001 store while i'm there and test drive a few.
while a backpack is probably a lot more practical for some things, i'm a very very small girl, and the idea of carrying all of my things on my back for extended trips to/from airports sounds downright unbearable.
posted by booknerd at 9:49 PM on June 30, 2006
while a backpack is probably a lot more practical for some things, i'm a very very small girl, and the idea of carrying all of my things on my back for extended trips to/from airports sounds downright unbearable.
posted by booknerd at 9:49 PM on June 30, 2006
An un-stolen, un-rifled bag is more useful than a stylish one. Admittedly in Cambodia any western luggage is going to look "rich" but you can try to ensure yours does not look particularly expensive.
I suggest you buy the luggage equivalent of a little black dress, and accessorize it with flamboyant travelling clothes on yourself -- official used to dealing daily with faceless hordes seem to react well to someone dressed "respectably" but distinctively. Dress down your camera etc too.
These suggestions apply to any trip, not just in the developing world -- a traveller is a mark anywhere.
posted by Idcoytco at 3:41 AM on July 1, 2006
I suggest you buy the luggage equivalent of a little black dress, and accessorize it with flamboyant travelling clothes on yourself -- official used to dealing daily with faceless hordes seem to react well to someone dressed "respectably" but distinctively. Dress down your camera etc too.
These suggestions apply to any trip, not just in the developing world -- a traveller is a mark anywhere.
posted by Idcoytco at 3:41 AM on July 1, 2006
Just saw this bag and thought of your question (yes, I'm a dork). But it looks pretty cool, and has the backpack, rollerbag thing going on.
posted by monkey!knife!fight! at 5:21 AM on July 1, 2006
posted by monkey!knife!fight! at 5:21 AM on July 1, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
I've also always been able to find coupons
whenever the time came to purchase. They may not have exactly what you're looking for, but it might help you narrow things down a bit.
posted by jcummings1974 at 11:43 AM on June 30, 2006