I never know what I want for my birthday, so this year I told my mom I wanted to try this new luggage brand with all kinds of neat features and contraptions. So she pitched in and paid for half of it as a gift. Thanks mom! The biggest draw, at the moment, was the 100 day guarantee. If you don't like it, you can return it no questions asked within the first 100 days. Part of me wishes I had it before we went on our big Europe trip, but that's okay. Vegas will be a good spot to test it out!
I ordered the Navy Blue, Bigger Carry On, yes, that's what it is called. They have a slightly smaller version which they call the Carry On. I went for the bigger one because it is compatible with the overhead bins on most of the planes I will ever fly on. I don't fly regional or small planes, so I am not concerned with it fitting on one of those. It arrived in a nice cardboard box with their branding all over it. There was no way to hide what was inside, so keep that in mind if you order this for someone as a surprise. Once I broke open the cardboard exterior, it was nicely wrapped in a natural canvas bag.
 | Unique Features of the Bigger Carry On
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Packing
I was able to get six days worth of clothes and shoes in here. Yes, you've read that correctly, SIX! I used my own large packing cube with a small amount of compression paired with the built in compression component in the bag. The only thing I did not pack in here were my sneakers, I threw those in my husband's full sized suitcase. I could have just as easily worn them on my travel days if I did not have my husband's suitcase space to borrow. As you can see from the photos below, I packed my clothes using a Pack It Folder from Eagle Creek (not pictured) and placed them in my Packing Cubes from eBags. I zipped up the cube which gives a small amount of compression and placed it in the compression side of the suitcase. I then flipped the compression piece and straps and tightened them. It pulled my clothes down enough that it was level with the side. Woohoo, for double compression! I didn't take a picture of the other side, but in there I put a pair of reef flip flops, rhinestone sandals, my toiletry bag, my charger bag, and my makeup bag. It closed up easily and all was well!
I was able to get six days worth of clothes and shoes in here. Yes, you've read that correctly, SIX! I used my own large packing cube with a small amount of compression paired with the built in compression component in the bag. The only thing I did not pack in here were my sneakers, I threw those in my husband's full sized suitcase. I could have just as easily worn them on my travel days if I did not have my husband's suitcase space to borrow. As you can see from the photos below, I packed my clothes using a Pack It Folder from Eagle Creek (not pictured) and placed them in my Packing Cubes from eBags. I zipped up the cube which gives a small amount of compression and placed it in the compression side of the suitcase. I then flipped the compression piece and straps and tightened them. It pulled my clothes down enough that it was level with the side. Woohoo, for double compression! I didn't take a picture of the other side, but in there I put a pair of reef flip flops, rhinestone sandals, my toiletry bag, my charger bag, and my makeup bag. It closed up easily and all was well!
Use
Most of the time I was rolling it, I had my laptop bag on top. This weighed it down a bit but not in a way that made a huge difference pushing weight wise. I found that the bags rolls incredibly smooth over tile and other hard surfaces. It was easy to walk both quickly and slowly. Now, depending on the carpet type I have mixed feedback. Most airport carpet and thin commercial carpets were just as easy as the hard surfaced floors. However, there were a few spots in the hotel we stayed in (Caesar's Palace) that had exceptionally plush carpet and I had to put more effort in to the push! It was slightly annoying to me, but I know most places don't use thicker carpet so I am not concerned about future trips.
Most of the time I was rolling it, I had my laptop bag on top. This weighed it down a bit but not in a way that made a huge difference pushing weight wise. I found that the bags rolls incredibly smooth over tile and other hard surfaces. It was easy to walk both quickly and slowly. Now, depending on the carpet type I have mixed feedback. Most airport carpet and thin commercial carpets were just as easy as the hard surfaced floors. However, there were a few spots in the hotel we stayed in (Caesar's Palace) that had exceptionally plush carpet and I had to put more effort in to the push! It was slightly annoying to me, but I know most places don't use thicker carpet so I am not concerned about future trips.
- Speaking of having my laptop bag sitting on top of it, it did not make it top heavy or off-balance. The luggage handled the extra weight on top quite well.
- TSA Locks- I only used these when we checked out of our hotel room at 11am. Our flight wasn't until 10pm that night and we had the hotel hold our bags throughout the day. I locked it, after stashing our more valuable items inside, and we had no issues.
- Built In charger- I didn't use this until the last day of the trip. Being that we did not have access to our hotel room after 11am, we drained through our cell phone batteries pretty quickly between Ubers, Lyfts, digital tickets to things, and more. Once we arrived at the airport that evening I plugged two chargers in at the same time. Both of our phones were fully charged again within a half an hour. The built in battery's own power level was still 3 out of 3 dots after charging both our phones. So that was a HUGE win for us!
Overall I am happy with the bag and I am going to keep it. The little touches make a difference for me. I now have my eye on the weekender bag from AwayTravel. So you may see me writing about that one in the near future. ;)
I think you’d love getting Away (and it’ll give us an excuse to start planning a trip)! Check out their thoughtfully designed luggage and get $20 off any suitcase or bag. #travelaway
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