tell me about buying suitcases

The ones with two wheels on a short edge (air hostess style) are easier to haul around but get one with wheels at the corners rather than towards the middle as these are more stable. S. has one of the latter type and on anything but the smoothest surface it bucks all over the place.

is this a good price in your opinion, i've never purchased luggage before and wanted a good piece at a decent price:

clicky

Plus I'd like something practical (carry-on, as I don't like checking in luggage) that I don't mind toting through crowded streets. Plus something that will last through a few years of intense travel.

It's a ridiculous question but ... should a "cabin acceptable" suitcase be big enough for a five-night city break? Or do I go next size up?

it totally should be.

actual in-cabin carry-on has mostly been phased out. airlines rationed it and turned “guaranteed keep your carry-on luggage with you” into a perk you can pay for. this means you can bring an oversized luggage as your “carry on” and have it checked for free on 99% of flights. most of the time they even let you check it before going through security

but agreed with ledge, 5-days totally doable

not the case (sorry) in the uk, for short haul flights anyway - free cabin luggage, paid for check in is still the norm afaik,

The only times I've taken checked luggage were when I went to Hong Kong (it was free) and Greenland (I had to carry an Exped Lightning and ten days' worth of food). As mentioned all those long, long minutes ago by the previous poster the standard in the UK is a free cabin bag, and also there's a certain amount of leeway with handbags, but you pay for hold luggage. Ryanair is awkward in that their cabin bag is about half the size of the competition, but that's Ryanair.

On personal level my attitude is that having one small backpack - and carrying it on my back - is a godsend. I can step onto the plane-to-terminal transfer bus without having to lift the wheely suitcase off the floor. I can use the backpack while I'm out and about. Especially if it crushes down a little bit. At the risk of blowing my own trumpet I actually wrote a blog post about a shitty old second-hand bag I used for about a decade as my go-to travel bag complete with photographs of the actual bag taken roughly at sea level.

I've always wanted to step on the plane with just iPad and headphones. But I've never had the guts. Obviously this all depends on whether you're willing to buy stuff once you arrive at the other end - I generally pop to the shops and buy toiletries when I get to the other end. And so I spend the rest of the week smelling different.

I remember a tube of toothpaste I bought in Italy. Couldn't get it open. Then I realised you were supposed to unscrew the cap and use it as a kind of screwdriver to twist off the cap. When I worked it out I remember thinking "I am Italian".

One of my least proud moments of my life was flying back from my grandfather's funeral at a completely stressed moment. I boarded the plane and all the overhead bins around me were full and I had a bit of a meltdown. So I put my carry-on under my legs at my seat until we had left the gate and as the flight attendant came by to check on things I pulled my rather large carry-on out and said there was no where to put it. As she ran away toward the front of the plane, she had a look on her face like I had said I was carrying a bomb. I had a wave of panic that the plane was going to be forced back to the gate and I was going to be removed from the plane. The flight attendant returned after two long minutes, took my carry-on, and told me, "don't ever do that again." I have not.

I love my modern wheelie spinner bag. It changed my life and I always feel 100% better using it than something I have to carry. Just what works for me.

I paid more than I really wanted to for my Briggs & Riley wheelie bag, but it really paid off. Fits in the overhead bin and organized enough that I can go two weeks irrespective of continent or season.

i lost priveleges on my former travelbag that had seen a few continents.

is this a good price in your opinion, i've never purchased luggage before and wanted a good piece at a decent price:

clicky

― gygax! (gygax!), Sunday, November 21, 2004 1:25 PM (twenty years ago)

this one i bought 20 years ago earned Emerald Tier on oneworld. i recently retired it after it finally kicked the bucket. $99 well spent.