For those who do NOT like wheeled bags
 

Are You CRAZY ??? For the first time in a long time I decided to travel with non wheeled bags and it was NOT fun. Arms get tired, can't have a drink and walk at the same time, etc etc. I prefer to be penalize with the less packing capacity of wheeled bags and be COMFORTABLE at airports.

First, welcome to FT!

Second, wheeled bags work well for some, but so do backpack-style bags, which free up your hands while admittedly putting a strain on your back.

Third, to reduce the strain from any bag, I've found it useful to pack the minimum clothing and electronics necessary. It's easy to pack 25 pounds of stuff in a carryon and 8-10 pounds in a briefcase, personal item, etc. Hauling all that around is tiresome, no matter what bag you use. Especially when you find at the end of a trip that you didn't use everything you carried.

Learning that last lesson and packing about half as much has made my travel, on airplanes but also in automobiles, a lot easier in the last few years.

By the way wheeled bags are great--until you hit your first European city with cobblestone streets and sidewalks. . .

Hmmm, how about packing lightly? :)

Don't use a wheeled bag on business trips shorter than 3 nights. If I need multiple suits, then I'll go wheelie. Duffle for clothes + backpack for laptop/files is more convenient from my perspective. Also, I can ALWAYS find overhead bin space with a duffle - not so with a standard wheeled suitcase. As the others have said, leaving the "just in case" stuff at home helps quite a bit.

I assume you're referring to carry-on baggage.

It's unfair to make a blanket statement that either wheeled or non-wheeled is the only way to go. For short domestic trips I prefer wheels but like lwildernorva said cobblestone streets are no fun along with many rural areas where you have to deal with dirt roads or steep steps without an elevator.

You also have to consider many European carriers and transpacs to Australia which have tight weight restrictions (15 lbs or 7 kg) where a wheeled bag takes up most of that limit empty.

Thanks for welcoming me here ! I have learn a LOT and keep learning. To continue the topic I have to say that there is no ONE right way to do it and that people travel in different ways.
I ALWAYS pack light, I only find myself rolling my carry on bags in the parking lot, airport and hotel, NO streets.
There has been times that I pack so light that there is plenty of space left on my bag BUT again been able to roll it is very COMFORTABLE.

Depending on body type and upperbody strength, there are better ways to do both wheeled and unwheeled. For example, most wheeled carry-on luggage just isn't ergonomically shaped to be carried. Therefore not only the that bag heavier than the same bag without wheel-related hardware, it also feels heavier than it really is.

As for wheeless carryon, the individual has to find out either by experience or by a lot of research (on forums such as this one) and a lot a self-awareness, of what their body type and strengths are as to what suits them best.

For example, I cannot physically carry a fully-loaded maximum legal carry-on such as the Air Boss without being in much pain at the end of the commute. I realized that due to my body type that I would do best with something that is less than 7" in depth, preferably 6" to hold the weight closer to my center of gravity. At certain times of the year my travel wardrobe consists of small but heavy knits (thick matte jersey) and so I need to move to an even smaller bag to maintain the same weight-to-size ratio that I found worked best for me. :)

Many of us here own and use multiple pieces (both wheeled and unwheeled) for multiple circumstances. Perhaps the only "wrong" way would be someone going on a single day/night trip with 6 large pieces of 30" luggage crammed with 80 complete outfits, although I'm sure that there will be a circumstance or two where such an endeavour would be the "right" thing to do :p ;) ;)

I think tcl is right. The bag you pick all depends on you and your needs. I use different bags for different trips. Quick overnight or 2 night trips on a plane for work and I'll take a rolling bag and my briefcase. For car trips I usually take a larger duffel bag because I'm just going to carry it from the car to the house/hotel. And then if it is a longer trip that involves flying, I'll take my ebags weekender and a smaller personal bag. I can fit more in it and I need something that I can wear like a backpack. You'll find most of us here have a bit of an "addiction" if you will to luggage and we all use different ones for different trips. If I'm flying with my boss and her kids, it is always the Weekender because I need the extra hands for the kids. It all depends on the situation. Best of luck though!

Man up ! :D I do know what you mean and I think that getting a good shoulder strap is absolutely essential - I forget what mine is, Tom Bihn ? Something like that, well worth it.

we have backpacks/duffels
 

AND a rolling luggage cart that provides the best of both worlds. We can always find room in the overhead yet we have a roller when going through airports/cities etc.

Welcome to Flyertalk. I think the bolded parts really sum it up. I use a variety of different bags and combinations of bags. As someone pointed out on another thread about carryon bags, for those of us who travel a lot, it makes a lot of sense not to have the same combo or same bag for everything. For instance, I may carry a small roller and a briefcase if depending on everything from how long I will have to walk from gate to customs and immigration to how I feel. If I am worn out I am much more likely to take a roller. If I know I have to use a briefcase bag when I arrive I am more likely to take a briefcase and another bag.

I use a Tristar for short (up to 3 days) where I dont have to take a notebook computer and 1-2 days when I do need a notebook. Above that, next is a Red Oxx Metro and another bag. On my last two longer trips, 5 days in Tokyo/Kyoto and 5 in Montreal, in both cases the second bag was a Skytrain. On a similar trip before I uses an 18 in BR rolling cabin bag as the other carryon. I find that more and more though, I am using two non-rolling bags.

I have a trip the week after next, 4 days in Taipei and one in STL, that I am thinking about bags for now. I will likely need a notebook computer. Im in first from JFK to NRT then business to Taipei. Same on the way back although a domestic first segment as well. I am thinking of the Red Oxx Metroand a B&R medium satchel or the Skytrain, I am getting convinced that two non rolling bags is a lot easier to carry than one bag twice as heavy. Some possibility of the rolling cabin bag but I doubt it. I really try to think each trip through and anticipate what I will encounter, from on board storage to walls at the airport to train platforms and whatever. Always an adventure ;)

There's also a difference in preferring non-wheeled bags and not liking wheeled bags. I always seem to end up packing my Air Boss, even for longer trips (easily can pack 2 weeks much better than wheeled bags I have). But one of the main reasons is peace of mind getting my carryon onboard and have it fit in the overhead. If I didn't have to worry about that (or make myself not worry about it) I would sometimes prefer to use a wheeled bag. With the right strap and packing reasonably, I don't find the weight too bad.

I find that a backpack with hip strap like the Osprey Porter 46 works well. More interior space, less weight (important on foreign airlines with small carryon weight limits), and squishes a bit to fit if needed to fit in "slightly too small" carryon storage spaces. Also, allows walking up stairs and such without trouble.

I don't know what you mean by can't hold a drink while walking. I use a backpack and pack very lightly. I don't notice the weight on my back and can even stand for long periods while waiting for boarding. I can drink while walking. The nice thing is, if the clothes are on the side of the bag closest to your back, you can get a soft comfy feeling when you lean back against a wall. :)

I put just as much thought usually as to my bag setup on a trip as I do to the actual contents of the bag. It's all about having what I need and being able to maneuver properly in all the environments from trip start to trip end.

For frequent travelers on repeat trips, bag setup is easier because you'll know 85-100% of the following each time [trips are rarely 100% identical each time]:
* exactly what you need to carry for length of stay
* both departure and arrival airport difficulty level, lines, including security, distance between security and departure gates or arrival gates and immigration/exit
* Airplane type[s]/Size/compartment restrictions [also your status level for boarding priority; last people boarding are more subject to gate checked]
* ground transportation process-taxi-shuttle-rental, walking, rick shaw, etc
* accommodation setup-Hotel[s] type.
* Limbo time [transition or waiting time spent somewhere you'd rather not be]
* and all the peculiarities of travel

On those trips where everything is "perfect" or I know for whatever reason, good or bad, that I'll be spending much time in the airport, I'll take a roller.
But on the majority of my trips, especially in Europe, I take a Timbuk2 Wingman or other carry on 'duffle' bag and sometimes a second smaller bag because they are the most versatile.

I also find it easier to keep my duffel in my possession, in almost all circumstances. Service workers seem to be always more insistent on separating you from your roller than a duffel in almost every circumstance.

As has been mentioned, It's better to have different bags for different trips.