altjx

Hoping to not get flamed here. I just decided to do some googling on finding a really great suitcase for myself. Me and my gf go out of town a lot (usually driving never flying) and I would like to get people's opinion on suitcases.

My career is in IT and I love technology, but I've yet to find any suitcase that had any sort of technology in it (surprisingly these days). So being that I'm completely illiterate to what great quality suit cases are out there, I'd like for some help. I'd prefer to have a red one. I also would like for the suitcase to have many zippers as well.

I just usually pack clothes and of course hygiene products as well. Right now I just have a duffle bag but it sucks having to carry it and sometimes certain things like slippers at the top doesnt really fit well being that it's not square and can't make it even.

Any help would be much appreciated.

~tc~

OK, first, ... travels with SLIPPERS?

But seriously, how big/how many days clothes do you want to carry?

Budget?

Michael El

I exclusively use Samsonite. They hold up to my 60,000 miles per year and about 10 driving trips.

GadgetFreak

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Not a flame but you will get a lot more information if you can be a bit more specific and do a search. There are probably dozens of threads on what is the best luggage for various applications and various conditions (rolling or not rolling, etc).

altjx

Ha, yeah. I mean we're usually only gone for about 2-3 days on the weekend and then back home and to work on Monday morning. I wear slippers in the hotel :P.

I would usually pack for 2-3 days worth of clothing and underwear. I wouldn't say it's MUCH but for the duffle bag I have, it looks bloated and stuffed once I put my clothes in there. I wear 1Xs and 34x34 in jeans such as South Pole so they're pretty baggy.

I wouldn't mind spending anywhere up to about $250 or so.

Thanks. I'm going to look deeper on the brand.

I honestly don't know how more specific I can get other than that, but yeah I would prefer a rolling suitcase as well, maybe with straps to carry it if I wanted as well.

DisneyDude

If you are looking for a technological case take a look at the Zuca Pro at www.zuca.com. Not available in red (unless you get the smaller Zuca with 4 wheels) but it stands out without that color. Very strong and packs a lot, I don't carry slippers but I do have my Earth Shoes travel sneakers with me all the time.

Full disclosure: no relationship to Zuca other than happy (very happy) customer.

JCary

Zuca looks very interesting but pricey!

GadgetFreak

For rolling I think it is impossible to beat Briggs & Riley for quality. Bt they tend to be heavy. Okay with wheels but a pain to carry. Their BRX line is lighter. Their Baseline line is heavier and higher quality. All have an unconditional lifetime warranty that covers everything, including damage. I was traveling 200,000 miles a year for several years with an 18 inch baseline roller and beat the hell out of it and it still is in fine shape. Some Eagle Creek lines have the same or similar warranty. Eagle Creek may have some things that interest you.

For the type travel you do I would probably carry something like a Tom Bihn Tristar. Lots of zippers. Shoulder carry or backpack carry options with it. Lots of pockets, comes in red I think. Also very high quality but I don think the same warranty as the others I mentioned. I think it will readily carry three days worth of clothing and tech gear. Nice layout with pocket for clothes, pocket for laptop and then lots of smaller pockets for whatever.

Another possibility is either the Skytrain or Air Boss from Red Oxx. Very high quality, great warranty but again no wheels. Also both are available in red. Lots of information here on all of the bags and brands I mentioned.

Romelle

Take a look at "travel pants" someplace like Travelsmith or SierraTradingSmith. They've got nylon/poly pants that wash in a basin, dry quickly, probably weigh 1/4 to 1/3 what jeans weigh, and take up lots less space.

Lots of good roller bags - LuggagePro and other similar sites. Keep it just at or under the official airline carry-on size.

A similar-sized backpack, if you like those. I stripped mine of all extra tags and straps and such and got it down to minimum weight. RickSteves has some very light ones.

But do take time to search this thread for LOTS more discussion.

Romelle

altjx

Nice. Going to check it out now! I think I've read about this somewhere else but didn't even take a look.

Thanks! Sorry if I wasn't being all the way specific, I just didn't know what people normally look for in suitcases other than wheels. I didn't even know people judge the case based on how many miles they're going and whatnot. Just assumed they were all judged by the color, space, amount of zip area, etc. Lol.

Thanks. Going to look into these as well.

Thanks for everyone's feedback.

Swissaire

Thank you Disney for the ZUCA link.

It certainly is a novel approach to carry-on, and very robust if it can be sat upon ( Considering my laptop, or an IPAD2, I have never thought of doing that ). Is there a weight limit ?

Michael El

I am really happy with my new Kirkland 27" that I bought on clearance at Costco for $49.97. I would have gladly paid regular price for this gem.

I'm not sure what their next generation will be like, but I will check them out for any future needs.