tcl

I've seen the Ciao! bag being used quite a bit at airports recently and was thinking about getting one myself. It also comes with a small hanging organizer that is removable. If you don't like the internal flap, it can always be cut out. The flap is sewn to the bottom and is help up by 2 snap buttons on each top corner. The internal area is nice and open allowing packing cubes to be used.

I'm not sure if the Costco near you still has stock. A few stores had this as a manager's special early on and the cash n carry price went as low as $23.99 in some stores. I think the flap may be plastic lined mesh, but either way it seems to be a solidly built bag.

I would call and make sure the Costco near you has the bag before you buy a day pass. Alternatively you can always buy a Costco gift card that would get you in without any additional fees. You'll have to check out with it to buy anything though. Our local Costco does not charge gift card holders a day pass if they show a gift card at the entrance.

IsleOfMan

The Costco is fairly close by, so I can pop by to see if they have stock (they always let me in to look without a membership). The gift-card idea is a good one. Thanks!

IsleOfMan

In regards to the flap, I would probably just unsnap it at top at first at least, and maybe cut it out on down the road. I can't see myself using it for much in the way of storage/organization.

The more I look, the more the Ciao! bag surfaces as the most similar to the Eagle Creek ES2 it would be replacing. I've not ruled out any of the others, but I may be leaning more towards the Ciao! and on the verge of eliminating the Eagle Creek Travel Gateway because it's just too narrow, mainly for my 38" waist pants when folded (the EC ES2 was almost too narrow already).

The devil's advocate in me, though, is trying to justify the wider and sqaurer/more-rigid bags like the Travelpro Maxlite 3 and American Tourister. These might have just enough storage in their front compartment to eliminate my small Amazon Basics laptop bag which currently holds a Surface Pro, 8"x6" notebook, and various accessories/chargers. I'm not really sold on this idea as I like putting the Amazon bag under my seat for easy access in flight while the rolling bag is up in the bin. I also like having a bag in-hand when I visit clients, even if all I ever use from it is the 8"x6" notebook and business cards.

IsleOfMan

I ended up ordering the Ciao! this afternoon, so I expect it here by the end of the week. I saw one in person rolling through DFW week before last and it looks like a much higher end bag (very similar to my prior Eagle Creek) other than the telescoping handle which looks par for most sub-$100 bags. I ordered online as the non-member fee was only $1.50 on top of the $4 shipping (less than I would have spent on gas there and back) and $2.50 tax (which I would have paid at the store anyway), so $38 delivered.

On my last trip, which was only a 1-nighter, I dug out a low-end TravelPro laptop breif made for a 15.6" laptop that I hadn't used in years. I put all of my clothes for the next day (dress pants, shirt, underwear, undershirt) in my EC Pack-It Folder 15 which fit nicely in the rear file folder compartment, with my Surface Pro, notebook, and EC Toiletry Bad in the front compartment. I traveled in jeans and my sport coat. This combo is far and away the lightest I've ever traveled even for a single night trip, and probably the route I'll go for single night trips moving forward. This will move the Ciao! bag squarely into the 2-3/4 night range and my 20" or 22" TravelPros into the 4+ night range, mostly depending on how much footwear and outerwear I need to pack.

IsleOfMan

I got the Ciao! bag this afternoon... my original order was canceled (without alerting me) due to a zip code typo, so I had to re-order on 9/3 and it arrived today.

The form-factor and size shares more in common with the Briggs U116 than the Eagle Creek ES2 Round About, though the main flap doesn't extend as far back on the top of the bag. The sides are definitely more rigid than the EC, and the main flap opens wider for easier packing. The Pack-It Cube and Folder 15 fit perfectly and there may bit a touch more width for my folded dress pants compared to the EC as well.

The front pocked will just barely hold my Surface Pro with either Touch Cover or Power Cover... I don't think it would hold my 6" x 8" notebook as well. Is would hold my Galaxy Tab 3 8" and notebook, though, depending on the type of trip I'm on. The side pockets are larger than the EC, and similar to the larger pocked on BR; they zip open on 2 sides like the EC. The small front pocket is tight and might hold a cell-phone and wallet IF the larger front pocket isn't stuffed. The small top pocket is also tight, and not all that easy to access with the carry handles hooked together. All of the inside pockets, including those on the flap, are quite flat/tight and probably won't serve much purpose for me. The flap w/ pockets unsnaps at the top and lays flat to the bottom, almost like it's not there... it's sewn across the entire bottom and wouldn't be easy to cut out to remove it entirely, but there's not much need to either.

My biggest concern was the quality of the handle, but upon receipt it seems to be roughly equivalent to the EC, but not as wide/solid as some of the TravelPro bags I have from the Crew 9 and older Platinum lines. The wheels are fully-enclosed and in-line skate style (not true free-spinning ball-bearing type) , but the enclosures are riveted to the bag so they don't appear to be user-replaceable.

For ~$38 delivered, this is the best deal currently available for a bag this size. The build-quality is a step down from the EC, but it's still solid and should last awhile.

Having ordered from Costco as a non-member, I'm not sure if I could just exchange for a replacement at any time like a member... anyone out there know?

I have a 4-night trip coming up this weekend... I'll report back if I'm able to fit a full 4-nights in (should be able to as I'm taking my golf clubs and I can offload some clothing into my golf bag as well).

IsleOfMan

I ended up removing the Ciao logo from the bag... this left some tiny thread holes which pretty much faded into the texture of the material, but I ended up picking up a .75" x 4" custom iron-on embroidery aplique (i.e. an iron on patch) of my First Initial and Last Name from eBay for $5. I did black background with grey stitching and it blends nicely with the bag and doesn't stick out like a sore thumb. The place I bought it will also do custom patches from a JPEG... I thought about doing the same lettering but in the form of the Boeing logo, but the more I thought about it, I decided I didn't want something that stuck out quite that much.

I would show a picture, but I'd rather keep my identity a bit more obscured (mainly because of some of the actions being taken by companies like Enterprise/National towards folks collecting/disseminating publicly available corporate rate codes).

sggolf

Bummer, after reading the posts, I wanted one but its now ~$80!

IsleOfMan

Maybe it's creeping back down. It had been $135 since July 4th-ish. Last time it dropped it went $135->$50->$30 over the course of about 6 weeks. If it gets back to $50 or less I'll probably grab another and maybe rotate between it and the Ciao, or store it away for if the Ciao bites the dust.

IsleOfMan

Well that didn't take long... 3rd trip with the Ciao bad and a dent to one of the channels the handle slides in (I can feel it with the liner zipper open, reaching my hand around the back side) has made it difficult to extend/retract the handle on one side. Since I bought online and I'm not a Costco member, I have to figure out exactly what the process for a return/exchange is (hoping I can do it in-store, but I don't have high-expectations since I'm not a member).

If I can return the bag, I may do so and just bite the bullet on another ES2 even at $80, or give the EC Travel Gateway a try at $50.

tcl

Go online and print your receipt from either your checkout or your email confirmation. Just bring that in with the luggage and they'll issue you a refund or a Costco cash card You can also arrange for them to send you a new case if you think you want another one.

Sadly, denting along the channel is quite common with most rolling trolleys even the expensive ones.

IsleOfMan

Looks like my wife bought me a new ES2 for Christmas even after we decided not to get each other gifts (to be fair, I ignored the agreement too).

I can't decide if it's worth the effort to return the Ciao to Costco for just $30, especially since the handle has started sliding a bit easier of the last 2 months, though it still requires some extra effort at the "sticky" part. If I did return the Ciao, I'd probably end up picking up one of the Ricardo 20" hardside spinners with the Rimowa wheels... red is the only color that shows up online, but hopefully they'd still have black or silver in-store.

IsleOfMan

I got my ES2 (round 2) for Christmas today from my loving wife. I did a quick comparisson with the Costco Ciao bag and the dimensions are nearly identical, with the main difference being the ES2 has a slight taper both in width and depth at the top. The bottom depth is nearly identical, though the ES2 probably has 1/4" more in the main compartment while its wheels stick out about 1/4" less from the rear. Honestly, the handle and wheels are the biggest differences between the two bags, with the handle being the difference that matters most to me (far less twist and play than the Ciao). I'm going to hold on to both for now but may exchange the Ciao for a Ricardo 20" Hardside sometime in the near future.

mbece

I finally picked up my bag too and to test it, I packed what I will take to next week's trip (flying out Monday morning, coming back Thursday night). Here's what's in the bag:

• Long-sleeve technical running hoodie
• Winter (heavier) running pants
• Long wool running socks
• Puffy running vest
• 3 pairs of wool underwear
• Undershirt
• Bra
• Sleeping shirt and shorts
• 3 pairs of dress socks (heavy, wool)
• 2 dress pants
• 2 dress tops
• Wool cardigan
• Heavy dress jacket
• Oxford dress shoes
• 4 bottles of pills -vitamins
• 3-1-1 bag
• Weighted jump rope

For reference, I'm a woman and my stuff is size L or XL, so no tiny clothes for me. Everything fits perfectly and there's a little bit of room left without having to do any crazy packing. I wish I could use my pack it folder to put the dress stuff in but it's too big (I have the Eagle creek 18).

It is a bit tight for winter and my work out stuff takes more space than usual but still fits. This is the perfect bag for summer travel or ultra light all-season travel.

On travel day, I'll wear Lole travel pants, a pair of Timberland boots, t-shirt and my heavy coat. I'll change into work clothes at the airport.

One thing I see is that the handle does need a push down, unlike my Eagle Creek tarmac, which slides effortlessly. And I wish it had compression straps or somesuch to cinch down my clothes and make a little extra space.
Edit: I'll threw my Ascis in the bag too, since I do want to travel wearing the boots for walking in the cold.

IsleOfMan

The Pack-It Folder 15 and Small sizes fit perfectly, as to the Cube, Double-Side Cube, Clean/Dirty Cube, two half-cubes, etc. My normal packing is a Folder 15, Cube or Double-Side Cube, and a Tube Cube at the top around the handle.

ffI

Guys
This is again on sale for $30 at Amazon.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: camelcamelcamel <[email protected]>
Date: Tue, May 19, 2015 at 9:30 PM
Subject: Price drop alert: Eagle Creek ES2 Round About Wheeled Tote - $29.39

http://camelcamelcamel.com/Eagle-Cre...&ctx_src=chart
Amazon Price History
Amazon price history chart for Eagle Creek ES2 Round About Wheeled Tote