Anyone Have LL Bean Luggage?

[katibosch]

DH and I are looking at luggage since we don't really own any -- usually have borrowed someone else's. But we think we would like to have some that's actually ours.

We are considering LL Bean since I have a backpack from there that's many years old and still holding up great. I was thrilled with the quality of the backpack.

That being said they are not cheap, at least for us. If I'm going to spend that much I want to get something I'll love and keep for a long time.

Anyone have any LL Bean luggage? I'm specifically looking at the Carryall collection and the Adventure duffles. Any info appreciated.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I don't have this luggage, but I took a look at it (Carryall Pullman, medium) and here are my thoughts:

1. I don't like the fact that there are no straps inside the luggage to secure clothes.
2. It's nice to have outside cinch straps on your luggage so you can make it smaller; these straps are missing here.
3. Size (medium) is okay for most carry-on requirements.
4. There does not appear to be a zipper which allows you to expand the bag if needed. This is a useful feature.

As for the Adventure Duffle; I don't like duffle bags as a replacement for regular luggage. All of your clothes get really wrinkled.

My husband and I each have Mountainsmith Boarding Pass Bags, which I found on sale today at overstock.com for $122.90, which is a real bargain for an excellent 22" bag (carry-on size). My husband's has traveled with him for over 300,000 airline miles and is still going strong. You can Google it to find lots of pictures. I highly recommend this bag.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Like many things in life, there are great options at all price levels, but for somethings, its better to invest in quality. LL Bean makes great clothing, but if you want quality luggage, I wouldn't select them.

I don't know your travel frequency, but Briggs & Reilly is really the best of the best. You will pay a premium for each bag, but you will never need to buy a set of luggage again, ever.

 

[goofy4tink]

I have LLBean rolling duffles...some carryon size, one larger for checked luggage. While I have never had an issue with wrinkled clothes, the one thing that drives me nuts is the narrow wheel base. If you aren't paying attention, the bag can just flip over, which isn't fun in a busy, crowded airport.
Other than that little issue, I love my rolling duffles, as well as the non-rolling duffle we have.

 

[debster812]

I have LLBean rolling duffles...some carryon size, one larger for checked luggage. While I have never had an issue with wrinkled clothes, the one thing that drives me nuts is the narrow wheel base. If you aren't paying attention, the bag can just flip over, which isn't fun in a busy, crowded airport.
Other than that little issue, I love my rolling duffles, as well as the non-rolling duffle we have.

DS and I each have a rolling duffle (larger checked bag size). My only pet peeve is that they will not stand up on their own, so you either have to strategically lean it up against something, hang on to the handle, or lay it on the floor. Other than that, I love these bags. We hauled them all over England last summer, and our bus driver deemed them 'brilliant'

 

[backyardponder]

With airlines weighing baggage, make sure you compare the weight of different pieces before you buy. Rolling duffles tend to be a lot lighter than traditional luggage.

I bought my rolling duffle at REI and have been quite happy with it.

 

[sb127]

We have used our LLBean luggage for over three years and love them. I really like the outside pouches that are great for shoes. This keeps them away from the rest of the clothes. They are light weight but very durable. We have taken them to Disney 5 or 6 times and to Paris and Prague. I know that if the zipper gets damaged or any other problems I can get it replaced (they have a satisfaction guarrantee). We have the medium sized Pullman. If you like soft sided luggage, do not hesitate to buy them.

 

[aubriee]

I have the large rolling Adventure duffel in a kelly green, with my last name embroidered on it. I love it. I really wish I had bought the medium duffel at the same time though, because they no longer sell the bright kelly green I have. Due to it's bright color, plus my name being monogrammed on it, it is impossible to miss coming around the baggage claim. I always pack with packing folders and packing cubes, so don't have a problem organizing it. The only thing I don't like about it, is that it won't sit up on it's end, so you have to either lean it against something, lay it flat, or hold on to it. I go to WDW several times a year, so it's made about 12-14 trips down there and still looks good. It has a few black scuff marks on it, but no worn spots. I love how light duffels are compared to regular luggage. I also have a hardsided Heys Exotic spinner, which is considered a lightweight bag, but the LLBean rolling duffle is still lighter and also holds more, without ever being overweight.

 

[LidoDeck]

My son has an LLBean soft-sided pullman. We bought it as a gift for him quite a few years ago. At some point, it landed back at our house and we needed an extra bag for an extended vacation last December. It surprised me that I just wasn't impressed by the quality of the bag. It's nice and it has held up for a long time with quite a bit of use. And it's also quite light as compared to the other bags. I did like that each side has its own mesh zippered cover that keeps things in place.

But overall, I prefer my 3 Swiss Gear bags. I bought two of them at BJ's and the other at Target. They are very nice bags and far less expensive than the LLBean one.

 

[jenjifer]

We have LL Bean luggage set (checked their site, and I don't think it's one they're currently selling) and I'm pleased with it. Our original suitcase was a gift my my in-laws many years ago, but on one trip one of the zipper pulls was ripped off so LL Bean gave us store credit for it. (They no longer sold the same model, so they didn't do a replacement). For just a little more $, we got a replacement large suitcase as well as a smaller rolling suitcase and a backpack carryon.

My only beef with the large suitcase is that it's kinda too big. Really easy to overpack. (I guess it's a good option to have if I buy too many trinkets...). On our flight home last time I was forced to toss my hefty Undercover Guide to Walt Disney World because the suitcase was a smidge over the weight limit.

 

[minster22]

You might want to try doing some research on ebags.com. They have a great website to look at all kinds of luggage and even though LLBean won't be on there you can get some idea of what works for other people who travel a lot and also compare to what you are looking at on LLBean. There is a broad price range and lots of reviews and one of the features I find especially helpful is they list the actual weight of each luggage piece.

 

[goofy4tink]

DS and I each have a rolling duffle (larger checked bag size). My only pet peeve is that they will not stand up on their own, so you either have to strategically lean it up against something, hang on to the handle, or lay it on the floor. Other than that, I love these bags. We hauled them all over England last summer, and our bus driver deemed them 'brilliant'

Yep, that's another thing I don't care for. The funny thing is that when we used ours for our trip to London, a few years ago, we had a very easy time of it on those nasty Tube escalators, while those with 'regular' bags were struggling. Our rolling duffles fit very nicely on the step!!!

 

[slyster]

I have the small size adventure rolling duffle and I love it. It's been on several plane trips and always fits as a carry on (Continental, Air Tran, SouthWest). The other posters are right...they will tip over and won't stand on their own, but I feel the quality is great. I have had mine for a few years now and except for a couple of black marks, it's in excellent shape.

 

[ash-n-brensmom]

We love our two large rolling adventure duffel bags..so much so that we ordered another one in medium. The complaint that they don't stand up on their own hasn't bothered us. I guess we never really cared that they didn't, or just never expected them to do that in the first place. They aren't suitcases so we don't expect them to handle like suitcases.
I love they way they roll... so easy and the "warranty" on them can't be beat. I have gotten my DD's backpacks and lunchboxes from LLBean for the same reason.
When we pack them we can cinch up the straps on the outside to make them smaller and leave room for any souvenirs we end up buying. Never had a problem with clothing being wrinkled. Our old American Tourister luggage was more of a problem than they were worth and they only lasted through 4 trips. Looking forward to many years of WDW vacations with the rolling duffels.

 

[vaDisneyGuy]

I have a large Adventure duffle bag, it has made a few long distance airplane trips and many car trips and still looks like new. The bag holds tons of stuff. I love it.
They great thing about LL Bean is they stand behind what they sell. So if something doesn't stand up, they will replace it.

 

[MHSweb79]

We have two sets of Carryall rolling luggage from LL Bean. The carryon size and the next one up-- pretty sure it's medium and large.

It has held up very well although the red ones seem to show the dirt more than the blue ones. They are nicely designed, with a handle on the bottom as well as the pullout handle for when you're rolling it. This helps a lot when you need to pick it up to put it in the overhead bin. They do not tip over when you roll through the airport and they do fit quite a lot without getting too heavy. The zipper compartments on the outside expand to hold lots of stuff, too, and keeps it accessible.

I would recommend this luggage to anyone.

 

[wdwnomad]

I purchased the large rolling Adventure duffle bag last year. Only used it for one trip so far though. My impressions of it are that it is made very well. Plus LL Bean has a lifetime warranty on it. For me it was worth the extra money.

Sign up on their website for email. They frequently send out 20% off codes. I knew I wanted to buy it well before my last trip. I had the luxury of the waiting for a deal. None ever came along. It must be a popular item so it never went on sale. I ended up using a 20% off code.