Cruise luggage recommendations?

[Osum]

After our most recent vacation left us with damaged luggage, my family is looking to buy something new. Does anyone have recommendations for reasonably priced luggage that works well with packing cubes? I'm overwhelmed with all the choices available! Everyone here loves to travel, so I'm sure you guys will have collectively tried everything.

We like having 4 wheels, but otherwise aren't too picky. We usually check our luggage, so it doesn't need to fit in an overhead bin. Most importantly, it has to fit under DCL beds...Ha!

Thanks in advance.

 

[mmouse37]

Almost anything will fit under the DCL beds now that they have raised them all. I love my LL Bean Rolling Adventure Duffle. I use packing cubes. What I really like is that is has a lifetime guarantee from LL Bean. If it rips or get a hole in it they will replace it for free. The one thing I do not like about it is that it does not stand up by itself. You have to lay it down when not rolling it. It does fold almost flat so fits under most anything when empty.

https://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/63916?feat=904-GN3&page=rolling-adventure-duffle-large&csp=f

But, I also love my new American Tourister Minnie Mouse 28 in. luggage. It fits the packing cubes much better and held a ton. I have not flown with it yet....just took it on the cruise last week so I wasn't concerned with weight limits. I saw a few of them in the luggage pick up area.

https://www.amazon.com/American-Tourister-Disney-Softside-Spinner/dp/B0147FZ06C/ref=sr_1_3?s=apparel&ie=UTF8&qid=1508725836&sr=1-3-spons&keywords=american+tourister+minnie+mouse+28\&psc=1

MJ

 

[SteveMP]

I usually check TJMaxx, Marshals, Nordstrom rack, Ross, etc and look for Travelpro stuff., but this can take weeks of checking when they get new stuff. If I am in a hurry I just go to Costco and grab the best deal they have. I have seen ok deals on Travelpro at Macys during a luggage sale when they have a coupon in addition. Otherwise Tjmaxx is like 1/3rd the price.

 

[tutumomickey]

We have found TravelPro to be the lightest and most durable. Got the best price on Amazon.

 

[Chemist]

The Kirkland brand luggage we got at Costco is 15 years old and still going strong.

As our family grew we added one some Samsonite luggage from Costco and it also is doing great!
(DH hates it as he doesn't like spinner bags, but my 10 year old can easily push it.)

Its not quite as stylish as some more expensive bags, but we've been very happy.

All our soft-sided, too. I know some people prefer hard-sided, but all our bags have logged many miles of travel safely.

 

[Pens Fan]

We are Eagle Creek fans. Their No Matter What Warranty is hard to beat. We travel a lot as a family, but my husband is the true road warrior of the family as he travels all over the world for his job. His Eagle Creek bags may not be the prettiest things anymore, but they have many 1000's of miles on them. And they just keep rolling.

 

[rcchello]

I am an eBags fan, especially after one piece (a couple of years old) had it's handle broken after a trip. After filling out their online form, they had me send pictures of the damage. Their next email asked me whether I wanted a refund or a replacement bag. They work with packing cubes and have some very well thought out designs.

 

[Starwind]

I am an eBags fan, especially after one piece (a couple of years old) had it's handle broken after a trip. After filling out their online form, they had me send pictures of the damage. Their next email asked me whether I wanted a refund or a replacement bag. They work with packing cubes and have some very well thought out designs.

I also love my eBags brand suitcases... and well, we have a unch of things that are eBags brand from suitcases to packing cubes to purses to backpacks and love them all and highligh recommend the brand. Also, if you don't want their brand the eBags website has a slew of other brands and is an excellent resource for both purchasing and research.

SW

 

[JWG]

We use eBags and try to stay with their branded or warrantied items. eBags has a no questions asked warranty on their items which we've taken advantage of.

 

[phinz]

We mostly use Tumi, Orvis, Fishpond, Timbuk2, Samsonite and Patagonia. All have their pluses and minuses.

 

[LizGirl]

We use the 29" eBags TLS Mother Load wheeled duffel. The quality is great and I can fit a whole cruise worth of clothing in one bag (using packing cubes). I haven't had to take advantage of ebags' awesome warranty but that is a factor when we purchase.

They fit under the beds on the Fantasy but just barely!

 

[Osum]

oh my goodness, thank you all so much! I'd never thought of a rolling duffel, but that does seem like a great idea with packing cubes. and I love that Minnie Mouse bag from American Tourister (though my husband does not, haha!)

I have some serious internet research to do now that you've all given me so many great ideas. And I also have plenty of time to stalk Costco and Marshalls before our next cruise.

Off to check out all these suggestions... thank you!

 

[jrabbit]

I'm not sure that any luggage will stand up to air line or cruise travel anymore. the most important thing is to have the suitcases properly filled. Too Much = not good, to little and it can be crushed.

Have you seen the large crates they toss the luggage in for loading onto the ship If you suitcase is on the bottom, it's not coming out unscathed.

 

[Pstecker]

I've had a lot of luck getting luggage from TJMaxx and Marshalls. The Delsey Items i've gotten from there have been fantastic and have held up well over the past 10 years. I Highly recommend it.

 

[Osum]

I'm not sure that any luggage will stand up to air line or cruise travel anymore. the most important thing is to have the suitcases properly filled. Too Much = not good, to little and it can be crushed.

Have you seen the large crates they toss the luggage in for loading onto the ship If you suitcase is on the bottom, it's not coming out unscathed.

YES! We've never had trouble with our luggage going through the ports, but had really bad luck on a trip to Mexico last week. One hard-sided suitcase came back with a wobbly/unstable handle, and the soft-sided suitcase was returned without the wheels. I've decided to take it as a sign that I should shop for something new. Also, gives me a reason to be thinking about our next trip.

 

[hanscarlet]

Will second the Travel Pro, got a great price during Holiday Season on Amazon last year

 

[SteveMP]

oh my goodness, thank you all so much! I'd never thought of a rolling duffel, but that does seem like a great idea with packing cubes. and I love that Minnie Mouse bag from American Tourister (though my husband does not, haha!)

I have some serious internet research to do now that you've all given me so many great ideas. And I also have plenty of time to stalk Costco and Marshalls before our next cruise.

Off to check out all these suggestions... thank you!

If you see at Costco the Kirkland bag with the ballistic nylon, those have held up really well, where things that have scratched our samsonite bags didn't leave a scratch on the Kirkland carry on.


Someone else mentioned eagle creek, our packing cubes are that brand and they hold up well. They also have really nice travel backpacks. If you haven't used a good travel backpack, my favorite feature of these is they have a "sleeve" on the part that goes against your back that you can use to slide over the carry handle on your luggage, freeing up your hands and getting the backpack off your shoulders. This thing is a lifesaver when I travel theough europe for work. But also nice for cruising as a day pack for embarkation.

Click on one and you can see a pic of how the sleeve works
http://shop.eaglecreek.com/backpacks/l/412

 

[Tractortom]

We have a cruise coming up on another carrier in a few weeks, and Fantasy in February and found that both of our large cases had died (wheels fell off or just came apart). I opted for an ebags 29" Mother Load rolling duffelbag, and the wife decided on a trip to the Sampsonite outlet and a 27" spinner (four wheeled case) for her use. They both cost about the same, both have good warranties, and I expect them both to last a long while. It really depends on what style you like. I have ALWAYS used a duffelbag for traveling and have several others, but nothing quite as big as the Mother Load 29", and am looking forward to learning the best way to pack it in these next two cruises.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

 

[Osum]

That backpack sleeve is very neat. I usually travel with an oversized purse or a messenger bag, rather than a backpack, but that could make me reconsider!

I checked out the Mother Load bags on ebags, and they look really well-designed. I especially like the shelves/dividers to keep everything from settling toward the bottom. For those that use these bags - it sort of looks like you could remove the stabilizing rods in the front part of the bag and collapse the front into the back shell for storage, but the site doesn't list that as a feature. Has anyone tried that?

Thanks again for all this great advice!

 

[Tasmen]

oh my goodness, thank you all so much! I'd never thought of a rolling duffel, but that does seem like a great idea with packing cubes. and I love that Minnie Mouse bag from American Tourister (though my husband does not, haha!)

I have 2 of the large American Tourister Star Wars bags (like the Minney but Star Wars) as well as a carry-on sized suitcase. We absolutely love these. You can fit a ton inside them and they suitcases have proven QUITE durable.