I'm amazed at how much fits in a rolling duffle!

[At World's End]

Like lots of people, I'm trying to avoid lots of checked bag fees by packing lighter. I've read so much about rolling duffle bags that I thought I'd give it a try.

So in this 32" rolling duffle I have: 16 pairs of jeans (8 adult/8 kid), 20 Tshirts (10 adult/10 kid), 4 sets of PJs (2 adult/2 kid), 4 pairs of running shoes (2 adult/2 kid), a plastic shoe box to protect toiletries, a second plastic shoebox for misc gifts for the kids, and four days worth of socks and undies per person. There is still room in the bag and it isn't close to 50lbs!

To fit this same amount into our normal luggage I would have to bring a 36" suitcase and two 22" rolling carryons. With this duffle, we only have to check one bag, and we don't have to deal with all those carryons on the plane. We'll still have two backpacks for entertainment/snacks and a change of clothes, but this will make life much easier.

 

[ancestry]

Congratulations! I too have learned to pack creatively -- duffle bag or other things.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Post in error

 

[acmmommymouse]

Just make sure you don't make it too heavy or you will end up paying for extra weight. This happened to my daughter and I last January flying our of Tampa. We usually each take our Disney suitcases, but this time used my husband's lightweight rolling duffle. Were thrilled to get everything into the huge duffle and then when it got weighed they told us to try to remove 10 pounds or pay a huge fee. We ended up stuffing things into our carryons and adding a layer of clothing to each of us and then we just made the weight limit! They told us it would be another $50 for the overweight bag, it would have been less to use a second bag! Good luck!!!!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Yes we love our rolling duffle bag. Since a duffle has flexible sides it's easy to overpack and squeeze in a lot of stuff. the other big plus is that once you get to the room and unpack the duffle, it folds flat for storage and it doesn;t take up much space in the room.

Just keep in mind about the dimentions on a duffle still must meet the following requirements. 115 linear inches (292 cm)(total length + width + height) will not be accepted as checked baggage.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

So in this 32" rolling duffle I have: 16 pairs of jeans (8 adult/8 kid), 20 Tshirts (10 adult/10 kid)

Wow - that is a tremendous amount of jeans and shirts. Just curious, how many people are you packing for and how long will the trip be? I would think the jeans alone would weigh a ton.

 

[LilyWDW]

How much does that weigh?

You need to be careful. I would expect that is close to the 50lb mark.

 

[At World's End]

I just weighed it at 38 lbs. I am always so close to 50 lbs with my regular big suitcase, because the suitcase itself weighs 14 lbs. The duffle weighs almost nothing.

I am packing for 4 people for 10 days. Packing 4 outfits (jeans, shirt, undies, socks) per person, plus an extra shirt per person.

 

[Brit_Jude]

Sounds great. May I ask what make of rolling duffle you purchased?

 

[NotUrsula]

A 32" rolling duffel? Be VERY careful with the size on that. I've personally never found a 32" duffel that when fully packed did not exceed the standard size limits. Never trust the labeling on the tags -- measure it yourself with a tape.

The standard for all US carriers that I know of is 62" linear inches for a standard-size checked bag. If you go over that you'll have to pay the oversize fee, which can cost you big-time: on UA it's $100/bag; Delta is $175/bag, Airtran is $49-79/bag depending on how much larger it is, SWA is $50/bag. Note that the 115 inches that a PP mentioned is the maximum size that will be accepted (well, not on Airtran or SWA, which limit to 80"), but you'll have to pay the oversize fee for going that large.

Note that the measurement is all the way around. Length + Height + Depth, measured outside the retracted handle and including the wheels.

 

[At World's End]

Thanks for the warning about the measurements. I'm confused about the 62" vs 115"? I thought the rule is that it can't exceed 62" (H+W+D). For my bag that would be 32 + 12+ 13 = 57 (according to the label). How would you get to 115"?

I definitely don't want to get stuck with extra fees, since that is the whole reason for using this bag!

We always travel with a small duffle in our backpack in case we are too close to the weight limit and need to move stuff to a carryon. I have had to do this once, and I don't like holding up the line.

 

[sharadoc]

I just weighed it at 38 lbs. I am always so close to 50 lbs with my regular big suitcase, because the suitcase itself weighs 14 lbs. The duffle weighs almost nothing.

I am packing for 4 people for 10 days. Packing 4 outfits (jeans, shirt, undies, socks) per person, plus an extra shirt per person.

We did that style packing last year and it's so funny to see all our pictures. Looks like we got them all taken the same couple of days. They got kind of boring but it was nice and easy to do laundry and pack lighter!

 

[shortkathleen]

Is there any way you could post a picture? I am thinking about using one for our upcoming trip but I haven't bought one yet. Thanks!

 

[At World's End]

If the weather is anything like it was last year, it won't matter what I pack. All our pictures show us bundled up in our hats and jackets!

 

[DVC4US]

A 32" rolling duffel? Be VERY careful with the size on that. I've personally never found a 32" duffel that when fully packed did not exceed the standard size limits. Never trust the labeling on the tags -- measure it yourself with a tape.

The standard for all US carriers that I know of is 62" linear inches for a standard-size checked bag. If you go over that you'll have to pay the oversize fee, which can cost you big-time: on UA it's $100/bag; Delta is $175/bag, Airtran is $49-79/bag depending on how much larger it is, SWA is $50/bag. Note that the 115 inches that a PP mentioned is the maximum size that will be accepted (well, not on Airtran or SWA, which limit to 80"), but you'll have to pay the oversize fee for going that large.

Note that the measurement is all the way around. Length + Height + Depth, measured outside the retracted handle and including the wheels.

Thanks for the warning about the measurements. I'm confused about the 62" vs 115"? I thought the rule is that it can't exceed 62" (H+W+D). For my bag that would be 32 + 12+ 13 = 57 (according to the label). How would you get to 115"?

I definitely don't want to get stuck with extra fees, since that is the whole reason for using this bag!

We always travel with a small duffle in our backpack in case we are too close to the weight limit and need to move stuff to a carryon. I have had to do this once, and I don't like holding up the line.

I agree - be very careful of the total size. We have always been fans of the rolling duffle until I had to pay an extra fee on AirTran last spring because my bad was too big(It only weighed 40 lbs). Told my DD right then and there we were getting rid of the duffles and getting new suitcases. You have to remember that even though the label says the width and height are 12 and 13inches, that will no longer be the case once it is packed and that's what the airline will measure. Just be very careful and make sure you know what is accepted by the airline you are flying.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Note that the measurement is all the way around. Length + Height + Depth, measured outside the retracted handle and including the wheels.

While I agree the measurements include wheels and protruding handles, every airline to my knowledge uses one length plus one width plus one depth (substitute height for any single of those three) measurement - not all the way around.

 

[NotUrsula]

Sorry, didn't state that well, when I said "all the way round" I meant that all three dimensions must be taken into account.

I tested several 32" duffels last time I was shopping for luggage, and every one of them was at least 64" fully packed. (Soft-packed, actually -- my usual shopping technique is to wheel them into the linens dept. and put a bedspread inside before I measure.) The usual mfr. dimensions that are marked on the tags are interior dimensions, and by the time you add the wheels and handle protrusions, you're usually at least 5 inches over what they state.

IME, the largest duffels that will make the limit fully packed are 29". With an eye to the possibility of lower limits coming in the future, I went one further and sized down from that to 27", with an expansion zipper.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Oh, yeah, that makes sense. Duffels are good in that they're flexible/soft, but along with that they CAN be stressed to the point of, at that size, exceeding size limits.

 

[aubriee]

Sorry, didn't state that well, when I said "all the way round" I meant that all three dimensions must be taken into account.

I tested several 32" duffels last time I was shopping for luggage, and every one of them was at least 64" fully packed. (Soft-packed, actually -- my usual shopping technique is to wheel them into the linens dept. and put a bedspread inside before I measure.) The usual mfr. dimensions that are marked on the tags are interior dimensions, and by the time you add the wheels and handle protrusions, you're usually at least 5 inches over what they state.

IME, the largest duffels that will make the limit fully packed are 29". With an eye to the possibility of lower limits coming in the future, I went one further and sized down from that to 27", with an expansion zipper.

Last year I bought one of the LL Bean large (not extra large) rolling duffels. It measures 30x13x15. I've used it several times now with no problems. One thing I like about it is that it has straps to cinch it down, so the width and depth is decreased after packing (if not fully packed of course). It is light (8lbs) and holds tons. Coming back from Orlando Sept 4th I didn't want to drag both a carryon and a personal item onto the plane, so took everything out of my Vera Bradley 18" duffel and stuffed it, along with all the items that were in it, into the LL Bean duffel. Even with all the extra stuff in it, it weighed out at about 42 lbs, which considering how full it was, I thought was very good. It weighed about 30lbs going down to Orlando.

OT: I always use packing folders and packing cubes to organize our duffels. They make packing and unpacking a breeze, plus if the TSA agents get into them, we don't have to worry about them touching our things or scattering them about.