suitcases?

[momminnie]

Are we the only people left that carry Hard sided american tourister luggage?

 

[Junebugwv]

They obviously last a LONG time.

 

[OKW Lover]

You aren't the only people, but there aren't many of you left. We travel a lot and when we are waiting for our luggage we see maybe 10% of the bags are hard-sided.

 

[prncess674]

The reason you don't see many of them is they can easily pop open and your stuff strewn all over the bag belt, they don't have wheels for easy airport trips and since they are hard sided they are difficult to pack in a car.

You can pick up American Tourister bags at gararge sales for a $1 a piece these days.

 

[bratmomma]

Sometimes I wish we still had a hard-sided suitcase! We use our suitcases often (camping, visiting family out of state, etc) and after a few years they start to fray, tear, etc.

 

[smylie1]

Oh, my grandma used to have a light blue one. I loved that thing because it always meant she was going with us on vacation. I miss her!

 

[rflorek]

I believe they also weigh a bit more than the current styles of luggage, so with the weight limits/overweight fees on the airlines, many people just don't want to chance it.

 

[Memaw2Wm]

I believe they also weigh a bit more than the current styles of luggage, so with the weight limits/overweight fees on the airlines, many people just don't want to chance it.

I still have my Lady Baltimore luggage that my grandmother bought me back in the early/mid 1960's. It's too heavy to use for flying. All the way back in 1973 I ended up using a duffle bag instead of my Lady B b/c of the weight issues.

I can't bring myself to get rid of it b/c of the memories ...

 

[karen l]

Are we the only people left that carry Hard sided american tourister luggage?

My DD asked me if she could have mine for college - she loves them. American tourister really held up well. The pieces I gave her still look great.

 

[AKL_Megs]

My parents used them faithfully for YEARS and YEARS until they got Samsonite Spinners about three years ago!

 

[yrdlyprincess]

Are you talking about the ones that had the gorilla on the commerical--years ago, you are not the only one I actually still have my set (missing the piece that was "lost" in Jamaica) I love it, I haven't taken it on a flight in years, but I take it to the beach when we go down!! I thought that I was the only one left-actually my DH thought I was!

 

[PrncessA]

I actually have a few peices of a set my grandparents had. They are an awful green color but they remind me of my grandparents at fantastic times of my childhood so I doubt I will ever let them go. They are HEAVY and they don't really hold as much as our new ones, but they are classic. LOL

 

[WillCAD]

I've never owned a traditional suitcase in my life. I've always had the modern "pilot's case" style, with wheels and extendable handles. They're what I like to call "semi-soft", since they're made of cordura but have plastic liners to give the sides some stiffness. They're not as strong as an actual hard suitcase, but they're about 1/4 the weight, and the modern wheels and handle make them a lot easier to manage when travelling.

But my current luggage is all American Tourister. I have a large blue one that's my checked bag. I got it at WalMart several years ago, and it holds everything I need for an extended WDW vacation with ease, though I have to be careful not to overpack on my way home and incur those overweight luggage fees. Being soft-sided, it will deform a little when other stuff is stacked on it in the luggage compartment of a plane, but so far nothing has ever broken. For safety's sake I always add a strap around the outside to keep the lid closed in the event of a zipper malfunction.

Last year I bought a smaller mobile office case from Walmart, and turned into a camera/laptop bag by making custom foam inserts for it. It's now my carry-on. It's no Pelican, but the foam insert I made has custom cut-outs for all of my camera gear, keeping it all very protected when inconsiderate louts shove it around in the overhead to get their own over-sized junk up there. And it doesn't look like a camera or laptop case, either, so my hope is that it will be less of a target for luggage theives.

I like the American Tourister brand. They're built pretty tough, but they're cheaper and easier to find than Samsonite.