How to choose a travel bag?

Summer is a vacation time, which means that you will have a trip ahead of you to friends and relatives or trips to other countries. In order to avoid a surprise in the form of a torn handle or a wheel falling off a suitcase, you should think in advance about how to choose a good quality travel bag. Once bought a good bag will serve you for many years and will be a reliable companion in all your trips. Let's plunge into the world of bags and learn how to choose a travel bag with or without wheels, which you need to pay special attention to when buying.

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Which is better to choose - a bag or a suitcase?

In order to more accurately determine your choice, you need to weigh all the pros and cons. Consider all the options:

• The suitcase has a rigid frame, so it is more suitable for transporting fragile things. Things folded into a suitcase will not be remembered along the way. Travel bags are mostly soft, so especially wrinkled things should not be transported there.
• But when transporting suitcases take up more space, they have to be checked in luggage, in addition, due to their massiveness they are much heavier than bags. The bag is more compact, it can be wrinkled and folded.
• If we talk about strength, then the bag is inferior to its bulky, but more durable brother.

The conclusion is this: it all depends on the purpose of your trip and your priorities, so the choice is yours. But if you decide to purchase a travel bag, then let's look at what you need to pay attention to when buying this product.

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Choose a travel bag

So, how to choose a travel bag, what characteristics to pay attention to.

The size

First of all, you need to decide what size bag you want. The bag can be small, medium and large:

An optimal medium-sized bag is considered. It will fit all the essentials and nothing more. Well, if you, of course, are not going to travel with five minor children. But in this case, the average size of the bag is preferable. Better to take two averages than one huge. Although, this is a matter of taste.

Important! Keep in mind that a larger bag will fit more, but lifting it will be harder. In this case, you will come in handy for Hercules.

There is one more argument in favor of medium bags:

• If you fly by plane, then in the case of one huge bag for the whole family, you will have an obvious advantage in kilograms and you will have to pay extra for extra kilograms. Some airlines are not allowed to share the total weight of baggage by several people.
• If you travel by train, then the average size here is a clear advantage, since it can be safely placed in the luggage space under the shelf.

Important! Some models have a special zipper that increases its size by several centimeters.

Choose a pen

The handle must be strong and reliable so as not to break off at the most inopportune moment:

• When buying, check how comfortable it is to hold it. If you don’t like something and the handle seems uncomfortable, for example, too thick or slippery, then it’s better not to take such a bag. After all, you try on while it is empty, and if you put things in it, it will become difficult and even more uncomfortable.
• Pay particular attention to the presence of a telescopic handle. It should be well fixed in two positions - extended and closed. The metal from which it is made must be strong and reliable.
• The handle on the side of the bag will come in handy if you need to move your luggage, shoulder straps will also not be redundant, just make sure that they can be unfastened if necessary.

Important! Choose a model with handles made of cloth and sewn into a bag - they are more reliable than glued, and even made of plastic.

Castors

How to choose a bag on wheels and which wheels should be? First of all, it is desirable that they generally be, since such models are much more convenient:

• When choosing a bag with wheels, pay attention to their size. The larger the wheel, the better its cross-country ability, which means the more convenient it is to use such a product.
• Silicone wheels do not wear out as quickly as plastic ones, and do not rattle so much when driving.
• The design of the wheels should be such that they are as if recessed in the bag body. This design is more reliable and less brittle. Particularly convenient are models in which the wheels can be removed if desired.

Material

Most often, travel bags are made from synthetic fabrics, as well as from leather and leatherette:

• Leather products have a beautiful and spectacular appearance, but they are not very convenient to use. They themselves are quite heavy, and if you put things in them, then they are completely unbearable. In addition, the skin is capricious in leaving - such products, despite all kinds of impregnations, quickly lose their attractive appearance, are covered with scuffs and scratches.
• Faux leather products are lighter, less expensive, but also prone to scratches and other troubles.
• Recently, synthetic materials of a new generation are replacing the skin. They are beautiful, waterproof, light, plus not as expensive as genuine leather. Such materials are not afraid of either rain or snow.

Other little things worth paying attention to

How to choose a good and high-quality wheeled travel bag? We draw attention to the following points:

• The bottom of the bag should be hard so that, but during use, the product does not deform.
• You can choose the color to your taste. Make sure that it is not easily soiled on one side, so that it is easier to clean and, at the same time, noticeable, especially if you often fly by plane. In this, you can easily find your baggage when it is checked out.
• Try to choose a lightweight bag, because after you put your things in it, it will become much heavier.
• When buying, inspect the zippers - they should open and close freely, without jamming halfway. Well, if they are metal and with two locks.
• Pay attention to the seams - on a quality product they are even and the threads do not stick out, the presence of small holes and gaps in the seams is also unacceptable.
• The presence of a combination lock will also not be amiss, especially if you are traveling by plane or train. Nobody will climb into a closed bag.
• It’s good if there are pockets on the product - you can place travel items in them or what you need in the first hours of arrival. This will allow you not to pick out your luggage in search of essentials.
• The presence of a large partition inside the product is convenient on the one hand, things can be divided, on the other hand, large things can no longer fit there.
• All mechanisms - zippers, handles, wheels, should work and move easily without difficulty.

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Stock footage

Remember: a good quality bag, by definition, cannot be cheap. When buying, give preference to well-established manufacturers who give a long guarantee on their goods, then no unpleasant surprises will arise along the way.