There are certainly no hard and fast rules about the perfect suitcase for your circumstances, however we have noticed that our customers will typically fall into one of four categories; the casual traveller, the business traveller, the adventure traveller and the backpacker. Here are our top picks for these 4 types of travellers.

This week we will look at the ‘Adventure Traveller’

The Adventure Traveller

We define Adventure travellers as anyone who is doing more than simply travelling to and staying in a hotel, but who is not backpacking or hiking with their pack. This covers a broad spectrum, and will general include ‘backpackers’ (those who aren’t walking with their packs for long distances), those on extended trips which involve moving about and anyone surfing, fishing, boating or just staying off the beaten track a little. These travellers will be wheeling their case most of the time – and need the convenience of wheels to enable them to move about easily. Yet they also need the flexibility of external pockets, the ability to carry the bag when needed and the ability to load it into a car, bus, train or boat easily.  They may also need the option to store the bag and use a daypack or smaller bag for a night or two – essentially, they demand durability, functionality and most importantly the flexibility that a traditional suitcase may not offer.

Whilst you may not consider yourself an adventure traveller, it’s worth considering you’re in between trips away – your major holiday might be a hotel stay, but if you do car trips or camping in between times, then it’s worth considering a bag to suit these activities also. The key factors we tell them to consider are:

• Soft or hard – Generally soft or more flexible cases suit adventure travellers, they are easier to load into vehicles and have external pockets or features that are useful when travelling off the beaten path.
• Budget – there is a broad range of bags across all price points, however it is worth noting that generally these bags include more features than a straightforward suitcase and the prices can reflect this. Match up your budget to the demands you are putting on the case, if it’s a once a year car trip you won’t need to spend so much, 5 months traversing Africa – then it’s better to invest in a premium bag.
• Size – This is totally dependent on your trip and also subsequent trips. If you do a real variety of travel, look for a case that has a zip off day pack or squashes down so you can adjust the size to suit.
• Wheels – 2 or 4 wheels would suit. It’s more important to ensure the rear wheel quality will stand up to your trip demands. Generally, once you’re outside the airport, the case will be dragged on 2 wheels, so look for large wheels with good clearance from the ground that will handle cobblestones, dirt paths and grass etc.
• Packing Features – This is the most important consideration.  A wheeled backpack or wheeled duffel bag are very popular options for adventure travellers. They offer a large main packing space but offer additional functionality such as removable daypacks, all wheel capable wheels, external pockets and specialised gear compartments, attachment points for extra gear, and most importantly, many have backpack straps so you can carry your luggage as needed.

This is a useful function beyond simply walking or trekking with your bag, being apple to carry your luggage on your back serves you very well when travelling by train, moving about busy cities that may involve stairs and uneven surfaces and getting your bag up and down from your top floor air bnb apartment.

• Additional Luggage – Adventure travellers should try and limit the total number of bags they have to make life easy when carrying it all together. If you have additional bags, look for ones that attach to your main bag for easy transiting or that keep your hands free, such as a cross body bag or convertible bag.
• Accessories – an adventure traveller will need travel adaptors, a toiletry bag, a foldable bag (this packs inside your main pack and gives you a small, lightweight bag to use for the beach, day trips or an overnight trip), padlocks and security items to suit your destination.

Most Popular Options

Images 1 & 2 via Osprey Packs

The Osprey Sojourn Range – The Osprey Sojourn is the perfect cross over bag for adventure travellers. It’s a premium quality backpack on wheels, and it’s loaded with practical features for all different sorts of trips. Available in 3 sizes, the Sojourn packs like a suitcase making it easy to access your gear, and the included backpack harness is an anti-gravity harness with waist strap, allowing the user to carry the pack for short distances up to day trips or a 2-day hike depending on pack weight. The backpack harness is removable should you want to use the case for later trips where you don’t require the pack feature. The Sojourn features a high road chassis (high clearance from the ground) and oversized durable wheels ensuring the case is durable enough to be dragged off road. The compression straps allow you to compress the bag, reducing the size and keeping your items inside secure when the bag is not full.

The Osprey Sojourn is a more expensive bag in its category, it is however backed by a lifetime warranty and comes highly backed by the staff at The Luggage Professionals.

SHOP THE OSPREY SOJOURN RANGE HERE

Image via Victorinox

Victorinox VX Touring Range – For those adventure travellers where hotels feature more than hostels, but whom would still benefit from a more versatile case, the Victorinox VX Touring range fits the bill. This is a range of expanding duffel bags with the convenience of high quality wheels and trolley. This range is super lightweight and has a large cavity that packs like a suitcase as well as two wet/dry pockets. There is a laptop sleeve in the front pocket, attach a bag capability and external hardware to protect the case when off road and ensure stability when full and standing upright. The range is available in 5 sizes ensuring the right fit for any trip.

SHOP THE VICTORINOX VX TOURING RANGE HERE