<p>My daughter is going to be living in China for a year. While she will try to pack minimally, I’m sure she will still need two big suitcases. She has one 28" rolling one now. I’d like to get her another lightweight yet sturdy one. Lightweight so she can pack it to capacity without going over the airlines 50 lb. requirement. She’s a petite person and will be using a backpackers backpack for her carryon so another important feature is stabilty so it’s easy to push or pull the two big bags and with the backpack on her back.</p>
<p>I understand that she can buy just about anything that she needs over there but she will be on a budget so she can’t buy duplicates of everything. Any suggestions for a good lightweight, sturdy, large, rolling suitcase?</p>
<p>kathie - If you don’t mind spending a few bucks and want something that you’ll use for life, Briggs and Riley makes great rolling/expandible bags that are very easy to maneuver. They have several sizes of pullmans and a new business line that is made for frequent travel/carry on needs. They also stack easily so you are just pulling one thing. They aren’t cheap, but you will never buy another bag and the company services them if a zipper, wheel or liner, etc. should show any wear.</p>
<p>kathie…we bought our S the Mother Lode junior from ebags and love it. He had enough clothes for two weeks easy overseas…provides a place for shoes or other hard items (hiking shoes/ski shoes) as there are velcro dividers to move around and a two “story” packing system…it is somewhat collapsible when empty. It can be filled to the brim or stay smaller…and it also stands and won’t fall over when your hands are full at a ticket counter. It is basically a very good duffle with a couple or three good compartments and some versatility</p>
<p>Faline, Is this sturdy enough for extensive international travel? I think I remember this one mentioned on another thread and it sounded good. I’m just concerned with the durability of duffels.</p>
<p>Just make sure the rolling duffle is easy to move around. We have two different kinds of rolling duffles and both kids hate them…the handles do not pull out, like on regular suitcases, and the duffles are hard to maneuver around especially if you have another bag or two. SO…my suggestion…get something that you can try just to make sure.</p>
<p>Agree with thumper. I bought a rolling duffle from LL Bean for D’s study abroad trip. I travelled with her 10 days prior to checking in and we navigated the luggage through trains, hotels, etc. The construction on the duffel was great and the handle on this one did pull out; however, it will not stand on its own, making it difficult to handle at times. I have noticed that more expensive models in Lands End and LL Bean have this feature and it might be worth paying a little premium to not have the bag toppling as you shift things from hand to hand, etc.</p>
<p>We do have some duffels with the pull handles and they are just not as easy to manuver and won’t stand upright as you mentioned. We got them more for camp and college so they could be stuck under a bed. Now I’m concerned with other features.</p>
<p>I think I’d go with the mother lode, especially if it stands up well. The B&R stands up, but you have to make sure you pack it right or you will be dealing with a toppling bag. And if you are trying out something for the first time, it may best not to overspend. The reason ldgirl uses the B&R duffle is because my husband didn’t care for it (too big for his needs)…so she ended up with a $400 suitcase. Not what we would have normally spent buying her luggage. She loves it and hates to use any other bag, so everyone is happy. But it would have been better if we could have spent half as much for her suitcase since she is only flying RDU to Houston.</p>
<p>Btw…if anyone is ever looking for a rolling laptop bag…the new B&R ‘@work’ expandable is wonderful. My husband travels overseas with just that bag and one large B&R expandable pullman.</p>
<p>I keep wondering about the initial premise here, that your D needs two large suitcases… Does she really? Could she take some stuff in a cheap duffle with plans to abandon it there at the end of the year (towels, sheets, that kind of stuff)? Lands End sells cheap duffles that hold huge amounts of stuff and stand up to abuse… and fold up small. I assume at some point your D will want to travel, and the ability to travel light really makes a difference. Friends who spent a year traveling around the world gradually tossed stuff out until they had only one small rolling suitcase each. They hated the clothes by the end of the time… but it sure was easier.</p>
<p>She’s going to be teaching for a year and living in an apartment but will probably travel whenever she can. She will want to take some chldrens books and supplies that are not available there. And since we won’t want to ship stuff to her, I think she will want to take what she can with her. Now that she is done with college, we are not supporting her any more except for her plane trip, which we’ll be reimbursed for and she won’t be able to afford to buy a whole lot. Also, since she will be working in a professional capacity, she’ll need more then jeans and t-shirts.</p>
<p>The backpack will probably work fine for weekend trips. She’s packed light before for international travel but this is international living with some travel thrown in!</p>
<p>dmd77s points about divesting yourself of items not worth hauling home is a good one…also packing a collapsible duffle for last minute items. Ebags has gobs of reviews of various suitcases and rolling duffles…tons on Mother lode with details…I like its stand up while you shift your carryons and deal with ticket feature…ditto hitting restrooms with your rolling duffle…good it stands up</p>
<p>When my family was going on an overseas trip a few years ago, I bought the “Load Warrior,” by Eagle Creek, a rolling suitcase/duffle. It is reasonably priced, light-weight, expandable, stands up, and I believe has a life-time warranty. I love it!! I saw it advertised in the travel site, magellans, but I can’t remember if I bought it from them. I highly recommend it!</p>
<p>Never spend too much on luggage. The airlines really give luggage a beating. We buy inexpensive luggage…use it til it falls apart, toss it and buy more. We found that more expensive luggage gets just as beat up as the inexpensive stuff.</p>
<p>The object is not to spend the most money but to get the best value. We got our daughter a big red suitcase when she graduated from High School. It looked good, wasn’t the cheapest and we were all happy. Within the first year all of the zipper pull tabs came off. Next I got her a pink set of American tourister luggage for just over $100 and it’s held up very well but it only has one large suitcase and the next size down is too small. My son and husband each have a very nice spinner hard suitcase and both love them but daughter doesn’t like the hard sides at all. </p>
<p>What’s too much anyway - $50? $100? If a suitcase lasts 5 years with a frequent traveler then it seems like something between $100 and $150 would be a good value. Whaddya think?</p>