From: Outlawpoet on
RPSinha wrote:
>> Finally, do you find any particular *colors* either very good or not so
> good for rugged travel? (My "one bag" is likely to take more beating
> than if it had been just one of several bags with me.) The Red Oxx
> comes in 12 colors, for example:
> <http://www.redoxx.com/catalog/carry-on/p_91018-air-boss.html>
>
> Thanks.

I have a hot pink bag. It's a thoroughly unpractical color and
sometimes marks me immediately as a tourist, but I don't worry about it
being stolen. It's just too conspicuous. And if it gets dirty in
rough travel, it's just a bag. *shrug* I'm more concerned about theft
or losing it than I am about its appearance.

From: nobody on
PeterL wrote:
> > I cannot imagine a scenario in which a wheeled bag is more attractive,
> > unless it is so heavy that you simply cannot lift it - such as an
> > equipment container on 4 casters.
>
> Wait till you are 50 yrs old Miguel.

If you keep fit, then carrying a well designed backpack is not
age-limited. I've seen older people hiking in the wilderness with backpacks.

If you're out of shape, even a 25 year old will complain about a backpack.

And it is very true that a backpack allows you to move aroud much faster
than when you are lugging some luggage (either wheeled or now) AND has
the advantage of leaving you with 2 usable hands.

There are suitaces that convert into backpacks. They are not "great"
backpacks from a support point of view, but for airport stuff, it is great.
From: Dave Patterson on
nobody wrote:

> Remember that you cannot do that in the UK anymore. Police will shoot to
> kill tourists with backpacks before they get a chance to ask any
> questions (and this policy is approved/condoned by the Bliar government).

Speaking only for rec.travel.africa, I say let's
don't start yet another endless round of useless
and witless postings like this.

From: BB on
On Thu, 03 Aug 2006 14:55:51 GMT, RPSinha wrote:

> I am going to experiment with doing away with checked luggage and try
> traveling with just one carry-on.

You can certainly do this on transcontinental & US flights. Take heed of
baggage restrictions for any other intra-continental flights. Certainly on
UK carriers that fly to the Europe mainland (very inexpensively), the
restrictions are very tight and only a tiny carry-on is permitted.

> Another suggestion was Rick Steves Convertable carry-on bag; $99.
><http://travelstore.ricksteves.com/catalog/index.cfm?fuseaction=product&
> theParentId=8&id=139>

We have one of these, and have taken it on 2- and 4-week trips to Europe.
The backpack straps are usable, buts its not a comfortable backpack.
Still, for long carries the backpack mode is very nice. It also expands so
you can carry extra stuff home (you'll have to check it of course).

Carrying on everything is smart on the outbound flight - you don't want to
start out your trip waiting days for luggage. Not having a boatload of
luggage also makes it much easier to get around on ground transportation.
We sometimes check one bag when heading home. Delays are by far the most
common baggage mishandling; completely lost bags are fairly rare (I've
read .002%), so I don't worry about it so much on the homeward-bound
flights.

We were fortunate to have taken a short trip the previous year with a
large rolled bag, which enabled us to realize how awful they are on rough
walks, cobblestones, curbs, etc. We haven't used it since.

> Finally, do you find any particular *colors* either very good or not so
> good for rugged travel?

As someone mentioned, the odder color makes your bag easy to pick out.
Just avoid black.

--
-BB-
To e-mail me, unmunge my address
From: erilar on
In article <emd4d2dv5evbbrp4r3prdibm31slfbej4v(a)4ax.com>, me(a)privacy.net
wrote:

> RPSinha <rpsinha(a)null.void> wrote:
>
> >Do you have any expereince with these? Or, do you have another
> >recommendation?
>
> Curious...would a backpack work better?

I carry a backpack that has its own backpack. I weigh it before I leave
to make sure it's under 7 kilos because I discovered that was a carry-on
weight limit on at least one flight. That's the big bag. The small one
is my "purse" and heavy stuff like books is in IT.

--
Mary Loomer Oliver (aka Erilar),
philologist, biblioholic medievalist

http://www.airstreamcomm.net/~erilarlo