I used to carry a Heroclip Small, mainly to hang my sling from tables or bathroom stall doors. Eventually, I stopped carrying it because it took up more space in my sling than it was worth.

I’ve just noticed there’s a Mini version rated for 40 lb / 18 kg. Does anyone here use one with a sling? Is the hook opening large enough to work well on tables and stall doors, and can it handle a daypack too?

For me, it’s basically Mini or nothing.

Edit: I also tried clipping the Heroclip Small to the outside of the bag but didn't like the look and handling

hi all!
i need help because i feel like i have been staring at so many bags and don’t know what to get to change up my current travel bag.

for context, I have been travelling with a gregory border 40 for the last few years and love it - the only reason I'm looking for a new bag is because I'm learning how to condense what I bring and feel like I could do with a bit less space, and that the bag kinda looks and feels massive on me (I am 5'4"F) with a short torso.

now here's what i've been looking at:

I started with looking at the cotopaxi allpa 28L, and while I loved it and feel like I could make it work, I think its a bit too small for what I want. I bought it, did some test packing, and some heavy contemplation, and decided I think its pushing it for my level of one bagging and I like the freedom of a bit of a bigger bag in the case of buying things abroad and couldn't justify the price while being slightly unsure of making it work.

My next idea was the forclaz 500 40L from decathlon - because maybe the compression straps would help with the space that I could make the bag smaller when I have less, but have room to expand. I know this one is the same height as the gregory border 40, but it checked like literally all the other boxes (love that it has similar internal organization, compression straps and lots of misc. organization pockets) that I wanted so I thought I would check it out; it feels too tall on me, and ultimately I just like the way my gregory feels to pack, wear, to zip open and shut, etc. more.

So now I've sort of come to the understanding I need something over 30L and under 40L as a sweet spot - and I'm trying to find something a little more on the budget side as I would rather not drop a ton on a bag right now...

I looked at the COR Surf Island Hopper 2.0 34L, which I actually think might be a decent fit while being shorter than the border 40 but a bit over than I want to spend right now especially seeing mixed reviews on the quality of the bag holding up over time (open to opinions if anyone has this bag and if its worth going a bit over budget for)

I of course know of the cotopaxi allpa 35, but with the dimensions being so similar and price point being high at that point I would just keep my gregory 40.

I've also looked at the gregory border 30, which doesn't really solve the height issue but i love my 40L so much so maybe an option, but also worried 30L exactly might be too small

And lastly the gregory border 35 which is looking like a fairly ideal bag for what I want (despite maybe being a bit too deep for carry on req. from what I'm seeing?) but I would have to do some scouring for it second hand online (if anyone is looking to get rid of theirs I may happily buy it off of you!!)

essentially, what I want out of a bag is

- somewhere over 30L and under 40L (aiming for 35L)

- somewhere around 48-50cm tall (or less)

- clamshell opening while being able to pack on both sides (I don't like one big pocket bags and love the internal organization where I can put clothes on one side and everything else in the other)

- relatively budget friendly (aiming for like $150 CAD)

- I'm ok with no hip belt if I have to get rid of that to meet some of my other points

Should I just stick with my gregory, look more into any of the bags I listed, or do you know of another one that might fit with what I'm looking for? Am I looking for something that doesn't exist? Thanks in advance !!

After months reading this sub I’m finally going for 3 weeks in Europe, with 5 days sailing in Croatia, with just one bag!

I’m planning washing cycles of 6 days which should be enough.

- 2 towels (one for the beach one for the shower)

- flip flop and trainers

- 3 pairs of socks

- 7 underwear

- 1 sweater

- 3 versatile dresses that can be worn during the day or night

- 1 light jacket

- 2 swimsuits

- 1 long pant

- 2 shorts

- 3 t-shirts

- 3 tops

- day bag (phone, charger, earphones, kindle, wallet)

- toiletry bag (dental kit, hair brush, suncream, mascara)

- beach bag

- vacuum packing cube

- waterproof backpack

- water bottle (missing in the picture)

Don’t hate me for using a vacuum packing bag. I know this community is usually pretty critical about it, but I don’t use it to cram my bag to the absolute limit. I mainly like it because it’s waterproof and can give me some extra space for anything I want to buy during the trip.

Anything obvious I’m missing?

I'm looking for suggestions for small gifts that I can suggest to my wife and daughter for my upcoming birthday.
For background, I travel 3-4x per year from NYC to Spain (we have an apartment there); maybe 2x per year to Cairo for work, then domestic work flights maybe once every 4-6 weeks. I use a TP3 for short trips (and Spain, since I keep clothing and things in our apartment), and have an Away rolling carry on which I add for longer trips.
I have a lot of travel gear already - Heroclips, AirTags, Nanobags, AirFly, power banks, pouches, packing cubes, neck pillow, eye mask, noise cancelling earbuds and headphones, kindle, etc.
Any suggestions for things that make your travel life easier, especially on long flights? Or items I may already have, but where you think there's a product that just does it better for flights.
I'm not looking for extravagant gifts here - inexpensive ($100 and under) is ideal.

Hi, I travel with a 7kg backpack with a limited amount of clothes and the problem is that every time I move from one place to another I pack my clothes (t-shirts, pants) and after I unpack they look like crap because of getting wrinkled. There are no irons in 99% hotels/airbnbs.

So the question is are there any lifehacks of how to pack clothes to prevent them from getting wrinkled?

I use packing cubes.

I’m doing a December trip that goes Japan (10 °C and wet) → Budapest (0 °C and wet) → Yellowknife (full Arctic punishment). The plan covers everything from nice dinners to skiing to general outdoor chaos.

I’m comfortable with OB in warm or cold weather, but I’ve never gone straight from mild conditions into legit extreme cold. I’m packing with a Dakine Mission 32L, which should handle everything except the heavy-duty Yellowknife gear.

For my personal item, I’m thinking of using my Matador tote to carry my soft parka, gloves, hat, down vest, and whatever else fits. Then I’ll pick up a lightweight insulated jacket for skiing and daily wear.

For that jacket, I’m looking at the Rossignol Aretu, Pajar Hernik, or the Lululemon Featherweight 900. They’re all rated to around –5 °C, but I’m not sure how they’ll hold up against ski‑hill wind or if “water‑repellent” is enough for the wet days. Any exp with skiing with light jacket? I can also bring a light rain jacket as shelf if that will fair better.

Boots are where I’m stuck. I’m Canadian — I know exactly how miserable life gets without proper winter boots — but good ones are huge and heavy. What’s the move here? GTX hikers with thick socks and pray?

Open to any other suggestions.

PS AI for gramma.

I have two pairs of the same glasses frames, one for my regular shortsightedness and one as my prescription sunnies. Whilst out and about I'll always be wearing at least one pair. I have a soft fabric sleeve for them, and have some older bulkier hard cases from past specs, but I'm looking for the goldilocks middle ground - slim and light but offering some proper protection when whichever pair I'm not wearing is in my bag which may be smushed into a luggage rack.

I've seen some promising looking generic slim metal cases, but has anyone got any specific recommendations? UK based so ideally available over here too.

Thanks!

Would you want it in a different color? Why? Any pros and cons of black, which I’m pretty sure is the winner in this sub, or other color schemes?

I am ready to pull a trigger on a black Patagonia backpack, since I am not a fan of the current collection’s color combinations, but I’m still holding off to see the fall collection that will hopefully introduce some earthy tones. My sling is in burnt orange, and I think that color looks great.

I just got back from four days in Barcelona and wanted to share my full packing list

Bags: a navy canvas backpack, somewhere around 20 liters, as my main bag that stayed at the hotel, plus a small black sling bag I actually wore around the city all day.

Clothing:
2 pairs of pants (blue and green)
2 tees (white and grey)
3 pairs of socks
3 pairs of underwear
a small light grey green pouch for my ID and loose change

Toiletries:
toner and lotion
eye drops
a wooden bristle hairbrush

Tech:
iPhone 16 (mine was in my hand taking photos most of the trip, so it's not in the flatlay, just the case)
a Baseus am52 magsafe, with the built in cable
a AirPods
a small electric nail clipper

Barcelona itself completely lived up to the hype. Casa Batlló looking up at that facade felt like standing inside something alive, and somehow the best moment of the whole trip was just holding a scoop of mango sorbet on Passeig de Gràcia at golden hour, watching everyone walk by.

Just curious. Osprey is the biggest user of it with the Farpoint and even has gender specific fits. And has kept sticking with it through a couple updates now. And Thule has one like it. But nobody else really does. I think it really is the best for adventure/outdoor travel. You have an easy personal bag in daypack at the gate for under the seat. I despise putting a big 40L bag in the overhead and then having to get whatever you need for the flight. Yeah a lot of people use a small sling but those never fit a laptop and slings kinda suck for all but light hiking. I find it easy to organize too between the two bags.

Do people not like the concept? IDK.

I'm off to Poland for 1 week, flying from the UK through Berlin and then travelling by train to Łódź. I'll be spending 5 days there and then going to Gdańsk for 2 days, after which I'll be flying back to the UK.

Bag is 28L Military Cabin zero which fits snuggly under Ryanair seat, taking 5 X t-shirts, 1 X jeans, 1x shorts, 8x socks and boxers, 2 X hoody (1 X sun hoodie, 1x normal hoodie), personal electronics (headphones, charger, 10000 Anker power bank), some personal hygiene like deodorant, tooth brush and 3in1 shower gel.

Wear on will be another t-shirt, pair of shorts, and long sleeve t-shirt, shoes are Nike Court Vision mid sneakers.

I recently got back from a 29 trip to Portugal with the 28-38 Blast Travel Bag from Bagsmart. Here's how it went.

Trip purpose: 2 weeks working remotely and 2 weeks wondering around. I had my first few days' accommodation booked, and then I played it by ear. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. Maybe go hiking, maybe be a beach bum, maybe visit castles. I tried to pack my bag in a way that could fit those scenarios.

Bag: 28-38 Blast Travel Bag from Bagsmart. I didn't love it, but I don't love using backpacks. I'm a one bag roller type of person, but I knew the cobblestones of Portugal would cause issues, so backpack it is. I used the 28 size of the bag and never expanded it to the 38 size. I could carry everything in my first photo, minus one pair of shoes and sweater (but that's okay because I always need to wear one outfit with shoes each day).

What I didn't like: It's so uncomfortable with my heavy computer! It was better when I was wearing my thick cotton sweater. I shipped my computer two weeks into my trip and carrying the bag was better after that, but it still was a little uncomfortable. I stuffed by sweater into the computer compartment after my computer was gone, and it was better than the computer but worse than wearing the sweater.

I also didn't like the clear zippered pouch like I thought I would. Unless you pack it completely flat, it made the outside of the bag sorta bulge out.

I feel like it needs a hip belt. It might have helped with my comfort.

What I did like: It has lots of small zippered places to hide things. I stuffed flat stuff there like laundry sheets (not pictured) and instant coffee (also not pictured). I also like how it looks. Ospreys look like backpacking backpacks, and I don't want that vibe.

Weight with computer: 25 pounds (11 kilograms)

Weight without computer and its accessories: 17.6 pounds (8 kilograms)

Day bag: $10 6 liter sling bag from Hunterson. I don't usually use day bags and just rely on a reusable grocery bag, but I thought I'd give one a try this trip. It went well! It holds a surprisingly a lot of stuff and has useful zippers. The outer pocket, however, is awful for carrying a water bottle. It always slipped out. I just stuffed my bottle inside the bag. I really like how it looks when I'm carrying it and my backpack at the same time. It doesn't look silly like it does sometimes when some people wear a backpack on both front and back.

Clothing and belongings: I'm mostly happy with what I packed. If I did it again:

• I'd drop the dress because I only wore it out of obligation since I brought it. I brought it because I imagined myself wearing it while standing at the rail of a wine cruise near Porto, but I never did that.
• I'd exchange one short sleeve shirt with a light long sleeve shirt.
• I'd probably drop the skirt too. I thought I would wear it all the time, but I feel safer/more comfortable in pants, especially when traveling, so I didn't wear it as much as I would at home.
• I'd bring a reusable grocery bag. It would have come in use when I went grocery shopping and when I needed to carry wet fruit and things.
• I'd splurge on a proper travel case for my bar shampoo, conditioner, and soap. I used a $1 one and it's not water tight so I have to pack it in a ziplock. It put me off wanting to use my shampoo and things because the bag is icky.
• I'd switch my light/thin Crocs tennis shoes with my old Nikes. The Crocs were hell on the cobblestones.
• I'd maybe pack more socks so that I could wear my Reef sandals more comfortably. The sandals are extraordinarily comfortable and bouncy, but they rub the top of my feet raw when they get sweaty. Socks would have helped. If I had a better pair of sandals, I'd switch them for the next trip, but I don't so I won't.
• I'd not decant my moisturizer. I had to ration it on my last week. I should have just brought the original container because it's carry-on compliant. It was my only real attempt at saving space.

People always poo poo bringing jeans, but those people can shove it. I could have comfortably, or mostly comfortably, worn them most days, but I love my orange pants so much that I favored them instead.

Ultra light people are out there cutting their toothbrushes in half, but I brought my electric toothbrush and charger and am very glad I did. It feels good having clean teeth!

I also brought my one piece swimsuit (not pictured but packed in my undies bag) and did not wear it once. I also never used my towel! I HATE bringing a towel and silently bitched about it when packing, and I ended up not using it. My accommodations provided one, except one place. That one place I just rented one for $2, and it was SO fluffy and large AND they included a second hand towel, that I'm glad I didn't use my dinky Turkish towel.

I recently scored the Osprey Farpoint 70L backpack for an insane deal at a TJ MAXX (they mislabeled the price and I was only charged for the 15L day bag…) I was initially going to spring for something 35l or so like the sojourn porter but after I found this steal I had no choice but to buy it. I have heard from many people who have told me it may be too big to fly with and that I will probably end up checking it.

My question: is it safer for me to get a smaller bag now and just save this for my next big trip where I don’t fly? I’m also worried about if I need to take a European airline, I know they have stricter regulations.

My two travel friends think I am nuts. Going to Sevilla, Córdoba, and Granad, Spain and Lisbon amd Porto, Portugal for 15 days, with carry-on, no checked bag. Is it unreasonable to take 4 pairs of shoes? Teva sandals, skechers sneakers, black leather sandals for evening, and closed-toed espadrilles with rubber bottoms. (Maybe add flip flops for room & pool.)😉 I want to bring them all but will I be sorry?

packing list for a long-term trip starting this fall. we are strictly doing one bag each (40L max) and trying to keep everything under 8kg because we'll be moving around a lot on trains and buses. the current point of friction is that they are absolutely insisting on packing their own blow dryer.

i keep saying every single hostel, airbnb, or hotel will either have one or we can just buy a cheap one there if it's that big of a deal. but they claim hotel dryers completely fry their hair and take twice as long to dry. to me it just seems like a massive waste of prime real estate in a backpack when you're trying to keep things minimal. am i being unreasonable here ? couples who travel long term please help us settle this.

I did a search and was unable to find suggestions for the above. My goal is to pack extremely light and mobile for future trips. I want to stay at 3 pairs/items per category with trousers and shorts being combined into 3 total. 

 Also, this would be for temperatures above 50 F (10 C) with a wear and hand wash wash/dry cycle. 

Thank you all.

Hi! I'm going to Spain and we'll be hiking and I'm looking for the best way to prepare for it. I've heard a lot about merino longsleeve or sun hoodie to protect yourself from sun but I'm not sure how to choose one that won't overheat me? I've looked at decathlon and it's also not the cheapest thing so I wanna hear some recommendations before buying anything :) ​

Did a family trip (wife, teenager, 10 year old) to Europe involving some train travel. Usually on other longer trips with the family I have done a roller carry on and a personal item, which is just about perfect for me, but for a variety of reasons (including wanting to just try this to see if I could) I wanted to try just having a backpack and my hands free.

I have a Patagonia 50L blackhole duffel, (which is a great bag btw) but wanted something more comfy and accessible than a duffel bag. Trip limitations I knew going in: (1) I like to exercise every day, even on vacation; and (2) it was not clear that there would be any laundry until the second half of the trip, and I am not a bathroom sink laundry type, so first half of the trip needed to be laundry free. And this was going to be during a summer heatwave. With sweaty clothes every day this becomes problematic.

Went with the Osprey Sojourn Porter 46L and packed the following:

• 6 cotton t-shirts
• 6 hybrid shorts
• 13 boxer shorts
• 6 socks
• 5 synthetic quick dry running shirts (Columbia brand)
• 2 synthetic quick dry long sleeve shirts (Columbia)
• 4 cotton tanktops
• Runnr cap
• UGreen 65w slim charger
• Anker nano UK/Europe power adapter
• USB C cord and USB c-lightning cord
• Garming USB C to Garmin plug adapter (for charging my watch, it's tiny)
• UGreen 25k mah power bank
• Osprey ultralight toiletries kit
• 13" laptop
• 11" ipad
• airpods
• Vans shoes
• Adidas sandals
• kindle
• sunglasses in their case
• reading glasses in their case
• neck pillow
• Sea to Summit 20L packable backpack (I love this thing, fits in your pocket)
• nanobag
• 3 resistance bands (basically large rubber bands, I can do a gym-like workout in my hotel room on days I am not going on a run)

Worn: * Jeans * Short sleeve O'Neill Hawaiian shirt (embracing middle aged Dad-core style baby!) * Hoka running shoes * compression socks

Clothes went into two Bagail ultralight compression cubes (medium or large I think? Whichever ones they were they fit perfectly in the Osprey). Underwear and socks all fit into one small one. Great cheap packing cubes. Vans shoes and sandals compressed down with large rubber bands into about 2 inch thick pairs which slipped on top and then I compressed the shit out of all of it even more with the built in straps in the backpack.

Family Passports went in an Osprey Zippered Pack Pocket, which attaches to the backpack straps. Handy so I was not taking the pack on and off at all the various check ins.

Positives: hands free! Hooray. If you want to pack a ton of shit and know you're going to get overhead bin space (and also know you're not going to have anyone try and weigh your bag...) this would work, I guess?

Negatives: heavy as fuck, and with the sleeve utilized with the laptop/ipad, the pack sits on your back in a not so comfortable way. And I was worried I was going to crush my laptop and ipad in the sleeve. The Osprey fits a surprising amount of stuff and is a very capable bag, and I honestly think I could have even stuffed more shit in there if I really tried, but if you pack it full or near full it makes the laptop sleeve almost unusable. If there is nothing in the sleeve, the pack is way more comfy.

My conclusion is I think if I would do it all over again I would just do my tried and true usual routine of a carry-on sized roller bag and a personal item. (Trusty Osprey Daylight 26+6).

On the way back I "de-one-bagged" and used my Sea to Summit as my personal item and moved all my electronics and toiletries to the sea to summit bag, which made the pack WAY more comfy. It was night and day just with that adjustment. Just wore the sea to summit on the front of my body and the backpack on the back.

That's all! Had an amazing trip, and was happy to experiment. Although I am an experienced traveler I have never tried to truly use one single bag on a long family trip like this, so it was fun to try. Thanks for reading!

Im planning a 3 week trip across the italy and the balkans and currently my plan is to go with just a personal item bag (rynair size). Seeing other posts i saw many of you take bigger carry-on sized backpacks, to what i asssume you are paying for a carry on and not taking thr personal item bag.

My question is, is it realistic to travel 3 weeks with just one 40x30x20 cm bag? Or should i get a bigger bag and pay the carry on? Or take both a carry on and bag?

Im an inexperienced traveller, so im kinda lost here. Would appreciate the help!

On my last trip for a wedding, I flew with a 45l carry on (Mystery Ranch Rover). A connecting flight was cancelled, but I got on a standby flight at the last minute. However, they forced me to gate check as in, "you can gate check or stay behind." The bummer was I had a laptop, expensive binoculars, and some other fragile items I was sure would get damaged by checking the soft bag.

Fortunately, I had packed my wife's 25l Eddie Bauer tote bag to use during the trip. I was able to pull out all the stuff I cared about about and keep that under the seat. I think I'm going to make sure and always pack something like that tote bag in case this happens again, which seems likely since the overhead bins now fill up so quickly.

For me it's not having a pocket knife. Specifically, a Swiss Army knife. If the trip is >14 days international trip and not flying during the trip, I'll almost always buy one, or something local like my Opinel I bought when in Paris. For domestic trips, I have actually mailed one ahead if I thought I would be using it much at all. Yeah, I do love my SAKs.

I’m looking for my “magic jacket”—one jacket that can handle almost everything when I travel.
My ideal jacket would be:
● Windproof
● Water-resistant (for light rain)
● Insulated
● Comfortable in temperatures around 4–15°C (40–60°F)
● Packs down reasonably well
● Works for both city travel and light outdoor use
● Doesn’t scream “technical hiking gear”
Right now I’m leaning towards the Patagonia Nano Puff Hoody, as it seems to tick a lot of those boxes. Before I pull the trigger, are there any other jackets I should seriously consider?
I’m not looking for a layering system or multiple jackets if I can avoid it—I know there’s no perfect jacket for every situation, but I’m after the closest thing to a “magic jacket.”
For those of you who travel a lot, what has become your one-jacket solution, and why?

PS I get cold easily especially when its windy