Comments on Travel Blog: Backpacks - are they really necessary?

i agree wheels are the way to go ...TRAVELLING.GOO...

2008-10-28T18:00:00.000-07:00

i agree wheels are the way to go ...
TRAVELLING.GOOD LUCK
HAPPY TRAVELLING

I found a perfect backpack through ems.com that un...

2008-10-28T10:06:00.000-07:00

I found a perfect backpack through ems.com that unzips like a suitcase and has liners to separate things. I took a 4 month trip through 17 countries (wouldn't recommend this much in so little time but I wouldn't go back and change it either). the straps zipped up for air transport and didn't leave any free straps to get caught in conveyor belts. My travel partners had rolling duffels and ended up loosing wheels after all the moving we did. I used to hate having to take a backpack as well because you had to pull everything from the top.... not anymore with this one. There are a few different brands out with similar layouts

I went travelling for a year with a two and a half...

2008-10-27T12:38:00.000-07:00

I went travelling for a year with a two and a half year old,(obviously he didn't stay two and half for the whole year), and a backpack certainly left my arms free to do the daddy things, and I think it made me look cooler.

But now he is eight, and I have a pull along that has rucksack handles hidden away. I have never used the rucksack handles. I don't give a rats bottom if I look cool.

If you've been to europe you know how many stairs ...

2008-10-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

If you've been to europe you know how many stairs there are. Try lugging that case up and down a few. I guarantee you'll wish you had a back pack.If your still in doubt get a backpack that has wheels and a handle. I believe blackwolf have them.

After backpacking for a year, I wanted to burn my ...

2008-10-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

After backpacking for a year, I wanted to burn my backpack... it's so practical in South America but heaving around a backpack in an urban situation - too much hard work. Now I try to take the smallest suitcase I can. Admittedly I'm now just doing month long trips but I aim to fit everthing into a carry-on size case. Having said that, I'm planning a trip to central america next year and might have to revert to the trusty backpack ;) But I'll certainly pack much less than my previous backpacking experience. Sally

On last year's trip to Mexico we did so much shopp...

2008-10-26T08:08:00.000-07:00

On last year's trip to Mexico we did so much shopping that we had to give up using backpacks and buy a set of three suitcases. Amazingly, carrying as much luggage as Posh and Becks was actually easier than attempting to get about with two rucksacks.

Unless you're walking or hiking with it, a suitcase is fine, especially when travelling between towns and cities. It's way easier to find things, too, as you just flip open the lid rather than unpack the entire thing.

I always use my backpack because of convenience. I...

2008-10-26T04:27:00.000-07:00

I always use my backpack because of convenience. It is easier to carry and squishable. I friend and I had to use the metro in Moscow. I had a nice squishable backpack she a non-squishy suitcase. I was very happy that my Russian is not very good. Probably could have learnt a few new cursewords. It was easier for me especially on the long way to the hotel and afterwards waiting for 12 ours in SVO. A lot easier to sleep on a backpack than a suitcase.

I too prefer backpack, because it enables free han...

2008-10-24T13:22:00.000-07:00

I too prefer backpack, because it enables free hands. Suitcase won't move anywhere without your hands:)

my husband and I went to europe for one month as b...

2008-10-24T07:01:00.000-07:00

my husband and I went to europe for one month as backpackers but we found very useful a small suitcase with the necessary clothing and personal things.
While we saw all those people carrrying huge backpacks, we saw also that they had problems in trains, planes and buses because the luggage was huge and did not fit into the left luggage or lockers in hostels.

When I was younger I think a backpack would have b...

2008-10-23T17:17:00.000-07:00

When I was younger I think a backpack would have been great for traveling rather than the eight suitcases I needed for me and my family.

Now I am much older and wiser I believe all the traveling I do now will be with, other than the comfortable clothes I will wear, only a credit card.

I am sure it will save me many a hold up and I can buy what I need overseas, including cases if I wish to bring anything back home.

OR... you could acquire a backpack...with wheels!t...

2008-10-22T16:59:00.000-07:00

OR... you could acquire a backpack...with wheels!

they are highly wonderful.

I have a 60litre pack that I can zip the straps aw...

2008-10-22T16:31:00.000-07:00

I have a 60litre pack that I can zip the straps away and use as a suitcase, which these days I do most of the time. It's easier, like you said, for getting on and off public transport and taxis. If I'm walking a long way I unzip the straps and backpack it. My friend Rishi recently went one better and bought a bag that does all that plus works as a stroller with small wheels and a handle. Its not ideal for Everest base camp but good for Indian train journeys and it is pretty cool and solid enough to keep clothes kinda fresh.

I agree with the backpack. I think it really depen...

2008-10-22T14:29:00.000-07:00

I agree with the backpack. I think it really depends though on where you are traveling. I recently traveled to Madrid, with my suitcase, and I regretted it. It was a pain going through the metro, and the cobbled streets. However, I am a big fan of the backpack, because even though it can be a bit cumbersome on the metro, or on buses, it's easier to carry than a suitcase up three flights of stairs.

I ditched my large heavy backpack after my trip ar...

2008-10-22T10:31:00.000-07:00

I ditched my large heavy backpack after my trip around the world!

My vote is to get a lightweight, comfortable carry-on (within airline FAA- 45 linear inch max). Avoid wheelies for stairs on public transport and old hotels. This way the airline won't lose your bag either.

I have been doing this for 3 years now AND even get around the silly liquid laws!

I use to always bring a back pack then one time wh...

2008-10-22T06:37:00.000-07:00

I use to always bring a back pack then one time when I was going to Peru I could not find it and brought a wheeled suitcase and have never looked back. The suit case fits almost everywhere better then a back pack and you can keep things more organized then in a back pack. The only problem I have had is trying to walk down a beach I felt a little foolish with itJ

My wife and I spent 3 weeks in Vietnam this past S...

2008-10-21T12:54:00.000-07:00

My wife and I spent 3 weeks in Vietnam this past September and she used an Eagle Creek backpack that had rollers and an extending handle at the top. Not once during the 3 weeks did she find it necessary to actually put it on her back, she just rolled it around. Of course, she did not look the part of the "hardened backpacker," but who cares when you don't have to lug your stuff around. Backpack makers seem to be making lots of hybrid backpack-suitcases these days, so a traveler does not need to choose one or the other.

I say be flexible. Don't be a snob. If the situati...

2008-10-21T12:38:00.000-07:00

I say be flexible. Don't be a snob. If the situation warrants a wheeled suitcase, then use it.

When I travel, I decide if I can get away with a s...

2008-10-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

When I travel, I decide if I can get away with a smaller (3100cu. in.) front loading backpack. I find it much easier to get around airports, stations, and definitely the roads to my hotel with a backpack this size. If I need more space, I opt for a rolling suitcase. A rolling suitcase and a fullsize ~5000 cu. in. backpack are about the same hassle to transport, and the suitcase is so much easier to pack, secure/lock, and put though a baggage check.

Hey, im of to Oz in (Nov) for 3 months.with a whee...

2008-10-21T02:35:00.000-07:00

Hey, im of to Oz in (Nov) for 3 months.
with a wheeled suitcase,
and back packing!
is this not entirely correct.
from an aged pommy Female (51) blonde

I'm for my third time in India with my suitcase :)...

2008-10-21T01:26:00.000-07:00

I'm for my third time in India with my suitcase :)
Glad I don't carry all my stuff on my back as I still have to carry my laptop-bag (for work), my handbag and a Tube (work related)
As i don't move from one place to another every day I'm very happy!
I did take buses, rikshaws trains etc... no problem
just know where you are going to makes it easy. I don't hang around with all my luggage

With the way air travel is now days it is way easi...

2008-10-20T21:07:00.000-07:00

With the way air travel is now days it is way easier to use a back back when you can!

I've traveled with suitcase carriers and it's brut...

2008-10-20T20:10:00.000-07:00

I've traveled with suitcase carriers and it's brutal pulling it anytime we have to walk for more than a few steps, especially on a bumpy or busy street.

The holy grail is the suitcase/backpack combo.

I think I should call myself a reformed backpacker...

2008-10-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

I think I should call myself a reformed backpacker. For years I travelled with a MEC travel backpack and have even got my kids using them. They can go carryon and look like a softsided bag when zipped up. Loved it. Even tho we never "climbed", I always appreciated the ability to pull out the straps and use as a backpack whenever longer walks were needed or stairs, or hopping trains in a hurry. However, I am now almost 50 and just returned from a 3 week trip to Central Europe and I (gasp) tried MEC's new carryon roll-on convertible backpack. Wow - airports and their long distances to gates are now a breeze and I still had the use of the backpack in Cesky Krumlov's cobbled streets and stairs. I think I've found a new love. Best of both worlds I could say. PS My friend just had a roll on (carryon size) and complained bitterly about stairs everywhere we encountered them. I refrained from saying I told you so.

I have a convertable packback/ luggage thing. It c...

2008-10-20T16:07:00.000-07:00

I have a convertable packback/ luggage thing. It can be rolled along very nicely with straps tucked in, or I pull out the straps and wear it as a backpack.

I went backpacking a few years ago in SE Asia - or...

2008-10-20T15:32:00.000-07:00

I went backpacking a few years ago in SE Asia - or at least my two friends did. I brought along a small rucksack, like the type you might bring stuff to the gym in. I was plenty smug a lot of the time, with my light load compared to their heavy bags, but in the end I caved in and bought a backpack in Vietnam, and some more clothes! It was too much hassle: not having enough stuff, constantly shopping for goods and then jettisoning them, constantly washing my clothes. I agree they're not suitable for every trip, but they are designed to be carried and you don't have to fill them either.

Anyway, those wheely bags are a menace and usually break after tow or three days.