Tag: Osprey

A few years ago, as we planned for our first extended trip abroad, my love decided that we would travel solely out of carry-on sized backpacks. Shocking as this was to me at first, I remember that I’ve always been a light packer. Admittedly, not for 14 days, but it was certainly worth a try. I couldn’t deny that it would save us a good chunk of money as well.

You can find my post about how I pack for extended vacations here.

After a good bit of research, and a lot of thinking about it, Oliver spotted some Osprey backpacks on sale.

“They’re supposed to be pretty good,” he said with a shrug, “and they are on a good sale. I think we should do it.”

Probably the best travel purchase we have ever made. The Osprey Porter 30-Liter Travel Duffel is an incredible backpack, especially for travel, and here’s why:

• It opens like a suitcase. No more of the prioritized stacking like packing in a normal backpack, this time I could lay it on it’s side and pack it like any other suitcase. This feature also makes everything in the backpack easy to access at any time. It also makes frequent unpacking and repacking easier because you can see all the space you need to fill.
• It’s a carry-on sized suitcase made of cloth on all sides so it fits so many more things. Coming home from any of our trips abroad, we have every ounce of our backpacks stuffed out in all compartments. Our first trip home, I was amazed at everything that fit. Since there aren’t hard case constraints, you can really max out the packing space.

• It fits the qualifications for carry-on for almost all travel – even tricky budget airlines with stringent guidelines.
• You can stow away all parts of the straps and carry it on it’s side if needed (particularly helpful on airplanes) and then easily pull them back out when needed. Having the plush, cushioned straps is great for walking from one side of the city to the other, but they only get in the way when trying to stow them for travel.
• There are straps specifically made to make the backpack smaller. We usually pack anything breakable or fragile right in the middle, buried in clothes (or keep it in one of the looser outer compartments) then stuff everything in and pull the straps tight. This results in shrinkage of 2″to 3″ – crucial for making those tight carry-on requirements.
• It’s water resistant. We’ve taken this for a road test, having walked through most of Brighton (in England) during a freezing fall downpour. Our clothes were soaked through, but the contents of our backpacks remained dry.

• Also remember those cushioned straps? There are both shoulder straps with good, thick padding, and also a strap for the hips. It seems excessive until you’re walking from one end of Naples to the other in 80 degree weather. Then it’s perfect to be able to make sure most of the weight is transferred to your hips rather than your shoulders.
• They are durable. When I find something I love, I will wear it through because I use it all the time. These backpacks have been through planes, trains, rain, multiple packing and unpacking, stuffed in all manner of corners, dropped in the dust, kicked and tossed about, and every part of them still works like new. I don’t even see any visible signs of wear.
• There are lot of perfectly sized compartments. The main compartment is large and spacious. Then there is an upper compartment – perfect for cords and chargers. A front, smaller compartment hosts many pockets and zippers and places to keep pens, toothbrushes, all of our toiletries, tickets, documents… and finally a great front compartment where we usually slide thinner notebooks and puzzle books for easy access.

Overall, I couldn’t be happier. They are sturdy, comfortable, and spacious backpacks that hold up to all sorts of scenarios. These backpacks make travel a breeze.

Have any concerns or questions I didn’t address above? Have you tried these backpacks too and have your own thoughts? Feel free to comment below!