I tend to buy the cheapest available. For a couple of reasons. They tend to be given a torrid time by baggage handlers as we all know, and if your going to be doing a lot of travelling they are bound to get mucked up and marked. If it's a cheap bag it won't matter.

Also cheap inconspicuous bags tend not to attract any attention from the wrong sorts, just get some bright coloured electrical tape and form a distinct pattern somewhere on the bag such as around the handle, enabling to you to easily identify it. And if all goes wrong and your bag just won't take any more, just walk into Walmart or Target and buy another cheapie.

Where in the US are you heading? I'll be in Spokane WA, visiting a good friend and former work colleague in October. White's boots here I come!

Bought some Sub-0-G cases a couple of years back when luggage kgs were very limited as they are about the lightest cases. Got carry on sizes, and large.

They seem quite thin and flimsy but have stood up to many journeys better than more heavy solid cases I've ever had, and we can carry quite a few extra kgs as a result, so the wife can expand her baccy purchasing when returning. They have a 10 yr guarantee, I can now see why.

If you are traveling around and doing hostels, is turning up on the doorstep with a set of matching Samsonite suitcases really the image that you wish to project ?

Personally I always favor canvas kitbags, many moons ago when I was doing a bit of flitting back and forth to the carribean on business (yes, on business, it was hard work, really) I bought a large Head canvas "sports" bag and it served me well for many years until I bust the zip on it one day and even after that I continued to use it with the zip held together with safety pins.

It helps if you don't travel with breakables of course but a canvas kit-style bag cant get scuffed or battered about and is easy to sling over your shoulder and carry leaving you with two free arms for tickets, passport, beer and other important things.

It also sends my wife into fits of panic as she believes that all airport workers are just waiting to stuff huge amounts of drugs into baggage that can't be locked and even though I tell her that anyone is welcome to help themselves to my underpants, especially the ones that haven't been washed yet, she still insists on me tie-wrapping the zips before sending them down the luggage belt at the airport - which was a tad unfortunate once when customs called me back and asked me to open the bag and I couldn't because as I explained to them you aren't allowed to carry knives or scissors in airports and I always rely on the hotel at the other end having some, they had to go and find some scissors of their own



And the thing that made them call me back after the bag had been x-rayed ?

Just 20 foot of ropelight lying on top of my clothes, fortunately they didn't ask why I was taking it to Barbados as my reasons were a bit flimsy and consisted of "he made me do it"

I haven't used a suitcase for travel abroad for the last couple of decades, preferring instead to check-in a large rucksack, sometimes also taking a small daysack as cabin baggage.
Mind you, apart from the walking boots that are usually needed as most of my hols include some form of walking or hiking, the clothing I take is always lightweight, quick-drying garments that are quite happy in that kind of luggage.

For anyone taking a lounge suit and multiple pairs of shoes, I have no advice.

For my last two five day trips to Portugal hand luggage only has sufficed and I was still 3kg under the cabin bag allowance



When the wife and I went to Corfu we had two, 22kg allowances plus cabin bags and she used every last gram, I'll let you guess which one of us seemed to dominate all of the bags - it was the opposite one to the one who had to carry them all.

That's the way to do it.

The actual non-hiking clothing I take weighs very little, what tops-up the space in the rucksack is the boots and walking gear (it's not just in British mountains where it can be cold and rainy).
Even then, they don't weigh that much and I am never anywhere near the baggage allowance limit.

I take a separate daysack because a) there's no way I'm checking-in my camera and (sometimes) lenses, I want them under my own supervision and b) I need the daysack for the actual walking/hiking.

For a long-weekend City Break, we get everything for the two of us in just one bag under the cabin baggage size and take a foldable bag inside that in case we are bringing stuff back from shopping (usually food).