Carry on suitcase dimensions

Check both Delta and Air France carry-on baggage size limits. That should tell you.

Do they measure the bags? How would they know if an inch too long?

The airlines typically have metal 3-sided boxes that you must place your bag into. If it doesn’t fit, you must pay to check it. These boxes are usually located at the gate. I’ve seen gate agents go around and pull people over to randomly check bag sizes. I’ve also had my bag weighed to make sure it is within the airline’s limit.

Airlines make a TON of money on extra baggage fees. European airlines are usually more restrictive with bag size & weight.

24 inches is a lot more than an inch too long. Yes they can easily tell the difference. And yes, they've gotten much more strict. Your suitcase doesn't come close to meeting the carry on size requirements for Delta and most other airlines.. Time to shop for a new bag.

24 inches is way too long for carry on

Here’s a chart
https://upgradedpoints.com/travel/airlines/carry-on-luggage-size-chart/

Delta's website specifically says, "Make sure your bag fits this size or reference size check displays located at ticket counters and gates.

"Combined length + width + height of baggage must not exceed 45 linear inches".

24" +15" +9" =48". That exceeds 45 linear inches. What part of "Combined length ... must not exceed 45 linear inches can you not understand? Your luggage is not a carry-on suitcase. Check it.

Why do people constantly try to push the limits? It says 45". Stay within those limit or check it.

The problem with your 24" is that the bins are made to take a 22" rollaboards put in with the wheels to the back of the bin. A longer suitcase won't fit in the 22" depth of the bin, so you will have to put it in sideways and it will take 24" instead of 9", and someone else is going to have to check their luggage.

I wish the airlines would take out any bag that is put in across the bin and check it on the following flight.

We carry only 21" ultra light swivel wheel carry on bags. And we can travel indefinitely following Rick Steves' packing list with some slight mods. And we never check any luggage.

Delta and the legacy air carriers are not as picky as some of the budget European air carriers when it comes to luggage. But as been said, a 22" carry on wheeled luggage is about all that the planes can handle.

My parents were world travelers, and I remember that huge suitcase my mother made him haul around. Poor guy.

21” is the best size for carryons if you plan to take different airlines.
Some airlines don’t accept anything bigger, especially in Europe.

The other thing is: this measurement MUST include the wheels!

24” is check in size, not carryon.

Check your airline’s (all of them) requirements, and take a carryon that fits the smallest of all the airlines.

Lots of info here on the forum on how to pack for two to three weeks in a 21” carryon, if you need to know.

Lucky you, going to Florence…..one of my favourite places !

Hi, most carry on limits for the longest dimension are 21-22” or smaller. So the suitcase that you mentioned isn’t a carry on. There’s many options on the market now. You might even want to begin at a TJ Maxx type store to see some that will be accepted on the plane. Also check the width because yours currently is too large in that dimension, also. Since the airlines have travelers set the suitcases into the bin wheels first, and then tilt them to set like a shelf of books, yours would be too close to the ceiling and stick out the front of the bin.

Would you rather just check your suitcase?

At 2-3 inches taller than spec, yours will stick out like a sore thumb among all the other carry-on bags at the gate.

. And at 24" it may not fit the overhead bin.

Do you think it will be a problem storing that in the overhead?

Regardless of the rules (which it does violate), it's only going to fit sideways taking up the room of 3 bags. Not nice.

So no, this will nit fit and you will have to check or gate check.

IF you are going to get a new bag make sure it’s compliant for the smallest dimensions you’ll encounter. For Delta and Air France, the AF size is smaller at 55cmX35cmX25cm. Look at the metric sizes of bags to fit. If you dig, all bags will have both centimeter and inch measurements. The inch measurement may not be as accurate when rounded up or down.

Be aware AF also has a combined weight limit for your carry on AND your personal item. It’s 12kilos or 26.4 pounds along with the size dimensions.

https://wwws.airfrance.us/information

Going for a new suitcase get the lightest that works for your needs.

I just obsessed about this last Fall, lol. I recommend starting a spreadsheet with your research info of suitcase size and weight! I wound up with the highly overpriced but light 21inch Osprey Ozone which has some peculiarities. Many go with the slightly heavier TravelPro 21inch International.

Thanks for your suggestions! Will buy a new bag. I didn't know how long the bin is. Would not want to take up space for other folks. We do have a smaller bag that we often use but it's quite old. Time for a new suitcase. Was trying to save some $ since the flights have gotten so expensive. We are truly looking forward to our trip. It's been 20 years since our last trip to Italy.

As mentioned if you are buying be very aware of the weight of the bag as well as the dimensions. You’ll have to keep the Air France total weight in mind even if you are starting on a Delta flight.

How much does your current bag weigh?

For the greatest flexibility, try and find a 21.5" x 14 x 9 as that is accepted by most. But not all, airlines. And a bag that is under 6 lbs. You can find decent ones for under $150 and a lot cheaper.

If interested, Macy's has a closeout on Travelpro 21" 2-wheel lightweight carryons.

https://www.macys.com/shop/product/closeout-travelpro-walkabout-5-21-2-wheel-softside-carry-on-created-for-macys?ID=10463163&CategoryID=20561&swatchColor=Ocean%20Blue%20Blue&swatchColor=Ocean%20Blue%20Blue

I just bought one so haven't had a chance to use it yet but we also have 24" Travelpro 2-wheelers - yes, we have to check them - that we've used (and loved) for 16 years or so and which have held up well.

Just be aware, when a bag is advertised as 21 inches, you still need to physically measure it. That travelpro just posted has exterior height of 23inches.
I too obsess about bag size limits. I love my travelpro maxlite 4? which I bought 6 years ago. The total height, with handle down is 21.6 inches. I've come across a few airlines that it's a tad too big for (Icelandair, aerlingus it was right at the max height).
If you have to buy a suitcase online, be sure to check all the questions and answers, or research the maker's site for exact dimensions. Online, you might be safer looking at 19 or 20 inch bags....

When we were in Rome in March, we browsed in a luggage shop and I was surprised that there were both American Tourister and Samsonite bags that I've never seen in the US (different models?) that were very light and small enough. Samsonite, I feel, has a very different definition of "lightweight" than me!

Sanomh--my Samsonite spinner weighs 4 lbs and measures 55 × 35 x 23. It's only available in the US from UK suppliers.

I think that's lighter than your Travelpro.

You're getting some great advice about buying a new, lightweight carryon suitcase. I would suggest really thinking about what you're packing. Personally, it's not a game about how to cram more into a bag or wear my heaviest clothes on the plane. We like being mobile, able to pack easily & travel between cities. I can comfortably travel with less than 18 pounds & a 21" carryon including a week's business trip & 2 weeks travel in late winter. Others will get by with even less. Once you get to Florence, you will be surprised how often you're walking over cobblestones, schlepping up stairs, blah blah with that suitcase, less is really best!
There is a lot here about how to pack light on the Forum - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/packing. I particularly liked Meghan’s report.https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/packing/a-mostly-successful-packing-report

Guess I'll find out but I'm not too worried about the size. Was sold as a carryon but yes, I knew it actually measured a bit over 21". Weight? Enough lighter than my 24", and I prefer 2 wheels to spinners. If I end up having to check it (or gate check it) so be it. It was more about the internal configuration and weight than anything, a brand I trust and a great price.

We just flew home from Washington DC a day ago and I could not believe the size and weight of bags Delta allowed people to bring into the cabin! Nope, sure wouldn't try that with some European airlines.

Frank - do you remember the model name of that samsonite? I'd love to get one. That's the size and weight we were seeing in Rome, but I haven't seen them here. Of course maybe I'm looking at the wrong places, mostly TJMaxx and Amazon.

Several years ago we bought really nice, small bags from TJMaxx, they have never been close to any maximum size and are incredibly light, but I haven't seen them in a while - it was not a name brand, but I believe it was a UK bag (not IT).
Thanks.

“ We are truly looking forward to our trip. It's been 20 years since our last trip to Italy.”

I hope you have a wonderful time, Sheila! I’ve stayed in 30+ cities in Italy, so if you have some questions about locations , feel free to post on the forum or send me a PM, if you’d like. It’s my favorite country to visit, along with France.

The dimensions for the TravelPro 5 posted on Macy's website give the height as 23", so it's definitely not a bag I'd trust as a carry-on without measuring it myself--and I don't think I've ever heard of a bag being significantly smaller than the manufacturer's stated size; it's normally the reverse.

I looked up the carryon website for the most commonly used long haul airlines: Air France, American, British Air, Delta, KLM, Lufthansa, Turkish Air and United.

A bag no larger than 55 x 35 x 23 (21.65 x 13.77 x 9.05) will work on any of the airlines I looked at.

I checked Personal Item size as well, although I worry less, because those are cheap bags and its not a problem to have a few. Still, the size that will fit all but Lufthansa is 40 x 30 x 15 (15.74 x 11.81 x 5.90). To include Lufthansa, well, their max bag depth is 3.9” so why bother.

One thing I did note was that a lot of the airlines gave metric and imperial and for the most part they generously rounded up for the imperial. More generously than I did. The 9.84cm bag was most often called 10” and 13.77” was often called 14”

Weight Restrictions were all over the map, so you will have to look those up. But 8kg on the Carryon and 4kg on the Personal Item will comply with all.

EasyJet had some sense to their Carryon, but Wizz and Ryan were a different story. It is like they went out and surveyed what everyone else was doing and purposefully did the opposite. While they were not “smaller” their proportions were contrary to the legacy airlines so they would bust out of the sizing box in one dimension while coming up short in another dimension. Don’t count on getting much use out of either your Carryon or your Personal Item from other airlines.

DONT TRUST ME ........... CHECK ME

Sanomh....the bag I use is the Samsonite Airea. It's not available in U.S. stores. There were two companies that shipped to the US--Selfridges and Amazon--but both are out stock.