17 Pound carry on limit......

Hi -
Can you be more specific? You mean if that's your only bag and you're not checking one? What airline are you flying? IMHO, it sort of is what it is: pack to the airline's weight specification or check a bag if it's too difficult for you to do that.

I find that I'm often initially close to the 22 lbs allowed by many airlines even on my outward bound trip (returning I check the bag and open a cloth "carryon" for charity shop finds:). I'm working on paring down---so I would have trouble with the 17 most of the time.

Depending on the trip, I wouldn't even try. I pack what I need for the trip I'm going on, and check it if I need to. Which is often the case. Contrary to popular belief, there is no prize for who can pack the least.

People pack in a variety of ways with multiple ranges of luggage weight. If you’re asking if that weight is possible then, yes, I pack within that weight.

It might help if you shared the specific requirements- size dimensions maximum allowed, and if the 17 pounds includes just the carry on or is it both the carry on & personal item weight combined.

I use a Cotopaxi Allpa35 as my luggage and a Sherpani tote with very lightweight purse inside. My combined would still meet that requirement, but it’s choosing items very intentionally. Let us know if you need help.

22 lbs. is more normal. Since I carry on my bag, I seldom have ever been checked for weight. They seem to be more interested in whether the bag will fit in their "rack."

Lufthansa will on occasion weigh your bags. I have had it occur at least once.

Don't know about United, but when we flew to Europe from Atlanta on Lufthasna they were quite strict about size and weight of carry on bags. Quite a few were gate checked.

I went to Berlin for a week in May 2019, flying with Lufthansa which has an 8kg (17.6lb) carry-on limit. My luggage only weighed 4 lbs (empty) which was a big help. I don’t remember exactly what I packed, but it was something like 1 pair of dress pants, 5 t-shirts (mix of long sleeve/short sleeve), 1 light-weight sweater, 1 lightweight scarf, enough socks/underwear/bras to go the week without washing, pajamas, ankle booties, and “dry” toiletries. I had my liquids, medication, and electronics in a small backpack which wasn’t weighed. I wore jeans, a long-sleeve t-shirt, sneakers, and a rain jacket on the plane. On more recent trips I've checked my luggage so haven't bothered to weigh it (and I definitely pack more).

My experience with Lufthansa is that they tend to be very concerned about weight. Have stood in more than one line when Lufthansa was weighing each bag. 17 is pretty light especially if you start with a five or six pound bag.

"I was curious if they were sticklers about the weight or more concerned about the size of the bag."

I would start with assuming they will weigh your bag.

And speaking of that have you weighed your bags empty? I was trying to meet Air France's weight limit a few years ago (22# with carryon bag and personal item combined) and finally got a new bag that weighs just 4.5#. I was under the combined limit and my carry on bag weighed 16.1# when I walked out the door.

As Jean says, you have to be intentional with your packing. For my trips I do as Jean does and I weigh every single item with a digital kitchen scale. Every packing cube, every pouch, every tee shirt, every pr of underwear. I recommend you start a spread sheet with weights including your toiletries and get yourself a hand-held luggage scale if you don't have one.

For a winter trip I'd start with the 32 Degree long underwear. They are very lightweight but warm. I wear them all winter here in Idaho. I'd get both the bottoms and the tops so you can wash one set after a few days and have a dry set to go. I'm sure they don't weight but a few ounces each.

You are right, you can board the plane wearing your outerwear and then stash it in your carry on if you've left room in it, lol. I DO remember the distant past when I was flying from my home near Tampa to the Mountain West in Septembers. It was still 95 there and 60 out here....yes, wore jeans and my jacket, lol.

I just flew with Lufthansa from the US to Munich. Ironically, after weeks of obsessively weighing each item, making adjustments, using a 2 lb backpack and ready to take out my first aid pouch and put it in my coat pocket (that's exactly how much I was over!) it turned out, since I was continuing on Lufthansa from another USA flight, since I only had the carry on I didn't have to go through security again, just straight to the Lufthansa gate. Where it wasn't even looked at!
However, their sizers looked like they had a scale component that the item rested on? I didn't actually see them in use so am not certain this is true.
As far as keeping to the 18 lb limit I can only do it with a backpack. One tip for a winter trip is an excellent sweater- for a week in Quebec last December I wore my bulky very warm turtleneck with my snow parka into the plane, and my heavy boots. I wore the sweater almost every day and just rotated the 3 lightweight merino tops. A plus for colder temps (at least for me!) is because I'm always cold things don't feel as sweaty as say, a day of walking around in the hot sun.
I think some of us here regard meeting the stringent limit as a personal challenge- I do! But only you can decide if that's for you. If you decide to try I have received such helpful feedback when I post my list that needs help!

If you stay on United, those limits would not apply. Usually, even changing to Lufthansa mid journey, you are OK, on a very small plane for the last leg, you might have to gate check, but no problem doing so. If you arrive at an airport, for a Lufthansa flight, then yes, the limits apply.

All can be avoided by checking a bag, no harm in that for those limits.

If you’re worried about size and weight, fly United. Carry on size is 22x14x9 inclusive of handle and wheels. A Google search says weight limit is 50 lbs; as if most of us can lift that into overhead. My goal is 20 lbs but usually hit closer to 22.
Personal item size is 17x12x10. From experience I know that won’t fit under all seats so I use a very squishable tote.

If you are concerned about your wife needing to meet the restriction, there are many things that she can do to meet it. 1) Make certain all of her clothing items will go with every thing else; 2) 2 bottoms, including what wearing on the plane; 3) 4 tops including what wearing on the plane; 4) 1 dress and 1 pair of leggings; 5) cardigan or sweater; 6) wear heavy shoes on plane and pack lightest pair; 7) wear packable jacket on plane. There are loads of packing websites to help her. Her Packing List is a good place to start. The woman who started that site has traveled for 3 weeks with a handbag so there is much to be learned. Also, merino wool clothing can make her wardrobe choices simple because it is an amazing fabric that will keep her warm when layered or wick away sweat in the warmth. It also does not need laundering because it will not stink. But if she should want to do so, she can wash it in the sink or shower and it will dry over night. Good luck and happy travels...

Regarding United Airlines, United has no maximum weight limit for carry-on luggage, but one does need to get their own bag into the overhead bins. Checked luggage on economy fares is 50lbs. There are luggage shipping services that do make the claim that United's carry-on allowance is 8kg, but they're a shipping service with a business interest in you shipping.

I once went to Italy in the Summer. I packed 4-5 days worth of clothes, etc.. My final pack weight - pack + contents = 13 - 14 lb.s.
It’s doable. Need to be a bit judicious when packing. Use a backpack = eliminates the heavy wheels,
Stay around 35 - 40 liters.

Pam mentioned the 32 Degree clothing. For cold days, I have layered 1 of their micro-thin scoop neck tops under a warm shirt or even just wore two of the micro-thin tops together in contrasting colors, i.e. plum & black, with a nice necklace.

Another packing hack when we were in Switzerland was wearing a pair of cheap tights or nylons under my pants. I’m allergic to wool, so I can’t wear the Merino wool, but many recommend that option, too.

The advantage of winter is that people will mostly see your coats, hat & gloves, so have her pick out a special hat or pair of gloves that she would like in photos.

OP. You should simply check your bags. It relieves you of the anxiety of the weight problem, the size problem. It relieves you the anxiety of the trying to get on ASAP so you have an overhead to put your bag. It relieves you of the carrying, dragging, rolling your bag through the airport and taking up space at restaurants with your bulky luggage. It relieves you of another thing to deal with going through security. It relieves you of concern about liquid volumes at TSA.
The pros outweigh the cons. The only con is a lost bag and the odds of that are slim.
There are so many threads here on carry on concerns. All easily alleviated by checking your bag.
I am so ready for airlines to start charging for carry-ons. And to charge more than to check.

The pros outweigh the cons. The only con is a lost bag and the odds of that are slim.
There are so many threads here on carry on concerns. All easily alleviated by checking your bag.

I'm with you on that. i still pack light but do not have to agonize over each item and whether I will be over the limit. And the best part is that you're free of your bag at the airport. No more trying to squeeze it into a toilet stall or having to take it and your personal bag to get coffee. It's so nice to be rid of it for awhile. :-)

. No more trying to squeeze it into a toilet stall

Yes! I love the airports where the bathroom stall doors swing out, not in.

Posted by Trotter 06/26/24 09:25 PM 1438 posts . No more trying to
squeeze it into a toilet stall

Yes! I love the airports where the bathroom stall doors swing out, not
in.

And the ones where your knees aren't touching the door while seated!

Now if they could only install reinforced heavy duty hooks in the side walls for hanging tote bags.

We flew on Lufthansa to Sicily in April. We always do carry-ons on the way there and our suitcases typically weigh about 22-25 lbs. For this trip we did carry-on with our stuff packed in RS Convertible Carry-Ons which were just under the limit 17lb limit and we checked our empty wheeled suitcases. On arrival we opened up our suitcases and dropped the carry-ons in. If we didn't get our suitcases we would have had all our stuff but no wheels. When we got to a hotel, we took out the carry-ons and put the suit-cases aside until it was time to move to the next hotel.

Carol F… I was thinking of doing this with the empty suitcases. Since this trip is a Christmas market trip I am anticipating some purchases of Christmas things by my wife. We may place the convertibles inside the cases for embarkation trip to Germany and then we would carry on the convertibles for debarkation trip from Germany. Paying very close attention to weight limits and the customs requiremnts on the carry-ons.

The empty cases would Provide us with space for the purchases. I am still strong enough to carry 2 convertibles on my back ( good old army training) quite a distance (for miles on recent hikes, I carried both our packs). And I still love her…..LOL.

Glad someone else has done something like this. We will rent car for trip. So free’s up carrying the cases on to trains. Allows us to bring a larger checked bag as well. Will pack empty day bags in the suitcases as well, to use for daytime excursions.

Be careful to check which airline is actually taking you over to Europe. We usually travel carry-on only, but when we booked a United Airlines flight for our Viking Danube River Cruise in June 2024, we noticed that we were actually flying on Austrian Airlines, which has a 8kg weight limit for carry-ons (there was no weight limit for personal bags). Even though United's carry-on limit may have been 22lbs, the carrier you actually fly on sets the limit. At the Austrian gate in New York, you could not board the flight until your carry-on was sized and weighed.

Even though our excess over the 17.6lb limit was minimal, we ended up checking in a carry-on sized bag which allowed us to bring a few more items than we had planned to and also room to bring home some gifts for friends.

Fortunately there was no size or weight limit on our personal bag as long as it would fit under the seat. When we were passing by the Icelandic Air gate, we noticed a personal bag sizer that looked like anything wider than a briefcase would not fit!

One more thing. We usually fly carry-on only per Rick Steves due to the convenience factor and also to avoid the risk of losing luggage. On our return to SFO this week we noticed that the only bag we checked-in did not make it. Our Airtag showed that it was still in Frankfurt where our layover was! Fortunately United delivered it to us the next day.

We flew Lufthansa to Spain 2 years ago. The carry-on had an 8kg limit. However, you are also allowed to carry a secondary personnel item which had a size limit but did not have a weight limit. I divided all my stuff between my carry-on bag and my personal item. I put all my heavy electronics and liquids into the personal item. After I passed inspection and check-in, I transferred all of my personal item back into my carry-on.

In October, our family is traveling to Japan. Zipair has a strict total 8 kg carry-on policy. We plan to check in one big bag to carry any of the heavy stuff for five of us and each of us will carry on the 8 kg.