For people who travel with a backpack…hip belt vs waist belt vs no belt

It all depends on the final weight...and maybe your age? I am 65 (5'8"). 10 years ago, I used a full sized 'travel' back pack for a month in Ecuador, so it was fairly heavy. It was a good design for plane travel as a flap zipped up over the pack gear, but that also meant I was carrying it over my shoulder or in hand more than actually as a pack. But when it was a pack, padded waist belt meant I could carry it the 2 km when we got off at the wrong bus stop.
Now I carry a small, lightweight 20 inch one for domestic travel. No waist belt, so I feel it on the shoulders when full. I do have trigger points in my upper back after too much desk and computer work, so it isn't just carrying a pack that triggers it, but I wanted to mention.
Waist belts are recommended for comfort regardless, but another necessity is a sternum strap. If pack doesn't come with one, you can buy them cheap from Amazon. Really help to take a load off upper back.
Oh, and a waist belt should actually take the weight almost entirely, but if, as you say, small pack, then maybe the length won't allow it. At your height, I suggest keeping to a man's design rather than a women's special design.
I really like the YouTube reviews by Pack Hacker.

https://www.osprey.com/us/en/product/fairview-40-travel-pack-FAIRVEW40F22_550.html

I travel with the Osprey Fairview 40L. I just came back from 18 days in London and Southern England. Using packing cubes keeps items organized. Easily fit in the overhead on American Airlines. I love the hip belt because it really does help distribute the load. On travel days I probably carried the pack no more than 25 minutes at a time. And I can tell the difference when I'm not using it. The shoulder straps are fully adjustable and plus they are stowable inside and out of sight, and frees my hands up! I am 5'2" and this packs works for me perfectly! I also carry an Osprey 15 L for under my seat.

Hi Lyndash, I have the Cotopaxi 35L, and it states it as a waist belt. But, I was wearing it with the weight on my hips. One day I had the belt sitting up higher and immediately noticed the difference, so I adjusted it into place. I was moving locations every day or every two days for a month except for Ljubljana & London being four days each.

Just out of curiosity, I looked at the features of the Cotopaxi 42L, and it states the belt as a hip belt, yet looks like the exact same thing. They market my bag as "great for weekends" & the 42L as "great for extended trips". I just finished a great 30-day "weekend trip" - LOL!

I'm 5'2" and my travel backpack is the older model of the Fairview 40 when Osprey made it in two sizes: XS/S and M/L. I have the XS/S. I have also traveled with an Osprey Porter 46. Because I'm short, the Porter 46's hip belt didn't transfer the weight on to my hips. Standing in lines, walking across terminals let alone walking a couple of miles was brutal. With the Fairview the hip belt transfers the weight and while I still feel weight on my shoulders it's fine. I wouldn't want to go on a long hike with it but it's great for travel. I try to keep the total weight of the pack below 20 pounds.

So your 35L pack, Jean, is about the same size as the standard 22x14x9 carry on, but I think you travel with a lot less than the typical carry on bag as I remember reading how light you pack. Do you have extra room and you cinch your bag down to fit? I used to take the standard 22” but my newer 2 wheel is 20” and works better for me.
Also I see pictures of packs very high up on people’s backs and also lower down. Do you just figure out which is the most comfortable feel for you?

It looks like there are a couple of REI's near you. Before you make a purchase I'd go try on packs. Usually the REI staff has some training in being able to fit packs to people so that might be helpful. They may or may not have the packs you are looking at though although I do see they carry the Cotopaxi and the Osprey lines.

I've "aged out", lol, of carrying a backpack BUT I have one I use for hiking and sometimes for a personal item. It drives me nuts because the shoulder straps feel too wide for my shoulders. Yes, I've got aging shoulders and they are not as square as they were in my "heyday" but it's really annoying. I mention it because I'd never thought about that with pack fitting. Just make sure it hits you correctly across there!

Pam I’m your age I think, 1950 model, and have probably aged out as well😁. But I have consistently gotten my packing down over the years and putting it all in a 2 lb bag as opposed to a 4-5 lb one seems intriguing to me And then to be hands free is also very appealing. But the issue of how it would feel after an hour or so getting from plane to subway to hotel is also a big concern. I definitely would need professional advice and REI is a great resource. A big part of it would have to be the fit of the bag and where you carry the weight I would think.

Pam beat me to it. I was going to add that if you are serious about going with a backpack you should go to REI or similar. The staff is generally well informed and can help guide you. They’ll measure your torso and ask about your travel style and show you how to fit the pack for max comfort. While in the store they’ll load up a pack for you with different amounts of weight so you’ll know how it feels. Their return policy is pretty generous so if you bought a pack and gently used it to walk 30 minutes or so around your neighborhood and didn’t like it you could return it.

I picked the 22x12x10” version vs. the slightly larger 22x14x11” Cotopaxi 42L. I had a different brand cheap backpack that’s 14” wide that I used domestically, and I noticed a nice difference with my shoulder back width being reduced down two inches, plus the waist/hip belt. It felt more in control & trimmer.

I don’t need to cinch mine even when not stuffed full because of the design. There’s mesh dividers in the clamshell design to contain the contents. I didn’t need to fill the front top zipper portion, and it stayed somewhat empty.

Yes, the advertising photos show people wearing them up on their waist instead of lower.

I agree that it’s best to go try any options you’re considering in a physical store, and the REI or others can give you advice. I tried several brands on for feel besides all of my on-line research of features before ordering mine. (I would have purchased it in the store, but they didn’t have the color I wanted.)

I also have the Osprey Fairview 40. Huge difference when I don't use the hip belt. It really helps!

But I have consistently gotten my packing down over the years and putting it all in a 2 lb bag as opposed to a 4-5 lb one seems intriguing to me.

I don't know of too many backpacks that are only 2 lbs - at least not the 30L ones and bigger. Maybe some small day packs, but my Cotopaxi 35L is 3.8 lbs. Still less than my TravelPro Maxlite carry-on, which is 5.4 lbs, but definitely not 2 lbs. And some backpacks are even heavier.

Jean, very nice design, especially the clamshell. Sort of minimalist which is perfect. If the dimensions were a tad different, I would get one. But I know the way I pack and it wouldn't fit the airline sizer if I packed it. But maybe perfect for someone with more self control than me. Liked it a lot. Thanks.

I'm a 78-year-old female, about 5'3", 110 pounds and since 2000 have traveled with a backpack suitcase, no belt of any kind. This includes 21 trips to Europe, including one in May 2023 that moved every two days. I couldn't do a hiking/camping type backpacking trip but, for city travel, I have no trouble with it. I am seldom required to spend an hour with the pack on my back, but I could do so and have done several uphill hikes to a lodging. My bag weighs 3 or 3.5 pounds and I try to leave home with it weighing no more than 17 pounds.

A hip belt helps a ton with the weight if the pack fits properly. What fits best is very individual based on your physical characteristics. Going to REI is an excellent plan.

(I have a Osprey Porter 30 that works very well for me.)

Wow Janet, first you rock, 17 lbs on your shoulders alone. I would think no waist or hip belt would really be uncomfortable.

So when you are traveling wearing your backpack and you get on train/subway etc. Do you leave it on and sit way forward or shift it to the front of your body and get back into it after you are walking away? That is another thing I wonder about in regards to ease of use.

I lean more to using just a standard sized school type backpack with no waist belt. If you pack light enough you don't need to worry about move some weight to your hips.

On subway, I hope for an empty seat beside me! Otherwise, I take it off and put it on my lap and wrap my arms around it. On train, it's usually a longer distance and more likelihood of empty seats. If not, I put it in the luggage rack above my seat.

Just my 2 cent :-)

I traveled all off June this year in England with my trusty old regular RS back pack (moving 11 times), but I also regularly hike at home with a back pack with a waist/hip belt (not sure which is which, but this belt is meant to take the weight off the shoulders).

I was glad I chose the back pack BECAUSE I was moving around a lot. I really really enjoy having my hands free, when I have to pay the bus driver, or when I have to climb a high train (getting less and less often these days. Most trains are low entry).

The waist/hip belt is supposed to lay on top of your hips, not pressing around them. I.e. a conical belt is better than a cylindrical belt. This took me years to learn :-(

The back pack should NOT contain any important stuff (money, camera, computer, passport, prescription medicin). You should be able to gate check it without fear of losing anything or risking anything breaking up. SImilarly with leaving it at your seat in the train to go to the restaurant car or the toilet. Or stashing it in the luggage department under a bus/coach.

Try a back pack with weight in it. Many shops will have them already weighted if you shop in the start of the season. But also try them out for as long a trip as you anticipate you will use it. Beware they don't give you pack for a short back, but being tall that should be a lesser problem for you. I'm short, but have a long back, the shortness is mainly in my legs, and I always get a pack which is too short :-(

For reference I'm male, 168 cm, 68 years.

A "hip belt" and "waist belt" are pretty much synonymous. Perhaps a hip belt may have more padding and a waist belt may be more like a strap with buckles. Obviously, a belt with padding will be more comfortable and better at distributing the weight on your hip or waist.

The better backpacks will have an internal frame or structure to transfer the weight to your hips. My bag has aluminum stays and is built for heavy loads, but it is marketed as a military or camping bag. The decent travel bags have a lightweight plastic or wire frame. A floppy bag or one with just a pad in the bag is not as good at weight transfer and most of the weight will sag and hang on your shoulders. However, if you overpack, use packing cubes or compress tightly, you can create the necessary internal structure to transfer more of the weight on your hips.

Torso length and the height of the bag are also factors. IMO, you are generally better off with a relatively shorter torso and a relatively taller bag. If you are a sherpa and are doing heavy backpacking, it is better to have the hip belt and more than 90% of the weight right on top of your pelvis bone. The shoulder straps are there just to keep the load from shifting backwards or left and right. You should feel more pressure on the front of your shoulder or chest and not so much on top of your shoulders or neck. Chest straps help to distribute weight across your chest and not on top of your shoulders. The bag should rest on low on top of the hips and ride high on the shoulders.

This is actually easier for short women and I always find it funny when they say they need a shorter travel bag to fit them. Travel bags are more of a problem for tall people. That is because a carry-on backpack is limited to about 20-22 inches in height. For a tall person with long torso, when the bag rests on the hips, the relativley shorter bag will hang lower off the shoulders putting more weight on the top of the shoulders. I am almost 6 feet with a longer torso. In order to get the weight of the travel bag off my shoulders, I lift the bag and cinch the waist belt tighter across my gut. The so called hip belt actually sits above my hips in order to get the weight off my shoulders. A 24-30" tall bag would probably fit me better, but obviously I would not be able to travel with it as a carry-on. On the other hand a 22" bag can have the hip belt sit low on the hip bone of a shorter person and have the shoulder straps sit higher with almost no weight on the shoulders.

Jean, I have been so interested in why you chose the 35L instead of the 42L ever since I saw the 42L version in REI last month. Now you have addressed that ! Thank you

As an aside to the topic of this thread, I find the hip/waist (really hip) belt essential to carrying a backpack comfortably.

I have a Gregory, which has torso-length adjustment. The last time I used it, I had just grabbed it -- forgetting I had been so tired on the return from my previous trip that I had made my husband come meet me at Gare du Nord and carry my pack. Well I forgot that obviously he had changed the length of the straps just to throw it on his back -- and it felt HORRIBLE on my for my walk from the train to my lodging in Amboise ! I made sure to adjust it once I got in the apartment, for the walk back !!!!

I, too, would suggest you go to REI or a similar store and get fitted. I always hated backpacks (and I still do, busty women don't look good in them, LOL, but vanity aside...) I needed one to walk on the Camino Frances. I was fitted and taught how to adjust the pack. Between a travel backpack and a walking backpack, there is no comparison for ease of carrying weight, IMO. All the weight was on my hips with great hip belts. It is an Osprey 34 liter bag, which has a 1/2 thick length of 22 inches, which is still carryon on the international flights I take (and a 32 liter would likely be shorter?). My bag weighed about 12 to 14 lbs, so pretty light, depending on how much water and how many snacks I had. When a pack fits you, your pack becomes part of you. I walked up to 15 miles a day with this pack. Pretty good for a 69 year old. It has so much to do with the fit and hip/waist belt. I actually miss wearing my pack as it became such a good friend. So...get fitted and consider a non-travel backpack as well for the better fit,

Thanks all for your responses. I need to get myself to REI to see what various packs would actually feel like. I was thinking they would be lighter than they are and also I think I would need to wear one for one of my morning walks before I would know what it might be like under travel conditions in the real world.

Pam -

Does your backpack have a sternum/chest strap? If it does, do you use it?

I ask because I wore my Osprey 38L Mutant for quite a while, shrugging and shuffling my shoulders as the straps constantly slid off my (not inconsiderable) shoulders. Then one day I fastened the sternum strap and the pack went from disappointment to revelation in an instant. Turns out the sternum/chest strap is just as important as the hip/waist belt.

I’ve just ‘invested’ in my first rolling luggage, which has a concealed backpack carrying system. There’s no hip belt or sternum strap but I’m thinking of adding a sternum strap (you can get them as ‘spare parts’ from some pack manufacturers) for future use. It goes without saying that I fasten the sternum strap on all my packs, even the small, day use only ones. Just so much more secure and comfortable.

Ian

Hi Lyndash, another feature I think can be very valuable is load lifters, which can help adjust how the pack fits and how the weight carries. Just a thought. I, too, recommend a visit to REI. And if you’re a member, the return policy is super generous.