Osprey Transporter 44L carryon

We each have an Osprey Porter, but I think ours are smaller than the 46. Maybe 30? We bought them in 2017 and they have held up well. We've been very happy with them. We will be using them again for our 3rd trip to Europe next month. We've used them for domestic trips as well. I'm in my 60s and I can carry it on my back for about 45 minutes. Then it gets tiresome.

Fairview is designed specifically for a woman's torso but that's only a factor if you are planning to carry it fully loaded for miles at a time. There is an advantage to the smaller bag: converting to carryon-only becomes far easier–there simply is no room for all that stuff you don't really need.

One can shop endlessly through dozens of great travel backpacks but you've already narrowed all those choices down to three terrific bags. You cannot go wrong with the Osprey brand. So, stop looking, order the one you want, and start the mass reduction required to get your traveling essentials organized and settled into the new bag. If you spend a few hours on the yootoobs you should find useful clips and actual user reviews of the Osprey bags to supplement the visuals provided by Osprey.

Hope you will consider posting your story about converting to carryon. Plenty of websites and assistance right here on RS. I recommend herpackinglist.com if you have not been there before. packhacker.com and onebagtravels.com are searchable.

Happy travels!

I have both the Porter 46 and the Fairview 40. I have the Fairview in the xs/s size which means it really holds 38L. I’ve used both for domestic and international travel. Because I’m short at 5’2” and my torso is also short I like the Fairview better. The hip belt and shoulder straps transfer the weight to my hips better than the Porter. For me, the Fairview also feels more structured and therefore easier to manage.

Edit to add: something else to consider is weight. The Porter 46, being able to hold more, might tempt you to overpack and lead you to haul more weight than you might be comfortable with. I generally keep my bag in the 18lb range. And I have yet to find myself wishing I had more stuff than could fit in my Fairview. I’ve been able to fit clothes needed for a 3 week business/vacation trip which included hiking in the Scottish Highlands and business dinners at Michelin starred restaurants in Dublin.

I made this leap too! I bought a larger Fairview 70 l back pack for our upcoming trip, but it has to be checked. I did a test run on a biz trip back east with this 70l pack and it was great and freeing to be hands free not to have to roll a bag. Especially when we had steps to navigate to our hotel room. After reading about the baggage issues, my husband and I bought the 40l Osprey's.

I got the women specific Fairview- he got the Farpoint. When I saw the 40l I thought "no way will everything fit!" But it does! It's amazing how much it can hold. Having a women's specific bag makes a huge difference, too. I'm petite and got the small size. It is so comfortable.

Hints:
I created a capsule wardrobe. I packed my new 40l bag with everything I want to take to Europe. Shoes, coats, outfits, makeup, sundries--everything I needed to feel and look great. Everything fit and I didn't do a perfect job packing. The bag weighs less and I can easily lift it. I am very excited to be backpacking through Europe 40 years after I thought that would be cool to do-hahahahaha. It will easily fit in the overhead bin.

I figure I can buy sundries there if necessary if I run out of something. No "just in case" stuff. We will be using DHL to ship purchases back to the states-- part of our pre tour is going to buy Christmas gifts in Germany. Shipping can be expensive but it's worth it to us.

I use an app called Smart Closet that catalogues all my clothes, shoes, bags, etc. It's easy to go through and combine outfits--it's amazing how few clothes are really needed when you start playing with combinations. Whether or not you use an app, just put everything out on the bed and start mixing and matching. I ended up editing a knit dress out and substituting a skirt. The dress would've been great but took up too much space.

I bought some bungy cords to help secure my lightweight puffer coat to the outside of my backpack so it is not only accessible, but doesn't take up space in my bag. We are going in the fall, but the weather forecast will have the final say as to what I'll pack of course.

I bought a super cool washing bag on Amazon to easily rinse out clothes--this cuts down on bringing undies and socks. Most of my 1 st layer clothes are quick drying.

I'm very excited about us using these Osprey packs and being nimble and free without dragging a bag and being forced to be organized and creative. It's quite fun really. Bottom line-- I think you will love the 40l Fairview and it will fit everything you need.

I have both the Porter 46 and the Farpoint 40 and I barely use the Porter anymore. I am not a big fan of the side flaps that get tightened around the porter when strapped, they just always seem to be in my way. I also like the mesh pockets on the Farpoint.

If you are concerned about dimensions changing pack it like you are going on your trip. That way you can see what happens to your pack when it’s loaded with your stuff.

I'd recommend going to packhacker.com and reading their reviews on these bags. Just put the name of the bag in the search bar at the top left and it comes right up. They have a really handy feature which tells you if they are carryon compliant with certain airlines. Depending on the airlines you plan to fly, the Fairview 40 is the most likely to meet carryon dimension requirements, and is the highest rated. 4-6 L isn't that much more space - if you are worried about fitting everything, can you get a slightly larger personal item?

Has anyone compared the Osprey Porter and Rick's Carry-on bag?

Has anyone compared the Osprey Porter and Rick's Carry-on bag?

Side by side, bit by bit? Probably not. They are aimed at different users with different needs. Materials, suspension systems, closures, product assembly, and the fact that Osprey has products specifically designed for the female torso tend to separate one company's carryon bags from the other's. Osprey builds stuff stoutly, meant for a lifetime of outdoor activity and abuse. RS bags? Eh, not all that much but there are happy RS owners here on the forum who have been lugging their bags around for tens of thousands of miles.

A more appropriate comparison might be RS and eBags' Motherlode series. Hmm, the ML range has diminished and the price almost doubled since I last looked.

https://www.ebags.com/ebags/mother-lode/

I am a 5'6" 57 F and have both the Porter46 and Fairview 40 S/M.

I purchased my Porter in 2016 so I don't know if the design has changed since then. In 2019, my son traveled with me so I used that as an excuse to buy the Fairview 40. I expected to give the Porter to him and use the Fairview myself. But, it turns out that I love my Porter, so my son carries the smaller bag and I still take the Porter when traveling alone.

Since I started traveling internationally in 2015, I have drastically decreased what I pack. My Porter weighed under 18 pounds for my 17 day trip to Europe this past May. I could have easily fit another 10 pounds of stuff in there. My personal item is a medium Tom Bihn messenger bag.

I think both bags are fantastic. If I didn't have the Porter I would happily carry the Fairview.
I like the Porter better because:
*I like the appearance better. I love the nitro green color and the tortoise-like flaps.
* I like the structure of the bag better. It stays open when packing and unpacking.
* I like that the straps are heartier. My son never uses the waist strap, but I rely heavily on both the waist and chest straps
* I like that even though I usually don't pack it full, it cinches down nicely. When moving from hotel to hotel I don't have to pack it perfectly each time to get everything to fit. There is plenty of room to bring souvenirs home if I want. I did pack it full once when I went on an Alaskan cruise. (Even though it was over the carry-on size limit, it always makes it through gate agents' scrutiny, I had to take stuff out of the bag in order to get it to fit in a small plane's overhead bin)

Just my 2 cents, but I would be worried that the 44 L bag wouldn't be comfortable to carry on one's back. It looks more like a carry bag with backpack straps.

Just my 2 cents,

A gret evaluation and description of features, thanks for contributing to the thread. I have owned several of Osprey's outdoor products over the decades. Still have them all.

Of the three, I would immediately reject the Transporter 44, because it does not have cinch straps to tighten the load.

The 46 flirts with the size limit and goes over it. I would reject it as not reliably carry-on.

I do like the Fairview 40. It's a lightly smaller, but reliably meets carry-on limits and has cinch straps.

BTW, I own a Porter 30 (it would easily hold everything I take on a trip to Europe). I have yet to use it on a trip to Europe, but I like everything about it.