Travelers Choice Carryon

In my 16 yearly trips to Europe I have always used RS carry-on sized suitcases with two wheels when they became available. I have travel all over Europe and have never had a problem with that style suitcase. I have seen more folks lately with the 4 wheeled spinner type suitcase having problems on any surface that is not smooth. I also notice that the 4 wheeled spinner type suitcases that I have seen have much smaller wheels than my RS bag. Happy Travels

IMHO this warranty stinks: https://www.travelerchoice.com/warranty/. Based on that alone I would not purchase their products. As for spinner vs two wheeled roll aboard-each has their devotees on this board. Search and read ad nauseum. We went to spinners a long time ago and would not go back. But the wheels are more vulnerable so we spend more for high end brands (although Travel Pro is a relative bargain for what you get). As for “trouble” in Europe-yeah, if you try to push a spinner on 4 wheels on cobblestones you’ll be frustrated. You then pull it on two wheels. If you’ve got quality luggage the wheels won’t break.

We've had our 2 wheeled TravelPro for about 10 years. Well used, light weight, survived cobblestones. It's a keeper!

I agree with Alan. The warranty is pretty restrictive. ( i.e. it STINKS). All hoops and hurdles, but no finish line

Also the 'Art of Travel' line seems to be at the lower end of their product line.

I have not seen any in person, but what I have seen would not persuade me to pursue it any further, if I were looking for luggage. (Very happy with my TravelPro)

Thank you all for the feedback. I did go online and looked at their warranty and it’s pathetic. I was hopeful due to the fact that Costco sold the set that the quality was at least average or better. It doesn’t sound promising. I will be returning it.
What I’m in search of is a quality roll-aboard, not a spinner. I want to find the size that EasyJet allows for carryon-56x45x25cm- which includes wheels and handles. That equates to roughly 22x17.5x9.5 inches. It’s very difficult to order online as the dimensions listed are usually without wheels/handles. Most bags that come in at 22 inches are narrower, and when traveling carryon only and very light even a couple inches in width makes a huge difference. This shouldn’t be so difficult! Hopefully someone can tell me what has worked for them. Thanks!

Take a look at this bag:

https://www.ebags.com/product/travelpro/maxlite-5-international-expandable-carry-on-rollaboard/363079?productid=10688634

I have an Travelpro maxlite rollaboard that is about 10 years old and it has held up quite well. I’ve got the 22 inch version. This is a slightly smaller version that supposedly meets international requirements.

Take a look at this one: https://www.travelpro.com/crew-11-international-carry-on-rollaboard-4071643. We have a spinner from this line. I like it a bit better than the Maxlite (we have one of those also) as the material is much tougher.

There was a recent discussion on spinnrrs.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/packing/spinner-experience

My wife uses the 4 yr old version of the one Laura has in her post and I use one very much like the one Alan has in his post. Mine is from the Platinum line from 5 yrs ago. Very happy with what we have.

Thanks to all for your thoughts and suggestions! It seems TravelPro keeps coming up as a favored brand for function and durability. I’m going to give one a try!

I have an Olympia spinner and their warranty is pretty pathetic as well. I now have a bag that looks quite new except for the broken spinner wheel. One thing I learned is to take a look at how ALL the wheels are attached. If they have grommets, it is much harder to replace the wheel. If they have screws, if you can get a wheel, you can do the work yourself. Had I had screws, I would have ordered the $15/$20 wheel and replaced it myself.

Also, what are people using the charger ports for? Charging devices in an airport? My devices typically last a day and if they don't I have a portable charger. I'm just curious about how often people use the ports.

Jules, that was my thought exactly. I start out with a fully charged phone/iPad , and am usually fine for travel. If it’s an emergency I would pick up a power bank at a store in the airport. My traveling is for pleasure, and as a woman I also carry a small purse of some sort that I could tuck a power bank into. I look for a small carryon that is as large as the max carryon size for most European airlines. Two wheels, very durable. Sounds simple yet it’s really not!

I recently bought a Travelpro Crew 11 21 inch suiter (spinner) with the charging port pocket. You have to buy your own charger pack, but I found an Anker charger on Amazon (great brand, BTW) that has plenty of power storage and fits the pocket perfectly.

My wife and I fly frequently, as she travels for business and I (retired) often tag along. The advantage to carrying a charger is the all too frequent lack of sufficient outlets at many airports, or having to share outlets with a lot of other people three gates away from yours. I'm pretty good at making sure that my devices are fully charged from the beginning, but having that extra "insurance" isn't a bad thing.

I do think that the charger pack included in some bags (e.g., Away luggage) is a bit of a gimmick, as is the charger pocket on the Travelpros. The key is getting a good high capacity battery that doesn't take up a lot of space.

I've had some experience with Travelers Choice luggage, (one bag, to be fair), and it's a good example of "you get what you pay for". Inexpensive, but not nearly as durable as mid-range brands like eBags and Travelpro. I wouldn't use it for frequent travel.

One of the reason that I ended up buying a travelpro bag is that they sell replacement wheels. I had an old suitcase where the wheel was just shredded and there was no way to replace it. I haven’t actually had any problem with the wheels on my travelpro bag, but it is nice to know that if a wheel broke I wouldn’t have to ditch the whole bag.

That is a nice feature of Travelpro. And wheels aren't that hard to replace.

I needed a 24" check in bag for an extended trip last year (I nearly always travel carryon only, but I couldn't get around checking this time) and found a really nice, reasonably priced hardside spinner from AmazonBasics. The reviews are good and the price is excellent. They too sell replacement wheel kits should you ever need one. I've only used the bag once (see above), but it's nice to be able to do a DIY wheel repair should one fail.

I agree with the ease of replacing damaged wheels on Travelpro. Last Spring I was using my older 24". We had returned from Hawaii and after picking up the suitcase at baggage claim, I discovered one of the wheels was damaged. This was a first for me. All I had to do was go online and order a replacement. I actually decided to order 2 so I would have an extra just in case. Great customer service.

Thanks again to everyone for the great advice. After looking at all the bags that were suggested I decided to order the TravelPro Maxlite 5 International Carryon, a rollaboard, not a spinner. I received the bag already and did a trial packing to see if I could fit all that I needed into this smaller ‘international’ size bag. I think it will work fine, and it definitely seems much sturdier than the Travelers Choice bag (returned!). Traveling with this size bag requires a bit more planning in advance, plus a little more time doing laundry while traveling but I think it’s well worth it. It will be a breeze going through airports, train stations, metro’s, etc. not having to struggle to get around. I’ve traveled in Europe with an Osprey Porter back pack, and with a RS bag in the beginning. Each time I’m changing it up a bit to see which system works best for me!