Comments on: Rolling along with my ZÜCA bag

By: luggage

luggage — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:18:42 +0000

That looks really cool, but very expensive.

By: Business traveler san jose

Business traveler san jose — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:37:34 +0000

One of my reasons is the seat. Waiting in lines at the airport, TSA lines, rental car lines, reantal car bus, and most of all in the baggage claim area. ( waiting for my tool kit ) Also the SW airlines A, B, C lines. I have the Sports one and the nylon is a little soft for me. I dont recommend a heavy laptop without protection. So far I got it on all sorts of airlines, Delta, United, US Air, SW, American. If you do International travel the lines are even longer. Pulling stuff out is a breeze with the plastic pouches. Wrinkled clothes is my main complaint but I am Male. ( My socks seems to do fine ) The frame has taken a beating and keeps on ticking. I would love to see a mini or skinny version for techs like me …. with solid built in laptop protection, and vertical pouches ?

By: Sexxxy Beast

Sexxxy Beast — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:34:39 +0000

Do you guys find that you sit on the bag alot or is it just incase? Is it worth paying the extra money for a seat you bring with you?

By: Colinb

Colinb — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:40:00 +0000

Your reviews clinched it! I had been scoping out the Bihn Checkpoint Flyer when I saw your review and clicked the link for the Zuca. Looks like a fantastic combo solution for my traveling consultant needs.

By: DJ

DJ — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:58:18 +0000

I just travelled with my Zuca for the first time. It was great. Just the right size. I had no problems going through security or carrying it on the plane. Compared to many of the carry-on items people were taking aboard, it was quite small.

The little container bags were a useful feature. But the best part came when I arrived at the airport to find many planes had been delayed and it was so crowded no seats were available. I found the Zuca pretty comfortable to sit on, in between strolling through the terminal.

When I’m not travelling, I’m using it as a portable carrying case for my knitting supplies and projects. Again, those little container bags come in useful.

I’m glad I got it.

By: lisa johnson

lisa johnson — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 02:57:33 +0000

As a makeup artist who travels often…and not wanting to check my valuable makeup to hopefully (or not!) receive at the end of my flight… I LOVE this bag! It takes all of my makeup that I will need on set, PLUS some other items….especially when packaged in smaller containers as I do. I can’t say enough about this wonderful piece of luggage. I have a torn rotator cuff in my shoulder and can lift THIS bag! I strain with my duffel bag on wheels and other bags..this one IS well balanced. I love this also for ON SeT, primarily because you can sit and rest on it between makeup breaks. Great invention on so many levels. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

By: Moxie

Moxie — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 01:35:09 +0000

/drool. I want one!

Too bad I don’t have $300 to drop on a bag at the moment. =(

By: Jay

Jay — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:14:05 +0000

Cool bag. Thanks for the post.

Each individual airline has its own carryon size restrictions. The FAA and TSA do not come up with the acceptable carryon dimensions.

One of the Zuca bags, if the wheels are counted, is 12.25 inches wide. Technically, that is unacceptable on many airlines, which require that one side be 10 inches or less.

If you believe that airlines are going to enforce their own rules or install templates at the front of the conveyor belt at Security, don’t consider buying the bag.

If you believe that the airlines will look at the bag, which is more compact than most carryons out there, and let it on the plane, consider the bag.

My personal preference for a rolling bag is the Pelican 1510, a hard case. Beware, it’s heavy.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:56:54 +0000

@empty — I flew United this past week, and even put my ZUCA bag in the “test” box that was next to the check-in counter, and it fit fine. I don’t know if that means the measurements are wrong on the ZUCA site, if the test box was wrong at the airport, or if the TSA numbers you’re quoting are incorrect … but it slipped right into the box. Also, I flew on one of those commuter planes that have itty bitty overhead bins, and it fit perfectly in the bin. One of the airline attendants even told me that she wished everyone used a bag like mine.

I also use the OneBag folding method for most everything, and don’t have a problem with using the ZUCA bag. We can fit all of our clothes for a week (two of us) in the bag without any problems.

By: empty

empty — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:39:28 +0000

And a quick check reveals that the Zuca Pro is 10″ on its shortest dimension, while carry-ons should be 9″ on their shortest dimension. So this bag wouldn’t be a legal carry-on on United Airlines, for example, which claims that it enforces the 9″ rule (although I doubt this is true).

By: empty

empty — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:31:40 +0000

I much prefer to travel the one-bag (tm?) way, even though it’s not really one-bag anymore now that we travel with a toddler. One parent carries a backpack and a shoulder bag, the other carries a backpack and the kid. When we tried to use a wheeled bag he could sprint off and we couldn’t follow him safely, and if he got tired there was no way to carry him. For our last trip we were on the road with this luggage configuration (plus a car seat) for 2+ weeks with no problems except for (a) people asking us where the rest of our stuff was and (b) waiting endlessly for the grandparents who traveled out with us to maneuver the four bags they’d packed for two people for a one-week trip (not counting carry-ons). I ended up carrying one of our bags, our son, AND pulling one of their bags just to get out of the airport, while my husband hauled our remaining two bags, the car seat, and pulled yet another of their endless pieces of luggage. And I was four months pregnant at the time; thank goodness we had the sense to pack light.

Relying on overhead bin space is pretty risky now that airlines charge for checked bags and everyone carries their entire life on board. Everything we bring can fit under the seat if necessary. Life is even easier when I travel alone for business, which is really one-bag travel. I am completely over wheeled luggage, which as pointed out weighs four times as much empty as say, a Tom Bihn Western Flyer. This bag seems huge to me, and I’m skeptical that it really meets carry-on rules. Admittedly those are pretty much honored in the breach at present, and international travel is more restrictive than domestic.

By: Amanda

Amanda — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 21:31:48 +0000

I checked out their website and would love it if they could make it with two compartments for my two pups one to ride on top of the other. . . add a pouch for my laptop on the back (so the dogs can look out the front) and I’d buy it in an instant for my frequent travel on the train with them. Currently I have two bags for them plus my laptop/overnight bag with my things, but a double bag with an aluminum frame for support would be even better

By: Tabitha (From Single to Married)

Tabitha (From Single to Married) — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:29:26 +0000

looks really cool and different. The price tag is a bit steep, but may be worth it. Definitely worth checking out.

By: Jobo

Jobo — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:19:52 +0000

I would love it, but it doesn’t conform to regional (European) carry-on sizes : 8*16*22 inches, roughly converted from metric.

No deal.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:28:57 +0000

@Kevin — Three times now I’ve lifted it into an overhead compartment. It’s super easy. I don’t have much upper body strength, so my assumption is that if you can put a regular roller bag in an overhead compartment, you can lift a ZUCA bag up there. I find it much easier to maneuver than any other piece of luggage I’ve ever owned.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:37:15 +0000

@Erin: you’re absolutely right. Of course I didn’t actually state that the empty bag weighs 20 lbs. It doesn’t weigh 20 lbs. Nor does it weigh 3 lbs. It weighs 8.75lbs. per the ZUCA website. Add a 6 pound laptop (as mentioned in the post,) power brick or two, toiletries, a pair of shoes and some clothing, and you are closing in on or at 20lbs. …or more. Have you lifted this “bag” into an overhead compartment? I guess it’s a matter of personal preference, but I’d much rather deal with a soft sided bag or even a lightweight roller bag, which this isn’t. To each his – or her – own.

By: Erin Doland

Erin Doland — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 23:08:56 +0000

@Kevin — The bag does NOT weigh 20 lbs. The frame is aluminum, it’s super light. I think without anything in it the bag weighs like 3 lbs. or something. The exact weight is on the site. It weighs MUCH LESS than a regular piece of luggage.

By: Monica Ricci

Monica Ricci — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:58:07 +0000

I love my Zuca!! I find it easy to roll, easy to lift, and it indeed fits into the overhead compartments. I travel with my Zuca, along with my laptop briefcase for a week or longer, and I don’t have to check ANY luggage! Woohoo!

~Monica

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:34:21 +0000

Looks terrific as long as you don’t mind lifting a 20 lb.+ object and trying to put it in an overhead compartment. ( ! ) Pass.

By: Andreas

Andreas — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:34:36 +0000

Cool for a week. But what is your solution for a longer travel ?