I’m currently running with an Aer 30L bag and it’s mostly been great… mostly. I’ve been toying with the idea of bumping up a bit—maybe 35–40L range—but I wanted to ask: have any of you made a size change (up or down)? What pushed you to do it? And more importantly, what kinds of problems were you running into that made you rethink your size?

For example:

• Was your smaller bag too tight for colder-weather layers?
• Did you upsize and regret carrying extra bulk?
• Downsized and had to make brutal gear sacrifices?
• Ever wish you had one more liter just for food, souvenirs, or travel snacks?
• Is there a "magic size" that just works across use cases?

Again, I'm at 30L now, but a few times I’ve felt like I’m Tetris-ing too hard, especially if I need to toss in shoes or bulkier clothing. That said, I really don’t want to end up lugging a pack that feels like it should have its own seat on the plane.

Would love to hear what you roll with (actual liters, if you can), and how you landed there. Thanks!

Hi all!

I'm leaving for a two week vacation in Scotland with my Quechua NH Escape 500 roll top in 23L. The backpack is full with my jackets inside, but not expanded (it expands up to 27 liters and can be over packed to a bit more). It weights just under 5kg (11 pounds) fully packed. I'm also taking a small lightweight cross body bag.

My itinerary includes lots of city walking, museums and hiking. I will be visiting Edinburgh, Inverness, Fort William, Malaig, Glasgow, Stirling and London.

The temperature will range from 1 C to 20 C (33 F to 68 F). I'm from a tropical country, so my cold weather gear is a bit limited. The rain jacket is quite bulky , but it's my only warm waterproof jacket and I got it for free from work.

Besides the intercontinental flights, I'm only taking public transport and getting around with trains and buses. I'm also doing a few daytrips where I won't be able to leave my backpack at the hostel, so keeping the bag under 5kg was quite important for comfort.

I'm hoping to climb Ben Nevis, so some of my gear is hiking focused.

Picture 2 (clothing): - 5 black lightweight viscose blouses - maroon tencel t-shirt - pair of jeans and leggings - pajamas (tencel t-shirt and lightweight viscose trousers) - black fleece from Decathlon and plum fleece lined rain jacket - red cashmere scarf and leather gloves - merino wool pants base layer - 7 underwear and 4 merino wool socks

Picture 3 and 4 (toiletries) - solid soap, shampoo and conditioner - face wash, moisturizer, more shampoo and skincare - deodorant - toothbrush, toothpaste and floss - sunscreen and lip balm - hair brush - blister care and bandaids All fit inside the Decathlon ultra-light toiletry bag

Picture 5 (shoes) - waterproof hiking boots - flip flops for hostel showers

Picture 6 (miscellaneous) - packable towel - spork - padlocks - detergent laundry sheets - glasses - micro spikes - tissues - backpack hook - water bottle - eye mask and earplugs (not pictured)

Electronics (not pictured) - Kindle - UK gan charger - 2 USB-c cables - Anker power bank - Soundcore noise canceling earbuds

This is my second international one-bag journey and my first time traveling solo abroad. Any tips até appreciated!

Only found this sub halfway through my trip lol. One bag is the superior way to travel.

Technically I’m two bagging with my day pack but it’s always empty unless I’m out on a day hike.

Wrapped up is my bivy, sleeping bag, and air mattress which I used when camping/hiking for multiple days.

Planning on tossing or putting majority of the consumables in the “free” box in my last hostel. So hopefully I’ll be back to the bare minimum when I leave tomorrow.

For clothes I had the following: 1x gym shorts 2x Uniqlo tops 1x black jeans 1x water proof jacket and pants 1x button up tee 1x long sleeve white top 1x termals 1x jacket 5x pairs of socks and underwear

Also managed to get everything on as carry on.

I'm currently planning a trip to SEA, and would love to take an environmentally friendly solution for drinking water as I don't want to be relying on plastic water bottles.

I have quite a specific requirement though, I would like to be able to fill a reusable water bottle, but also a CamelBak with the filtered water, and ideally not have to hang a gravity bag as refilling on the go would be handy. Any suggestions would be much appreciated

Eight months ago I posted a tentative packing list, knowing it was a crappy one. If weight and space weren't a factor, that was everything I would take. You can see my original post HERE.

The itinerary has also changed quite a bit. No Spain now, but instead doing Berlin - Prague - Krakow - Vienna.

After a lot of research and following this sub in particular, my list has shrunk quite a bit. A big change is in my primary bag. I purchased a Thule Aion 40L (after determining the 28L was too small) and was dead set on using it - until I stumbled across someone in my city selling an Aer Travel Pack 3 Small for $125. I'd never looked seriously at Aer despite their popularity, but boy am I believer now. After packing it out with most of the things on my list (a small number of odds and ends left out), I'm 98% sure it's the bag I'm taking. This isn't a post about the Aer so I'll stop gushing. Here is my latest packing list.

Packs/Accessories

[ ] Main Pack - Aer Travel Pack 3 [ ] Osprey Ultralight Sling [ ] Toiletries - Tom Bihn Deluxe Spiff Kit [ ] Tom Bihn Vertical Packing Cubelet [ ] Thule Small Compression Packing Cube [ ] Peak Design Small Compression Packing Cube [ ] Packable something for plane and daypack?

Clothing (assume warm climate and light rain) Tops [ ] T-Shirts x 4 (+1 worn)

Bottoms [ ] Jean x1 (worn) [ ] Regular shorts x 3 [ ] Sleeping shorts x 1

Misc Clothing [ ] Socks x 4 pairs (+1 worn) [ ] Underwear x 4 pairs (+1 worn) [ ] Sunglasses

Weather [ ] Packable jacket (undecided)

Shoes [ ] One pair (worn)

Tech/Devices (I dropped the tech pouch because of the Aer's fantastic front admin pocket) [ ] HDMI cable [ ] USB-C dongle [ ] SD Cards/holder [ ] External SSDs x 2 [ ] USB-C cords x 3 [ ] Anker charger [ ] SD card reader [ ] Adapter kit

I do have to work at nights on this trip so unfortunately the laptop and tablet and other tech things are necessary. [ ] Samsung laptop [ ] Samsung Ultra tablet [ ] Kindle [ ] Work Phone

GoPro Kit (in TB Cubelet) [ ] GoPro Hero 12 Black in Media Mod [ ] Batteries x 5 [ ] Battery charger [ ] Backpack strap mount [ ] Quick release clip x 2 [ ] Swivel mounts x 2 [ ] Tripod

Misc [ ] Sleep mask [ ] Ear plugs [ ] Water bottle (undecided) [ ] USB-C headphones [ ] Back scratcher [ ] Travel towel [ ] Mini flashlight [ ] International adapter [ ] Hero Clip

Toiletry Kit [ ] Toothbrush [ ] Toothpaste [ ] Floss [ ] Cotton swabs [ ] Tide pen [ ] Utensils [ ] Nail Clippers [ ] Mini first aid kit [ ] Medicines

Documents/Personal Items (typically to carry in sling) [ ] Passport [ ] Wallet [ ] Ear buds

I think I'm happy with it, except I need help with something.

I think I need a daypack, but I have NO idea what to get. It would serve two purposes. 1) day bag, and 2) probably bringing back some gifts. I'm leaning towards a random packable day bag from REI, but am open to other suggestions.

Also looking for a recommendation on a packable rain jacket or something similar. I know it'll be warm, but if it rains I'd like to have something I can throw on. I am comfortable spending around $100 on this.

My family thinks I'm crazy for only bringing a backpack on this trip, but know everyone here will understand me. Looking forward to input from this community.

Thanks!

I've been going in circles researching various jackets that'll fit my needs. I'm in a state of complete descision paralysis and information overload. I think I've landed on a puffer (for the perfect intersection of lightweight, packable, and thermal performance), but happy to hear alternatives. My requirements are:

• Lightest possible (one bagging with a sub 7kg packed target)
• Would prefer mild water resistance. If I get caught walking from the office to the station. Or dinner to the hotel. So obviously situations where I could hug undercover areas part of the journey. I don't want to end up damp and cold. (I've got a rain jacket for actual planned down pours.
• Needs to look smart enough I can get away wearing it to a nice dinner or in the office.
• Heating capacity only needs to be mild. I don't travel anywhere that's sub zero (Celius). And I tend to run warm anyway (someone else's 10C is more like my 20C).
• Prefer a Navy colour, without any obnoxious logos or details (why do most jackets have all black, yet pick a colour, even a dark one, and you get riddiculously bright colour zips lol)
• Price isn't an consideration. I buy based on fit for purpose over dollars any day of the week.

EDIT: Oh, one more, no hood. Hate double hooding with my rain jacket. And hoods make anything instantly not complete opposite of the formal spectrum lol.

Looking for something similar like the ULA Dragonfly, love that bag over all but I’ve come to the terms that I prefer a top loader. So looking for a top loader that’s roughly same size and quality/versatile as the Dragonfly.

TLDR; Bang-for-buck 65L backpack, available in AUS, to take on 3-month Europe trip?

Hi all! I'm hitting the road soon for a three-month Eurail solo trip (yay!). I own a 40L Nomad bag but when I took that for a six-week trip I found myself thinking I'd want a little more room if I'd been there any longer. The criteria I'm looking at are:

- decent enough to last the trip (duh)

- relatively low in price - it doesn't need to withstand outdoor hiking or anything major, just get me through trains and hostels and a couple flights etc. But it won't get regular use outside of maybe an annual trip so I'd rather not spend much more than $300 AUD.

- bonus if designed for women - my hips are definitely on the wider side and apparently this makes a difference?

- open from the front (suitcase-style?) as well as the top

Based on that, I've found a bag I think works pretty well: https://www.kathmandu.com.au/entrada-pack-wmns-v2.html

and I'm wondering if anyone has experience with the Kathmandu homebrand hiking bags - will it hold up? And if not, definitely would love some other recs of something else that might work. Thanks team!

Looking for reccs for a small (think fitting my compact camera & a few accessories) waterproof shoulder bag / sling / crossbody bag.

Kinda leaning towards the RAINS sibu musette for reference. I like more rugged styling though so I'm open to outdoors brands as well!

Budget - ideally $120 or less

Buying in USA fwiw

Anyone use this pack to complement their carryon/onebag?

Looking for packable day pack for hiking, groceries, maybe a laptop, to go inside my MLC Mini.

https://www.mountainhardwear.com/p/ul-20-backpack-2110161.html?dwvar_2110161_size=O%2FS&dwvar_2110161_color=351

In my country, both the Jakaari M and the GR1 26L is the same price.

What would you prefer for long hikes/backpacking and why?

If anyone has experience with which is more comfortable carrying heavy loads over long distances, I’d love to hear it