You may have seen a Facebook Live post from me last month showing off a fancy new Crew 11 22″ expandable spinner carry-on from Travelpro Luggage, courtesy of my pal, Erik Deckers. I’ve been using it for a month and with a few trips under my belt, I can say I’ve enjoyed it immensely. Well, at least as much enjoyment as a grown man can actually get from a suitcase.
I took the bag to the Type A Conference in Santa Fe, N.M., in early July, and then on my family vacation — a Caribbean cruise to Cozumel and Progresso (Where they make the soup. Heh.) in early August. So I’ve had a chance to put it through its paces and run it over a variety of surfaces.
Granted, it’s hard to get excited about a suitcase, but there are a couple of features to the TravelPro Crew worth considering.
One of the great things about these spinner bags over the 2-wheel rolling bags is that they’re lighter, easier to maneuver, and they make for a smoother ride. The Crew 11 is effortless to push, thanks to the smoothness of the wheels, as well as its lightweight design. That reduces strain on your joints from having to push or pull other types of bags. Seriously … if you pull a bag, be mindful of the tension on your shoulder and elbow. Now try a four-wheel spinner like this and tell me over time it’s not a better bag.
Plus, they have the Magna-Trac wheels, which keeps the wheels aligned in position, which keeps them from veering off course. That means you don’t have to work as hard at keeping the bag traveling with you. I’m led to understand that Travelpro is the only luggage manufacturer that offers this “always aligned” wheel system. The one drawback is that if the floor isn’t level, you’d better keep hold of your bag so it doesn’t roll away from you. The thing almost got away from me in Santa Fe. I’m fairly certain I would have been suspected of some crime had I not caught it.
Another feature I really liked was the recharger function. This model comes pre-wired with a USB charger. Plug a separate battery pack into the charger, and slip the battery into its special pocket. Then, plug your phone into the USB port while you walk or wait for your flight. That makes it a standout for the business traveler, or the teenager who always has their phone on. It was so much easier for me to keep my phone charged on the go and I didn’t feel the need to rush to a connection gate to plug in.
If I had to change anything about the bag, I would add something so the inside back of it was flat. I typically put shoes in first, or perhaps a blazer, and the unevenness of the back (caused by the the bars of the retractable handle) can cause wrinkles or wasted space. Of course, that may add weight to the bag, so there’s a tradeoff there.
It might also be nice to have a way to attach a briefcase to the handle. I have a nice leather messenger bag and have to jury rig the handle around the TravelPro handle to get it to stay there. I realize this is typically a feature a briefcase would have, not the luggage, but could Travelpro find a way to reverse engineer that for business travelers to have an option?
All in all, I love my new Crew 11 bag. If you see me in a hotel or airport soon and want to see it, just ask!
NOTE: I was only given the bag to review and was not paid for this review. Because I travel a lot and have been asked for my input on travel topics before, I thought it appropriate to share my thoughts on the bag here.