Most people travel with the same kind of suitcase: the one that opens like a book right down the middle. Then every night of the trip they are on their knees on a hotel carpet, wrestling it open between the bed and the wall. Former flight attendant Sharon, speaking in a video from Sharon Dawson, says crew live out of one small bag in a different hotel room almost every night, and they never wrestle a suitcase at all.
After 30 years of walking airports, she lists 10 things she and her colleagues look for in a carry-on. Most passengers, she says, skip every single one. Here they are, in her order.
1. A Bag That Opens From The Top
A clamshell suitcase needs floor space for both halves, twice the size of the bag, and in a small hotel room there is none. It ends up on the bed after a heavy lift or on the floor with you bending over it all week. Many crew switch to a carry-on that opens from the top like a lid, or from the front, so the bag stays upright and you can open it standing up. Look for the words top-opening or front-opening. One deep compartment also fits bigger items such as shoes, a thick sweater or a coat.
2. A Size That Includes The Wheels
Most big US airlines allow a carry-on of about 22 inches tall, 14 wide and 9 deep, and Sharon says that is the whole bag, wheels and handles included. Many bags sold as carry-on size are measured only by the box. If it does not fit the metal frame at the gate, it gets a tag and goes under the plane, and on many tickets you pay. Bring a tape measure to the store and measure the handle down, the widest point and the depth with the wheels.
3. A Bag That Is Light Before You Pack
An empty suitcase can weigh 9, 10 or even 11 pounds, and on many airlines the flight attendant is not allowed to lift it for you. Crew look for an empty bag around 8 pounds or less, so more of the weight is your own things. She also shares a lifting trick: raise the bag to the top of the seatback, rest it there, then push it into the bin in one move, wheels first.
4. Wheels That Survive
Four spinner wheels glide beautifully in an airport, she says, but they are the first thing to snap on a curb or cobblestones, and on a sloping jet bridge a spinner rolls away. That is why many flight attendants still pull a bag with two larger wheels set into the corners. Her own spinner lost a wheel on the first day in Lisbon, and she carried it up a hill for 20 minutes. Her two-wheel replacement lasted 9 years. Pull the bag across the store floor, then push it upright and turn it in a tight circle.
5. A Shell That Bends Instead Of Breaking
Even a carry-on gets checked at the gate on a full flight and goes into the hold under other bags. A stiff, brittle shell can crack, and she has seen them split down a corner on the carousel with clothes showing. Press the side with your hand. If it flexes and pops back, that is the one. Check for a rubber guard on each corner, like a bumper.
6. Two Pockets Inside The Lid
She once stood behind a man in Atlanta who could not get his bag of liquids back in, and had to open his whole suitcase on the steel table with 40 people waiting. A good crew bag has two zippered pockets inside the lid, one clear mesh for liquids, passport, charger and reading glasses, and one waterproof for a swimsuit or damp washcloth. Pack heavy things at the bottom, then clothes, with tomorrow’s outfit and pajamas on top.
7. A Cup Holder And A Hook
Some newer carry-ons have a fold-out cup holder on the back and a small hook on the handle for a neck pillow, purse or phone. It keeps your hands free on a jet bridge, which she calls safer, and it turns the suitcase into a mini nightstand in a hotel room. If you walk with a cane, hang it on the hook while you wait at the gate, since a cane leaning on a chair falls over every time someone passes.
8. A Charging Port You Can Empty
Many carry-ons now have an outside port so you can plug in a phone at the gate. Sharon says that under the new international rules this year, a battery pack cannot stay in the overhead bin, so the pack must come out before the bag goes up. Most airlines allow two battery packs per person, she says, with the size printed on the back, and on many airlines you cannot use the pack in flight. Pick a bag where the battery pocket is easy to reach at the top.
9. A Lock Security Can Open
A woman on one of Sharon’s flights found a notice inside her suitcase: security had inspected the bag and cut off her lock with bolt cutters. Look for a lock with the little red diamond symbol, which means security has a key. A good zipper has two pulls that meet in the middle and can be locked together, and she has seen a cheap single zipper split on a crew bus in Madrid. Put a card with your name, phone number and hotel inside the bag, not your home address.
10. A Color Nobody Else Has
Her last tip comes from the day a man picked up her black roller at Denver baggage claim and left in a taxi. Inside were her uniform for the next morning, her reading glasses and a photo of her mother, and it took the airline 3 days to return it. Most people grab the wrong bag, she says, and nearly every bag at the carousel is black. Her next bag was bright green and nobody ever took it by mistake. If you love your black bag, add a bright strap around the middle, a stretchy cover, and a phone photo of the bag.
Her bottom line: you do not need a new suitcase for every trip, but when you do buy one, buy it the way crew do. Top opening, the right size including the wheels, and a color nobody else has.
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