today on prêt-approved, with a plethora of travel posts coming up after my trips to woodstock and kennebunkport, i wanted to share all about my tips and tricks for buying the best luggage for any trip you may have!

the heavy artillery:
although it may not be the most instagrammable, i cannot remember the last trip i went on without this massive tumi luggage. you read that right...even those trips that are only two days long, this bad boy comes along. why? because it makes life easier! i can keep everything organized (it has two halves and a middle zipper pocket), the base is lightweight, it's easily maneuverable (once it's down from my fifth floor walk-up), and i can fit everything inside it and then the kitchen sink. sure, it could be easier to just pack less, but when you're a blogger, you change outfits about 6 times a day to try to maximize our content especially on shorter trips. seriously. and then i have to lug around all of my camera gear and that does not travel lightly (although, i will talk more about traveling with camera gear below).
now, i know what you're thinking, "so if this is what you take for a two-day vacation, what do you bring for your multi-week trips!?" i have a second "backup" tumi that is just slightly smaller than this one. when i went on my paris and austria trip, i brought both! this is when having the four wheels really comes in handy: i put the suitcases back to back with the handles together and just rolled them through the airport with my two other carryons...at least until bag check.
all in all, the reason i truly love these suitcases is because they are virtually indestructible and if anything were to ever happen to them, tumi would fix them immediately!

shop some of my favorite heavy-duty suitcases below: the instagram fluff:
okay so now we get to the fun stuff! when i am traveling, nothing gives me more joy than to strut around with this carry-on sized steamline luggage. give me a cute coordinating outfit, a grande starbucks cup, and this suitcase and literally no one can stop me! but let's come back down to reality for a minute. as cute and adorable as this suitcase is, that's really all it is: cute and adorable. this suitcase is an accessory in my instagram photos and an eye-catcher for those who pass me in the airport but it probably fits about 5 sweaters, a pair of jeans, and a sunglass case...and it's heavy base weight makes it not the most fun to drag around when there are actually things inside. although the company offers a larger checkable size, i would strongly advise against it. just based on the weight of the suitcase alone, you could probably pack one outfit and your toiletries and you would be at the weight limit already. then i would take into consideration all of the scratches that would result from checking this bag...overall not a purchase i would recommend. if the "fluff" is really what you desire (like me) then stick with the carryon size! plus that's what everyone really sees in the airport anyway unless you're at baggage claim.
it's safe to say there is no practical reason as to why i love this bag so much...i just do! i even desperately want another color, i just cant decide which one!

shop some of my favorite eye catching carry-ons below: the duffel shuffle
when i travel, especially on planes, i don't always take a duffel bag. but when i have the luxury of driving somewhere, i always try to bring along my little louis vuitton duffel bag. i think there may have been one occasion when i have used just the duffel bag but that was simply for an overnight out to the hamptons without any blogging going on. a duffel bag is always good to have in your artillery closet because you never know when you may need it! and the positive is that it takes up little to no space so it's no biggie if you don't use it for every trip!

shop some of my favorite duffel bags below: the camera bag
being a blogger and photographer, i am rarely without my camera. but when it comes to trips, i bring nearly all of my equipment depending on the occasion. if the task requires a tripod, i will typically pack that inside that giant tumi but i will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, did i mention ever? ever pack any lenses or my camera body inside a suitcase. ever! even my carryon! this is mainly because i have no idea what goes on down with those checked bags and if for whatever reason i couldn't fit my carryon in the overhead bin, i don't want to have to scramble to take my lenses out. so i have found the perfect camera bag that i never travel without! this bag goes everywhere with me. sure it may not be the most feminine but it goes well with my steamline luggage when it's sitting on top and, most importantly, protects my gear! this guy can fit my 15" macbook pro, one camera body, and three lenses. even though i have about 5 lenses, this bag forces me to limit myself in an effort to not to weigh myself down by bringing them all. it even has countless pockets for memory cards, spare batteries, chargers and anything else i may need! and as the cherry on top of the sundae, i carry my portable hard drive in a little pouch (similar to this) like a clutch.

shop some other camera-ready bags below: links from around the web
i spy a little steamline luggage over on jenn's post when she had a little staycation in chicago a few months ago!
and for all of those mama's out there, oliva did an amazing breakdown of how and what to pack when you're traveling with a little one!
julia always has the best travel and packing tips like here and here. both also give a really good look into how much the steamline carryon can actually fit!
and all hail the master of packing...ashley can literally fit a year's worth of clothes into a carryon and one checked bag. some major mary poppins voodoo happening over there
ever since dana got this away luggage that charges your phone a few summers ago, i've literally been obsessed! and whenever we travel together, i may or may not steal it from her...
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