Why I Will Never Cheat on My Tumi and Always Carry-On.

For the jet set traveler, luggage is everything. I wasn’t a believer in expensive luggage…not at least until my husband clued me into why Tumi luggage is so far superior for the frequent traveler. For us, you must travel with carry-on only. This is not because most of the airlines are now charging for luggage to be checked, we have our own reasons why we think all Jet Set travelers should just carry on (those other people can check their luggage, we don’t care).

#1: Because we have a belief that if you can’t carry it on, you shouldn’t carry it at all. Yes ladies, sad to say, but all 20 pairs of shoes are included in this motto and are not needed on your trip to the beach. (all the husbands can thank me later). Ladies you’ll also thank me when you don’t have to schlep your luggage up the hills of Capri like these fools had to.

#2: You get to skip the “is that my bag, maybe thats my bag or is it that one?” game in the baggage terminal.

#3: As a man, you won’t have to carry a bag with some hot pink strap, rainbow stickers or dare I say it pastel multi-colored ribbons just so your wife can identify it in the baggage terminal.

#4: You’ll never have to explain to a lost baggage agent the following: “well it’s a black wheelie bag, and about this big and oh yeah, I put one of those flimsy paper tags with my name on it, do you think you’ll find it soon?”.

#5: If some crazy Italian needs to put your luggage onto a flatbed truck to get it to your hotel, you may never see it again!

#6: Because your luggage should never get to visit more countries or states than you.

#7: You never want to get stuck in Marrakech for five days without a single article of clothing, make-up or underwear! (this literally happened to us, no kidding, five days, no clothes, no toiletries, nothing at all. The good news was that those Moroccan outfits are very comfy, yet slightly breezy!)

Anyway, now on to why Tumi is the luggage love of my life!

My husband and I each travel with a small shoulder carry bag. This doubles as your “under the seat in front of you” bag. It holds the necessary things like our Apple Laptops, iPods, Magazines, 3 ounce liquids in a clear plastic 1 quart bag…those necessary in-flight things. Just make sure it actually fit under the seat in front of you and resembles a “purse, laptop case, or other item of similar size” rule. If you don’t, some bi-atch French (I can say it, I’m French, plus even the French don’t like the French) Charles DeGuale check-in agent will tell you that you have to check one of your pieces. (yep, that one happened to us also; all I can say is Orly if possible!)

Now for the Jet Set’s favorite things. (not to be confused with Oprah’s favorite things, because I will not be giving you each one of these items listed) My favorite shoulder bag is the one I purchased for my husband last Christmas. It’s the Townhouse Travel & Business Esmond Small Satchel. I love it and he really loves it. It has a place for everything. The bonus is that it has a small zipper pouch that is hooked to the inside (so you can’t lose it). In this pouch we put the all important iPods and headphones for easy access when on the plane. For the wheeled carry-on he’s in LOVE with the Ducati. It’s perfectly shaped to fit in the overhead compartment and it’s surprisingly big inside. It doesn’t seem big, but it really fits a lot!

Townhouse Travel Esmond Small ~ $550.00

Ducati Travel 22″ Expandable Wheeled ~ $495.00

Now for me, I’ve got my favorites for the ladies. When carrying-on the ladies need a shoulder bag that can fit everything they need on the flight, plus their purse (remember, you only get 2 carry ons including a purse, so jam your purse inside your shoulder bag until you’re home free in your seat!). My favorite shoulder bag is the Mini Weekender. It’s adorable and huge on the inside. (It’ll hold all the stuff you can’t jam into your husbands bag when he isn’t looking.) My favorite wheeled carry-on is the T3 22″ Expandable because it’s similar in size and shape to the Ducati, but with a classic black make it a little more sleek.

T3 Travel 22″ Expandable Wheeled ~ $495.00

Voyageur Lightweight Mini Weekender ~ $375.00

We travel almost a dozen times a year and our luggage needs to last a very long time. It’s definitely an investment in the beginning, but totally worth it. If you ever need repairs, your local Tumi store can ship it to the factory and they’ll repair it for you for either no cost or a minimal fee. Plus they always have new designs and great service.

Here’s the big Tumi bonus! Are you ready? One of the best parts of having a Tumi is that you can register your Tumi’s serial number with Tumi Tracer. If your bag is ever lost or stolen, the finder can call the Tumi hot-line and you’ll get your bag back! Yes, there are still honest people out there! (example: I actually had my Gucci purse found in the subway station and returned to me with everything still inside!) Hopefully someday they’ll come out with a GPS insert that can locate your lost baggage by satellite! Wait, maybe I should patten that one…hummmm……

I’m throwing this picture in just because it’s a beauitful shot of two models and their Louis Vuitton!

So, there it is. How to Carry-On with sense and style with Tumi.

Ciao!

Kimberly

Be Sociable, Share!

•