Traveling is one of the best parts of summer. While many of us here at Gear Patrol prefer to take only a bag that fits in a carry-on, sometimes the nature of the trip moves us to bring home more gear than we started with. The easy solution for that problem is a packable backpack. It stashes down into its own pocket, then expands to help us carry home the extra bottle of wine we couldn’t pass up, or that pair of leather boots that fit like a glove.
A few helpful hints: make sure the bag actually zips up into itself. If you can give it a try in the store, we highly recommend it. There’s nothing worse than not being able to get a bag compact again. The fabric should be pretty durable and ideally waterproof, so it can withstand being last-minute baggage checked at the airport and then tossed around with all the hard-sided suitcases. With all that in mind, here are a few of our favorites.
Eagle Creek Packable Daypack
The extra zipper pocket in front is a lifesaver. A lot of backpacks tend to be a one size fits all option with no storage dividers, but this one bucks that trend. It folds up to a small notebook size, and lies flat, so you can just stick it in a laptop pouch of any other bag you’re carrying, or pretty much anywhere else.
