How to find luggage that fits strict airline and tour size limits
Strict personal item limits like 12 by 11 by 6 inches are far smaller than standard backpacks, forcing travelers to hunt for specialized bags. Trying to reuse a standard cabin suitcase for different carriers with shifting dimensions risks getting turned away at the gate or forced to pay unexpected fees.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Using stuffed backpacks that exceed the official dimensions when operators do not strictly enforce the size limit.Did this help you?
- 2Waiting for airlines to ask for volunteers to gate check for freeDid this help you?
- 3Using an oversized inherited carry-on bag and relying on airlines not enforcing the extra inchDid this help you?
- 4Using half-size weekender bags if checking luggage is not an optionDid this help you?
- 5Buying specific brands recommended by others like Travelpro, Quince, or American TouristerDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“From their site: On Costsaver guided vacations, hand luggage/carry-on is restricted to one piece per person, not exceeding 12” x 11” x 6” (30 x 28 x 14 cm).”source ↗
“Do they realize just how tiny that is? My kid's backpack is bigger than that. Does anyone know if there is any wiggle room.”source ↗
“I bought a 45x36x20 cm cabin suitcase which its dimensions falling exactly within EasyJet's standards, but now I'm about to book with Vueling and noticed that their size dimensions for an underseat baggage is 40x30x15... Has anyone traveled with a slightly bigger baggage with Vueling before, specifically with a 45x36x20 bag?”source ↗
“I can't seem to find any roller bags that meet the TSA carry on requirements. Even ones labeled as TSA compliant seem to be slightly too big.”source ↗
“Specifically, I'm looking for luggage that is 22"x14"x9" The specifications on the bags I'm looking at seem to all be slightly too large in at least one of the measurements.”source ↗
Where this came up
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