A consideration for many travellers is whether to buy a soft sided suitcase or a hard sided one. There are pros and cons for both, but at the end of the day it comes down to personal preference.
Hard-Sided Pros
Can offer greater protection especially for larger cases that need to be checked in at the airport.
Recent years has been hard-sided cases become much lighter thanks to new technology.
More weather resistant. Where a soft-sided suitcase can get wet and the water seep into the content of the bag, a hard-sided suitcase offers greater protection.
The majority of hard-sided cases have a 50/50 spilt because the zip is placed around the middle of the case. This allows you to pack the case equally.
Cons
Doesn’t have outside pockets. This is a consideration for cabin bags where soft-sided cases offer outside pockets for easy access to travel documents, devices etc.
Less flexible than soft-sided cases, so there isn’t as much give if you are trying to cram lots in.
Generally more expensive than soft-sided suitcases.
Hard-sided suitcases can scratch.
Soft-Sided Pros
Generally have outside pockets, which are especially great for cabin bags because you don’t have to open the entire case each time you need to find travel documents, devices etc.
Greater selection of 2-wheel cases, which offer greater capacity than 4-wheel cases.
Many cases are expandable to increase capacity.
Many soft-sided cases are lighter than hard-sided.
Cons
Less weather resistant compared to hard-sided cases.
Offer less protection, which can be a big consideration for bags that are checked-in at the airport.
Material can rip if it is not high quality.
You can check view our range of hard sided luggage here and our range of soft sided luggage here.
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