I fly more than 50 times a year. After Cyber Monday, you can buy my favorite travel backpack for $36
Looking for an essential travel bag that costs less than baggage fees? I fly more than 50 times a year as a food and travel writer, and I say this with as much urgency as I can: this $36 Dinictis Backpack is the best travel accessory I’ve ever owned.
Many carry-on backpacks are sleeker and may come in more colors, but I’d say none are sturdier, more versatile, and more modestly priced than this travel bag. It’s the ideal gift whether your giftee is a traveler who wants to be or a traveler who has been everywhere. This is why I love this backpack so much. For more information, here are our favorite travel tech gifts and our favorite carry-on gadgets.
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When a backpack is needed
It is available in four colors: gray, dark gray, blue and black.
To be clear, my backpacking days were over before they began. Without the means to travel seriously before the age of 25, my life as a traveler really began when I was equipped solely with roller bag sensibility. Like one [age redacted]When I took a bus trip along the coast of Peru as a child, staying overnight in modest accommodations, a roller bag suddenly felt rather… well, prudish. Rolling bags are definitely inconvenient when it comes to unpaved or non-tiled surfaces, and it just doesn’t look good when the atmosphere is more approachable than luxurious. This was definitely not a backpacking trip, but a backpack was definitely necessary. One that can hold a week’s worth of clothes, supplies and a laptop, but still fits in a locker.
The Dinictis 40L travel backpack came into my life for this particular trip and exceeded my expectations. Since then, I have been going on every trip, backpacking or otherwise, at the right opportunity.
Pack it like a suitcase
It’s a backpack that packs down like a suitcase.
Many travel backpacks are roomy and compartmentalized, but the Dinictis 40L Travel Backpack works like a suitcase. It opens on three sides, so you can unfold and pack it like a suitcase, with straps to keep your clothes in place. This makes it much easier to find what you need than sliding your stuff from the top to the bottom, like with a regular backpack. Thanks to the side handle, you can even carry it like a suitcase.
When full, it can easily hold 10kg, the carry-on weight limit for many budget airlines. Since it’s a backpack, no one ever asked to weigh it to meet the requirements. It will always look lighter than it is.
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Store your laptop with confidence
As a writer, I always travel with a laptop, so I’m not only concerned about its portability, but also its security. That said, I hate having it pressed against my back because it can be stiff and, depending on where you go, sweaty. The laptop sleeve of this model is ideally located near the (sweat-free) front of the backpack, but is not the most outward-facing compartment. Frankly, protected by a foam divider, the laptop feels hidden even when packed to the gills.
Outside pockets are a must
A side handle is essential for navigating public transportation.
I’m a team soft-body, even when it comes to roller bags, for two reasons. First, it’s much easier to fit last-minute items into a suitcase that’s already zipped shut without the clamshell action of a hard case, and second, exterior pockets. Who can travel without these? (No, I really want to know…) This backpack has two exterior pockets for miscellaneous items, maybe three considering the extra space for the laptop sleeve; four if you take the handy bottle holder with you. There are even compartments within compartments. In my opinion, these are the kinds of details that separate the high-functioning travelers from the waiting travelers.
Read more: Essential items to pack and avoid in a carry-on bag to fly through TSA lines
A personal item that can masquerade as checked baggage
Secure laptop storage is essential for a travel writer.
Many travel backpacks have an infrastructure that keeps them in a certain shape even when empty. While the Dinictis model has enough structure to keep the sides afloat while you pack it, the essentials are still a lightweight, fabric backpack. If you’ve ever been asked to prove that your carry-on luggage actually qualifies as carry-on luggage, you’ll understand that ‘smushability’ is an important factor. I packed this backpack for a weekend trip and took it on board as a travel bag personal article. (I will fly Spirit Airlines, but I will do it alone while giving them as little of my money as possible.) It fits completely under the seat in front of you if necessary.
However, the great thing about this travel backpack is that it can also be used as checked luggage, thanks to the sturdy fabric that can withstand the journey. The straps can be loosened and tucked away, and the body can be secured with additional clips, for a tidy package that won’t panic you when you see it being carted away on the baggage carousel.
I’ve had many trips where it goes as carry-on and returns as checked luggage. Even in the lighter gray color, the durable material doesn’t reveal that it has ever seen the tread of a baggage carousel. It was the feature I didn’t even know I needed, but now I never travel without it for this purpose.
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4.7 average rating on Amazon
You don’t even have to take it from me. As someone who reviews various products, I understand that these types of reviews are rare: with over 1,000 five-star ratings on Amazon and a retail price of just $36 after Cyber Monday, the Dinictis 40L Travel Backpack is one of the safest bets you can to make. place this season.
For more, here are the best tech gifts under $100 and our favorite travel headphones.
