Before we hopped on our flight to Thailand last November I was in the market for a new rucksack with wheels .
Now, my trusty ol’ faithful has done me well since 2003 and is still doing fine. But instead of lugging around a hefty lump on my back I wanted to opt for a rucksack with wheels this time around.
Having been to Thailand several times in the past, plus quite a few Southeast Asian countries, I knew that the terrain would be fine for wheeled baggage. I just didn’t see the point in carrying lots of extra weight on my back when I could just wheel it around. I wanted a rucksack of wheels for this trip.
And so, after much searching and researching and comparing of specifications I decided to invest in this Caribee Fast Track 75.
I chose this 2-in-1 option from Caribee. It’s basically a rucksack with wheels plus a detachable daypack. This would meet all my current luggage needs.
I wanted something that for the most part would be wheeled around with an extendable handle. But had the option to be worn as rucksack if we happened to need it (the only time I imagined was if we did any of the islands and wanted to go to beaches where there was no pier drop-off).
I also wanted an extra day pack option that would work for carrying around my laptop and daily essentials as well as been somewhat waterproof and durable.
The rucksack straps tuck away neatly behind a zipped compartment which I also use to stuff the odd bits and bobs when necessary. There are some plastic covers that you can attach over the wheels if you are swapping to backpack mode and need to cover the dirty wheels – great idea.
And there are two main handles, one on the top and one on the side (besides the extendable handle), so this makes for nice easy handling between various transportation options.
In terms of compartments, there is a separate shoe area at the bottom which I actually used for books and various knick-knacks. It also comes with a detachable toiletries/pocket bag and the day pack has a bunch of various stashing spots.
I wanted to give this rucksack a good test run before I reviewed and recommended it on the blog. It’s now been a fixture of my life for the past 4 months and I’m super pleased with my choice.
The bag itself feels pretty durable so has lasted been flung around a few aeroplane holds. The wheels have done a fair bit of mileage and are still going strong. The aluminium frame has proved sturdy. And the actual design, complete with unique bright green accent colours, has been most useful for standing out on the baggage carousel.
I am so pleased I opted for the rucksack with wheels on this trip away. It just doesn’t make sense to use a full-on backpack unless you are going to be going over rough terrain. Most backpackers these days are heading along pretty well-beaten paths. Paths that can take a set of wheels.
So these past 4 months I got to save my back, prevented unnecessary sweating (who wants to carry 15kilos in the tropics?), didn’t have any worries about the weight of my backpack. It was bliss.
I highly recommend the Caribee Fast Track 75 Wheeled Rucksack if you would like the versatility of both wheeled luggage and a backpack.
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Check out Raj’s review of his wheeled rucksack here.