Choosing the Right Travel Backpack

Picking the right backpack is an important part of any trip. Too big, and you’ll have too much extra weight. Too small, and you’ll never fit anything in. Pick the wrong material, and when it rains, your stuff will be soaked. There’s so many options out there that it can be very confusing.

I spent a good hour picking out my first pack, and that was also after hours of online research. There are many backpacks in the world and many, many places where you can purchase one. No matter where you purchase or what you purchase, know that the best backpacks – the ones that last the longest – have all the following characteristics that make them durable, protective, and long lasting:

Material
While it does not need to be 100% waterproof, make sure your bag is made out of a semi-waterproof material so everything doesn’t get wet in a drizzle (many packs come with tarps you can put over them in case of a severe downpour). Moreover, make sure the material won’t stay wet long and thereby get musty. I look for material that is a little thick but somewhat lightweight. I should be able to pour a cup of water over it without the insides getting wet. I’m not traveling a lot during torrential downpours or monsoons but I have been caught in small rain storms before and because I my backpack is made out of a good material, I’ve never opened my bag to find wet clothes.

Lockable Zippers
Make sure each compartment has two zippers so you can lock them together. While am not really worried about people breaking into my bag and stealing my dirty clothes in a hostel or hotel, I like locking up my zippers when I am traveling. I’m always paranoid that someone is going to put something in my bag or a grabby baggage handler is going to take my stuff.

If your pack doesn’t have two zippers, you can always get Pacsafe (http://www.pacsafe.com), which wraps a lockable metal mesh around your whole bag, can be tied to a large object. It means that not only is no one breaking into your stuff, they aren’t walking away with it either. Pacsafe is a good form of protection for your bag, especially if you are going to be somewhere where your bag will go unlooked after for a long time. One thing to remember about Pacsafe is that this metal mesh also adds a lot of weight to your bag and it can be burdensome to carry around. Most people I know who use Pacsafe are photographers who carry a lot of expensive equipment around.

Multiple Compartments
I like a bag to have multiple compartments. This way, I can break up my belongings into smaller sections so it’s easier to access and find the stuff I need. My clothes are in the main compartment of my bag, my umbrella and flips flops in the top, and my shoes in the separated side compartment (that way they don’t get anything dirty). It saves time from having to dig around my bag. You want convenience and multiple compartments help give you that.

Internal Frame
The majority of backpacks today are internal-frame packs, meaning the support rods and frame are build into the backpack and hidden from view. However, there some are still external frame backpacks made where the rods are separate from the actual pack and stick out. Think backpacks you see in old hiking movies or movies about people backpacking Europe in the 1970s. A big clunky metal frame. Don’t get one of those. Make sure you buy a backpack with an internal frame. It not only looks better, but the rods won’t get caught on anything and your bag will also be slimmer making moving around easier. Additionally, internal-framed packs tend to be lighter as the frame is composed of a lighter alloy making them easier to carry.

Padded Hip Belt
Most of the weight you will be carrying around will be pushing down on your hips, so you’ll want a padded belt to make supporting the weight more comfortable. The belt will help provide support and distribute the weight load more evenly on your back causing less strain and problems. The hip belt should also be adjustable so you can tighten it for extra support.

Padded Shoulder Straps
These make carrying your load more comfortable, as the weight of your pack will be pushing downward on your shoulders. The pads will put less pressure on your shoulders and also help take pressure off your lower back. Make sure the padding is very thick and made up of a single piece as it will be less likely to split and thin out. After 7 years, the padding on my backpack is slightly worn but still comfortable.

Contoured/Padded Back
A lumbar-shaped pack makes carrying it more comfortable, as it helps distributes weight more evenly. The same principle applies that is used in contoured chairs. It allows for a more natural arch ensure no back pain. Moreover, this type of pack creates a small space between your back and the bag allowing air to move through and help keep your slightly cool. Lugging your bag around can build up a sweat!

Size Doesn’t Matter

One of my most frequently asked questions about backpacks is about size. Everyone wants to know what the perfect size is. Well, there is no perfect size. Backpacks come in a number of sizes. The smallest backpacks are usually 43 liters and go up to as large as 110 liters. Moreover, they have a number torso and hip sizes to ensure that everyone – no matter how big or small – can find a pack that fits them. No one backpack size is better than another. What matters is that your backpack should be both proportional to your body. That might mean a backpack that is 40 liters or 80 liters. If your backpack is too big or too small, the weight won’t be balanced properly and will cause back pain or maybe even make you topple over. You don’t want a skyscraper rising up from your back but you also don’t want a pack that is clearly too small and overflowing with your stuff. When you are at the store (and any good camping/outdoors store will do this), they should be able to stuff your backpack with the equivalent of 30 pounds (15 kilograms) so you can see how that much weight feels on your back.

Most backpacks cost between $99 USD for a small backpack to as much as $300 USD for a large backpack from a brand name. The medium sized store brand names generally cost around $199 USD. Backpack prices depend a lot on size, fabric, and brand. Store brands are cheaper than big name brands like North Face, Osprey, and Gregory.

I don’t believe that any backpack is worth $300 USD, no matter how nice it is. These expensive backpacks tend be large and have more bells and whistles, special padding, and material than you really need. I think any backpack under $200 USD (not including tax) is fine. That would be the most I’d be willing to pay that much for something I was going to use for a long trip and could use for years to come. The difference in quality between a $200 USD backpack and a $300 USD backpack isn’t that much – not enough in my opinion to warrant a $100 USD price different. Every a $300 USD backpack can do, a $200 USD backpack can do on the road just as well.

So what’s on my back? I use a REI Mars pack. REI is a sporting and outdoors company in America that sells a wide variety of sporting, outdoors, and travel gear. I’ve had this backpack since 2004 and it works, looks, and feels just as good as the day I bought it. You know those advertisements where they try to destroy products in order to prove how good it is? Well, my life is that ad. I have put this backpack through the ringer. It’s beenn crushed, thrown around, dropped, squeezed into tiny places, dragged, and kicked around. Most people think it’s a brand new backpack and are shocked to find out I’ve been carrying it around since 2004. It’s a high quality backpack.

Besides selling their own gear, REI sells gear from other quality manufacturers like North Face, Eagle Creek, and Osprey. They are an excellent company with locations around the United States that offers very good prices on backpacks and other travel gear. I find their customer service superb and their sales staff to be very helpful and knowledgeable.

But they aren’t the only game in town! Other opinions include EMS (Eastern Mountain Sports, http://www.ems.com), another US company that is similar to REI. The company MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-Op, http://www.mec.ca) is the Canadian equivalent of these two companies.

I think REI is the best though and given how well my backpack has lasted, I wouldn’t consider buying a backpack from anywhere else.

In the end, you have to try on a variety of backpacks to see which one is the perfect fit for you and matches the size needs of your trip. You just need to go with what feels right. I can simply tell you after trying out a lot of packs and even road testing a few, I found the best backpacks have a lot of the above criteria.

Below are some of the best in class backpacks that you can’t go wrong getting. Any of them would be strong and durable for your trip.

Note: Please consider purchasing one of your backpacks through the links below. It helps keep the lights on here at Nomadic Matt HQ and there’s no extra cost to you. It’s win-win.

Gregory Z30 Pack	Gregory Z35 Pack	Arc’teryx Miura 30 Pack
REI Venus 70 Pack – Women’s	REI Mars 80 Pack	Gregory Baltoro 75 Pack
REI Flash 65 Pack	Deuter ACT Lite 60 + 10 SL Pack – Women’s	Osprey Argon 85 Pack
Gregory Z65 Pack	Osprey Aether 70 Pack