What’s up everyone, today we’re talking about roller bags. I’m going to show you which one’s my favorite and probably the best one on the market. Travelpro hasn’t paid me for anything; this is just me telling you guys about an incredible product that I love.
If you have been researching luggage, you probably already know about the hype surrounding brands like Beis vs Away. But sometimes, you need a workhorse rather than an Instagram model. Travelpro is a cool brand; they actually invented the roller bag over 30 years ago. It was a pilot who invented it for him and his crew, and it’s actually why it’s the choice of over 90 different airlines.
Today, we are comparing two titans of the Travelpro lineup: the Platinum Elite and the Crew Versapack. Let’s get into it.
The Story Behind the Switch
Most of my incredible items that I come across start with some type of story, and this story happened when I was traveling for work. I was in New York City. I’d had the same roller bag for a number of years and I always thought this thing is great, why would I ever want another bag?
But you’re rolling your bag through the main streets of New York City and upon the end of my first trip as I was leaving to go catch my Uber in the city, I was like man, my bag is not rolling good anymore. I looked down and sure enough, the polymer wheel had exploded essentially. The hard outside had cracked and fallen off and I was just rolling on like the really hard compound inner piece which is essentially dragging my bag down the sidewalks.
So what did I do? When I got to the airport I started looking for new bags and I came across this brand right here.
Contender 1: The Travelpro Platinum Elite Carry-On Spinner
This right here is the Platinum Elite soft side. It’s a 21-inch, comes into 20 lots of different sizes. The way I travel, if I can get this bag to work for the most things, that was my goal. So I went with the 21 inch.
Durability and Build
I got this four years ago in September, so a little over four years of use been all around the country with it—in and out of airports, down roads, hotels, you name it. It’s been awesome for me.
Right up front here, we have really nice touch points. These are nice leather-wrapped handles. It has a good professional feel to it. The pull handle is very nice. It’s just so satisfying, and the click—it’s nice. It is leather wrapped, it’s all stitched on the back on the bottom.
The Wheels: Precision Glide
If you’re traveling with those things, here’s one of my favorite features. I mean you can just see, look at this, this thing just rolls perfect. That’s because here, I’ll give you some techno babble, some jargon: here we go, the Precision Glide system.
These wheels, they’re not like… look at this. I’m going to go ahead and turn it and it’s like see how kind of like it locks in? They have magnets in the base of these to kind of help each one of these wheels lock in. So when you’re rolling in an airport or in a hotel lobby or even in your kitchen, these things lock in which is great helps it track really straight.
If you ever fly through Atlanta Hartsfield and you have to go six miles from gate A37 to gate A38, this bag is absolutely beautiful as far as how well it rolls.
Capacity and Organization
It’s 39 liters for total carrying capacity. A little bit on the small side, but again, that’s not really what this bag is designed for. It’s designed to get you through the weekend, a quick business trip, that kind of thing.
Exterior Pockets:
- You got two pockets here on the outside.
- I usually will use this if I’m traveling with golf clubs; that’s the only reason I have to check a bag is a set of clubs. I’ll throw the actual check receipt in there which is pretty nice.
- The outside pocket here it can fit things like a laptop, iPad, stuff like that very nice.
- A couple of short pockets right here. Both of these only go down a few inches. That’s a great place to put any travel documentation, a great place to store a Snickers bar, keys, quick access things.
Business Plus Features:
Now, the reason why I love this bag so much is my front pocket on here. Most of the time, we open this up and it’s just simply a big open area I can put a laptop in. This one has two padded places for a laptop for an iPad. It also has a couple of pouches in here that are designed that I can put my USB cables, a stylus, a charging brick, any of that stuff can go in the front here. Really, really nicely laid out.
Interior:
On the inside, you got these compression straps here which are awesome. I’m a big fan of rolling my luggage. Get everything in there, get these compression straps on the top, get a little pressure on there and then you can really cinch this thing down which I love because it does have two inches of like expandable space right here on the side.
One of the other things that I don’t use personally but it’s pretty nice it has a zip-in suiter that it came with. So if you’re traveling you got to wear a suit or dress or whatever the case may be you can actually fold it up in there, fold it nicely, put it right in the top it zips in which is nice as well.
Tech Features
This has got a pouch right here so you can throw like a brick in there. It’s got a little USB cable runs in there and then the cool thing is right here on the back you flip that up and you got like a little USB in this case it’s an A port. I think the new ones have C or A and C which is even better. It just shows that they’re not changing things materially they’re just keeping up with the time.
Contender 2: The Travelpro Crew VersaPack Global Carry-On
The Travelpro Crew VersaPack Global Carry-On is that carry-on that you need that’s that higher level. It really compares well with the Delsey. If you’re looking for a great carry-on would you look to go globally and to be available for all your needs? Well, it’s a soft shell carry-on which I love the soft shells.
Maneuverability
The first thing I always want to know is how the wheels roll. It rolls like you wouldn’t believe seamlessly. It rolls so good that when I’ve taken it on trips it sometimes rolls away a little bit but that’s awesome because it means it is no effort at all when you’re moving it to the airports and everything else.
You really want these eight wheels that are on this carry-on to be easy and reliable. It is completely stable as it moves.
Handle and Comfort
It also has a handle here so when you’re going through security you can easily grab it which is great. Now the next thing is I always want to know about the handle. It comes in the one position which is here it does go higher if it if you notice it locks in position then I can pull it until I get into the higher place handle solid.
There’s like three or four positions on this handle because here’s a smaller one, here’s another one, and here. I love this handle because the diversity of carry-ons and places to do it because you never know when you’re going through a small place in the airport that you need to wiggle yourself around and you could change the height of that handle.
Storage and Accessibility
For this carry-on, this is a multi-pouch carry-on so it’s got lots of different pockets and lots of different features.
Exterior:
- The front pocket has a nice small size in here that you can stick papers or something else.
- I love this top little carry-on right here the space because I throw all my phone my keys or anything else when I’m going through security right in here so then I don’t have to carry it as I go to security.
- Then it’s got this top pouch which I was really surprised it has a laptop feature and then you can see my hand goes all the way inside so you could stick a laptop right in there for easy access. I’ve tried my MacBook and it works great.
Interior:
- The main inside compartment is large and has multiple features as you think about it.
- It’s got a TSA compliant bag that comes with the luggage.
- Then also on the side it’s got this nice Travelpro logo.
- But this top pouch was really interesting. It opens to reveal a pouch that’s kind of reinforced between that and the laptop. This can be zipped out if you don’t like the pouch but I found it really convenient for top level stuff.
- Inside you have a nice depth also with a locking mechanism to keep your clothes in. I like that feature as it did it because it was easy to use.
Tech and Durability
One of those things I forgot to mention is there’s a power charger. It’s got solid charger where you can put a power bank in over here and then have the power bank always available and you just plug it in the back. That’s great when you’re traveling globally and when you’re just sitting waiting for your plane to arrive or delay it’s easy to plug in.
Durability this is fantastic it basically can stand up to a shock putting a lot of pressure on it it works. It’s definitely the bag I’m going to try traveling with. The zippers work fantastic; wow, the zipper just flies around these curves. You want this kind of zipper as you’re using it.
Head-to-Head Comparison
If you are torn between these two, or perhaps looking at the Rimowa Trunk vs Trunk Plus for a larger option, here is a breakdown of the specific differences between these Travelpro models.
Travelpro Feature Breakdown
| Feature | Platinum Elite | Crew VersaPack Global |
| Price | ~$379.99 (Premium) | Mid-range |
| Material | Premium Fabric, Leather accents | High-density Nylon |
| Wheels | PrecisionGlide™ (Magnetic alignment) | 8-wheel spinner system |
| Handle | Leather-wrapped, comfortable grip | Multiple height stops |
| Suit Storage | Zip-in Suiter included | Zip-out pouch organizers |
| Tech | Integrated USB Port (A/C) | Integrated USB Port |
| Best For | Business Class, Frequent Flyers | International Travel, Versatility |
| Weight | 8.2 lbs | Comparable |
| Warranty | Worry-Free Warranty | Built for Durability |
Size Considerations
This Platinum Elite measures under the domestic size of 22 inches. This one measures in at 21.75 from the top of the handle to the ground. So, this should fly every single flight here in the United States. If you are flying internationally, I do think that it is a little bit on the large side. It’s probably going to exceed their limits on some of the international flights.
The Crew Versapack Global top is 21 definitely going across with the pouches it’s nine but you could squeeze it into about eight and a half and then across the top 13 and a half to 14. This is really the bag I think we need to start looking at if you’re a business traveler or you’re going to be traveling Global. Look for the Crew Versa Global one. There’s also Crew Versa; the problem with that one is it’s a little bigger and it may not fit in all the international travel requirements.
Before you travel, make sure you know the rules to avoid getting denied at the gate. Check out our guide on Away Bigger Carry-On Denied to see how strict airlines are getting with bag sizes.
Final Verdict
The Platinum Elite is like one of those simple things like just a piece of luggage but it’s not just a piece of luggage like it’s kind of like your home. It goes with you like it sees what you see, it’s there for the trip so it kind of becomes like this odd travel companion. It’s just so satisfying. Anybody who knows me knows look you buy once you cry once and if you really like it sometimes you buy again but you still only cried that once because you’re so happy to buy it again because it was that good.
The Crew VersaPack is definitely the bag I’m going to try traveling with. It met all my needs. It rolls like you wouldn’t believe seamlessly. If you’re a business traveler or you’re going to be traveling Global I would consider the Travelpro Crew Versa Global.
Both bags offer incredible value, but for the ultimate luxury feel and magnetic tracking wheels, the Platinum Elite takes the gold. For versatility and global sizing, the Crew VersaPack is your best bet.