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Friday, January 17th
American Tourister got its start back in 1933 with brothers Sol and Irving Koffler in Rhode Island. Their goal was simple: create affordable and durable suitcases. In 1993, American Tourister was taken over by Samsonite, another popular luggage company, but they still operate under separate names today. You can buy American Tourister's suitcases in over 120 countries and they are known for being wear-and-tear resistant and offering good value.
4 suitcase categories
The four main categories of American Tourister luggage include hardshell, softshell, Disney, or Star Wars. Every so often they make different themed suitcases, but at the time we were shopping, those were our choices. The softside suitcases differed in size and color, rather than features. You could buy a 20”, 24”, or 28” spinner as a single suitcase or buy them in a 2- or 3-piece set. The colors aren't all available in every size and configuration, but they tend to include black, classic blue, digital lavender, and purple orchid.
Most options in hardshell
If you're looking for a hard suitcase, you'll have a few more options as far as colors and design go. Some have a geometrical line design, others have what appears to be waves going across the front and back, and some are striped. You can buy individual suitcases or purchase them in a set of 3. Some of the colors include purple haze, slate blue, black, petal pink, mint, blue spruce, power plum, among others. Most of American Tourister's hard suitcases are either 20”, 24”, or 28” in size.
Disney must-haves
For the Disney and Star Wars fanatics, there are some fun Minnie or Mickey designs, ones designed to look like R2D2, Darth Vader, or a Stormtrooper. If you're headed to one of the Disney parks, snagging one of these might be a necessity.
Choices around $150
Depending on the size and quantity of luggage you're getting from American Tourister, you'll probably spend between $70 and $350. The least expensive choice is an 18” kids Disney carry-on for $39.99 with either a Mickey, Frozen, Minnie, Princess, or Baby Yoda theme. The next cheapest choice is a 20” spinner suitcase in black for $69.99. A 3-piece hardshell luggage set is as much as $349, but you can easily find something closer to the $150 range or less with plenty of options.
Good durability overall
Most of the suitcases expand at least 1” for extra packing space if needed. One side typically has a modesty pocket and the other side consists of a mesh door pocket and elastic tie tapes. You can view photos of the insides of each suitcase on the listings and the types of wheels they come with. Thousands of people have praised American Tourister luggage for its quality, and the brand is well-liked overall. Every so often we see someone who has an issue with the zipper quality, but outside of this, people say that American Tourister suitcases are tough enough to get tossed around and have plenty of space for what they need.
3-year limited manufacturing warranty
There is no Better Business Bureau (BBB) profile for American Tourister, but there is one for Samsonite. They have a "B” rating from the BBB for their failure to respond to 2 complaints against the company. There aren't a ton of customer reviews on this page at all, so it feels like their rating might be a little weak because it's based on a lack of information. Third-party ratings report that there tends to be some issues with wheels falling off every so often, which is one of the main concerns people have about any luggage brand they buy. You can get your suitcase repaired at any authorized American Tourister Service Center in the country, but you'll be responsible for the cost of getting it there and you'll need to fill out a repair request through their website. Depending on who you buy your suitcase from and how it was handled, your suitcase may qualify for American Tourister's limited 3-year global warranty that covers manufacturing defects.
Safe and trusted brand
American Tourister has high reviews from customers overall. They are one of the most well-known luggage brands in the travel industry and have definitely "been around the block” (see what we did there?) as far as making and distributing suitcases goes. As long as you find a suitcase that appears to fit all your needs and has good customer ratings, American Tourister is a safe and trusted luggage brand to own.
Whether you're a world traveler and you frequent the airport, or you're just taking a weekend trip a few cities away, you need something to keep all your belongings organized. At some point in life, everyone will need to have a good set of luggage and there's really no way around it. It's something that you might only buy once in your life if you get a high-quality set and it will serve you over and over again.
The key is to own the right sizes and, of course, colors and design that fit your style. You may never have put much thought into all the different features you could find in different sets of luggage, but as you start shopping online you'll soon realize that there are a lot of things to consider.
For example, do you want hard or soft luggage? Do you want wheels that glide straight? Or ones that can swivel around in all directions? Do you want it to have a lock with the zipper in case it gets into the wrong hands? How about pockets on the outside or the ability to expand? See? There are many more things to decide on than you may have originally anticipated.
When you're off from place to place or sprinting to your airport terminal, the last thing you want is a busted wheel or handle. You might have to spend a tad bit more money, but having a high-quality luggage set is totally worth it. Another helpful hint when shopping is to buy something that's easily identifiable in case your luggage gets mixed in with other people's or you want to quickly grab your suitcase from the luggage carousel at the baggage claim. All of your essentials are in that important travel bag, so you'll always want to be able to pick it out in a crowd.
There are many companies that sell luggage online, but which ones will last you years to come? Some brands have really basic options while others get a lot more technical and fancy, so we've done the research to lay it all out for you so you can buy from a company that will best fit your traveling lifestyle. Here are some major things to take into account when weighing your options for luggage brands:
The experts at Top Consumer Reviews have researched the best luggage brands you can buy from online. We hope you are able to find a great luggage set to accompany you on all your big adventures that lie ahead!
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