Tumi Review: Luggage Brands

Since 1975, the backbone of Tumi's brand is the durability and craftsmanship they pour into luggage production. Their 5 guiding principles include design excellence, superior quality, technical innovation, functional superiority, and world-class customer service. Tumi has over 125 patents and tries to stay ahead of the curve with traveling needs and trends. Tumi is also the official luggage partner of the PGA Tour, LPGA, McLaren Racing, and Tottenham Hotspur Women.

Extra storage solutions

Tumi has a big inventory of both backpacks and carry-on/checked bags. They're a professional brand that includes storage features in their products that we didn't see anywhere else. For example, some suitcases come with a removable suit section that has a zip pocket on the garment sleeve and a fiberglass rod to keep everything flat and smooth. There are extra zip pockets in most collections, which adds to a traveler's ability to keep belongings organized.

Single sizes

There are about 33 different styles of suitcases here that differ in structure, interior features, and size. Most of the inventory at Tumi are carry-ons, but there is a decent selection of checked bags as well. They have both hardside and softside options that come in colors like black, pink, white, gray, olive, navy, or light blue. Most suitcases come in a single size, so you can't pair together your own set very easily if you want the same design in multiple sizes.

Really expensive

A glaring difference between Tumi and other brands we've evaluated is that Tumi's luggage is pretty expensive. Carry-ons start at $595 and can easily cost over $1,000. Checked bags start at $795, so if you're buying multiple pieces from this brand, you should expect to spend a couple of thousand dollars at the very least. The exterior material on Tumi's suitcases appears to be really high-quality and some of their interior organization is unique, but many of the other features they outline are similar to what other (much cheaper) brands say they offer, so we can't entirely nail down how they are justifying the high prices.

Rigorous product testing

Tumi boasts that they pioneered many of their own tests to ensure the highest quality for their customers. Bags are tested by tumbling them 125 times to see how they hold up. They use a handle jerk test to make sure the handle is properly installed and completely secure. Their zippers are guaranteed not to tear and they use a mileage cycle test to see how their wheels hold up over long distances.

5-year warranty

In the event that your Tumi luggage needs repairs or replacement, the company gives customers a 5-year warranty. The first year is worry-free, meaning Tumi will cover all expenses (including shipping costs to and from a repair center) for wear and tear related to normal use or airline handling. If a suitcase is beyond repair, they will replace it at no charge. Years 2-5 come with coverage for manufacturing defects and normal wear and tear. You'll be responsible for the cost of sending your luggage to Tumi's repair center and there may be an additional nominal fee involved, but they will quickly repair your bags and ship them back to you for free.

Lower reviews than expected

If we are going to spend thousands of dollars on luggage, we need to know that it's going to last us a long time (or forever) but Tumi's reviews aren't as high as we would hope. Many of their suitcases are in the 3/5 star range, which is lower than many other brands. We found a lot of buyers who said that the company doesn't honor their warranty, zippers break after only a few uses, it's difficult to contact customer service, orders are canceled unexpectedly, and so much more. It doesn't help that Tumi doesn't have a Better Business Bureau rating either.

Needs some polishing

Tumi does a good job of positioning itself as a high-quality, luxury luggage brand that rigorously tests its products, but they don't live up to their own hype. If they were to make an effort to polish up their customer service efforts, they might have a much happier shopper base, but there are definitely some issues in that department. Because of this and their high prices, we aren't going to turn to Tumi for luggage anytime soon.

Learn More  ➜

On the Tumi website