It hasn’t taken me very long to figure out that a huge part of traveling smart is traveling with the right luggage. Now I know this sounds like a advertisement, and maybe it is, but if you guys have followed me long enough, you’ll know I only support and post about brands I feel passionately about and have tried out extensively.

Earlier this spring, before my New York trip, I started asking around and reading blogs about luggage. My past few trips had been a pain in the rear because of badly designed luggage. During our first month long trip back in 2016 to the UK, one of our biggest regrets was packing a) with one HUGE suitcase to cut down on the quantities of luggage we had and b) with luggage that was hard to lug around because of bad design in the straps, wheels, or overall build.

During my research I stumbled upon a small brand called NaSaDen (you’ll find them on Instagram here: http://www.instagram.com/nasaden_story or on their website https://www.nasaden.us). Don’t let the bad grammar on their site scare you off, I blame bad translation to English. They’re perfectly wonderful and smartly built.

I ordered a 22″ spinner carry-on and a Schiffer tote off Amazon. The carry-on is the Schloss Sanssouci Series in Dolfin Titanium Gold and the Schiffer bag is Khaki Blue. You an also use this link to purchase direct.

Here’s how the carry-on and tote arrived. Pretty impressed with the packaging, I like that you can store the luggage with the protective fabric case. 

So, one of my biggest complaints about luggage research was the lack of really good photos on most sites. I wanted to see the interior, but had to search quite a bit to find images. I believe, from what I saw, most NaSaDen interiors are purple (although I could be wrong, depending on the size and model you get). But, at the end of the day, I didn’t really care as long as it had plenty of room and laundry compartments, easy to wheel and carry, and most importantly was extremely durable.

The zippers are sturdy, the wheels are sturdy, the entire case is top notch. I wasn’t expecting it to be better than my Samsonite luggage I’ve used for years (as well as a more recent underseater spinner as well), but it definitely is.

I took the carry-on for a month long trip to Scotland this past month. It’s been up and down stairs, through the dirt, through cobblestones and rough streets, been over-packed, and the wheels and zipper haven’t skipped a beat.

The handles are comfortable, and it’s extremely lightweight, so lugging it up airport stairs hasn’t been difficult at all (when you’re petite, this becomes important). The extendable handle stays put better than other luggage and it’s easy to put away for those fun airport moments where everyone has to go up the stairs during boarding and de-boarding and no one behind you wants to wait for you to put your handle down so you can carry it. I hate airports. I hate airport behavior. This bag makes it easier.

My favorite feature, surprisingly, is the way the luggage zipper tabs lock neatly into place. It’s the simple things, apparently. It has TSA approved locks as well, although I didn’t use them.

So, I have no complaints with this luggage. Except maybe that I want more in all sizes and so does my boyfriend.

Also note: we have a Kenneth Cole large spinner checked baggage similar to this carry-on. I can strongly say that the NaSaDen is a better piece of luggage in every way than both the Samsonite and Kenneth Cole.

Here’s some other photos from our last few journeys.

2019 update:

We now have two more pieces of NaSaDen luggage and still love them all. We use them both for clothing, etc, as well as our photography/film equipment. Life savers.

And, at the Ritz Carlton in NYC in Fall 2019: