Burton Wheelie Double Deck Luggage Review

When I was preparing for my honeymoon back in 2008, I realized as I was working through the steps of getting a passport that neither my soon-to-be husband nor I owned a set of decent luggage. On a trip that would span more than a week of travel I knew that a simple backpack wouldn't suffice for an excursion that included cruising through the Mexican Riviera, black-tie dinners and swimming with the Dolphins. I knew it would be a challenge to find luggage that fit all of our needs and that could be deemed "cool" enough for my husband to get on-board with the expense. One day as we walked by a skateboard shop I saw in the window some of the most attractive and appealing luggage I'd ever seen.

Designed and created by Burton , a company known more for snowboarding than for travel, the Wheelie Double Deck brings out the best in luggage. From trendy color schemes designed to stand out at baggage claim (currently available in Surface Plaid, Buffalo Plaid, Grunge Plaid, Lip-Stick, Black Watercolor Square and True Black) to expanding zipper panels built to hold the strain of one too many souvenirs; these bags are built for the long haul.

I was really impressed when we opened the bag up and started checking out its internals. The Double Deck design essentially makes this two bags in one; the top section is completely removable from the base section, revealing convenient wall-panels that open for easy-access to your belongings. The setup has proven again and again that it is perfect for a week vacation shared with my husband - I get to pack my section of the bag and he gets to pack his. Once we've both finished our respective packing duties, we simply re-attach the sections and tighten the bag down with the heavy-duty adjustable straps- and voila - one piece of luggage to check even though our unmentionables are safely separated.

The Wheelie Double Deck is easy to maneuver; littered with an array of nylon handles as well as a comfortable telescoping handle and wheels it is as easy to pull and maneuver through tight spaces as a small carry-on bag would be. The "brick" design of the bag makes it easy to stand upright while you're waiting in line, and the nylon grab-handles on just about every surface allow you to lay the bag on any of its sides and push it into a small corner out of the way without fear of not being able to retrieve it.

One of my favorite features of the bag is its expanding zipper panels called "CRAM Zones". Trademarked by Burton for their gear, the panels around the zippers are made of a soft stretchy material that allows the luggage to expand around your over-zealous ideas of how many pairs of shoes you think the bag should hold. The expanding panels have been a lifesaver for me many times when I've discovered that I've accumulated far more souvenirs than I had planned for on my trip.

The bag has proven to be incredibly durable as well. In the last three years our bag has been pushed around airports, tossed through the halls of a cruise ship, crammed into the back of cars for road trips, packed to what might be considered the breaking point for many other brands of luggage and has been rolled, dropped or landed-on by yours truly in a series of travel mishaps and blunders.

Although the price tag of $289.95 initially sent my husband into shock, the bag has more than paid for itself by helping us to avoid baggage fees at the airport. Because the bag has separate compartments and can hold so much, we can travel together and check one bag instead of two. The luggage is perfectly sized for checking at the terminal, falling just within the acceptable guidelines for common air travel. Whenever we find ourselves close to exceeding the size restrictions for checked air due to over-stuffing the bag we can easily tighten the straps around the outside to compress it to within the guidelines for size. On the rare occasion we find ourselves up against a weight restriction, we can simply take the bag apart and check it as two bags instead of one.

In all of our travels we've never had trouble identifying our luggage because it stands out in a crowd (we purchased a sand camouflage scheme that is no longer available) and the bag has been more durable than we ever could have expected. After traveling more than 20,000 miles in just three years the only wear and tear that can be found are a cosmetically frayed seams and a handful of scratches on the hard-back. It has been one of the best travel investments I've ever made, and I recommend the Burton line to anyone who is looking for new luggage.