Product Review: Packmate Travel Roll Storage Bags

Caroline Morse Teel is the Managing Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Follow her on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline.

Caroline joined Boston-based SmarterTravel in 2011 after living in Ireland, London, and Manhattan. She's traveled to all seven continents, jumped out of planes, and bungeed off bridges in the pursuit of a good story. She loves exploring off-the-beaten path destinations, anything outdoorsy, and all things adventure.

Her stories have also appeared online at USA Today, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Yahoo, Boston.com, TripAdvisor, Buzzfeed, Jetsetter, Oyster, Airfarewatchdog, and others.

The Handy Item I Always Pack: "Earplugs. A good pair has saved my sleep and sanity many times!"

Ultimate Bucket List Experience: Hiking Mount Kilimanjaro.

Travel Motto: "Don't be boring."

Aisle, Window, or Middle Seat: "Aisle (when the first class private suite isn't available)."

E-mail her at cteel@smartertravel.com.

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What Is it: Packmate’s Travel Roll bags, compression bags that don’t require a vacuum.

Price and Where to Buy: The bags start at $8.99 for a variety of sizes on Amazon.

Pros:

Compresses clothing so you can fit more in your suitcase.
Protects from liquid spills, bugs, and dirt.
Easy to use—just zip the top and roll to squeeze out the air.
See through design lets you see what’s inside easily.
Comes in a variety of sizes.

Cons:

The downside of compression bags is that you may be tempted to over-pack since you can fit much more—remember that compression bags save space, but not weight.

How it Rates:

Usefulness: 10/10. We always roll our clothes when traveling, because it prevents wrinkles and allows us to fit more in our suitcase. Most packing bags don’t work with rolled clothes—but these bags are designed to. Plus, they will compress your stuff by up to 75 percent.

Value: 10/10. The Packmate bags are cheaper than many non-compression bags.

Durability: 10/10. Puncture and tear resistant fabric comes with a five-year guarantee.

Cool Factor: 10/10. A well-organized bag is always cool.

Final Verdict: Seriously, buy these bags. They’re affordable, practical, and durable. You’ll save money and space in your suitcase.

(Photo: Packmate)

Editor’s Note: Reviews are based on usefulness, portability, durability, value, and “cool factor.” Some review products are sent to us free of charge and with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions, positive and negative, and will never accept compensation to review a product. If you have any questions or comments concerning our reviews, or would like to suggest a product for review, please email us at editor@smartertravel.com.

We hand-pick everything we recommend and select items through testing and reviews. Some products are sent to us free of charge with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions and do not accept compensation to review products. All items are in stock and prices are accurate at the time of publication. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission.