Travel Bags Soft-Sided vs. Hard-Sided Suitcases: The Final Showdown Updated June 11, 2025 Connie Park/NYT Wirecutter By Maria Adelmann Maria Adelmann is a writer covering travel.

However, the rest of my family prefers soft-sided luggage — and they have solid arguments to back up their claims. There's no one-size-fits-all when it comes to luggage.

For years, Away has produced beloved hard shell luggage. Away’s new Softside Luggage collection comes in four sizes: carry-on, bigger carry-on, medium and large. You can shop it in five colors: jet ...

It’s easy to forget, though, that Away launched a line of soft-sided luggage back in 2019 dubbed The Expandables, which looked quite similar to the newly unveiled Softside collection. It’s hard to ...

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Soft-sided luggage is having a moment. Away recently announced its Softside collection, which followed Herschel’s Softshell series earlier this summer. But with a new collection called the VersaPack+, ...

Traditional hard-shells usually have a clamshell design, opening down the middle with a 50/50 split of compartment space on each side, while soft-side bags tend to be top-loading, offering one ...

Here’s a closer look at Away’s new soft-sided luggage with its durable high-strength nylon and innovative features. But it also has potential drawbacks like delicate zippers.

Shopping for luggage begins with deciding a few details: whether you want hard-sided or soft-sided, along with what size(s) you need for your travels. If you like to have exterior pockets and some… ...

From luggage to footwear, this is the dream I chase: functional coolness. That’s why I was thrilled when suitcase style-icon Away released a new line of soft-sided suitcases.