Best Carry On Bags and Backpacks for Air Asia Size Regulations

Before you buy a carry on bag or backpack, read this. Yesterday I was ready to buy the immensely popular Farpoint 40L Backpack for my son. It’s a great bag, good quality and has everything you could ask for but, just as I reached for my credit card, the shop assistant mentioned that although the Farpoint ( or Fairpoint for women) is the maximum carry on size for European carriers, it’s just that little bit too big for Air Asia’s size regulations. That’s a deal breaker. Maybe we’d get away with it, maybe we wouldn’t, but there is absolutely no point in buying a $100+ bag that may end up having to go under the plane, while relieving me of the hefty extra luggage charge. To me it makes far more sense to buy a bigger, more useful, bag, if it’s destined for the hold anyway, or buy one that Air Asia can’t question. This bag is for my son and he doesn’t carry a whole bunch of gear, but he does have a laptop a Nerf Gun and a bunch of Pokemon cards, so we need a laptop pocket at very least, multiple internal pockets ideally. I set out to find the perfect Air Asia sized carry on bag and relegated the Farpoint to “possibly”.

We generally don’t travel carry-on only, but if you’d like to read more on this style of travel and what to pack, click through. Alternatively you can visit our travel gear page to see what’s essential and wht’s not, tested through 4 years of family travel. This post may contain affiliate links, they cost you nothing if you choose to support this site by using them.

Air Asia’s Bag Size Regulations

“Each guest is allowed one piece of cabin baggage AND 1 laptop bag OR 1 handbag on-board. The main cabin baggage shall not exceed 56cm x 36cm x 23cm and does not weigh more than 7kg. This baggage should also be able to fit under the seat in front of you or the overhead compartment”  Source Air Asia More Information Here

So Air Asia is one of the few airlines that still allows 2 items of luggage, most of the airlines that we regularly use in Europe only allow one. That’s no help to us, we need to have the same bag, on every flight, so we just have to find one at 56cm x 36cm x 23cm, or, one that when compressed and not stuffed full, meets those dimensions. Compression straps are going to matter. If you plan on carrying a separate hand bag, purse, or other “personal” bag, check out our selection of anti-theft bags, they have some fantastic features for regular travellers including RFID blocking for passport and cards, anti slash bodies and anti cut straps.

Bags With Wheels and Handles

No thanks, we want a bag we can carry, wheels are not an advantage to us, just extra weight and bulk while reducing our useable volume. Space and weight are at a premium, we don’t need wheels.

A Quick Look at the Farpoint or Fairpoint 40 L Osprey Bag.

UPDATE:  We decided to take a chance and buy the Osprey Farpoint 40 for our Air Asia flight. It’s such a good bag that we decided it was worth a shot. We’ll let you know how it goes!

Max size:  54 cm x 34 cm x 37 cm

Weight: 1.44 Kg

good harness with waist strap

great quality and lifetime guarantee

two sizes

This bag is a beautiful thing and comes with a lifetime guarantee and choice of colours. The harness is comfortable, it comes in 2 sizes ( s-m and m-l) and it has that all important laptop pocket. For carry on only travel in Europe it’s perfect, but we’re heading to Asia, aren’t you? If you click through above you can see the internal pockets. It’s a great bag, but 2cm too big.

Osprey Porter 46 L ( Not Available in the UK)

Max size:  57 cm x 36 cm x 24 cm

Weight: 1.09 Kg

stowable harness with hip strap

excellent compression

Lowe Alpine AT Lightflite Carry On 45L

Max Dimensions: 36cm x 51cm x 25cm

Weight: 762g

 

Cabin Max 44L

Dimensions: 55cm x 40cm x 20cm

Weight: 700g

low price

Mountain Warehouse 45L Phoenix Extreme (US only currently)

We own this bag and have had it several years, although below is a newer model. It’s not as well built as a Lowe Alpine or an Osprey Bag, but it has a good harness and is light enough for trekking. This is one of the bags we took on the Everest treks. It’s a conventional top loader backpack rather than a front opening travel pack like those above. We will be taking this bag on Air Asia and hoping for the best.

Maximum Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

a traditional lightweight backpack suitable for trekking with a large 45L capacity.

Cabin Max Equator Backpacking Cabin Luggage

Maximum dimensions: 56cm x 36cm x 23cm (also described as 54cm) Air Asia perfect!

Weight: 1.3 Kg

fold away hip strap and harness

laptop slot

rain cover

low price

external compression straps

 

So after weighing up the options, we’re going to try the Cabin Max Equator, it’s the only bag that’s been designed specifically for Asian regulations. It’s not my bag of choice, but we’ve ordered it and we’ll check it out. That’s the beauty of Amazon, we can return it if it’s not up to scratch.

Our Next Problem, the 7 Kg Weight Limit.

We will also be needing one of these.

For you, for Pinterest

Keeping the airlines happy is a real headache these days. We’ve noticed that travellers with backpacks generally get better treatment than wheely bag owners, it’s rare to see a backpack taken to the hold before boarding but we see it often with wheeled suitcases. I guess because our soft bags can be squashed they cause less of a problem in overhead lockers. We adults always fly with checked luggage, we couldn’t and wouldn’t fly carry on only as our electronics alone would take up our weight and volume allowance, but for the kids, it’s what we do and it saves us a few dollars on most flights. In my heart I want to buy the Lowe Alpine, it’s a brand I use and trust, but the Osprey is beautiful bag, it’s a shame it’s potentially too big for Air Asia. Because it’s a hugely popular bag I would presume that airline staff look out for them and know they can charge an extra baggage fee should they choose to. So which to choose for our next round of travel n Asia, which would you choose or what do you use?