Suitcase vs. Backpack. Here’s why there was a clear winner on my trip to Japan.

I often agonise over what luggage to take on trips, and my recent trip to Japan with a friend was no exception. But I have rarely been particularly deliberate about my luggage decisions, often just opting for whatever feels like the easiest option. 

I decided to take a backpack to Japan because, well, it was the easiest option, and I do have a backpack bias. When my friend rocked up with a suitcase, we started making comparisons and having a suitcase vs. backpack competition. And there was a clear winner.

As well as sharing with you what I crowned luggage champion of this trip, I’ll pack some pros and cons of suitcases and backpacks into this article to help you navigate this common traveller conundrum.

Travelling with a backpack to Japan gave me a feeling of adventure

I’ve long been an advocate of the backpack – I love the feeling of freedom when you pop it (or awkwardly wrestle it) onto your back and walk (or plod) with your belongings. It has always felt like more of an adventure to set off with a backpack, and I’ve taken trusty backpacks on many trips, from Ecuador to Vietnam, to weekends in London. 

After arriving at the airport in Japan, it wasn’t long before I was enjoying that freeing backpack feeling. I smugly strolled the streets of Tokyo to our first hotel, manoeuvring around corners and on Japan’s amazing network of tactile paving with ease. 

On the streets, I was as agile as my feet were, whilst my friend was having to awkwardly lift her suitcase on some kerbsides and lean down to push it up small slopes. 

Ok, I may not be telling the whole truth about the journey from the airport…

But there were some disadvantages to my backpack

Rewind a little, and let me paint the full picture of the journey from the airport. 

I enthusiastically swung my backpack on at the baggage carousel in Tokyo airport. But after an 18-hour journey, the freeing feeling of the backpack soon turned to exhaustion as we queued to pick up our Japan Rail passes.

I awkwardly wrestled the backpack off my back to give my shoulders a rest, and spent the remaining time lugging it a short distance on the floor every few minutes. I kept resting it against my feet so it didn’t spectacularly collapse and tumble onto the display boards. 

As the trip went on, I became more self-conscious of this rather undignified leaning-the-backpack-on-the-floor habit after we learnt that putting bags on the floor is considered impolite. Japan has many cultural quirks, and to avoid placing bags on the floor, cafes even provide little baskets or holders. 

Another cultural norm is putting your backpack on your front when using Japan’s public transport system, like subways. But swinging a 15-kilo, 60-litre bag on your front isn’t really an option. So I spent most subway journeys concerned I was going to accidentally knock over an unassuming local commuter. 

In these situations, my friend could casually wheel her suitcase along and stop and start with ease. 

It’s not just about what luggage you take, but what you pack

I had packed for Japan lightly, efficiently, and my newly acquired packing cubes made me feel like a pro. But it soon became clear that I was on track to buy a lot of Japanese souvenirs and goods, some of which wouldn’t fit in the extra space in my backpack.  

No less than one week into the trip and having impulsively bought two bottles of Sake from a brewery, I was looking over enviously at the suitcase. The thought of the award-winning Sake being thrown around in the airport, crashing from side to side on the journey, with little protection from the backpack, filled me with dread. 

I knew I would want to buy things from Japan, but I hadn’t given a thought to what I might buy. After all, part of the fun of travel is buying unexpected souvenirs! But in hindsight, I really hadn’t left enough space. 

Here’s why the suitcase won in Japan

With the increasing number of souvenirs and the impending use of a luggage courier service, a suitcase was becoming a no-brainer. So, much to my friend’s amusement, I ended up buying a suitcase about halfway into the trip. 

Japan is a very suitcase-friendly country. I observed that most locals, especially business travellers, had suitcases. Many services, from trains to luggage couriers, were used to handling hard-shell suitcases. 

Paving and facilities are suitcase-friendly

Although Japan is very mountainous, many towns and cities are built on some flat land. Unless you are going hiking in the mountains or camping, most terrain and facilities are suitable for suitcases. The paving is smooth in towns and cities, and there are escalators and lifts in almost every platform and station.

Travel with luggage on trains is easy 

Japan has an incredible train network, and there is usually ample legroom for small items of luggage. There is also decent overhead luggage storage, which our suitcases easily fit into. On most Shinkansen trains, you also have the option to reserve space for oversized luggage. 

This makes it very easy to travel with luggage, and unlike in some countries, travelling with a big suitcase is not a hindrance on the train. 

Most stations also have coin lockers available, which is very convenient. This means you don’t even need to take your luggage with you if you are just exploring the city for a few hours! 

At the start of the trip, my backpack fit into one of the smaller and cheaper lockers. But there were plenty of larger lockers available that were suitable for suitcases. 

Accommodation is suitcase-friendly

I usually stay in hostels, where most people travel with backpacks, but on this trip we stayed in a mix of hostels and hotels. After all, Japan has an amazing range of accommodation to explore! 

Even the accommodation in Japan seemed suitcase-friendly! The hostels were all pretty smart and rocking up with a suitcase didn’t feel out of place, unlike in some backpacker hostels in Europe. Yet, I probably would have felt out of place checking into our 4-star hotel, onsen hotel or traditional Japanese room with a backpack. 

And apart from one hostel where we had to carry our bags up three flights of stairs, most accommodations had lifts and were very accessible.

Ultimately, it doesn’t really matter what luggage you take to what accommodation. But it can give a signal to others about what kind of traveller you are and influence how you feel during your stay.

I won’t be taking my suitcase everywhere, though

I must admit that I’m very pleased with my new suitcase. But it doesn’t mark the end of my backpacking days. My backpack came home with me in the suitcase and is already awaiting its next adventure. Unlike Japan, many destinations do not have the features that make suitcase travel easy. 

Japan is very orderly, and people follow social norms, such as queuing for the train. So even when it is busy, it is easy to pull a suitcase. But in overcrowded cities, such as Delhi, a backpack can provide you with some much-needed personal space. Travelling with a suitcase in busy, overcrowded destinations is difficult.

And lugging suitcases on cobblestones or up hills is a recipe for suitcase regret. Old European cities are often covered in the foes of suitcases – cobblestones. It is also difficult to carry a suitcase up many flights of stairs in destinations where lifts are less common in train stations or accommodation buildings. 

I will still opt for a backpack if visiting a hilly and/or cobblestone-rich destination. And I will take the accessibility of public transport and accommodation, and the destination’s busyness, into consideration.

Whatever luggage you take, don’t forget these 5 essentials

Although the suitcase was the overall winner in Japan, my friend and I agreed that it’s almost impossible to have the perfect bag for every single trip. There are some advantages and disadvantages to both backpacks and suitcases, and you have to decide what is best for you and just roll with it (perhaps literally speaking!). 

But whatever luggage you choose, keep in mind these travel essentials:

• Check your luggage allowance – no one wants to start a trip with a fine for oversized bags! 
• Get to know your luggage before you leave – adjust backpack straps and check out all the design features ahead of time, to make the most of your luggage
• Consider your safety and comfort – you don’t want to struggle all holiday and risk getting an injury from handling your luggage, so be careful and mindful of awkward movements
• What you pack is most important – at the end of the day, luggage is a container for the items you are taking, so pack wisely – like Laura did on her around-the-world trip
• Storage – a suitcase or backpack can be used time and time again, but consider where it will live when it is not galavanting around the world with you

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Do you have thoughts on the backpack vs. suitcase conundrum? If so, please share them in the comments! And if you’re thinking of buying a backpack, check out our comparisons of 12 travel backpacks for Europe.