Make Your Luxury Travel Easier with These 19 Top New Carry-ons

Travel season is upon us, and who wants to check a bag? Not us. We went in search of clever hacks and products to make traveling for business or pleasure a lot less stressful. Our ace correspondent has rounded up 19 of the best new carry-on essentials to make luxury travel easier, including bags, electronics, accessories, and more.

Overhead Boss: Skip the Baggage Carousel With These Luxury Carry-On Essentials

Are you a risk-taker? High-stakes gambler? Adrenaline seeker? You’d have to be if you’re considering checking any luggage on a flight these days. According to Business Insider, some airlines nearly tripled the number of lost bags in 2022 as they still feel reverberations from the pandemic. Every week there’s a new story about checked luggage being MIA for months or the great lengths sleuthing passengers will go to be reunited with their bags. That overhead bin is looking pretty good right now, eh?

Let’s talk carry-ons! With a little preparation and planning, it is possible to pack your winter getaway essentials in a 22″ x 14″ x 9″ vessel (give or take a few cubic inches). There’s also a sort of satisfying efficiency to knowing everything is right there with you, in its place, perhaps encased in buttery nappa leather. 

Your carry-on(s) not only needs to hold the stuff for your destination (for your sake, let’s hope that’s some swim trunks and sunscreen), but also the items you’ll need at hand during the flight. Big jobs for a little bag. We’ve kept all this criteria in mind as we searched for the best travel accessories to complete your carry-on kit. Turns out stores are full of chic things in which to put just about every other chic thing. 

19 best new carry-on essentials to make luxury travel easier

The Bags

Before we can dive into all of the stuff to put inside of your carry-on, we have a few suggestions for bags you can easily stow in the overhead compartment, under the seat in front of you or worn for the duration of the flight. Some qualify as “personal items” because we understand that definition verrrry loosely. 

1. Kastrup Leather Trimmed Backpack by WANT Les Essentiels 

WANT’s minimalist Kastrup backpack offers exactly the amount of organization and structure you need without extraneous pockets and straps. Details like the long leather loop zipper pull on the front pocket and internal padded laptop sleeve make this the kind of bag you won’t know how you did without. 

BUY NOW – $425.00.

2. Medium Leather Tote by Jil Sander

Sometimes you just need a generously sized tote bag to throw all your stuff in. Jil Sander’s roomy and supple leather tote is your answer. Our favorite feature is the option of a webbed shoulder strap should you need an extra hand free. 

BUY NOW – $2,180.00.

3. Tanker Shoulder Bag by Porter-Yoshida & Co.

Once you’ve worn a small cross-body bag while traveling, you will never go back. Having your passport, phone, wallet and hand sanitizer immediately reachable without digging through your luggage is a game-changer (all those people in line behind you will appreciate your swift retrieval, too.) 

BUY NOW – $396.00.

4. No.12 Weekender Bag by Lotuff

We have yet to find a more perfect weekend duffle. Lotuff’s absolute stunner of a bag will hold everything you need for a long weekend and look damn stylish doing it. Don’t be afraid to throw it around, too—it’s made to last forever and looks better a little cooked.

BUY NOW – $1,200.00.

5. Rimowa x PALACE Cabin Desert Suitcase

Rimowa has carved out a name for itself as THE indestructible luxury suitcase, with its recognizable ribbed exterior and notable collaborations (Supreme and Dior, among others). Its newest partner is PALACE, the cool-kids London-based skate brand with a collaboration that features a desertscape from an imagined world on the bag’s aluminum shell. If we didn’t have wanderlust already, we do now. 

BUY NOW – Price TBD

Outfit Your Carry-On

6. Marshall Travel Wallet by Smythson

Allow us to introduce the concept of an “auxiliary wallet”. This is the one where you can stuff all your extra cards and receipts and currency without having to schlep them around on your day of sightseeing. Smythson’s keeps everything elegantly organized with embossed compartments.

BUY NOW – $565.00.

7. Black Leather AirPods Pouch by Saint Laurent

Do you need a pouch for your AirPods? Nah, but wouldn’t you like to have this little sack that looks like it came from a futuristic apothecary? And you’ll always know where they are when you have to hop on a call. 

BUY NOW – $395.00. 

8. Fantastic Face Wash by Ursa Major

“Bright and zippy with notes of spearmint, cedar and lime” is exactly our personality when we get closer to that good, good equatorial heat. 

BUY NOW – $15.00.

9. Eucalyptus Deodorant Mini by Malin + Goetz

Keep this one in your stocked wash bag at all times. Should an impromptu getaway happen, you’ll be smelling fresh. 

BUY NOW – $14.00.

10. Leather Passport Holder by Bergdorf Goodman

This passport is slim, but stands out against any pocket lining. Never rummage around for your passport again. 

BUY NOW – $75.00. 

11. Pouch III No. 65 in Vintage Chestnut Leather by Ghurka

This pouch is endlessly useful for cords, documents, snacks… just about anything that would otherwise end up as ingredients in carry-on soup.

BUY NOW – $405.00. 

12. Zip Travel Kit by Shinola

When it comes to containing your TSA-approved toiletries, it’s best to keep it simple: a large compartment with a wide opening, handsome enough to have displayed on the hotel bathroom counter with a waterproof/wipeable interior.

BUY NOW – $295.00.

13. Stitch Leather Phone Holder by Maison Margiela

“Where’s my phone?” said no one ever again with this leather phone holder.

BUY NOW – $425.00.

14. Momentum 4 Wireless Headphones by Sennheiser

Trust the folks who make audio equipment for some of the world’s best musicians when you’re looking for headphones that can quiet your seatmate.

BUY NOW – $299.95.

15. British Racing Triple Watch Roll by Wolf

Rolling deep with your timepieces? Protect them for the ride in sumptuous suede with this.

BUY NOW – $245.00.

16. Travel Adapter and Leather Case by Royce

While you can get by with a USB outlet many places these days, why risk it? Royce’s international adapter also comes with a snug little leather case, too.

BUY NOW – $135.00. 

17. Drop XL Wireless Charger by Native Union

This charger gives us all the juice!

BUY NOW – $149.99

18. Crew Neck Cashmere Knitted Sweater by BeggxCo

You may be headed someplace warm, but that cabin can get chilly. Keep this cashmere knitted sweater nearby for those aggressive air vents and the unexpected post-sunset cooldown.

BUY NOW – $490.00. 

19. Garrett Leight + Officine Générale Square Frame Tortoiseshell Sunglasses

It’s like when two of your best friends meet and become friends. Classic Parisian je ne sais quois + California cool that these sunglasses will look perfect poolside anywhere (and hide tired eyes on the flight back home).

BUY NOW – $445.00.

best new carry-on essentials to make luxury travel easier

That’s our take on the best new carry-on essentials to shop to make luxury travel easier, including bags, electronics, accessories, and more. Happy travels, dear reader.