Upstao Hagi Expandable Weekend Duffle

FLY OUT WITH THIRTY-FIVE LITRES, COME HOME WITH FORTY-FIVE

Nobody has ever come back from a weekend with less than they left with. A zip along the base gives you ten more litres exactly when you need them, without changing the footprint that has to fit an overhead locker on the way out.

• Base expansion zip — 35 L closed, 45 L open, without changing the footprint
• Webbing wraps under the base — the load runs through webbing rather than through the seams
• Trolley sleeve on the back — slides over a case handle so you are pulling one thing, not two
• Zipped end pocket for shoes — separated from the main so the soles stay off the clothes
• Removable shoulder pad — slides on the strap and comes off when you carry by the handles

A weekend duffle with an expansion zip along the base: 35 litres closed, 45 open, which is the difference between the bag you flew out with and the bag you fly home with.

Thirty-five litres out, forty-five back

Return journeys are always bigger. A gusset runs the length of the base behind a second zip; unzip it and the bag gains 10 cm of depth and 10 litres of volume without changing its footprint, so it still fits the overhead. The shell is a coated polyester with a bar-tacked webbing frame that wraps under the base — the load runs through the webbing rather than the seams, which is the failure people actually see. A removable shoulder pad, a trolley sleeve and a zipped end pocket for shoes.

What you get

• Base expansion zip — 35 L closed, 45 L open, without changing the footprint
• Webbing wraps under the base — the load runs through webbing rather than through the seams
• Trolley sleeve on the back — slides over a case handle so you are pulling one thing, not two
• Zipped end pocket for shoes — separated from the main so the soles stay off the clothes
• Removable shoulder pad — slides on the strap and comes off when you carry by the handles
• Still fits an overhead expanded — the gain is in depth, not in length, which is what airlines measure

Specifications

Questions about the duffle

Does it still count as carry-on when expanded?
Closed it sits inside most airlines' cabin limits. Expanded it gains depth, which is the dimension gate agents check least but sizers check most. Fly out closed; expand for the drive home.

How much weight will the handles take?
The webbing wraps under the base and is bar-tacked at every junction, so the handles are not carrying the seam. Loaded to a sensible weekend weight — 8 to 10 kg — it is well within the construction.

Will the end pocket hold boots?
A pair of trainers or flat shoes to about US men's 11. Ankle boots fit one at a time. It is a shoe pocket, not a boot compartment, and it shares depth with the main when the bag is full.