Luggage is a term that refers to the items that a traveler brings with him. These packages contain the person’s personal goods, such as clothing and toiletries, that he will need during his vacation.
In a nutshell, luggage refers to all of the items that a traveler carries with him and is packaged in various packaging. There is another phrase for specific types of luggage that is frequently used. Some individuals even use the words suitcase and baggage interchangeably, as if they were interchangeable.
The contrasts between the two terminologies are attempted to be highlighted in this article.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word luggage comes from the verb lug and the suffix -age and originally meant inconveniently heavy baggage.
Luggage is made up of bags, cases, and containers that keep a traveler’s personal belongings while in transit. Clothing, toiletries, tiny personal belongings, and trip needs are all expected of a modern traveler.
Travelers may have mementos and gifts on the return trip. Some individuals believe that luggage and the style with which it is carried is a reflection of the owner’s wealth and position.
Luggage is made of either a hard shell or a robust soft material to protect belongings during travel. Internal compartments or sections are common in luggage to help secure valuables.
Handles are typically incorporated to simplify carrying, and some luggage may include wheels, telescoping handles, or leashes to facilitate movement.
Over time, luggage has evolved. Chests or trunks constructed of wood or other heavy materials were historically the most frequent types of luggage.
Professional movers would transport these. smaller, lighter suitcases and bags that one person may handle have become the standard form of luggage since World War II.
Features
Luggage has some special features which are for the convenience of the user, such as:
Locks: Locks serve several functions, including deterring dishonest airport employees and keeping bags closed during processing. Since 2003, most locks fitted into luggage have used the Travel Sentry TSA Lock standard, which allows the US Transportation Security Administration to unlock them.
Expandable Luggage: Some bags and suitcases can be expanded by opening a zip. Some luggage has extra storage that can help you in storing more things in your bag or suitcase.
Wheels: Lifting your luggage while traveling can be very uncomfortable. Some luggage, such as suitcases, have wheels that make it easy to carry your luggage around.
Types of Luggage:
Types of Luggage
Description
Trunk
Larger wooden box, which also comes in small sizes, used for carrying big things
Suitcase
Luggage which usually comes with wheels, it’s soft and hard size luggage
Train Case
It’s a smaller case used for carrying essentials for personal grooming
Garment Bag
Foldable luggage is used for carrying suits and dresses
Travel Totes
It’s usually worn on the shoulder and is smaller in size
Packing Cubes
Smaller rectangular bags used for keeping things organized and come in different sizes and colors
Gate Check Bags
It’s designed to protect things from regular gate checking
Different types of luggage.
Luggage is used for all the bags and suitcases that one is carrying while traveling.
What Is a Suitcase?
Suitcases are rectangular bags with a central handle and tiny locks on both sides. It’s a form of baggage that comes in a variety of sizes and capacities to accommodate a tourist’s goods and products.
It’s typically made of a strong synthetic material to prevent damage from an unexpected fall or slip. A suitcase opens along with its hinges, allowing it to be separated into two sections, with the upper section reserved for lighter items.
Even though it comes in some very enormous sizes, a suitcase is always supposed to be a portable baggage item. People nowadays prefer suitcases with wheels so that they may easily transport them on train platforms and airport terminals.
There was a time when only very dismal and earthy colors were available for bags. Suitcases are now available in a wide selection of colorful hues, including red, pink, green, yellow, and orange.
Colorful Set of Suitcases
History of Suitcase
In 1938, Erle P. Halliburton had the initial ‘Halliburton’ aluminum travel boxes made for his personal use. Rimowa and Zero Halliburton introduced the mass-market aluminum suitcase based on the Junkers Ju 52 airplane in 1950.
Material Used in Suitcase
Rimowa, a German luggage manufacturer, produced the first polycarbonate suitcases in 2000. The material has been used in various suitcases by most luggage manufacturers.
Polycarbonate comes in a variety of grades. Shortly after polycarbonate, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), which was less expensive than polycarbonate and lighter polypropylene, was introduced. In 2004, spinner-style wheeled bags were introduced.
Wheeled Suitcase
While traveling with his family in 1970, Bernard Sadow, a vice president of a Massachusetts luggage and jackets company, noticed that people were suffering from luggage as airlines supplanted railways as the dominant source of long-distance travel.
Returning to work, Sadow fitted four casters to huge regular luggage, as well as a strap that allowed the traveler to tow the case behind them. In 1972, he patented the first wheeled luggage under the number 3,653,474.
Sadow spent months trying to sell his prototype bag to department stores in New York and abroad, but he had little luck.
Men will not accept luggage with wheels, he was informed repeatedly. And, at the time, the dominant belief in the travel industry was that women didn’t travel alone and that when they did, their husbands carried their baggage.
He described it as “a pretty manly thing.” Macy’s eventually ordered some, and the market exploded as Macy’s advertisements promoted “the Luggage That Glides.”
Evolution of Travel Luggage: Rollaboard’s Impact on Air Travel
In 1987, Robert Plath, a Northwest Airlines 747 pilot and ardent home workshop tinker, designed the rollaboard. Plath’s bags had two wheels and a long handle, and they rolled upright rather than being towed flat on their fronts like Sadow’s four-wheeled ones.
Plath started selling his innovation to fellow flight crew members before leaving the airline to found Travelpro International.
“After Plath got the flight attendants to start carrying them, Travelpro really popularised the telescoping handle with the two wheels,” recalls Richard Krulik, CEO of U.S. Luggage.
As the number of people flying increased, airports grew in size, and more women began traveling alone, particularly on business flights, the rollaboard became commonplace.
Smart Suitcase
A smart suitcase is usually operated using a smartphone app and may include capabilities such as GPS, smart lock, and robotic auto-follow.
All major airlines began requiring customers to remove the batteries that power their smart bags before passing through security in January 2017.
According to FAA spokesperson Gregory Martin, “The FAA has been very, very clear in its guidance to air carriers that lithium-ion batteries stowed in the cargo hold create an unacceptable danger.”
Luggage Vs Suitcase
Luggage is a term that refers to the containers or bags that a traveler uses to store his products and belongings. These bags and containers come in a variety of shapes and sizes, as well as different materials.
All bags, whether sling bags or a huge trunk, are classified as a person’s luggage. Bags with wheels are popular these days, and they are carried on the ground by the user. These bags are known as trolley bags, and they are commonly seen in railway stations and airports.
Suitcases are a type of luggage. It’s usually a rectangular bag with rounded square edges that are rather flat. Metal frames can be seen in vinyl, leather, and textile suitcases. Suitcases that have hard shells open like a door on joints.
Luggage and suitcase are two different words used for two different purposes. Luggage is also known as baggage. It’s used for all the bags and suitcases that an individual is carrying while traveling. Luggage isn’t used for one specific bag, it’s used for all the bags and suitcases.
Moreover, luggage comes in all shapes and sizes. You can’t count luggage and can’t specify how much luggage you have. For example, you can’t say “I have two pieces of luggage,” since luggage is uncountable.
Whereas, the suitcase is used for a specific type of luggage. The suitcase is a rectangular box made of wood or any other material. It has a zip and some suitcases come with wheels as well. It comes in a specific shape, which is a rectangle.
Furthermore, the suitcase is countable. You can count how many suitcases you have and how many suitcases you’re traveling. For example, you can say, “I have five suitcases.”
‘Suitcase’ VS ‘Luggage’
Conclusion
Luggage encompasses all items carried while traveling.
Suitcases are specific rectangular boxes for travel items.
Luggage varies in shape and size, while suitcases are typically rectangular.
Some suitcases come equipped with wheels for easier transport.
Luggage is an uncountable term, whereas suitcases can be counted.
Suitcases evolved from wooden trunks to more modern designs.
Both terms are often used interchangeably, though they have distinct meanings.
Luggage refers to all travel bags. In contrast, a suitcase is a specific type of luggage.
