Packing cubes. Total travel game-changers... But with thousands out there on the
market, which are actually worth the money? Well I've done the research for
you in this overly dramatic video with the packing cube showdown that nobody
asked for. So, which packing cubes are the best?
Which are best value for money? And why am I talking like a Bachelor promo? Find
out in this video and even win a set for yourself. Now let's hit that cheesy intro!
What's up, smarties? Christina here from HappyToWander.com and today we are
talking all about packing cubes, the most magical piece of gear that help you
travel, pack and organize like a total pro. In today's video I am going to be
breaking down my personal favorites in terms of packing cubes over the past six
months of testing them very aggressively so if you enjoy that kind of dedication
in your life and you want more videos just like this one, you should give this
video a like first of all and hit that subscribe button for more. Now before we
get started, I do have a postcard to give away because one of the things I love to
do is give away a postcard every week to someone who comments... hint hint
please comment so congratulations to Mikayla from last week for winning this
week's postcard. Now because we are talking all about packing cubes today
I'm gonna up the ante a little bit and also throw in a set of packing cubes of
your choice so be sure to comment below with your favorite packing cubes from
this video and I will randomly draw a winner to receive them next week along
with a postcard because postcards are really fun. Anyways let's get ready to
packing cube Rumble...... oh man that was so much cooler in my head.
Anyways let's just get started so here's a little backstory for you about six
months ago I guess I was feeling a little bit spendy,
it was Amazon Prime day and I decided hey why not buy a bunch of packing cubes
and test them out so I can actually report back to you guys and let you know
which ones are the best? See nowadays packing cube choice is pretty
overwhelming. There are literally thousands of brands out there that sell
packing cubes that all kind of look the same. You can get ones that have puppies
on them, get ones avocados on them, you even get ones with skulls. Actual
skulls! So what I did was I picked the top six rated ones on Amazon.ca bought
them, ordered them and have been testing them for the past six months.
Here are the ones that I tested: the Eagle Creek Pack-It cubes, the Eagle Creek
Specter compression cubes, the Bagail packing cubes in fuchsia, the Gonex
packing cubes in green, the Goex, compression pouches in yellow and the
medium Amazon Basics in black. So let's get started... we are gonna start with
compression cubes. So if you didn't know this already there are two main types of
packing cubes in the packing cube world okay, so the first ones are the regular
standard ones which are basically just little zippered cubbies
for your clothes so they tend to have just one layer of zippers whereas on the
other hand there are compression cubes and compression cubes tend to have two
layers of zippers so they can compress and further just squish down your
clothes to save more space. So which ones are better totally depends on your travel
style and your needs. For me personally because my priority with packing cubes
is being able to have everything I own at my fingertips being able to see what
I've brought, personally the regular packing cubes are
way better for me. On the other hand though with the compression cubes if
your priority is saving space, maybe you want to squish down a really big
jacket or a really thick sleeping bag, compression cubes are really great for
that. One thing I would warn against though is that compression cubes do not
make your suitcase any lighter okay so be sure to still keep in mind even when
you're using compression packing cubes that there are luggage weight
restrictions and so you shouldn't just use them to stuff as much clothing as
possible, so keep that in mind. Alright so in terms of the compression packing
cubes, what I've purchased are two of the top rated ones. Firstly let's get them out of
the way, SO I've purchased the top rated ones firstly the Eagle Creek ones
(the Eagle Creek Specter compression cubes) and also the Gonex compression
packing cubes which look like this. So I will review the pros and cons of each
one starting with the one from Eagle Creek. In terms of pros, these Eagle Creek
compression cubes are very very light probably the lightest out of all the
ones I bought so this would be great if you're backpacking and in need of a
lightweight solution but they're still really well built and like new even
after six months, plus they also compress clothes really well and with their
double zip they're very satisfying to use. Overall these are a great quality
product. There are some cons though, these compression cubes are more expensive
than most. I also don't love that they don't open all the way, they actually
only open halfway and so you can't really use them like mini drawers for
your stuff which is half the reason I love packing cubes in the first place.
Now on the other hand we have the Gonex packing cubes which are
completely different so here are the pros and cons of that one. In terms of
pros they're really affordable and do open up all the way like a regular
packing cube just with a second zip for compression. They also come in a large
range of sizes and have a much larger colour selection than the Eagle Creek
one. In terms of cons though it doesn't really compress as much as I
feel like the Eagle Creek ones do and they're also a bit heavier than the
Eagle Creek ones so in summary if you're looking for something that is very
lightweight and something that is going to be really durable long term, I do
recommend the Eagle Creek Specter compression cubes. They're very
high-quality. On the other hand if you're looking for something a bit more like a
conventional packing cube, but does have slight compression ability then I'd go
with the Gonex. Now as I mentioned before, my personal preference with
packing cubes is the non compression one so with those ones I actually purchased
four different brands now let's see how they stack up. Alright so why don't we
start with my least favorite which was unfortunately the Amazon Basics in black,
the medium packing cube because unfortunately as you see here it ripped
within one week. Here the pros and cons so in terms of pros, these packing cubes
are highly affordable, the material is decently sturdy and it holds up its
shape well when stuffed with clothes. The zippers are also quite smooth and they
come in some nice colors including sky blue, mint green, red, and gray but there
are some significant cons. Over the past six months as you can see there has been
quite a bit of wear and tear, some fraying as you can see here and even
though it still works fine it's just not very promising in terms of durability so
I wouldn't really recommend these since they can't seem to handle my gorilla
enthusiasm... now if you're looking for something that is still budget-friendly
but is actually in my opinion better quality and in some instances cheaper I
would go for the Gonex packing cubes right here. I got mine in lime green but
they also come in a lot of other really fun colors. In terms of pros they're
cheap, very very cheap, but the quality is still pretty decent. The fabric here
feels very durable like a good raincoat, very water-resistant, but still with a
nice mesh top so you can see most of what you've packed. They also offer a lot
of really great bundle options and colors so it's easy to find a set that
would match your needs. In terms of cons, I do think with the red
tag and its branding, this packing cube set can look a little bit cheap... it's not
exactly super fashionable or chic in any way but I mean it does the job. It's also
a small pet peeve of mine but the zippers just don't feel as smooth as
some of the other ones as you can see they're quite small, there's no special
tabs and they do feel like a little bit jammed sometimes. Overall though great
budget-friendly packing cube with nice nice colors. Another great one that I
really recommend are the Bagail packing cubes which look like this. I got mine in
fuchsia and as you can see they're quite pretty. So in terms of the pros I just
love the look of these, the design is a bit different from most standard packing
cubes and they just look really nice when they're all arranged in your
suitcase... there's also a great colour and print selection so if you're looking for
something a bit more chic, something a bit more fashionable or cute, you can get
different patterns like ones lined with polka dots or prettier colors like teal,
purple, and pink. They're also incredibly sturdy with thick fabric which feels
more robust than Amazon Basics for example and also a few centimetres
deeper than the other cubes which is great if you need more space for your
clothes, I also love these pulley zippers which are really easy to grab hold of
and most of their sets actually come with a free laundry bag which is a great
bonus. As for cons though, the sizing and bundling of these cubes is interesting...
Most of the sets I found all came with at least one of these giant ones which
is not super practical for normal travels since they can take up like 90%
of a carry-on suitcase. Another con is depending on how you feel about nylon,
the fabric of these cubes can feel a little bit cheap, but they still hold up
really really well apart from a little bit of fraying which I did begin to
notice after about six months of frequent use. Now, what are my top picks?
Unsurprisingly they are the most expensive ones and those would be the
Eagle Creek... (that was awkward) The Eagle Creek Pack-It cubes I got mine
in blue. As for pros, these packing cubes just have a smart look and feel. The
fabric is really strong and durable without feeling too slippery or cheap
like some of the other budget ones. The full Cube size is also really perfect
for my needs because they stack nicely into a carry-on and hold their shape
really well... it's also really really durable and looks as good as brand new
after six months of use which can't really be said for some of the cheaper
ones I bought. In terms of cons though well the price tag is a little bit more
than most standard packing cubes and they are of course the priciest of the
bunch averaging about ten dollars per cube, but honestly they are more than
worth it for me because I travel really often and in terms of quality you can
feel like these ones have more structural integrity and just don't feel
as flimsy or cheap as some of the budget ones so you can kind of expect that it
will last longer so overall what I would say is if you are looking for a very
high quality packing cube that is gonna be durable, I mean look at this Eagle
Creek one, it looks like it's brand-new and I've been using them aggressively
for six months... so if you're willing to pay a little bit extra, go for these ones
especially if you travel a lot but what I will honestly say is that having any
kind of packing cube is better than having none at all if you don't travel
super often and you take quite good care of your stuff, as in, you're not like me
and like gorilla handling everything... Well then you can honestly go for
whatever suits your budget best, my first set of packing cubes was from IKEA
family for like less than 20 bucks and I had used them for three years and they
are still very much standing today, so what's important is that you find
something that really works for you and having the best brand possible is not
actually that important especially if you don't travel that
often, but in my personal opinion if you're gonna spend a little bit extra, it
IS worth it because long term you do get a lot more usage out of it. Alright
smarties, which one of these would you most like to have in your possession? Let
me know in the comments below which one of these was your favourite for a chance
to win your own personal set and a postcard. Anyways thanks for watching
smarties I will let you know next week who won these packing cubes and be sure to
tune in next week for more videos just like this one...
Until then, byeeee!!