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REI’s Anniversary Sale is officially underway, meaning right now is the best time to score savings on all of your summer camping, hiking, cycling, and running needs from now until May 27. Even if you’re not the most outdoorsy, REI’s Anniversary Sale is a great place to stock up on travel essentials for your next flight or road trip, including duffel bags.
Outdoor-focused brands like The North Face, Mountain Hardwear, and Cotopaxi make some of the best duffel bags. They’re built from lightweight but rugged materials like ripstop nylon, and there are clever organizational features that make packing for your next trip easy. With a ton of discounts on duffel bags, we’ve rounded up our four favorite options from the REI Anniversary Sale below.
The North Face’s Base Camp Duffel has a classic cylindrical gym bag look, with extra features that add to its utility while traveling. The bag can be carried as a backpack or duffel, and daisy chain webbing on the outside makes it easy to clip on additional accessories. The inside features a separate mesh compartment, and the pocket on the side can be used to stash sneakers.
What Shoppers Are Saying: “I have had one of these for six years. It has gone on countless international and domestic flights in the belly of the plane. Current wear? It is a bit dirty. Shows very little if any actual signs of wear. Buying another for my third bag.”
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The Camp 4 Duffel from Mountain Hardwear has the same slick finish as the brand’s popular puffer jackets. The bag is made from 420-denier carbonate-coated ripstop nylon, giving it a durable, water-resistant finish. It has a 45-liter capacity and can be carried in the hand, across the shoulder, or as a backpack. Overpackers, rejoice; the internal compression system makes it easier to pack more in the bag and keep it all organized.
What Shoppers Are Saying: “Easy to carry by shoulder strap or backpack straps. Single outside zip pocket and inner elastic divider provide just enough organization. Fully loaded it's still carry-on size.”
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With a generous 70-liter capacity, Cotopaxi’s Allpa Duffel bag is a great option for longer trips. It also has more exterior pockets than many of the other packs on this list, including three on the sides and a zippered bottom compartment that’s ideal for dirty laundry. The handles are stowable when carrying the bag as a backpack, and the bag’s lid features zippered mesh pockets for added organization.
What Shoppers Are Saying: “Absolutely love all the pockets. Definitely a game changer when going out west to do a 10 [day] van trip. The duffel is my new travel go-to.”
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REI’s own Co-Op brand offers many of the same features of the top outdoor brands at a lower price, and the Big Haul 40 duffel is a great option for any trip. It features stowable backpack straps, and the bag itself is packable for easy storage. The compression strap system increases what you can carry, while the mesh pockets add extra organizational features.
What Shoppers Are Saying: “Bought one four years ago and love it. Well constructed. Interior zippered pockets [are] a bonus. Exterior zippered pocket [is] also useful. In reality, I just load it with clothes and gear for the weekend and shove it in the back of my SUV. Upon arrival, it is helpful to use the backpack option so I can carry other gear in my hands.”
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