Rating: 8/10
While all-in-one bags become all the rage, you’ll be sure to be inundated with choice.
This is definitely a godsend for people who have to travel a lot for work or simply like to travel but hate the idea of having a separate wardrobe for bags for different occasions.
Personally, I love testing these as I’ve had a good amount of experience with these precocious packs.
We take pride in testing and reviewing travel gear full-time so we can give you a clear picture of them and help you decide if this is the bag for you.
We’ll cover:
Let’s get stuck into the nomad lane bento bag v4 review...
Meet the power couple - Kish & Vanessa, the travel lovers.
They’ve explored an impressive list of countries accompanied by various well-known travel gear.
In 2017 they decided to try and triumph the competition with their knowledge and experience and also being the customer.
Que the creation of Nomad Lane.
Their aim is to serve all your packing needs from work to play in attainable style.
If you don’t love the backpack/backpacker hiker look and are looking for something a bit more stylish this could be your gig.
It’s suited to someone who wants a weekend trip, overnight bag or bigger everyday bag all in one place.
It’s geared more towards business & flight travel in my opinion.
Before you google ‘where to buy nomad lane bento bag’ or ‘nomad lane bento bag amazon’ we’ll save you the time & hassle!
You can get it off Nomad Lane’s website directly. Unfortunately you won’t find it on amazon, only the older versions.
If you’re looking for something that can facilitate a longer trip or have a very active life this might not be ideal for you.
If you’re also a veggie/vegan who doesn’t use leather you’ll want to look at another bag.
To sum it up, the nomad lane bento bag v3 vs v4 = vegan leather vs normal leather.
So, if you can find the v3 online you’ll be sorted!
The Nomad Lane Bento Bag v4 definitely does feel sturdy and over 3 weeks of use it still held up.
This didn’t surprise me as on first feel of the bag the materials and durability felt premium, which is reassuring for a travel bag and a good introduction into bento bag travel life!
So onto the important part - comfortability. At first as a backpack lover when I saw the handbag/shoulder straps I was a little scared.
I have a love-hate, okay, mostly hate relationship with these straps purely based on comfort.
So did they win me over? Kind of.
My fear is a little less as they were padded and with a lightly packed bento bag we started to build trust. When things got on the heavier side, I switched to the alternative as I wasn’t loving it.
The life-saver here was the shoulder strap, this was a relief.
It was such a breeze carrying this with the strap.
First off, this fits as an underseat bag which means you have everything you need at your fingertips and a breeze through the airport with no checking bags in.
The top compartments that open separately for the tech organizer and toiletries bag are easily accessible to take out your liquids etc.
One thing that helps is the laptop compartment is one zip away so it’s quick to access on the go but also for x-ray machines.
To be perfectly honest, I’m usually not a fan of bags that have a harder shell, however with the style of this bag it really worked.
I think it really helped with the comfort in carrying this, it isn’t a hard outer material but it’s also not soft so you can’t cram it full of stuff that morphs it into a weird shape.
A lot of the time it’s easy to associate being stylish with lack of comfortability and functionality, especially when you look at the market of women’s clothes and bags and this frustrates me a lot, just as an example (this bag is unisex).
But, this is why I loved the bento bag so much.
They’ve proven that you can still be stylish, comfortable and have a functional bag. On the outside it’s very sleek and everything is placed gracefully.
When you open it up however, different ball game, so many helpful compartments and functional features.
To give you a better insight into this, I want to share with you the organization it has to offer.
First is my favorite, a little pocket to store your phone or passport.
As you can see it’s placed on the back side of the bag so it’s closest to your body for security.
It’s also really discreet.
Below that there’s another pocket with a zip, this also acts as a trolley sleeve for a roller bag when you’re not using it as a pocket.
Then on the front of the bag, again super discreetly there’s helpful organization sections such as pen holders, bigger pockets for things such as airpods and/or small notebooks
So this is where the bento bag really proved itself as a travel bag. When you unzip the main compartment it opens up into a suitcase layout.
On one side it has a mesh zip cover revealing a good amount of storage space.
Then on the opposite side it seems like there’s only a padded laptop compartment with another pocket on front for something like an Ipad, however it unzips to reveal a BIGGER compartment. It has enough space that you can store shoes or packing cubes.
I’m not sure about you but this is usually a make or break situation for me. I need an accessible place to put my water bottle. On first look I wasn’t optimistic but I didn’t realize I’d be wonderfully tricked.
On the side of the bag is a zippable water bottle holder. Something to note with this is that it works a lot better with a 500ml water bottle.
I did use my 750ml water bottle however it was a bit clunky to fit and stay securely in there.
So with a dreamy bag like this what could be better?
First of all, I’m going to continue with the water bottle holder. There’s definitely scope to bring the mesh higher whilst still keeping the bag lovely.
With carrying the nomad travel bag, for longer carrying the shoulder strap and normal handles can dig in a bit - the main reason I like backpacks (much more comfortable). If there was a stylish option to have optional backpack straps that would be a cool addition.
The organization on this bag is simple but functional - a lot of bags can get quite complicated with all their dazzling features but some cable organization would be a nice perk.
I personally wouldn’t buy this bag based on the fact that this is leather, but again this is a purely personal thing.
It’d be great if the v3 was still for sale on their website as I’d honestly consider buying this bag.
Yes! For both UK and US airlines with the average sizes (minus Ryan air, it’s always them).
Here are my impressions after using the bento bag for the first time, and then three weeks later.
If you don’t have a lot of time to read this entire review, you’ve skipped ahead to the right section!
Here’s the most important question of the day…
Is the Bento Bag worth getting?
I would say yes, it is!
A simple yet professional and sleek backpack that has a focus on travel. It may look like a simple design but it has a ton of cool features without being overwhelming.
For the tote lovers who wish they could have a tote but with the functionality of a backpack the Origami is versatile and stylish.
Although this comes already included with the Bento Bags, you can use their accessory set to keep your stuff organized in your nomad luggage.
If you want to scout out some more personal item backpacks why not try:
Knack bags are reliable, work to play to travel bags with a sleek care-free look. They have plenty of cool features to switch it up into each mode so you can have the best of all worlds.
Another competitor for the all in one bag is this stylish piece. If you want something a little more simplistic but with options it’s worth checking it out.
Have you ever used this Bento bag?
Or their other products?
Comment and let me know below!
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