Customer Reviews The North Face Base Camp Duffel - XL

I take this on my mountain trips and trips to cities throughout the US. Lots of room and this bag is durable and easy to identify (I bought the orange one)

I have a pair of the Blackhole duffles in purple that I've owned since 2010. I have the medium as a check in bag and the small as my carry on. I am a woman of 5'4", 106lbs, athletic built and carrying the medium- fully packed is a bit much for me. The straps are not comfortable should you need to walk far with it on your back but as check in luggage it is absolutely perfect. It fits a month's worth of clothes and essentials with room to spare for souvenirs and stuff you may pick up on your travels. One thing the blackhole excels on I say durability. I've packed climbing and diving fear in it, had it manhandled in airports, busses, trains, boats and jeepneys through Southeast Asia, Europe, Australia and North America and it still looks awesome. It has scuffs here and there but overall it has held up well. It I still expensive but really, considering I'm close to getting 10 years worth of rough travelling with these babies, it is absolutely worth it!

guys u can use the shoulder straps as carry on straps. i really dig the new side handles!!

My partner and I are London based and use this for all our weekend getaways in Europe. It fits everything needed for two including 2-4 pairs of shoes (we've fit two pairs of hiking boots), and 2-4-outfits each. It's less wieldly than a trecking backpack on a small commercial plane, while also being compact and duffel bag like to avoid being tagged at the gate for checking. As other commenters have noted, its not great for carrying on your back for the long haul, but great if youre hopping in and out of cars, and for a few blocks at a time. The open location is great so you can see what's inside, while also secure as the zipper sits against your back on wear. It's obviously a very informal bag so not great for business travel.

My father purchased this bag for me about 15 years ago after we traveled somewhere our hard-sided, traditional luggage could not fit in the trunk of the cab. This duffel has been my trusty travel companion. We have been on every mode of transport--planes, trains, cabs, tuk tuks, buses, boats etc... The bag is durable and sized appropriately for all types of travel. It fits in nearly all overhead bins and stows away without taking up much space when not in use. The duffel style allows for easy access while the backpack straps make it easy to carry. The vibrant yellow color makes the bag easy to identify. I love this bag. I hope to get another 15 years out of it.

We bought 3 of these bags at once. We did a 3 weeks trip and had to pack/unpack a lot. Firstly I tought we would have a huge mess in the bag because of only 2 zip pockets but it was not the case at all. It's easyier than to unpack a real backpack. We travelled in boats, tuc-tucs, taxis, buses. No problem. Very resistent, more than you would think! The straps are ok but never think to do a long walk if the bag is full. On the other hand it's perfect in airports, up/down the stairs... I loved the fact that you can pack a lot. If you pack little, you just pull on the side straps! Perfect. After the trip my left to study during the week and returns home for the weekend and what bag is he using? Well this great duffle bag.

I got this because I do alot of weeklong bike tours that require camping, and taking bags to and from campsite to luggage trucks. So, bags when unloaded are in elements so rain proof. And easy to put my 2 person tent, small camp chair, thermarest, sleeping bag, and quick dry clothes I often washed by hand my bike clothes each day,,,,backpack on and rode to luggage truck, and I liked side handles to pick up bag and to hand up to guys in truck

This is the perfect size bag for a week long getaway... Can fit everything you need with enough pockets to separate everything. Would recommend it to everyone!!!

I simply no longer use luggage for air travel. I only use my Base Camp medium duffel and my Recon backpack for my personal item. I can fit two weeks of clothes in there no problem. I never have to check it, ever. Using it as a backpack is incredibly convenient, NO MORE DRAG BAGS. It's easily identifiable and I bring it every time I'm on an airplane.

Just got this bag as a gift for my Bday. Awesome looking bag with enough storage to fit my needs. The inner zip mesh pocket and the end cap pocket are pretty sweet too. A bag that I can throw some stuff in and toss into the back of my Jeep for a weekend adventure!

Each winter I go abroad, away from my life in the UK, to volunteer with national parks around the world. Last year I bought the large duffel bag for my three month trip to South Africa. What a good purchase. It lasts the handling of countless airports, being throw into cars and dragged out into the African bush. As a result, this year I decided to pick up another one, this time a medium duffel for my adventures in Sequoia National Park in California. Once again, The North Face have proven themselves with an excellent, lightweight and rugged bag. I will definitely be adding to my collection again soon.

After I bought this bag, my wife liked it and bought a red one for herself. I bought this bag for trips to Lake Tahoe in the winter, camping, and road trips in California. Basically, anywhere that we don't need to travel through airports or carry luggage for long stretches. It's great that the bag can be carried on my back. I travel with my wife and daughter, and they are not able to carry this bag loaded with stuff. Worst case scenario, I can load and unload myself. When we are back from our trips the bags can be collapsed and don't take too much room. We're thinking of getting one for my daughter, but in a smaller size. For now, they can share, and I can carry anything extra in mine.

These duffel bags are awesome! I have both the small and medium size. It's very convenient for a weekend trip or long vacation. I have a toddler that my wife and travel with, and having those extra hands are a saving grace. I don't have to worry about shoulder pain or the strap falling off my shoulder while I gather more bags or my daughter. Will purchase more in the future, in a different color

I just returned from a week-long family trip to Europe, where I got to use my new TNF duffel for the first time. It definitely lived up to its reputation for durability and portability. I bought it to replace an old duffel that had served me very well but was hard to carry (just an over-the-shoulder strap) and kind of shapeless. I appreciate that the TNF duffel has a real shape and structure to it, and once it's on your back, the weight is evenly distributed. I could easily carry this + a rollaway bag + a messenger bag--and did so numerous times through train stations and airports.

Very good product, an improvement would be a one shoulder carrying handle. But overall excelent.

This duffel bag is Awesome. Its light and holds all the gear i need. i also like where the handles are, there in good spots

I got this bag before I traveled to Costa Rica for a week. We were stopping in many places so there was a lot of packing up and packing out. I was able to fit all my clothes, a snorkel kit, beach towel & bluetooth music player. I was even able to save room to bring home some big purchases. Not only that, this bag fit in the carry on! It was the perfect fit! If I wanted to check this bag, I wouldn't worry about it's durability. This bag looks slick. I got the matte black and gold interior. When I opened the bag on vacation I just felt good. Highly recommend.

This is the prefect size for overhead bins and weekend trips. Also works well for ski gear or an overnight trip. Coral accents are a bit more pink in person than expected but I am comfortable and secure in my masculinity so I dig it.

Weekend travel bag

We just got back from a trip with family and friends over the holidays. I think we had nearly 10 of these bags between us and some of the bags are over 20 years old. Love them!

Husband plans to horseback 8 hours to campsite. Using two of the med duffels for packing. He loves them.

Perfect for the weekend and to use on my hunting trips

This was indeed a gift that I can report on as it received high fives on all counts and is a brilliant feat of travel engineering.

I bought one this spring when I was traveling in Germany. We used on the flight back. It worked great as a carry-on and check-in bag. It was easy to carry and flexible enough for overhead storage. It was strong enough for the baggage handlers. We had a massive flood in WV and one of the vets who volunteers with Rubicon doing disaster relief had the same bag. I use when Mt. Biking or Skiing I can throw it in the back of a pickup and everything stays dry. My family all loved it so this year we bought 5 more to give to everyone as Christmas presents

Its so much better in person. The photos and description don't do it justice. Just a quality, durable and versatile bag for camping, skiing and general travel.