Robb Recommends: A Stylish, Compact Weekend Bag That No Airline Will Dare Make You Check

I pack lightly, a quality that’s proven a virtue as airlines increasingly misplace baggage and prematurely announce that the overhead bins are full. So, when I fly, it’s usually with a soft canvas or leather weekender that I can wedge into the last overhead space, plus a zip top Filson tote that will hold my laptop and a book and qualifies as the carry-on.

But on my most recent business trip, a 30-hour jaunt to Dallas, I flew with neither. For both had been replaced by the 48 Hour Mount Street Travel Bag by Aspinal of London, a handsome piece of leather luggage that allowed me to consolidate my entire travel kit into its supremely well-designed innards with room to spare.

The bag, which is made from strong and supple full grain pebbled leather, looks like a briefcase on first sight—a big briefcase. It has the well-defined, rectangular structure of one and stands on its own thanks to the metal studs at its bottom. It also features a pair of leather top handles, which is my preferred way to carry anything, complemented by a detachable webbed strap for whenever both hands need to be free.

One half of it indeed functions like a briefcase, with a zipped compartment that opens to reveal a cotton-lined interior with a dedicated laptop pocket, plus two slip pockets that I used to hold my house keys and a pair of sunglasses, respectively. In the space between these pockets, I easily fit a notebook and a paperback copy of Blood Meridian. This “briefcase” portion of the bag was rounded out by an exterior zip pocket, where I stashed my phone and laptop charger for easy access.

The opposite half of the bag, meanwhile, zips open entirely to reveal a generously sized storage compartment comparable to the inside of a hard luggage case. Setting the bag on its side, I was able to neatly pack the rest of the clothing I was traveling with—two freshly ironed shirts, wool trousers and a change of underwear. The compartment also featured a pair of cotton flaps that could be connected by snaps: while intended to wrap around a spare pair of shoes to keep them from colliding with clothing, I used these flaps as an envelope to keep my shirts and trousers in place, and separate them from the dopp kit I set to the side. The final detail of this compartment was a deep, zipped pocket that I did not use, but could easily imagine sliding a pair of keys or headphones inside. Lastly, the rear of the bag featured a leather trolley strap, which went unused but was appreciated.

When I reached my hotel, I was deeply satisfied to zip open its larger compartment and find my clothing still neatly folded and held in place by the cotton flaps—a far cry from unpacking my typical weekender, whose soft shape and undivided interior resulted in wrinkled shirts and pants twisted around each other or buried under other items. I felt—and this is not always a given in my life, particularly when traveling—supremely organized.

However, the most satisfying part of my experience came when it was time to board the flight back to Boston. A particularly grumpy check-in agent irately announced that there was no more space for my boarding group to bring a carry-on, and that all further bags would have to be checked. I walked my bag to the display stand indicating the acceptable dimensions for carry-on bags and personal items and discovered, to my delight, that it was compact enough to qualify as the latter.

As the rest of the passengers collectively grumbled and prepared to resign their hard-case rollers and bulky backpacks to their unknown fates, I strolled onto the plane with my 48 Hour Mount Street bag and an extra spring in my step.

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