The 7 Best Travel Backpacks for Women in 2023

 You don’t need to be travel-savvy to understand the need for a backpack specially designed for such a purpose. The best travel backpack for women will store all your possessions without needing an extra bag.

 Many factors come into play when choosing a travel backpack, whether big or small, comfortable or durable. 

What’s the Best Travel Backpack for Women?

Hours of research have led to reviewing hundreds of bags, but only a few stand out. Whether you’re traveling by air, land, or sea, the backpack for your journey is on this list!

In addition to our picks, there’s a detailed buyer’s guide to help you find a travel backpack for your needs.

Our picks for the best travel backpack for women

1. Best Overall: Osprey Daylite Expandable Travel Pack
2. Best Versatile Bag: Asenlin 40L Backpack
3. Best Day Trip Bag: Kroser Large 15.6” Backpack
4. Best Anti-Theft Bag: Falanko 15”6 Backpack
5. Best Value: Vancropak Travel Backpack
6. Best Large Bag: Shrradoo Extra Large 52L Backpack
7. Best Premium Bag: Tortuga Travel Backpack

Why You Need a Travel Backpack for Women 

Traveling with a bag makes your trip more flexible. You can up and leave anytime, and even go sightseeing with all your possessions on your person! Traveling with a backpack is so popular it’s called backpacking!

Best Travel Backpack for Women: Our Top 7 Picks

This article aims to make travel as pain-free and comfortable as possible. Consider these backpacks whether you’re going on a business trip or holiday.

1. Best Overall: Osprey Daylite Expandable Backpack

To say that the Osprey Daylite Expandable bag is anything short of amazing would be an understatement. Building on their legendary Daylite bag (hikers will know what’s up), the expandable Daylite version is built to carry as much as possible while still conforming to the “personal item” standard.

The bag takes a standard 26 liter bag and adds another 6 liters when you unzip the main compartment. With two water bottle holder on either side, you can carry a decent amount of liquid.

I only hike with Osprey bags, mainly because of their AirScape technology, and you can bet that if you’re traveling (especially on weekend trips where you’ll be lugging your bag around), it’s nice to have airflow keeping your back cool.

There’s a Shove-it pocket in the front, which is perfect for boarding passes and snacks. Trust me — when you’re at your gate, in a rush to catch a connecting flight (we’re looking at you Southwest), or you frequently travel with a child like I do, it’s nice to have this feature.

But what I really love about this bag is that it completely unzips, which makes it perfect for weekend trips. After all, it’s like a small suitcase on your back, but looks like a backpack.

While some users knock it for its lack of pockets on the outside, we don’t mind that. After all, this thing is meant to fit under a seat or in an overhead compartment, so this is actually a pro, as there’s less pockets to snag.

While we could go on all day about this bag, we think the only way to find out if it’s right for you is to take it for a test drive. We think you’ll love it as much as we do.

2. Most Versatile Bag: Asenlin 40L Backpack

The ASENLIN 40L is a backpack you can get in 17” and 18”. It’s a large backpack with three additional storage bags to safeguard and organize your essentials.

It’s larger than most travel bags, but it still fits the bill for what the FAA allows. This stylish bag has a side zipper to access travel documents during airport security checks quickly. The backpack is also suitable for large laptops and has a special pocket.

Further, the backpack material is high-quality water-resistant polyester Oxford textile and explosion-proof zippers. This travel backpack’s eye-catching feature is its versatility.

The bag is helpful for all types of travel including cross-border hiking trips, and as a move-out bag. You can turn it on its side and lug it like a regular suitcase. Besides, there’s a sternum strap you can adjust for extra comfort.

This backpack is for women who like to pack a lot of stuff and find it challenging to fit all their items in one bag. It’s large, spacious, efficient, and dirt cheap too!

It doesn’t swell like an overstuffed frog even when you cram so many items inside the bag. This backpack is a true hybrid and is more a suitcase than a backpack. The interior layout and the way it opens give it that “luggage” feel.

The bag is also easy to pack and unpack, with enough space to fit everything a woman needs for a weekend getaway.

The only drawback is the small side pockets that can hold a water bottle. It can also feel heavy on the shoulders if you carry it for an extended time. However, these are mild annoyances that don’t detract from what’s a fantastic backpack.

3. Best Day Trip Bag: Kroser Large 15.6” Backpack

The KROSER backpack is a small bag designed for women who intend to travel light. It’s a 15.6” bag crafted with water-repellent and eco-friendly materials that can withstand rough usage.

The steel frame and reinforced edges underline this backpack’s durability and ensure the bag keeps its shape even after prolonged use. A laptop may be too much to handle for this backpack, but it has enough space for a smartphone and tablet.

The small size ensures it’s lightweight, and you’ll find a secured pocket for holding small items like keys and credit cards. You can store your passport in the front for easy access.

Besides, this backpack is elegant and classy, with a sleek style that doesn’t interfere with its functionality. The luggage strap and phone charger are both thoughtful, and the inner compartment is set up to keep your essentials organized.

The chic design makes it look small, but it’s pretty spacious! One drawback is the inability to carry a large-sized laptop.

It also requires more inner pockets, even though that will add to the weight. The KROSER 15.6 is a unique, long-lasting backpack excellent for light-moderate travel.

4. Best Anti-Theft Bag Bag: Falanko 15”6 Backpack

The FALANKO Backpack is a multi-function bag with tons of pockets to help you carry everything you need for travel. It’s built mainly for travel but can also serve as an office laptop bag. 

The interior is spacious despite its 15.6” size. It features two front zipper pockets for storing airport check documents like boarding passes and passports. You can carry this backpack on your shoulder with the straps or by the top handle.

Moreover, the bag can fit several days’ worth of clothing and footwear with spare room for other essentials. The canvas feel of the fabric is soft to the touch.

You can’t deny its cuteness, and it’s small enough to fit under your seat on the plane. The construction is designed to distribute weight.

This bag’s selling point is the RFID Blocking feature that blocks RFID signals up to 13.56MHz. This anti-theft feature is a godsend for female travelers to prevent unauthorized scans of their passports, bank cards, and driver’s licenses.

There’s a clever little space for your laptop which you’d be forgiven not to notice. Additionally, the backpack has other ergonomic features that vastly improve the overall user experience.

For instance, there’s a keychain, water bottle pocket, and luggage strap for extra comfort. This bag has a few negatives, like the internal layout, which isn’t as organized as many rivals.

The main compartment doesn’t widen enough to fit large items, and the shoulder strap can bite into your skin and chafe. Nonetheless, the bag will hold all your items and is excellent for short trips.

5. Best Value: Vancropak Travel Backpack

If you intend to travel for an extended time with a backpack, look no further than this VANCROPAK backpack. The 40L capacity is an ample storage space for clothes that will last a week!

The bag meets the IATA’s maximum size for a carry-on, and you can fit it in the overhead bin or under the seat. You’ll also like the TSA 180-degree zipper closure that allows you to breeze through airport security.

Moreover, you can hide the shoulder straps inside the back panel when not in use which saves space. The construction is high-quality and lightweight despite its large size. The zippers are strong, and there’s an expansion zipper to fit additional clothing.

You’ll love the comfort pads to cushion your back and a waist buckle to distribute the load more evenly. Besides, the backpack has a decent layout within the compartments to make most of the space.

One thing to complain about is the straps that hurt when you carry the travel bag for an extended time. The bag would be the best overall if it had more padding on the straps.

6. Best Large Bag: Shrradoo Extra Large 52L Backpack

The SHRRADOO backpack is one of the most oversized backpacks, with a 17” 52L capacity. It’s a behemoth bag with 20 pockets for storing small essentials. This backpack has three main compartments.

And they are all spacious, allowing you to hold different gear for your travel, including clothing, stationary, and electronic devices. It’s a multipurpose back for all kinds of trips, including international travel, day trips, hiking, and camping.

The external USB port is a convenient outlet for charging your smartphone. Moreover, the polyester fabric and nylon lining make this bag water-resistant.

It’s impressive how affordable this backpack is especially considering the qualities, size, and features. Most travel bags of a similar size will cost more, yet it doesn’t cut corners for the price.

The only negative is the water-resistant qualities which aren’t its best feature. It’s also not as durable as other brands. If you travel frequently and pack heavily, consider something else. Overall, the bag is highly functional and irresistible for the price.

7. Best Premium Bag: Tortuga Travel Backpack

Tortuga’s Travel Backpack is a great bag for women travelers because it combines many features that they love.

Starting with traveling in comfort, Tortuga’s women’s travel bags come with padded shoulder pads, hip belts, and height-adjustable sternum straps to make sure you get the perfect bag fit.

Women usually prioritize having a secure pack. This bag includes several anti-theft features like lockable zippers, hidden compartments, and discreet styling to blend in while traveling and avoid being targeted by thieves.

Lastly, all of Tortuga Backpacks bags come with free shipping and a lifetime WorldWide Warranty for their products so you can buy with confidence.

Finding the Best Travel Backpack for Women

The truth is you won’t find many travel backpacks that cater to the needs of the female traveler. However, you must still consider features like capacity, size, and price. Also, the travel backpack you need will depend on the purpose of your trip and your activities.

Size & Capacity

It’s worth pointing out that a travel backpack for women is often smaller than the same for men. For instance, a man’s travel backpack may be 60L and 50L for the female version of the same bag.

Women are typically more petite, and their bags often taper down towards the waist to fit their narrow frame. Below are some points to keep in mind when deciding on the overall size of your travel backpack:

• Opt for a backpack according to the size of your travel gear
• Go for bags that can serve as a carry-on
• Backpacks above 50L are excellent for long travels, hiking, and camping

Keep in mind the size of the bag significantly affects the weight, or you’d buy a backpack that’s too stressful to use. It’s often better for a taller woman to use a unisex travel bag than a backpack designed for women.

Fabric

The best travel backpack for women uses durable fabric that can handle the strain of travel. These bags will squeeze into overhead bins, pass through baggage claim, and tumble on the bus.

Materials like nylon and polyester are more robust than cotton, and it’s not uncommon to see nylons between 600D to 1000D on a travel backpack. However, you have to be wary because these fabrics are heavy and add to the overall weight of your bag.

Handles

In addition to shoulder straps, look for a bag with multiple handles on each side. These handles are handy when you need to move your bag quickly.

Lockable Zippers

Ensure each outer compartment has two zippers to allow you to lock the bag with a padlock. Petty thieves will find it a challenge to break into your bag, and you drastically reduce the chance of someone smuggling stuff through your backpack.

Hip Belt

The hip belt is crucial because your hips will bear most of the bag weight. So, it never huts to have a backpack with a hip belt.

We prefer one that’s padded to make the load more bearable and distribute the backpack weight across your back. The belt also needs to be adjustable for additional support.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have some questions, here are the answers to a few FAQs!

So, What’s the Best Travel Backpack for Women?

We think that the best travel backpack for women is the Osprey Daylite Expandable backpack. It’s durable, affordable, nice-looking, and is surprisingly versatile, all while conforming to 85% of airlines’ carry-on standards.

We think you should definitely check it out — we think you’ll love it just as much as we do.

Still, you won’t be doing yourself a disservice going for any of the backpacks on this list. We think each one has something to offer, and you’re sure to love each one. Happy travels!