Front-Loading Backpacks

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New

4.6

Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars

32 Reviews

Travel Backpack 40L

Best for: Trips of 1 week or more

$349

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New

4.6

Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars

32 Reviews

Travel Backpack 30L

Best for: Trips less than 1 week

$325

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4.5

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

665 Reviews

Laptop Backpack

Coming Soon

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New

5.0

Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars

3 Reviews

Packing Cubes (Set of 3)

$85

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What is a Front-Loading Backpack?

A front-loading backpack is a travel backpack that you pack by opening the front panel like a suitcase instead of opening the top and stacking your stuff on top itself. This provides easy access to the entire main compartment and keeps your stuff organized.

Benefits of a Front-Loading Backpack?

With a top-loading backpack like a hiking backpack or most daypacks, packing and retrieving items becomes difficult as you are forced to dig through your bag’s contents via a narrow opening. Think of it like shoving your stuff down a chimney chute. Top-loading backpacks make it a challenge to pack clothing without wrinkling, and you can forget about finding items on the go.

On the other hand, with a front-loading backpack, you open the whole front panel like the cover of a book. A front-loading panel makes it easy to pack, keep things organized, and find what you’re looking for without emptying the contents of your bag. With Tortuga travel backpacks, the main compartment opens wide like a suitcase, which makes it effortless to pack and find what you’re looking for once you’re at your destination. Our front-loading backpacks provide plenty of access to large items or packing cubes.

Reviewers consistently rate Tortuga travel bags among the best travel backpacks on the market, repeatedly mentioning the benefits of its front-loading layout:

Neverending Voyage: “The middle main section is the largest and unzips on three sides so it’s really easy to pack...The Tortuga Outbreaker Backpack is our pick for the best carry-on backpack. It’s the maximum carry-on size with plenty of space and great organisation, and it’s comfortable to carry.”
Pack Hacker: “The main compartment opens with a clamshell design, which makes packing super easy and pretty similar to packing a suitcase.”
Travel Freak: “Double clamshell design makes packing—and access—really easy. It packs like a suitcase but carries like a backpack. One main compartment for your “stuff” and, on the other side, another clamshell for your laptop and electronics...arguably one of the best backpacks.”
The Savvy Backpacker: “The Tortuga backpack has a large main compartment that zips open like a suitcase. This not only maximizes packing space, but it allows you to easily access the contents of your bag without having to pull everything out of it. I prefer this system to the traditional “top loading” bags that you find on traditional hiking backpacks because it is much more practical.”

Order your Tortuga Travel Backpack today to enjoy easier packing.

Best Front-Loading Travel Packs by Tortuga

Tortuga Travel Backpacks offer everything you expect from a superior travel pack.

Light Weight

While carry on luggage like roller suitcases require a lot of metal and plastic parts that increase their weight, Tortuga Travel Backpacks weigh less which allows you to carry on more and be comfortable on the read.

More Comfortable

Tortuga makes supremely comfortable carry-on bags thanks to their our adjustable suspension systems and well-padded shoulder straps, which make it easier to carry heavy loads. Your hip belt will take 80% of the weight off your shoulders and redistribute it to your stronger hips and legs.

Water Resistant

Tortuga front-loaders are made of tough, water-resistant sailcloth that will protect your possessions without the need for a rain cover.

Anti-Theft Features

Equipped with anti-theft features like locking zippers and discrete styling that won’t make you look like a tourist, Tortuga travel bags allow you to travel with greater peace of mind.

Laptop and Tablet Panel

Tortuga travel backpacks feature a padded back panel and laptop compartment with a protective, fleece-lined laptop sleeve for protecting your electronics. This makes it the perfect travel laptop backpack for digital nomads or business travelers. Your laptop or tablet will be easily removable whenever you need it.

Outstanding Organization

Organizational features like water bottle sleeves that double as external side pockets, mesh dividers, and padded laptop sleeves make it easy to keep everything from clothing to electronics to toiletries in their place.

Benefits of Shopping Tortuga

Backpack reviews like those we’ve mentioned above make it clear what travelers think of our bags, but there are even more benefits to shopping Tortuga:

Frequently Asked Questions About Front-Loading Carry-on Backpacks

What are the benefits of a front-loading backpack?

Unlike top-loaders, front-loaders open like a suitcase so the entire main compartment is revealed, making it easy to pack, unpack, and find your things.
This makes front-loading backpacks ideal for long-term travel or even as daily commuter backpacks.

Do front-loading backpacks fit under the seat of a plane?

It depends. While the Tortuga 40L will fit in nearly all overhead compartments, if you want underseat luggage you need luggage that’s designed to be a personal item.
In general, most airlines set a limit of approximately 40 linear inches that could also be expressed as 18 x 14 x 8 inches. But some airlines based in Europe are particularly stingy.
Be sure to check our personal item cheat sheet for more details because every airline has different requirements.

How to pack a front-loading backpack for traveling?

Whether you’re packing for short weekend trips or longer multi-day trips, front-loading backpacks are more versatile than duffel bags, weekenders, or daypacks.
If you’re traveling like a minimalist you can usually simply fold up your clothes and then stack them in the main compartment.
For longer backpacking trips, roll your clothes to fit in more while avoiding wrinkling.

Does Tortuga use high-quality buckles, zippers, and other materials?

Yes, Tortuga always uses best-in-class materials and fabrics. We don’t skimp on anything, including the webbing you’ll in our compression straps.
You can do a deep-dive about our materials and fabrics here. Our backpacks are designed to be durable and last a lifetime.

Front-Loading Backpacks

Travel Backpack 40L

Travel Backpack 30L

Outbreaker Backpack

Laptop Backpack

Packing Cubes (Set of 3)

What is a Front-Loading Backpack?

Benefits of a Front-Loading Backpack?

Best Front-Loading Travel Packs by Tortuga

Light Weight

More Comfortable

Water Resistant

Anti-Theft Features

Laptop and Tablet Panel

Outstanding Organization

Benefits of Shopping Tortuga

Frequently Asked Questions About Front-Loading Carry-on Backpacks

Helpful Resources for Your Trip