Lands' End Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag Review

Packable bags come in many shapes and sizes, from pocket-sized pouches to daypacks, beach bags, and totes. Some pack into their own pockets, some have separate pouches to stuff them into, and some just lay flat underneath other gear. However, nearly all of them have thin, lightweight materials that are sometimes prone to wrinkles.

The Lands’ End Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag stuffs into a large pocket on the back side and has more structure and features than some other packable gear. So, is it something you want to bring on your next trip, and will the organization work for you? Let’s find out.

External Components

As you might guess from the name, the Lands’ End Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag is made primarily of nylon with a polyester lining. Together, the fabrics provide much more structure than your typical packable bag.

The material is super shiny, yet doesn’t hold onto wrinkles and creases for long after you unpack it. It’s water-resistant, and moisture beads right off if you get caught in the rain or splash the tote by the pool, so you don’t have to worry about the safety of your gear when the weather turns. There’s no logo or branding to speak of, which isn’t too surprising from Lands’ End; much of its gear has a small logo or forgoes one altogether.

Items inside will also stay dry thanks to the zipper at the top of the tote. Lands’ End doesn’t use a brand of zipper that we recognize, but we’ve not had many issues with functionality, especially with the top zipper and the one that expands the bag at the bottom. The only one we struggle with is the zipper around the back pocket, which is what closes the pouch to hold the compressed bag. It struggles when going around corners after you cram the rest of the tote into the pocket, and it almost seems like the two sides of the zipper get out of alignment when trying to do that.

You can carry the Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag in two ways. The first is by the two grab handles at the top of the bag, which stick together with a wrap that snaps together so one strap doesn’t slip out of place when you’re carrying it. However, you might want to slide the wrap away from the center of the handles when there’s a lot of gear in the bag, as it can dig into your shoulder if you don’t. With a 10-inch handle drop, it’s easy to sling over your shoulder or carry it by hand, depending on your height.

There’s also an adjustable crossbody strap that connects to D-rings on either side of the bag. It can extend up to 52 inches long and has built-in adjustment to eliminate dangling straps if you keep it shorter.

There isn’t any back panel padding, though the pack-away pocket is supposed to rest against your body. Because of that, you don’t want to pack gear that’s too bulky or pokey inside, or you’ll end up feeling it. You can always flip the bag around and put that large pocket on the outside, too, if you prefer.

However, that pocket also works as a pass-through when using the tote bag with rolling luggage. There’s a space between the pocket and the bag where you can slide the handle to help the bag sit securely on top of your suitcase.

Fit Notes

Since the handles are so long and the strap is adjustable, the Lands’ End Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag fits just about every body well. However, the nylon material is quite slippery, so the handles may slip off your shoulder as you walk along. If you find that happening, try using the crossbody strap to either carry the tote lower or across your chest, although it can pull at your neck if you do that. We find it most comfortable to carry the tote on one shoulder; you just might have to hold the strap in place if you’re power walking or wearing a slippery jacket.

The shiny material works well for water-resistance and is easy to clean, though it won’t suit everyone’s style. Our primary tester didn’t mind it, but it’s not as aesthetically pleasing as canvas or a more matte material. On the other hand, spills run right off, so we definitely appreciate that.

It works against you when packing the bag into the back pocket, though. To do so, you first need to turn that pocket inside out and push all the corners out as best you can. Then, start stuffing everything inside. It’s easier if you first remove the crossbody strap, but it works with it still attached. Then, you have to squeeze the front and back together as you try to zip it up. That’s easier or more difficult, depending on how well you tucked everything inside, and it gets better with practice.

It’s about the size and shape of the CD holder you used to hook onto your car visor, if you’re old enough to have done that, but as thick as the zippered case you used to flip through with your friends, searching for Bare Naked Ladies or Spice Girls. There’s a small handle in the center to help you carry it or move it from place to place, but it won’t fit easily into another bag or suitcase without taking up a lot of room. We think packing it away like this is best for storage.

Inside The Tote

The Lands’ End Travel Nylon Expandable Packable Tote Bag definitely isn’t a simple packable grocery tote. It has too many pockets for that, which is great for traveling with the bag.

We’ll start at the front, where you’ll find a zippered pocket between the two handles. Its opening is hidden under a large fabric welt for water resistance, but it also adds to the security of anything you toss inside. If you’re on a trip, it’s a good place for your phone and passport so you can be ready to pull out your ticket and ID at any time. It’s not very big, yet large enough for the essentials you want on the outside of a bag in the airport.

On either side of the bag are very large open pockets. You can use them for water bottles, but they will likely slide around and fall sideways because the pockets are just that big. If you’re using it as a beach tote or going to the pool, this is a good place to stash a pair of sandals to keep them from getting the gear inside your bag wet or dirty. You can also use the pockets for a poncho or a travel pillow.

The back side of the bag also has a large pocket, but this one zips closed. It’s what you pack the bag into when you’re done using it, so there’s a lot of space inside, but no organization. It has a lot of depth, though, if you wanted to use it for an extra layer, a travel towel, or a thin blanket. There’s so much space inside, though, that we didn’t use it very often. On the other hand, the double-layer of material creates a nice cushion to rest against your body when carrying it, so it still serves a purpose, even when empty.

Inside the main compartment is even more organization. There’s a large zippered pocket against the front panel, and when we say large, we mean huge. It spans two-thirds of the tote’s width, basically acting like an accessory pouch for everything you don’t want falling to the bottom of the space. Most of the time, we tossed our phone, wallet, earbuds, and the like here instead of squeezing a hand into the tiny front pocket.

There’s also a key leash beside it. It’s attached to the top of the bag, so you don’t have to go through two zippers to grab your keys, but a large set can slightly drag the top of the tote down.

On the opposite side, against the back panel, is a slightly padded slip pocket with a strap that attaches in the center with a hook-and-loop fastener to hold a 13-inch laptop or tablet in place. It is very lightly padded, though, so we’d recommend using a protective case if you have enough room for it and your computer. Otherwise, be careful how hard you set the bag down or what you pack next to your device.

The remaining space is open for groceries, beach towels, extra layers, library books, packing cubes, or whatever else you want to carry. It works well when your child moves to college and then forgets a bunch of stuff, especially because you can get an extra 3 inches of space at the bottom by engaging the expansion zipper, then packing everything away after delivery to keep it from taking up too much trunk space for your road trip. That’s probably a unique use case, but it’ll also save plastic when you go on a shopping spree at The World of Disney in Disney Springs and say no to plastic sacks.

Whatever you need it for, there’s plenty of space inside and enough structure to mostly stay standing when you start to pack it up. It’s just not the smallest when you want to pack it away, so we’d save that for storing it in the closet between trips instead of trying to wedge it into your travel backpack to bring along just in case.