How do you make your luggage unique?

[sinecure]

Also known as the "what black bag is mine" game.

We've picked up some fluorescent luggage tags with funny tags... ie mine says "My wife calls me Tiger".

Finding people don't pick mine out by mistake.

What's your trick to making sure someone doesn't walk off with your unmentionables?

[DanielBMe]

I stitched little patches of Canadian flags to my backpack. Makes it easier to spot.

Daniel

[thecakeisalie]

I stitched little patches of Canadian flags to my backpack.
Daniel

Yeah, but the question was "what makes it unique?" I've yet to run into a Canadian that didn't have a maple leaf stitched onto something!

[DanielBMe]

lol that's true. But actually most Canadian flags are on a hat or tshirt or something. I haven't seen too many stiched onto a backpack...well none that I've seen so far.

We want to make sure we're not mistakenly identified as Americans ...although now that Obama is president elect, maybe that won't be such a bad thing lol

[ballu]

I'm half American, half Canadian (actually I prefer to think of myself as 100% both), I don't have any flags sewn on anything and nobody has ever assumed I'm of any nationality. In fact, I think locals are more likely to assume a tourist is a Aussie, Brit or Canadian because in general they get more vacation time and travel more than Americans.

[jimshu]

I have this billious bright green wheeled duffle bag, and you can see it coming down the conveyer a mile away...and strangely , no one ever wants to claim it!

[AdamfromCanada]

lol that's true. But actually most Canadian flags are on a hat or tshirt or something. I haven't seen too many stiched onto a backpack...well none that I've seen so far.

We want to make sure we're not mistakenly identified as Americans ...although now that Obama is president elect, maybe that won't be such a bad thing lol

I have a large Canadian Flag on the back of my detachable daypack, and on my large pack, I have smaller flags for every country I've been to. So far, that's eight other countries, although I'm debating adding a ninth, as I was in South Korea, ate a meal there, but never left the airport.

As for being mistaken for Americans, Canadians get that all the time and there's nothing we hate more when we're travelling. I got it a lot in Ireland, but the Irish always apologised profusely after finding out I was Canadian. They hate being mistaken for British, so they empathize.

[ballu]

As for being mistaken for Americans, Canadians get that all the time and there's nothing we hate more when we're travelling.

It's only happened to me once in Britain...some guy asked, "Are you guys from the US?", we said we were from Canada, he said, "Same thing".

[AdamfromCanada]

As for being mistaken for Americans, Canadians get that all the time and there's nothing we hate more when we're travelling.

It's only happened to me once in Britain...some guy asked, "Are you guys from the US?", we said we were from Canada, he said, "Same thing".

I've heard that from Brits as well. Even heard Americans say that! I make sure to set them straight, that we're VERY different from Americans.

[thecakeisalie]

[

I make sure to set them straight, that we're VERY different from Americans.

Yeah, you guys end every sentence with a question, eh?

And getting back to the luggage question, I don't use fancy labels because I recognize the uniques dents and dings in all of my worn suitcases. In particular the two forklift-sized dents in the middle of the extendable handle rails on my large suitcase that renders the handle useless, courtesy of America West (Worst) Airlines.

[debandpat123]

fabric paint! our duffles are painted with daisies and stars and whatever else... can't MISS them, and nobody else would claim them! can even see them being loaded on the plane at times. i've been asked to do them for friends. ;o) peace, deb (YAY, Obama!!!)

[sinecure]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFDVHr05UF4

Luggage gone all wrong.....

[JaliscoJudy]

Until a few months ago I thought I could recognize my own luggage anywhere, anytime. I was in the airport in Guadalajara, Mexico waiting for my 2nd bag when a man came up to me and claimed that I had his luggage. I looked and it was not his. I picked up my second, idential bag off the conveyor and was headed to customs when the man came back with a third, identical bag. Sure enough, I had his and he had one of mine.

Guess I need to follow these tips to personalize.

And yeah, I agree: Canadians and Americans are quite different. Canadians always know where to get the best deals.

[Reditor]

I use a bright blue travel pack with duct tape on it or a bright red duffle bag with a big "G.A.P Adventures" logo on it.

I couldn't even imagine travelling with a black bag of any kind.

[DanielBMe]

I usually just spray paint in big white letters "this is a bomb". Oddly enough nobody ever seems to mistakenly grab mine.... Well except for the explosive experts...I usually have to buy a new suitcase afterwards...and clothes...