Hard or soft suitcase, what is better?

[avenueq]

Hard suitcases are of course less flexible, but what else speaks for/against them?

I used to have hard suitcases (samsonite) travelled loads for work, always looked trashed and had to fold very carefully.
Now have eastpak squidgy ones and look fine.

Unless you are taking valuable then they are not really worth it. They get battered and scruffy looking after one or two holidays.

Just for a different opinion, we have antler hard suitcases. Bought about 5 years ago in the Jan sales. Really impressed, they look smart, hold lots. Have been on many flights and don’t looked marked at all. We have the navy but prev had light blue samsonite cases which did look far more scuffed. However, these lasted 20 years, with flights at least once a year sometimes more and used in the UK too.

We bought large hard suitcases from M&S about 15 years ago. They're used often, hold loads and still look great.