Trunki - are they worth it? For a 6 year old?

[Sandrine1982]

Every time my husband sees a Trunki at an airport, he says we should get one for our DD.
But to me, they look like a very unpractical, clunky gadget, which can end up being a nightmare for parents.

First, I think DD - who is almost 6 - will be a bit too old for it?

Second, we often fly with Ryanair and similar airlines, and I'm really confused about baggage restrictions. The trunki advert says that Trunki can be taken as hand lugage for free ?! Surely not for free, as they exceed the size of a small backpack??

I know Ryanair mention trunki on their website, but confusingly don't actually say the word free.

I know I would be able to take it as a cabin bag if I pay for priority, but I have no desire to do that if I can pack my kid's clothes in my own suitcase and just pay for one suitcase rather than 2.

Any insights greatly appreciated :)

I wouldn't bother, I think they're for younger kids anyway and you'll fit more in a small suitcase (which your DC will enjoy pulling)

I agree with what everyone has said above about age - it's more aimed at preschoolers. Ours also broke (hinges went and wouldn't easily close) so I'm not convinced they're great full stop.
The trunki booster seat backpack is good though if you need a car booster seat (once tall enough). We've used that to about age 10 in hire cars and taxis, and you can fit stuff inside it and best of all, the child carries it themselves!

Not at six, she’s past the point. Better off with a small wheels case she can pull. But my three year old loves his fire engine one. Sure it’s not the most practical thing but he enjoys it and most of his stuff goes in my main luggage anyway, the Trunki is just for the fun stuff. Jet2 don’t bat an eyelid and it’s free to take. I got it for £5 off Vinted so not really a big investment.

We aren’t frequent enough airport travelers for it to annoy me. The pull along function worked just fine too 🤷🏻‍♀️ (obviously not in the more crowded parts of the airport)

My 5yo wouldn’t use a trunki now - we have a FLYTE scooter suitcase which can also go on as hand luggage

I’ve been eyeing them up as we travel a lot with toddler. Mostly short haul trips but have a flight to Australia coming up and I am thinking that might be the only trip it would be worthwhile for.
I’ve watched people with them and you see the same people shoulder carrying them (presumably when kid got bored of wheeling) along with their own bag and trying to keep tabs on excited children. Looks a bit of a nightmare.
I can’t imagine fitting everything we need in one for the holiday and it would be too much hassle if it’s just filled with stuff to play with on a short flight as kids really don’t need that much.
That’s why I’d only consider for a long haul, where you’d want spare clothes, toys, and snacks to cover a 24hr period.

I would look at a scooter suitcase instead, one where the scooter can detach so you can use it on holiday:

Buy Flyte Darwin The Dino Folding Tri Scooter Suitcase - Green | Kids scooters | Argos

I find Trunkis really difficult to open.

I actually find them v clunky and find I can get more into a soft rucksack which my children are fine to carry

Amateur hour. I do rate the Boostapak if you’ll need a carseat at your destination but if not just get your 6YO a regular backpack.

I found them more hassle than they were worth for holidays abroad. They are really tricky to open on the plane and you can't fit that much into them. A backpack is much easier.

However mine liked using them for UK based holidays and sleepovers where space wasn't so much of an issue.

Don't buy one if you can avoid it.

My DD is 10 and still loves hers, to the point where she insists on using it as her case for all our holidays. But not all her stuff fits in it any more so she ends up sharing my case too. Would love to sneak it off to the charity shop...

replying to my own comment to say that it looks like the capacity of a Trunki (18.5L) is actually less than advertised Ryanair-approved small under seat bags (20L) so maybe not worth it purely for getting round the size limit… false economy!

This thread is helpful as I’ll be taking dd2 for her first holiday this year and was considering one. I cannot see her staying riding on one without falling off, running off or trying to launch it at someone. She’s 2 but is a little sod 🤣

agree, a not to mention a liability to the ankles of the general public when towed around an airport by small children!
if you're taking them as your free item of hand luggage then you also have to open the case fully in half to get anything out for entertainment during the flight. For a child of 6 they'd be better with a backpack that's easier to carry and access their own things midflight.

Oh god I think they are the work of the devil. We had one and DD loved it and I was so happy when it broke while moving house. They are awkward and clunky and heavy and can't be squeezed into a space. I wouldn't recommend them at all. They actually add to stress when travelling with young children

Total waste of money

Just let them roll around on the floor

We still use it for our six year old but she's had it since young. They are fun to ride and pull around and have been a practical choice for us.

Men think they are a good idea

Women know who is going to end up carrying that shit

Depends on the sort of trips you take. DS made a lot of use of it in passport/ security queues which didn't move very quickly.

It's very impractical in terms of space (inside and out) but he liked having place to sit after long flights. (Our families are overseas so he's been flying long haul since he was small) Honestly he merrily sat on that thing for many years. It was a bee and he loved it.

I'd buy it secondhand though, we picked it up at an NCT sale for 1/4 of the new price.

Nope. They have very little capacity, are clunky/hard to open and are only good for dragging kids younger than 6 around an airport (and even then DH nearly brained 3 year old DS after yanking it so hard DS fell off the back).

My two loved theirs but they used them from 2 onwards, by age 6 they were growing out of them really and we switched to Little Miss wheelie cases.

Thank you this is all super useful !!! And some great tips for alternatives too :)

We upgraded our sons trunki to a It luggage trunk ryder.

it had quite a large capacity and different options to ride or pull like a normal suitcase. Our 6 year old loved it and I think it will last him for a good few years!

I wouldn't get a child that old a Trunki; they are quite tad baby-ish.

My children each had one. They were not particularly useful and now, aged 13 and 11, we still have the sodding things knocking around in a spare room, taking up space.