Snowboarding is such a fun activity to try during the snow season. If you’re preparing for a winter on the slopes, then you better get all your gear together!
You’ve probably got your snowboard, but do you have a bag to put it in when you travel?
No?
Have no fear, we’re here to provide the perfect solution. We’ve reviewed the best snowboard bags for travel, so you can spend your money wisely.
Why do you need a snowboard bag?
To put it simply, you need snowboard bags to keep all your kit together when you travel!
Sure, snowboards are robust things, but they’re not built for airplane travel. They’ll get moved around, bumped, banged, and bruised during the entire journey. Then, the same happens on the way back.
The benefit of a snowboard bag is that it provides some much-needed protection. You could protect your board from other luggage, and it should arrive in one piece.
Plus, snowboard bags can also hold a few other pieces of kit as well. This way, you keep everything together, reducing the chances of something getting lost.
Basically, you have to ask yourself one simple question; do I care about my snowboard?
If the answer is yes, then you need a snowboard bag!
What to look for in the best snowboard bags for travel?
You are probably thinking; how different can snowboard bags be?!
As it turns out, they can differ a fair bit! So, you have to know what to look for in the best snowboard bags for travel. Thankfully, it’s not a tough task. We’ve made your life easier by listing the key considerations:
Size
Straight away, you should always check the size of the bag. Snowboard bags will tell you what size snowboards they can accommodate. Some go up to 181cm+, and others only go up to around 165cm. So, make sure you measure your snowboard before you commit to anything.
Padding
You need to have some sort of padding in your snowboard bag. Like we said earlier, your snowboard will take a beating when it’s handled at the airport. With some padding, you get a little bit of extra protection to keep it nice and safe.
Weight
It’s also important to know how much the bag weighs with nothing in it. This way, you can weigh your snowboard and then add on the weight of the bag. As a result, you have a good idea of how heavy it will be to carry. Ideally, you want a bag that doesn’t add too much extra weight. Or at least, one that’s light enough for you to carry without hurting yourself!
Straps
The best snowboard bags for travel should all have straps. Some will only have handle straps, and that’s fine. Others will go one step further and provide a shoulder strap as well. When it comes to convenience, the shoulder strap is beneficial. You can switch between carrying it at your side and carrying it over your shoulder.
Accessories
It always helps to have some handy accessories with your snowboard bag. Things like an extra bag for boots, compartments for smaller items like snowboard wax, gloves, etc are important. These accessories add more value to your purchase as your bag becomes multifunctional!
Zippers
You should also look at the zippers on the bag as well. You need to have ones that are big enough to fit padlocks through, allowing you to secure your property. If you can’t lock the bag, then there’s the risk of it:
- Opening up during transit and your board falling out
- Someone opening it and stealing your board
Wheels
Lastly, having wheels on the bag is a huge bonus. You don’t have to worry about carrying it as you can wheel it along for the most part. Not all bags come with this feature, but it’s definitely one to look out for.
Do you have to pay extra to bring snowboard bags on flights?
Your snowboard bag won’t be heading in the cabin with you, but it can fit in the hold. As such, you can sometimes get away without paying the additional baggage fees.
Our advice is to make sure you book your snowboard as a piece of baggage. Then, if it falls within the size and weight restrictions, you won’t have to pay extra for it.
If it’s too big or too heavy, then different airlines charge different fees. Unfortunately, we can’t run through every single airline’s charges for excess baggage!
Instead, we recommend making the measurements, and weigh your bag, and see if it ticks all the boxes. If it doesn’t, then you may want to look into shipping your excess baggage instead. Sometimes, this can be cheaper than paying the extra fees.
Right, we’ve gone through some of the key concerns, and now it’s time to look at a few products. We spent a lot of time reviewing the best snowboard bags for travel. And, these are the five lucky candidates that made our list:
- High Sierra Snowboard Sleeve & Boot Bag Combo
- Athletico Padded Two-Piece Snowboard & Boot Bag Combo
- Burton Wheelie Gig Snowboard Bag
- Burton Space Sack Snowboard Bag
- DAKINE Tour Snowboard Bag
High Sierra Snowboard Sleeve & Boot Bag Combo
My rating –
The first snowboard bag we looked at came with a boot bag – which we really liked. It gives you somewhere safe to store your boots as well, freeing up space in your other suitcases. Both bags are made out of water-resistant polyester. You don’t have to worry about moisture leaking through, or snow melting on the bag.
It has nylon zippers as well, which we found both good and bad. They are strong, and the length of the nylon coil makes it easy to attach locks to the bag. However, we felt a bit cautious trusting the nylon to stay firm and not rip. No issues presented themselves, but this design is not as foolproof as using metal zip hooks.
The snowboard bag can hold up to a 165cm snowboard, which should suit most people. But, if your board is longer than this, then it’s not going to fit. On the plus side, the bag is under 3.5 lbs on its own. As a result, it doesn’t add any extra weight and is easy to carry with the two handle straps.
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| Comes with a boot bag for boots up to size 13 | We felt like the zippers could’ve been a bit better |
| Water-resistant fabric | Snowboards over 165cm won’t fit |
| Zippers can fit a range of locks | No shoulder strap |
| Comfortable handle straps | No internal straps or webbing for the board to fit in |
| Very light |
Athletico Padded Two-Piece Snowboard and Boot Bag Combo
My rating –
Right off the bat, we noticed how thick the padding was inside this bag. There’s at least 5mm all the way through, so your board and gear are well protected during transit. Speaking of which, it’s long enough to fit a board up to 165cm, but it’s wide and deep enough for some extras too. We managed to squeeze some extra clothing in there, along with a pair of ski goggles and gloves.
The extra padding and size move the weight close to 4lbs. But, it makes up for this with detachable shoulder straps and carrying handles. So, you get two different ways of carrying the bag around. And, the padded shoulder straps are there for extra comfort, too.
It does use a zipper to open and close the bag, but you can’t attach any locks to it. There’s just one zipper that opens three-quarters of the way along the bag. We also noticed some signs of wear and tear here after just a little bit of constant use.
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| Heavily padded for maximum protection | Zipper doesn’t work with locks |
| Extremely spacious – can add extras into the bag | The stitching around the zipper started to come loose |
| Comes with a boot bag | Not suitable for boards larger than 165cm |
| Detachable shoulder straps | |
| Not overly heavy |
Burton Wheelie Gig Snowboard Bag
My rating –
The main thing that excited us about this bag was the wheels. They call upon Burton’s IXION skate wheel system, and they feel oh so smooth. It’s so easy to wheel this bag along across solid ground – and there are handles and shoulder straps as well. When we came across some steps, it was an easy transition to pick it up and get over that mini obstacle.
Inside, we noticed a series of internal webbing straps that did a good job of holding the board in place. Also, we managed to squeeze two boards into this one bag! This can be really helpful if you’re traveling with kids and want to save money on baggage.
Everything is padded on the inside as well, and the zipper pulls accommodate a lot of locks. There’s even a bonus compartment on the front, but we struggled to really add anything substantial in there.
The key downside is that it doesn’t come with a boot bag. Most snowboard bags include one, so you have to go out and buy it separately. While this bag is spacious, we couldn’t really find space for a pair of boots and a snowboard.
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| Wheels make moving the bag so easy | No boot bag included |
| Padded shoulder straps | The extra length might make it hard to fit the required baggage dimensions |
| Fits boards up to 181cm long | Is quite heavy when empty |
| Can carry multiple boards in the same bag | |
| Zippers are compatible with TSA-approved locks | |
| Thick padding all the way throughout | |
| Internal webbing to strap your boards in place |
Burton Space Sack Snowboard Bag
My rating –
Straight away, we love that you can choose different designs and colors here. It’s not essential but it helps you choose a bag. And, that may reflect your personality a little bit more than the standard black option!
As well as looking fabulous, this snowboard bag is made to fit multiple decks. You can slip in any board between 129 and 181cm, and there’s still room for one more. It’s made from durable polyester. It protects your board from the elements, though it does lack some internal padding. There’s also no webbing on the inside, but you can choose different bag sizes for a more snug fit.
You can velcro the two handle straps together for added stability when carrying, and you have a shoulder strap with some padding on it as well. Unlike the other Burton option, there are no wheels. But, you do have that extra zipped compartment for a few small things.
It’s supposed to be a lightweight bag, but it weighs around 4lbs, so it’s hardly the lightest option out there. Plus, there’s no boot bag, which is always a slight negative.
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| Spacious interior with room for two boards | Extremely large bag, and will probably need to pay for excess baggage |
| Different sizes to fit boards from 129cm to 181cm | No boot bag |
| Very firm handles for carrying | |
| Padded shoulder strap | |
| Zipper system fits TSA-approved locks | |
| Available in different color designs |
DAKINE Tour Snowboard Bag
My rating –
Last, but by no means least, we have the DAKINE Tour Snowboard Bag. There’s a lot to like here, and what amazed us is how roomy it is inside. You don’t get a boot bag, but there’s enough space to fit a pair of boots in with your snowboard! Then, you have an exterior zippered pocket to add a few extras. We managed to sneak in some extra items of clothing along with our equipment.
This bag has 360 degrees of padding, which basically means there’s padding all the way around it. When you put a board in here, you can push against the bag and really feel the effect of the padding. It adds some security!
As an extra feature, it’s also available in lots of vibrant colors! If you’re buying a present for your child, then this comes in useful! Some wheels would be nice, and we hoped there’d be some strapping inside to pack down the board, but there wasn’t. Other than that, we have very few complaints!
Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
| Lightweight and easy to carry | Quite a chunky design – may be hard to fit in your trunk |
| Padding all the way around your board | No wheels for moving it around |
| Enough room for your boots as well | No internal strapping/webbing |
| An extra compartment on the outside | |
| Lots of funky designs available |
Conclusion
We spent a lot of time debating and deliberating which snowboard bag came out on top here. But, after much consideration, we decided to crown the Burton Wheelie Gig Snowboard Bag as the winner.
These are the best snowboard bags for travel, but this product just stood out because of the features it boasted. We spoke in the beginning about a lot of things to look for; padding, straps/handles, wheels, zippers, etc. The Burton bag ticked almost every box. Plus, it’s the only one with wheels.
Sure, it’s a tad heavier than the others – and there’s no boot bag – but the wheels make up for the weight. You can put your boots in a suitcase or rucksack anyway. So, in our view, it takes the top spot, but only just!
