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Flying Abroad to Shop? How to Plan an Extra Suitcase for the Trip Home
October 23, 2026
If you are flying somewhere with a lot of shopping in mind, plan the trip home before takeoff: add an extra checked suitcase to your booking, fly with it almost empty, and choose a light suitcase so the weight allowance goes to your purchases. That way you are not buying a suitcase in a rush on the last day, and you are not paying for excess weight at the counter.
The tip from the Japan travellers' group
In a Facebook group for travellers to Japan, three small trip tips were posted this week, and the first one was: buy another suitcase in advance and bring almost no clothes. It sounds extreme until you come back from Tokyo with shoes, kitchenware and gifts for the whole family. The logic is simple: when the suitcase comes from home, you know exactly what size it is, how much it weighs and that it will survive the journey. A suitcase bought on the last day, in the first shop near the hotel, is a gamble.
Two ways to fly with an empty suitcase
- A suitcase inside a suitcase. Put a smaller suitcase inside the large one, and on the way back each one comes out full. Check at home that it really fits and the large one closes, and weigh them together, because they count as one suitcase with the weight of both.
- Two suitcases, one almost empty. Fly with your clothes in one suitcase while the second travels with very little. This is more convenient, but you need two checked bags on the outbound flight too.
If you do not want to drag a second suitcase on the way out, you can also take a foldable bag or suitcase. We covered its pros and cons in our guide how to choose a foldable suitcase.
Why the weight of the empty suitcase matters so much
On most airlines the allowance for a standard checked suitcase is 23 kg, and that includes the suitcase itself. A suitcase that weighs 2.3 kg leaves you more room for shopping than a 4.9 kg suitcase of roughly the same size. Here is how it looks in our range:
| Suitcase | Volume | Empty weight |
|---|---|---|
| Swiss Digital Feather Light 31 inch | 120 liters | 2.3 kg |
| Swiss System 28 inch | 91 liters | 3.0 kg |
| Swiss System 32 inch | 138 liters | 3.8 kg |
| Navigator 28 inch (hard shell) | 100 liters | 4.3 kg |
A hard shell suitcase is heavier, but it protects breakables better. If your shopping is mostly clothes and shoes, a light fabric suitcase is the better choice. If you are coming back with dishes, ceramics or appliances, consider a hard shell. More on weights in our guide to empty suitcase weights.
Add the suitcase to your booking, not at the airport
How many suitcases are included in your ticket depends on the airline and the fare class. Some cheap tickets include no checked bag at all, while others include one. Before the flight, check on the airline's website how much an extra suitcase costs when added to the booking and how much it costs at the airport, and decide in advance. If you are flying El Al, we summarized the rules in our guide how many suitcases El Al allows.
And if your ticket includes only a carry-on and you plan to bring some of your shopping back in the overhead bin, also check your airline's carry-on weight limit. Shoes, books and dishes go over it very quickly. We summarized the limits in our guide how much weight is allowed in a carry-on.
What to buy before you leave home
- The extra suitcase itself, in a size that suits the amount of shopping and the weight allowance on your ticket.
- Packing cubes, so the few clothes you bring take up one corner and not the whole suitcase. See packing cubes.
- A vacuum bag for clothes that come back dirty. Good to know: vacuum reduces volume, not weight. It solves a suitcase that will not close, not a suitcase that goes over 23 kg. See vacuum compression bags and organizers.
- A luggage tag for every suitcase, including the one that travels empty on the way out. A suitcase without a name and phone number is harder to return if it gets lost.
Packing your shopping for the trip home
- Weigh at the hotel before you leave for the airport. A small hand-held luggage scale fits in any bag and saves you opening a suitcase in front of the counter.
- Split the weight between the suitcases. Two suitcases of 20 kg are better than one of 26 and one of 14.
- Breakables in the middle, wrapped in clothes, away from the sides. We went into detail in our guide how to pack fragile items in a suitcase.
- Receipts, electronics and batteries in the bag that boards with you, not in the checked suitcase.
- What stays at home does not come back. If you decided to fly with almost no clothes, really fly with almost no clothes: three or four outfits, and laundry halfway through.
And if you still end up over the limit, it is worth knowing in advance how much excess baggage costs.
Products in this guide
Frequently asked questions
Does a suitcase inside a suitcase count as one bag?
On the way out, yes, because it travels inside the large suitcase and the weight of both is counted together. On the way back, when each one is full, both need to be included in your ticket or you need to add a suitcase.
Is it better to buy the extra suitcase abroad?
You can, but then you buy under pressure, without knowing how much it weighs or whether it will survive the trip. A suitcase bought in advance is chosen calmly, in a size and weight that suit your airline.
What size suits a shopping suitcase?
A 28 to 32 inch suitcase holds a lot, but remember the weight allowance, usually 23 kg. A huge suitcase full of heavy things goes over it quickly, so for heavy shopping a 28 inch is enough.
What do I do with fragile purchases?
Pack them in the middle of the suitcase, wrapped in clothes and away from the sides. For large amounts of dishes or ceramics, a hard shell suitcase protects better than fabric.
