Everyone agrees: travelling in style isn’t what it used to be.
When King George V visited India in celebration of his coronation, his retinue was fully loaded, even packing fine china and linen for his two-week hunting expedition. (Like most of us, at the end he must have found repacking murder, after bagging tigers, rhinos and a bear, sometimes from the back of an elephant.)
More recently, in the film Sabrina Audrey Hepburn arrives at the train station in a turban, with her little dog and a stack of blocky trunks beside her. The era of fully loaded travel has ended, what with the whole valuing the lives of the servant class thing. But luggage tags give me a little of that feeling of chic travel, even while shlepping my own suitcase through miles of terminal buildings.
To that end, I’m slowly acquiring a range of tags.
This red luggage tag from Victorinox has a tracking code to help reunite me with my luggage if it goes missing (one day I’ll register); more immediately, it helps me locate my black case among thousands of others on the carousel. I love the masculine feel, which means my husband feels comfortable using and carrying this bag. (I also can’t bring myself to remove the Disney Cruise paper tag, from the launch of the Disney Dream…but that’s a whole other story.)
Kids’ luggage tags are particularly covetable. Here are three I really love – a classic Hello Kitty, a unisex TrayKit version that’s a little Paul Smith, and an adorable plane cut-out.
These Moleskin tags have the same elastic band closure as the company’s notebooks. Elegant, although I would worry that they would get bent by luggage handlers. Shabby tags are not chic.
My most recent acquisition is this tag the staff at Amangalla put on my bag after bringing it down to reception the day we left. My personal information was printed — printed — on the other side. Satisfyingly heavy, leather with the hotel name on it — whenever I see it, it reminds me of the gorgeous swimming pool lined with glittering green mosaic tiles, the verandah looking out onto the water, and the beautiful wedding we attended there. All that’s missing is the turban.
More on luggage tags
Here’s a cool DIY for making fabric luggage tags
What not to put on your luggage tags
