BellroyLite Daypack (lightweight performance backpack) - Ash

I’m really happy with this pack. I needed something that packed well, didn’t like drawstring bags or the foldable backpacks and other bags were bulky. This is a great Goldilocks combo!! This is a nice daypack for city or light hikes. I rolled it up tightly in my luggage and it hardly took up any space. I especially like the clean clutter free exterior which doesn’t look out of place in either environment or in between. It is water resistant and the inside is spacious.Exterior: the back padding is just enough to keep things comfortable without bulk. The small exterior top pocket is tiny. I used this for receipts, ticket stubs and some mint. The shoulder straps are very comfortable and lightly padded. The front chest strap is super helpful when you’re walking for 10 hours and it worked great to shift the load to the inside of my shoulders. The strap is removable or tucks away easily if you don’t need it.Interior: There’s a sleeve compartment which I didn’t use. It would fit a tablet. There’s a zippered pocket at the top of the pack that was perfect for holding and accessing loose items like keys, wallet, phone, lip balm, etc. Further below are two open elastic pouches that are different sizes. The wider one will holds a skinny water bottle (smartwater bottle size or 24 oz hydroflask size). Because the bag is taller, it can accommodate a taller water bottle which is super nice. I didn’t have a specific use for the skinnier pocket so it holds my AirTag and a security chain for when I want to lock my pack to something.I didn’t try it but it’s not cut proof so if you’re going somewhere where bag slashing is a common thing, maybe not this bag but for everything else, yes!! It’s rip stop material so I feel comfortable taking this on rocky trails.

I’ve been using this bag for about 6 months and have been very happy. I use it as my dog bag, to hold all the stuff we need if we spend the day out at a park, beach, patio, or friends & family homes. The material texture is nice and very water resistant and feels well stitched. I love that all of the pockets, with the exception of one small and smartly placed compartment at the very top of the bag, everything is contained internally. To me this is great because I can throw the bag around in the car and not have to worry about it catching on nearly as much as bags with lots of external compartments, with extra zippers, mesh and straps. While I don’t use it for my personal travel, I feel because everything is within the main compartment, it’s less prone to pick-pockets. Minimalistic isn’t the right word, because it does have a number of nice features, it just doesn’t at all feel like things were added just to enhance the feature list. It’s the right amount, in the right functional places. The size is good too. It’s big enough to hold a lot of stuff, and still have room to move things around in it to get to things, but without it feeling too large. It’s also quite lightweight. For how I use it, it’s been great.

Finding a lightweight, compact, and well-designed daypack with ample storage space was surprisingly challenging, but this one checks all the boxes!

Rolls up nicely and very light to take on day outings. I roll it up and pack it into my main travel backpack. Once I'm at my hotel, I then pull it out, stuff it with few things and take it out on my day outings with my young daughter for our day adventure.Easily holds couple light clothing, water bottle, few toys, etc. I've never felt that it was uncomfortable, even after few hours of having it on my back. The material is really thin and it punctured a tiny friction hole on the back when it rubbed against the hotel's wallpaper with moderate to light weight in the backpack. Not even remotely scuff resistant by any means from my experience. It also got black scuff marks just by going through a single tsa scanner at the airport, whereas my other light colored backpack rarely suffers from any scuff marks even after hundreds of times through the same scanner. The tiny friction hole isn't getting any larger, even after couple months later, so I do believe it's a true ripstop. The strap is fairly comfortable for what it is and is easily adjustable. The single zippered pocket on the top is relatively useless to me, other than holding few tickets and small single page brochures during our trips to amusement venues. Maybe few small snack bars for quick access, but then it gets full really quick. The zippers work well and are smooth. The materials are well put together and doesn't look cheap. Oh, and the bottom has no padding as expected. The back is lightly padded however, but it seems to retain all the body heat and in the heat of summer, it will give you a moist back.Overall, I still enjoy my backpack and would purchase again, but in black color, and only if the price comes down a bit. In my opinion, $100 range can buy you better options than this lightweight backpack.The main selling point for me was the light weight, and the ability to roll it up and pack it into my 28L backpack. The rolled up size is comparable to a medium sized cotton bath towel, but ultimately depends on how motivated you are to squish it down as small as possible. It unrolls without damage or excessive wrinkling and still looks nice.

Bought this backpack for a trip to Europe. Packed in the carry-on suitcase where it took up no space. Carried it most days of the trip and was impressed with the design, durability and quality of the material. Best daypack I have every purchased.