Gregory Border Carry-On 40 (V2) Review

The Gregory Border Carry-On 40 V2 feels like the best of both worlds. It’s a travel backpack, so it offers capable organization and plenty of space for gear. Additionally, it features a hiking-style harness system that keeps you comfortable throughout your trip. Do these dimensions intersect in a way that makes the pack easy to use, or will it be awkward in practice? Let’s dive in and find out.

External Components

The pack is crafted from 600D 100% polyester ripstop. The material is durable and has proven up to the task for travel. It has a DWR coating, too, which has held up in snow and sleet. It is manufactured without PFAS, which is a solid shout from a sustainability perspective. The material has a nice texture and looks nice, which is a perk. Durability is excellent, but we want to look good, too.

The pack utilizes a wide range of YKK zippers, from #5 up to #10. They all feel capable and sized correctly for the closure that they’re handling. The pulls are soft plastic with a raised surface for your finger to grab. YKK is our favorite zipper brand because they prove, time and time again, how durable they are. Plus, they’re easy to use.

The pack includes Duraflex hardware, one of the best brands in the business. Some of the hardware is from YKK, too. We love YKK, but their plastic hardware isn’t as good as their zippers. That isn’t a dig at their buckles; their zippers are just that good! No issues here.

The pack has a simple top handle with no padding or extra features. IF you have to carry the pack with this for an extended period, it isn’t comfortable. You likely won’t have to do that, since this is a backpack and you’ll be wearing it. There’s a minimalist bottom handle, too, that operates similarly. We’re glad it’s there when you need it, but we didn’t use it often. It’s handy for sliding the pack out of a trunk or the overhead bin.

The pack features more sturdy side handles, though they’re more on the front of the bag than on the sides; you can access them from either side. They’re crafted from rigid plastic and remind us more of the handles on rolling luggage than what you’d expect on a travel backpack. They slide up when you grab them and slide back when you aren’t using them. Though it feels a bit like overkill, we do appreciate their comfort and ease of use.

The backside features a wide, thick luggage pass-through, making the system sturdy to use when you’re rolling through the airport or at the hotel. It’s a vertical pass-through, so the bag is horizontal when you place it here.

The Gregory logo is relatively large, but it isn’t a super contrasting color, so it doesn’t stand out too much. Overall, the pack looks sleek and doesn’t scream tourist, which we dig. It’s undoubtedly a bag for travel, but you might think it was a large daypack for a commuter at first glance. If you like to blend in, this is a good thing!

Fit Notes

You can stow the entire harness behind the back panel, which is handy for travel and storage. If you’re staying in the same hotel for a while and planning to keep the bag on the luggage rack, stow the back panel to make it look nicer and the bottom flatter. Plan to be in and out of the bag a lot during the flight? They’re quick enough to stow that it’s worth it for a longer plane ride. Or, stow them away when you’re at home and don’t plan to travel for a few weeks.

The shoulder straps have fairly dense padding and mesh for breathability. They’re comfortable, but the strap feels a little thin for how large the bag is. It isn’t uncomfortable, but for a 40-liter pack, a wider strap would have been nice. There’s one attachment loop per strap, which is handy for a Bluetooth speaker or sunglasses.

The sternum strap is on a rail and very thin, but it does the job. When you’ve got a super heavy load, it feels more manageable to keep the shoulder straps a comfortable distance apart.

The hip belt has thick padding and mesh for breathability. You can remove it entirely (or stow it away, as we mentioned), which we dig. We appreciate the comfort and stability that it adds, but not everyone wants to wear a beefy hip belt.

The back panel is well-ventilated, with good padding and a rigid plastic frame sheet for structural support. It’s so thick and padded that it almost feels like a trampoline when you push your fingers into it. It’s very comfortable, whether you’re just going across the street or wearing it all day.

The harness system is very comfortable, though it does feel a bit like a hiking pack. Gregory is a hiking and outdoors company, so that makes sense, and hiking bags are comfortable, so we’re here for it.

Inside The Pack

The pack has one side pocket. It’s crafted from stretchy mesh, and part of it utilizes the regular pack material. You can stow a water bottle here, but we also used it for a small travel tripod, and it worked fine.

The internal liner for the remaining pockets is 40% post-consumer recycled 135D polyester. It’s durable, but lightweight.

The front pocket is a good place to put the items you would typically keep in your pockets or a sling if you’re going without one. There’s no organization here, so smaller items might get lost. This is a solid spot for your phone, wallet, sunglasses, and other daily-use items. There’s a key leash here, too.

The top pocket is quite large and lacks organization, too. It’s big enough to stow packable gear, like your rain jacket, a daypack, and other items you’ve compressed. We stowed a Nintendo Switch here, but there isn’t enough padding to do this without a case.

The laptop compartment is massive, allowing you to stow a large computer here. We had no issue fitting up to a 16″ here with a little room to spare. There’s a smaller pocket for a tablet or e-reader, but you could probably fit a small computer here, too. This compartment is raised, too, offering more protection for your laptop from getting slammed into the ground when you put the pack down.

The main compartment has a suitcase-style opening with suitcase-style organization. When you look at the design, it feels a lot like rolling luggage that they’ve turned into a travel backpack. This makes organization easy!

On the left side, there are two large mesh organization pockets. You can stow many items here, from socks to tech, though the pockets don’t have much depth, so massive gear won’t fit. That said, there’s a large pocket behind both of these that works very well for large items or clothing. There’s no organization in this section, so packing cubes and other pouches are your friends.

On the right side, there’s a large pocket similar to the big pocket on the left but with more depth. The only thing inside is an AirTag holder. This side is typically where we store most of the clothing that we bring, though there’s enough room for larger gear here, too. On a few occasions, we stowed an entire camera kit here. A camera cube with a mirrorless camera, two lenses, and a charger, a drone kit with a drone, extra batteries, and a controller, and a full-size tripod all fit here. Thanks to the dense padding on the back panel, the carry remained comfortable.

The right side also has a small pocket that looks as if it’s designed for sunglasses, though you can stow various small items inside.

The organization inside the Gregory Border Carry-On 40 V2 is easy to use and makes the most of the space provided. However, it can be a little chaotic without packing cubes and other organizers. You can get by without them, but we do prefer them to keep things organized!