Best Crossbody Bags for Travel: Tested by a Full Time Traveler

I have been traveling full time for more than 5 years, and in that time I have tested a lot of crossbody bags.

Two of them stuck. Both are on this list 😉

The other three are top picks from my Ways of Style community of thousands of women who love to travel.

That is how I can write about the best crossbody bags for travel with a straight face.

Every bag here is stylish, durable, and zips closed, whether you are rushing through an airport, working your way through a crowded market, or heading out for a nicer dinner.

One is roomy enough for women who hate a tiny bag, one is quilted nylon that shrugs off rain, and one is compact enough to become a clutch at dinner.

And none of them are anti-theft bags. My thoughts on that below 🙅🏻‍♀️

Here’s what you’ll learn today:

✅ The 5 best crossbody bags for travel, including the two I have carried for years

✅ Why a crossbody beats a tote on every single travel day

✅ What actually keeps your things safe, after more than 5 years of testing it in real cities

The Best Crossbody Bags for Travel (Tested Over 5 Years of Full Time Travel)

Five crossbody travel bags for women laid side by side on cream linen, from a guide tested over more than 5 years of full time carry-on travel

_{This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks so much for supporting my blog if you’re planning to shop! 💛 (if not, just enjoy the post)}

Estimated reading time: 18 minutes

The best crossbody bags for travel sit flat against your body, close with a zipper that goes all the way, and hang from a strap you can adjust to your own height. I have carried the same two bags for 4 years and 3 years of full time travel, and neither one is a specialty anti-theft bag. A regular crossbody worn the right way does the job.

👜 Why the Best Crossbody Bags for Travel Beat a Tote Every Time

I have made this mistake myself. I packed a cute open tote for a trip to Europe and spent the entire time holding it closed with one hand.

That is not a bag. That is a pain in the 🍑

With a tote on a travel day, your hands are never free.

You are holding a coffee, a phone with a map on it, a train ticket, and a bag that keeps sliding off your shoulder.

A crossbody solves all of that.

It sits across your body, it stays where you put it, and it leaves both hands completely free.

And there is the safety piece – an open bag is simply the easiest target in the crowd.

💡 Where totes still win: at home. I love a good tote for errands and grocery runs, and Quince has some really pretty tote bags if that is what you need.

I just don’t recommend bringing one on your trip.

✅ What Makes the Best Crossbody Bags for Travel Actually Work

After years of carrying the same bags through the same situations, my list of what matters got very short.

A zipper that closes the whole way. Not a magnetic snap, not a drawstring. A zipper.
An adjustable strap. I am 5’4″, so a strap that only comes in one length usually hangs too low on me.
A neutral color that matches your travel wardrobe. One bag has to work with every outfit you packed.
Small enough that it stays in front of you. If you cannot see it in a crowd, it is too big.

Notice what is not on that list: slash proof fabric, locking zippers, hidden wire mesh. I have never owned a bag like that and I have never needed one.

Here are some truths about anti-theft bags:

1️⃣ Bags get stolen because they get hung on the back of chairs, get placed on cafe tables, or left on a park bench by a distracted owner. There is no replacement for simply being careful in crowded places.

2️⃣ Anti-theft bags often look like anti-theft bags. If you look like you are carrying all your valuables, you will become a target.

3️⃣ The RFID card protectors sound nice, but statistically this is not something to worry about while traveling.

🏆 The Best Crossbody Bags for Travel (2 I Carry, 3 My Community Swears By)

The first two are mine. The other three are the ones I would look at first if I were replacing them today.

1️⃣ Quince Gemma Crossbody (Best All Around)

Best for: every single day of a trip, in every season.

This is the Gemma Crossbody bag I have carried for over 3 years, in dusty pink. Three years of daily use, in one bag, in one color.

Ways of Style wearing Quince Gemma Crossbody bag while traveling in Mexico

Ways of Style with Quince crossbody bag paired with a cool weather look of cashmere sweater and linen pants

The dusty pink surprised me. The soft muted pink turns out to be a neutral in practice and it stops an all beige or all black outfit from going flat.

The pebbled leather is the reason it still looks good. A smooth finish shows every scuff, and this one just does not.

It’s also big enough to carry all of your daily essentials, with an extra zipper pocket inside to stash your room keys and lip balm 😉

It is the bag I reach for every single day. If I could only keep one, this is the one.

🎯 If the dusty pink is not your color, browse all of the Quince crossbody bags here to find the same shape in a shade that matches what you already own. The Gemma Quilted crossbody bag is gorgeous!

Quince Gemma Crossbody in dusty pink, the leather travel crossbody bag I have carried for 3 years

2️⃣ Quince Gemma Raffia & Leather Crossbody (Best for Warm Weather)

Best for: summer in Europe, beach towns, and anywhere with warm-weather vibes.

I have had the Gemma Raffia Crossbody for 4 years now. It is the oldest bag I own and I still love the way it looks.

Ways of Style traveling in Mexico wearing Quince Gemma Raffia crossbody bag

Ways of Style mirror selfie with Quince gamma raffia crossbody bag

Raffia does something leather cannot. It instantly makes a plain outfit look like you are on vacation, even when the outfit is just a tank and linen pants.

The black leather trim and strap are what make it work with more than sundresses. A raffia bag with a tan strap reads beachy, and this one does not.

The size is the same as the leather Gemma bag I shared above. Big enough for your cell phone, sunglass case, and other daily essentials.

⚠️ One honest note: raffia is a warm weather texture. I do not pack it for a fall or winter trip, so if you only want one bag for the whole year, get the leather one instead.

Quince Gemma Raffia and Leather Crossbody with black trim, my warm weather travel crossbody bag for 4 years

🧳 Not Sure What Else Goes In the Bag?

Picking one of the best crossbody bags for travel is the easy part. Deciding what goes in the suitcase is where most of us get stuck.

Answer 2 quick questi o ns and I’ll send you a packing list built for that exact trip.

Answer them here ⬇️

3️⃣ The Sak Melrose Crossbody Leather Bag (Best If You Carry More)

Best for: anyone who carries more than a phone and a wallet.

This one is $149 and it is real leather, which is a good price for a bag this organized.

It also comes in 16 colors. 16!!!

It has a main zipper closure, a slip pocket on the front, a zip pocket on the back, and three more pockets inside. Plenty of ways to organize your most important belongings before heading out!

The measurements are 11.5″ long by 8.5″ high by 3″ deep, with a 23″ strap drop, and it weighs 1.06 lb.

The Sak Melrose is described as a crossbody bag with toting capacity. Comfortably bigger than the other four on this list and even big enough to stuff a smaller water bottle inside.

My Ways of Style community loves it, and this Sak bag has a 4.8 rating on Nordstrom with over 500 reviews… that’s unheard of!

The Sak Melrose Crossbody Leather Bag in whiskey brown, the roomiest travel crossbody bag in this post

4️⃣ MZ Wallace Bowery Quilted Nylon Crossbody Bag (Best for Rainy Trips)

Best for: wet weather, and any trip where your bag needs to wipe clean.

This one is quilted nylon with leather trim, so it wipes clean and it does not care about rain the way leather does.

The great part is the strap. It adjusts from 15″ to 26″, so it goes long across your body while you walk and short on your shoulder at dinner, and there is a chunky chain handle that dresses the whole thing up.

The light weight and the elevated look are what make this one work for travel.

It measures 9.4″ wide by 8″ high by 3″ deep and has two separate compartments inside.

⚠️ Two honest tradeoffs. Nordstrom lists the interior capacity as small, so this is a phone, wallet, and sunglasses bag rather than a water bottle bag.

And at $275 it is the priciest pick here.

MZ Wallace Bowery Quilted Nylon Crossbody Bag in black, a travel crossbody bag that wipes clean in the rain

5️⃣ Lo & Sons Waverley 2 (Best Convertible)

Best for: one bag that changes shape depending on the day.

This one can be worn four different ways. It goes from crossbody to shoulder bag to belt bag to wristlet, all on the same two part strap.

The strap adjusts from 23″ all the way out to 57″, which is a wider range than anything else in this post.

It is also the lightest pick here, at 0.6 lb in the small size and 0.8 lb in the large.

Inside there is a slip pocket and a zip pocket with three card slots, plus a card slot on the outside for a hotel key. There is even a little leash to clip your keys to.

I love the Waverley 2’s understated style. It makes it so easy to style with any travel outfit!

🎯 It folds down into an evening clutch too, so it covers a full day of sightseeing and then dinner without a second bag.

⚠️ One honest tradeoff: it is only 2 inches deep. This is a phone, cards, and passport bag, not somewhere to stash a water bottle or a scarf.

Lo and Sons Waverley 2 in cognac leather, a convertible travel crossbody bag that also works as a clutch

🤔 Which of the Best Crossbody Bags for Travel Is Right for You?

Here is the short version, so you do not have to scroll back up.

You want one bag for the entire year 👉🏻 the Quince Gemma Crossbody, the one I have carried for 3 years.
Your next trip is somewhere hot 👉🏻 the Quince Gemma Raffia Crossbody, still going strong at 4 years old.
You carry more than the basics 👉🏻 The Sak Melrose, the roomiest bag here, with six pockets and real leather for $149.
Your trip involves rain 👉🏻 the MZ Wallace Bowery, quilted nylon that wipes clean and dresses up at night.
You want one bag that changes shape 👉🏻 the Lo & Sons Waverley 2, worn as a crossbody, shoulder bag, belt bag, or clutch.
You would rather carry nothing on your shoulder at all 👉🏻 look at a belt bag instead, worn across the chest rather than at the waist.

👗 How to Actually Wear a Crossbody Bag Outfit (and make it look good on your body)

A crossbody strap draws a diagonal line straight across your torso. That line is doing something to your outfit whether you planned it or not.

Start with where the bag lands

Every bag arrives with the strap set at one length, and that length was not chosen with you in mind. Adjust it before you decide whether the bag works.

The bag wants to rest at the narrowest part of your torso. For most of us that is at or just above the hip bone.

Here is why that matters more than it sounds. Where the bag lands decides where the strap crosses you, so raising the bag raises the strap right along with it.

If the strap cuts across your chest

This is the reason a lot of women give up on crossbody bags altogether. It is a strap problem, not a body problem, and there are three ways to fix it.

Let the strap out. A longer strap drops the line lower and further to the side, so it falls beside your bust instead of across it.
Pick a thin strap over a wide padded one. A narrow line reads as a detail. A wide one reads as a harness.
Wear it over an open cardigan, jacket, or trench. The strap rides on the fabric edge instead of pressing on you, and the layer breaks up the line.

And if none of that feels right, take it off your body. A crossbody does not have to be worn across you every minute of the day, only in crowds.

💡 This is exactly why an adjustable strap made my list of what matters.

Wear the strap over your layer, never underneath

A strap buried under a coat or a cardigan reads as clutter. The same strap worn on top reads as a choice.

It is the single easiest thing on this page to fix, and it changes how the whole outfit looks.

3 crossbody bag outfits that actually work

For a travel day, keep everything in one tonal family so the bag disappears into the outfit.

Ponte pants, which I own in five colors and wear on almost every flight
A cashmere sweater as your layer, because planes are always cold
White leather sneakers, the pair I have worn through more airports than I can count
The Gemma Crossbody worn over the sweater, sitting at your hip

For a warm day of walking, let the raffia be the only texture in the outfit.

The Gemma Raffia Crossbody against everything else smooth and plain
Flat leather sandals, the ones I actually pack
My Venice sunglasses and simple gold hoops

For dinner, shorten the strap and let the bag sit high under your arm.

Black wide leg jeans, my go to when I want to look pulled together without thinking
A short trench coat over the top, with the strap worn outside it
Flats instead of heels, because cobblestones do not negotiate

🔐 A Few Extra Things I’ve Learned About Carrying a Crossbody

More than five years of full time travel with two ordinary bags, and nothing has ever been taken from me. Here is what I think actually does the work.

Close the zipper every time. Not most of the time.

Every time you put something back in, zip it before you take a step.

Move the bag to the front of your body in a crowd. Trains, markets, festival streets, the queue outside a cathedral.

A bag you can see is a bag nobody reaches into.

Nothing lives in a back pocket. Not your phone, not your money, not a card.

That is the single easiest thing to lose and the easiest habit to change.

🎯 Also read: the 5 best shoes for travel, because comfortable feet and free hands are the two things that make a long day work.

Quick Recap: My Top 5 Picks for the Best Crossbody Bags for Travel

Quince Gemma Crossbody. Mine for 3 years, and still the one I grab first.
Quince Gemma Raffia & Leather Crossbody. Four years old and my whole summer bag.
The Sak Melrose Crossbody Leather Bag. The roomiest one here, with six pockets.
MZ Wallace Bowery Quilted Nylon Crossbody Bag. Quilted nylon that shrugs off rain.
Lo & Sons Waverley 2. Four ways to wear it, and the lightest of the five.

And there you have it. Two bags, seven years of wear between them, and zero regrets.

If there is one thing I want you to take from this, it is that the best crossbody bags for travel are not the ones with the most features. They are the ones you will actually reach for every day.

Buy one good bag, zip it, wear it in front in a crowd, and stop thinking about it. That is genuinely the whole thing.

Thanks for reading!

XO,

Aimara

PS: Got the bag sorted but no idea what goes in the suitcase? Answer 2 quick questions here and I’ll send you a customized packing list for your trip.

About the author:

I’m Aimara, and I have been living out of a 20 inch carry-on full time for more than 5 years with my husband Gordon. Everything I own fits in one bag, which means every single thing in it has to earn its spot, including the bag I carry around all day.

I created Ways of Style to help women travel lighter, dress better, and enjoy the packing process instead of dreading it. No giant suitcase, no giant closet, and no outfit you have to overthink.

Travel Crossbody Bag FAQ

What size crossbody bag is best for travel?

Look for something in the range of 9 to 12 inches wide. That is big enough for a phone, a wallet, sunglasses, and a small water bottle, and small enough that you can still see it when you pull it to the front of your body in a crowd. Anything larger stops being a travel crossbody bag and starts being a day bag you will get tired of carrying.

Are crossbody bags for travel Europe safe enough on their own?

Yes, if it zips and you wear it properly. I have used regular crossbody bags for travel Europe for years, across busy cities and packed trains, and the habits matter far more than the hardware. Zip it, keep it in front of you in crowds, and keep nothing in a back pocket.

Do I need a special anti-theft bag?

I have never owned one, so I cannot tell you they do not work. What I can tell you is that more than 5 years of full time travel with two ordinary zippered bags has been enough for me. If a specialty bag makes you feel calmer, buy it, but do not assume a regular crossbody leaves you exposed.

Can a crossbody bag count as my personal item on a plane?

On most airlines a small crossbody does not count as your personal item, but the size limits vary a lot between carriers and budget airlines are the strictest. Check your specific airline before you fly. I usually put my crossbody inside my backpack while boarding and pull it out once I am seated.

What is the best travel crossbody bag for women who carry a lot?

If you carry more than the basics, go for pockets rather than volume. A travel crossbody bag for women with several internal compartments will hold the same amount as one big empty bag but stay flat against your body instead of turning into a heavy lump. The Sak Melrose is both the roomiest and the most organized pick in this post.

Leather or nylon for a travel crossbody?

Leather looks better for longer and dresses up easily at night, which is why both of my own bags lean that way. Nylon is lighter to deal with in rain and wipes clean in a second, so it is the better call for wet climates or trips with a lot of outdoor time. Neither one is wrong, it just depends on where you are going.

How do I wear a crossbody bag outfit without it looking bulky?

Wear the strap over your coat or sweater instead of underneath it, and adjust the length so the bag rests at your hip bone rather than up under your arm. A crossbody bag outfit reads as intentional when the bag looks like a chosen accessory, and it reads as clutter when the strap is buried under a layer.

DID YOU LIKE THIS POST ABOUT THE BEST CROSSBODY BAGS FOR TRAVEL? SAVE IT FOR LATER OR SHARE IT WITH A FRIEND! 📌

Three travel crossbody bags in whiskey brown leather, cream raffia and black quilted nylon, shown in a guide to picking the right one

Dusty pink pebbled leather crossbody bag on terracotta tile, the travel bag I have carried daily for 3 years out of one carry-on

Home » Best Crossbody Travel Bags for Women: Tested by a Full Time Traveler