Cotopaxi Allpa 28L Travel Pack Review

The Cotopaxi Allpa 35L Travel Pack is a reliable travel backpack with all the features we look for. It’s built with quality, looks cheerful thanks to its unique colorways, has all the organization you need built-in, and also wears comfortably. That said, the 35-liter size makes using the built-in hip belt almost always necessary.

While the overall fit is comfortable, we understand that some may find that arrangement too cumbersome. You may be looking for a suitable women’s backpack, for example, and would like something easier to wield—and that’s exactly what the Allpa 28L Travel Pack is. This mini-er Allpa has most of its bigger sibling’s DNA packed into a smaller capacity.

However, is it still a travel backpack worth considering? Let’s find out.

External Components

Cotopaxi sees no need to change materials for this smaller version of the Allpa. The outer fabric is still mostly 840-denier TPU-coated nylon, with 840-denier ripstop ballistic nylon at the bottom since that part makes contact the most. Meanwhile, the liner is recycled ripstop polyester, so there is nothing really different if you compare it to the larger 42-liter version.

This is all to say that the Allpa 28L is built well and feels tough, which makes sense given its outdoorsy look. The TPU coating gives it that tarp-like texture and sound when you push the fabric around. Brighter and darker colorways are available as usual with Cotopaxi products at the time of writing.

It’s worth noting that there’s also the Del Dia option, where Cotopaxi will pick a colorway for you. The have plenty of different colored fabrics to choose from, and this is presumably their way of efficiently moving that inventory while producing unique colorways for customers. We went with the Rusty colorway option just to play it safe, though if you’re not a fan of its dark orange vibe, taking a chance with the Del Dia option is maybe something to consider.

The smaller details on this bag are also excellent choices. For example, the zippers are from YKK, so they never jammed, and none of them broke throughout testing. The external ones also come with stiff nylon pulls, which are easy to grab when unzipping the bag. By contrast, if you want the main compartment zips secured, they’re also lockable with a TSA-compliant lock. Meanwhile, the attachment points on the bag’s four corners are handy if you want to hang accessories outside. In our case, though, we’re not that fond of doing that, except for maybe a luggage tag.

Given the Allpa 28L’s fairly modest size for a travel backpack, we almost expected Cotopaxi to skimp on grab handles. That’s not the case; there are grab handles on the top, bottom, and left sides. These make it easy to pull the bag out of tight compartments, such as overhead bins and trunks, or from underneath seats. They’re not padded, but that’s okay since we don’t recommend carrying this bag by the handles for long periods anyway.

For those of you wondering, the right side doesn’t have a handle. Why, though?

It has a water bottle pocket instead. It’s rated for up to a one-liter bottle, though your mileage may vary depending on the bottle. For context, a 32-ounce Hydro Flask (which is close to 1L) struggles to fit since it’s a thicker insulated bottle. On the other hand, a 32-ounce Nalgene fits since it’s just mostly plastic. Our go-to bottles are usually in the 16- to 24-ounce range, such as the 16-ounce Stanley IceFlow Bottle, so fitment wasn’t an issue. Security-wise, the stretchy mesh can hold small bottles relatively well, but tall and wider bottles tend to slip out if the bag gets tipped over.

Cotopaxi says they redesigned the harness system from the original Allpa 35L for better weight distribution and breathability. Spotting the differences is a “Find Waldo” exercise we’re not here to bore you with, but we can tell you that the sum total of changes is a comfortable harness system. The foam padding is stiffer but not to an uncomfortable degree. Blunting the stiffness is the soft mesh cover, which helps move air seamlessly and prevents heat build-up.

All the standard features you’d expect of a travel backpack are here. The shoulder straps are contoured to flow more naturally from the top of your shoulder to your back. Nestled between the back panel’s foam padding is a luggage pass-through in case you want to slot the bag onto your rolling luggage. For support, the sliding sternum strap and a hip belt should help stabilize the bag when you’re moving about.

Fit Notes

The Allpa 28L clearly fits smaller frames better than the 35-liter version. You can still get away with that version if you need the capacity, but comfort-wise, the Allpa 28L feels much easier on the back. The simplified hip belt (it lacks padding compared to the Allpa 35L’s padded hip belt) means it’s mostly there to keep the bag stable as you walk around. Don’t expect it to shift weight off your shoulders effectively, as its lack of structure and padding prevents it. Alternatively, you can simply stow it behind the back panel when you don’t need a hip belt at all.

The sternum strap is easy to adjust since it’s the sliding type. However, we wish there were load lifters to pull the bag even more upward and forward. As it is, the bag feels like it’s somewhat pulling back when it’s fully loaded, and load lifters could mitigate that. That’s just a wishful thought, though, so we won’t speculate further; the bag remains comfortable to wear as is.

Inside The Backpack

At the back is the laptop compartment. Having a distinct compartment for your device is desirable because you don’t have to dig through your other gear when you need to get some work done quickly. That said, there is a loop on the top end of the zipper track where you can anchor the zipper pull. This prevents would-be thieves from quickly opening the compartment and stealing your device, but it’s not a theft-proof solution; it’s simply a deterrent and an obstacle.

The interior is lined with a soft, felt-like material to prevent scratching your devices. And we say “devices” since there’s also a discreet sleeve for a tablet if you bring one along with your laptop. Size-wise, the compartment accommodates a 13-inch MacBook with room to spare, which makes sense since it’s rated for up to 15-inch laptops (a 16-inch MacBook Pro fits just fine, too). There is a decent amount of material (mostly fabric and padding) around the edges that buffers your devices against shocks. However, there is also enough room to use a separate laptop sleeve in case you want more protection.

Items you may want quick access to can be stored in the front top pocket. Granted, it doesn’t look all that roomy—because it isn’t—but it’s still spacious enough to hold a reasonable amount of everyday carry items. In our case, that would be a minimalist wallet, smartphone, keys, a stick of lip balm, and a set of AirPods. If nothing else, testing this bag back-to-back with the front pocket-less Bellroy Transit Workpack Pro 28L made us appreciate at least having a pocket like this.

The front compartment has plenty of room in case the front pocket runs out of space. We found the front pocket sufficient and dedicated the front compartment to our toiletry bag. This makes it easy in case TSA agents want to inspect any toiletries they may flag, and it is generally ideal for quick access to any of our toiletries. Those expecting extensive organization with numerous and diverse pockets will be disappointed since there’s only a zippered mesh pocket on the back side to handle small accessories. There is a key leash, though, so that at least has a home dedicated to itself.

In typical travel backpack fashion, the Allpa 28L opens like a clamshell. Once inside, you’ll find a layout very similar to its larger 35-liter counterpart. We’re glad to see both bags sharing the same design, in case users simply want the smaller bag with similar functionality. That said, the smaller size seems to have had a side effect.

The layout is as follows: the main bucket space to the right is covered by a zippered mesh. On the left are your built-in organization, including a zippered mesh pocket at the top and a fairly deep zippered mesh compartment at the bottom. The former is back to back with the front compartment mentioned above (where we put our toiletry bag), so it’s understandably limited to storing small accessories. Meanwhile, the zippered mesh compartment below is roomy enough for a pair of women’s sneakers.

This leaves the main bucket space in charge of storing all the clothing we bring on trips. We’re able to fit a week’s worth of clothing, comprised of various underwear, four different tops, a sweater, a pair of jeans, and a pair of pants. We didn’t have to do anything crazy like use compression cubes or roll each piece of clothing really tightly, but you can fit more if you do those techniques. Our only nitpick is that the mesh cover’s zippers tend to catch on the main compartment’s zipper. This is what we meant when we said the Allpa 28L’s smaller size may have some unintended side effects. It’s not something we encountered with the 35-liter version, though it’s not a huge deal either; we just have to make sure the zippers are pushed inside.