I spent a weekend in the French Riviera with just hand luggage - why the Antler Essentials collection is a space and money-saver

£65 at antler.co.uk

This is the tote that everybody needs. I'd recommend buying it from Antler, as it's the most reliable place to find stock.

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£95.50 at antler.co.uk

The best place to pick this hoodie up is from Antler directly. I tested it in the green, but you can buy it in black or cream.

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I’m not usually a light packer, but when a last-minute long weekend to the French Riviera came up, I knew I needed to travel smarter—not heavier. Enter: Antler’s Travel Essentials. From the moment I zipped up my hoodie and slung their buttery-soft bag over my shoulder, I felt like the part-time glam jet-setter I always imagined I'd be. Think effortlessly chic, but with room for snacks, a paperback, and too many SPF options.

I’ve always believed good travel accessories can transform your whole experience, and Antler really understands that balance between style and practicality. Their pieces aren’t just about looking polished at the airport (although, yes, I did feel a bit smug breezing through security). They're designed to move with you — whether you're darting through a station, rolling across cobbled streets, or trying to keep cool in Nice with a croissant in one hand and your phone in the other.

As someone who writes about interiors and lifestyle for a living, I have a bit of a thing for well-designed everything — and Antler’s considered touches put them firmly in the best luggage category in my books. From the clever compartments to the elevated, grown-up palette, every detail made my trip feel smoother. And isn’t that what the best travel gear should do? Make you look and feel like you’ve got it all together, even when you’re winging it?

Packing space

In the whole Essential collection, you have the Tote Bag (£65), Wash Bag (£25), Cross Body bag (£40), Packing Pouches (£30), and Hoodie (£95). I travelled with the bare minimum: the tote bag and the hoodie.

Whilst the whole collection has been designed to pack inside each other on one seamless system, I could get by with the Essential Tote (and I'm actually pretty reluctant to let it go now that I'm back on UK soil) and the hoodie. And, yes, if you've seen me since my trip, you'll know I've kept hold of them in my day-to-day life.

The Essentials Tote looks premium. The trio of orange, earthy green, and clean stone looks like the kind of bag you'd see glossy LA celebrities sporting, so I fully embraced it with my travels. You have a pocket on the outside of the bag, two sections inside the bag, and then the dual-zip closure is made up of another pocket. All in all, you have three key sections and lots of protection to stop small parts of your luggage from tumbling out onto the floor of the plane, train, or pavement.

For my weekend away, I knew I needed a laptop and charger; my phone and charger; a plug converter; my keys; my passport; my toiletry bag; two outfit changes; pyjamas; my workout clothes; a book; and a water bottle. That sounds like a lot to pack into your average tote and, I'll admit that when I laid it all out the night before, I was sceptical. However, sure enough, as I packed everything into the different pouches of the bag, everything fitted. Better than that, I had some extra space to shop for some duty-free perfumes. Now that's what I'm talking about.

I ended up creating a 'flat' laptop section in the slim, button up pocket. Then packed all my clothes in the main pocket and I used the top zip pocket for my speedy access headphones, chargers, and plane snacks.

Getting around with the tote bag

I always worry, after I've fitted everything into my bag, that I'm going to have trouble when I get to the airport. In spite of looking at everyone else's sizeable suitcases, I had it in my head that the Antler Essentials would some how become too big for my baggage allowance. However, there's proof in the pictures. This comfortably lifted in and out of EasyJet's tiny luggage allowance box. Did I feel smug when I saw everyone else trying to force their bulky bags into the space? Yes. I felt sorry for them too, but maybe everyone needs a little more Antler in their travel essentials.

You'll also notice that I managed to get my hoodie and bag in one tray for security. Nobody stopped me from putting both in one tray and they came out the other side as smoothly as they entered. Seeing them like this makes me proud of my light packing, but the reality is that the Antler's Essentials collection made it easy to travel light.

You can see that I also slid this under the seat with complete ease. Normally, I would worry about lying a tote on its side but the zip closure and structure of the bag felt reassuringly secure. I kept an eye on the top and none of my smaller items even came close to rolling out. It's the perfect design.

Now, I have a fitness tracker, so I know that I clocked up a whopping 15,000 steps carrying this to the train station, from the station to the airport, to my transfer, and then to my accommodation on the other side. By this point, I would normally have found some niggles, such as the straps slipping off my shoulder or the bag bulging too much, but it sat really nicely. The thick straps distribute weight well across your shoulders without getting in the way and there's enough room to get a whole arm through. It's well and truly a do-it-all tote.

Getting around with the hoodie

I'd like to dedicate some extra space to the hoodie, because this is well and truly a game changer on two fronts. First, let's talk about the look. Antler opted for an oversized aesthetic, letting the 100% organic cotton heavyweight knit sit softly on the body. I felt like I could have been in my pyjamas, but the smart colour and put-together look just gave 'off-duty', according to my friends.

The hood is specially cut to give a deep cushion around your head. So, whether you're planning a nap on the plane (me too) or you want to shield yourself from the unflattering airport lighting (why is it so hard to keep your makeup in place?), the hood offers a nice place to hide pre or post-holiday.

Then, we come on to the practicalities. At the bottom of the hoodie, you've got two pockets for your hands. These are deep enough to house tissues or your phone, but save them for the zipped pocket on the chest. Here's where I kept my passport and my phone. Normally, in a ski-jacket, for example, this kind of storage would distort the silhouette and make my chest look all strange and square. However, with the Antler, everything fell in such a flattering way and I felt really reassured by having the passport and phone so close to my body. There was no fumbling at security, no patting all my pockets. It was all so slick and smooth. I've never felt more put-together travelling.

Privacy and security

I know lots of people don't like totes for how open they are, but the beauty of the zip closure across was that nobody could actually see what was inside of my bag. As far as handbags go, I'd say this is nice and secure. There are, very naturally, some gaps on either side of the bag where small accessories could fall out, so I wouldn't be turning this upside down and giving it a shake, but the zips cover the most part really well.

You don't have a padlock like you might on a traditional suitcase, but the aim of the tote is to keep it close to your body. Put your special possessions in the hoodie pocket or the top zip pocket and you should feel confident that all of your essentials are close by.

Over time

Whilst I'm sure both the white bag and light green hoodie will get dirty over time and with lots of travelling, they're both machine washable and I have no doubt that it would take very little to get them sparkling. It's also worth noting that the tote sat on the floor of London tubes and trains; scraped along the EasyJet floor, sat in security trays, sat on the floor of the Nice airport transfer and then did all of that back again and it still remained in pristine condition. I don't know whether I was lucky or whether there was some magic at work, but I'll take the win.

The final verdict

If you're looking to elevate your everyday, long weekend travel kit, the Antler Essentials collection will be a godsend. It's seriously stylish apparel that'll give you a style boost in amongst the sleepy travellers around you.