Amazon Airline Pet in Cabin Travel Carrier: Our Review After 1 Year and 22 Flights Together
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At CDG Airport in Paris, France before boarding an Air France Flight. She loves traveling!
Today marks exactly one year since my sweet dog Gigi came into my life. She has been the best travel buddy I could have ever imagined, and in the last year we’ve taken 22 flights together on 7 different airlines, and embarked on dozens of train rides and road trips throughout Europe and the US.
It felt like a great time to share a review of this Pet Carrier we purchased from Amazon, and after a year of extensive travel and use, I can describe a few of the pros and cons I’ve gathered from my personal experience.
Would I recommend a Travel Pet Carrier from Amazon? Yes, but..
I say ‘yes’ because the price is great, it’s held up well, it’s conformed to pet-in-cabin requirements for every airline we’ve traveled so far, shipping and delivery are convenient, it’s available on international Amazon sites, and most importantly my dog is comfortable and happy inside it. It gets the job done, and feels very standard.
I add a ‘but..’ because the experience purchasing from Amazon can be inconsistent from shopper to shopper, as there are several vendors selling similar carriers in various colors and sizes, which all seem to be mass-produced but from different factories. Even when browsing a single product page on Amazon, you may notice there are slight differences in the carriers when you toggle between the sizes and colors. I bring this up because I’ve purchased this carrier from the same product page but in a different color for my family’s other dog, and I’ve noticed there are some slight differences which I’ll describe in detail later in this article.
My Favorite Features
Everything about this pet carrier is pretty uncomplicated and standard in order to comply with airline regulations, but one of the extra features that I’m particularly appreciative of is the seatbelt buckles. Whenever we travel by car, and especially on long road trips when it’s just me and her, I buckle her carrier to one of the seatbelts so she can be secured. It’s not a feature that I see on many other pet carriers on the market, but I do think it is the most important when considering your pet’s safety.
I also love that there’s a dedicated sleeve to slide the carrier over your luggage handles, which is convenient for keeping your pet secure while in transit. My dog is only 3 kilos, but she can certainly start to feel heavy if I have to carry her for an entire long travel day. For her comfort and mine, it’s great to be able to securely place her on top of my rolling luggage.
Most airlines require all sides of your pet’s soft-sided carrier to have ventilation in order to be approved for travel, and this particular carrier has big mesh windows and plenty of zippers to be able to access the inside of the bag. In case I need to offer my dog a treat or sneak my hand in the carrier to give her some pets, I can comfortably do so from any angle without having to reposition her bag and risk disturbing her.
A Few Things I Don’t Love About It
While there are plenty of zippered mesh windows on this carrier, it’s somewhat surprising that there are no zippered pockets on the exterior of the bag. There is one elastic pocket on the exterior which would probably be fine for a water bottle, but it’s definitely not secure enough to store anything important like a travel document, nor anything that would be inconvenient to lose like her food or her collapsible bowl.
Another feature that I don’t love (which some may disagree with) is the shearling liner inside the carrier. The shearling material tends to trap my dog’s fur, and though she doesn’t generally shed very much, it collects in the shearling and is difficult to clean. Though it is removable and washable, I don’t find it to be very convenient. It simply zips over a rigid cardboard that helps keep the bag structured, and I have yet to find a suitable replacement to line the interior. I personally would prefer a material that was more resistant to collecting fur.
Something else that I keep in mind when using this carrier is that I don’t 100% trust the plastic clips that attach the long strap to either side. When unclipping the strap on my other dog’s carrier, the plastic snapped and broke with relatively little force. While it was disappointing, I was grateful that it didn’t happen while carrying him solely with the long strap. I’ve since removed the long strap on my dog’s carrier because I don’t use it, and instead will place both short straps over one shoulder and carry her like a tote, or carry her with both straps at my forearm.
If you scroll through the gallery of photos included in this post, you may notice that in the photo of the two dogs in the train station, the two carriers are slightly different sizes when placed side by side. I purchased both carriers from the same Amazon listing about 8 months apart, and while they both conform to airline regulations, it’s evident that they are not identical. Additionally, the grey one does not have the same sleeve for sliding over a luggage handle, which is a bit inconvenient.
A Final Note:
Overall I’ve been very happy with this carrier, and am grateful that it has held up well and has accompanied us on our most memorable adventures. Despite a few minor flaws and potential inconsistencies from the product listing, it gets the job done at a price that’s very reasonable. Especially if you only plan on traveling occasionally, this carrier is a great choice for you and your pet.
If you’re curious, the airlines we’ve traveled on together that approved this carrier include: Delta, Air France, Air Malta, Vueling, Alaska, American, and Austrian. If you’re interested in learning more about how I travel by plane with my pet in the cabin, you can read all of my tips here: Tips for Flying Internationally with a Pet in Cabin
I’ve also compiled a checklist of all the considerations I take into account when preparing to travel internationally with my pet. You can check out the list here: A Checklist of Considerations for Traveling Internationally with a Pet in Cabin
Are you planning to travel with your pet soon and have any questions about my experience? Let me know in the comments below!
Shop my favorite accessories for traveling with a pet in cabin for your next flight
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