Nobody ever told us but the choice of your drone travel backpack is probably as important as the drone itself. Without the appropriate drone travel backpack, you might not feel comfortable or worse, damage your drone.
In our experience, most drone "Fly Combo" offer you a standard drone travel backpack to protect it which is great for storing but what about if you're going hiking 🦅, taking a plane, or camping? Considering where & when you will use your drone is probably your best answer when seeking for the perfect drone travel backpack.
Start by asking yourself:
What is my drone travel style?
Am I going to travel often with my drone?
What is the climate like over there?
To help you in your research, we've put below a few thoughts together to consider based on our travel experience which we hope will be useful in your search. See at the end of this post some of the drone travel backpacks we love the most.
What's your drone travel style?
Are you the kinda active outdoor person looking for the next adventure in a national park 🌲 or a little more city wise & food lover keen to discover local cultures & history. In both case, you're awesome 😉, but consider what you're all about when choosing your bag.
For outdoor lovers, we recommend you consider the quality of your drone travel backpack & more importantly its capacity as it might the only thing you have on your back on this day. You will also want to make sure that your drone is well secured within your drone travel backpack as you might jump, run, cross, fall ("we hope not") & a loose drone in your bag is the last thing you need when there.
For more comfy travel lovers, you might wanna look at the weight of your drone's backpack but more importantly if it's well secured. Cities are unfortunately a privileged playground for pickpockets & a little 1000€+ drone might just make the trick for them. For those on the stylish side, there are also some awesome good looking ones out there.
Are you going to travel often with your drone?
Just for the sake of clarity, we consider travelling often being more than twice a year. We've been fortunate to visit a lot of countries in recent years & trust us.. this matters. Travelling often might mean that you're looking for something lighter that could suit more than one trip's need.
A more versatile bag which you can use for other purposes is always a good idea but don't forget that its primary use is to protect & carry your drone. We've personally adopted a carry on bag which can easily fit in a bigger backpack.
You're also going to have to consider between a hard-case & a soft-case drone travel bag (we can't really call a hard-case a backpack anymore). A hard case will definitely be more solid but less practical to carry with you, not mentioning that some airlines might not accept them if too big. If you're going to travel often with your drone, we would definitely recommend a soft-case drone travel backpack which will be easier to bring along with you and go through airport security checks for example.
If you're going to travel for specific drone flights or jobs, then a hard-case to protect at best your drone is probably a better option for you 👌 Just bear in mind that some airlines want your drone stored in checked luggage - see which airlines here.
What is the climate like out there?
Sounds like a random question to ask when choosing a drone travel backpack but trust us.. we wished we asked ourselves this one earlier. This is linked to your travel style mainly but try to figure out what regions of the world you're most likely to visit.
If you're heading to traditionally humid & rainy countries then your bag's waterproofness is an absolute must. Avoid looking at saving a few bucks on this one if you're heading in such places as humidity goes everywhere. We once left our drone outside its bag one night in a humid place, following day we had some fog inside the lens.. not good - see our tip to fix this problem.
On the other end, if you're travelling to 🔥 countries.. your bag's design will be more important as you will hope to breathe under these straps. Note that if you're going to the desert, the waterpoofness becomes here as well really important to stop any sand getting into your drone gear.
Did it help? Don't worry, we didn't know all the answers prior buying our drone travel backpack either. In fact, we were so excited that we bought the famous combo one.. 😅 Now that we've a little more perspective & considering the above points.. we recommend you to have a look at the:
Manfrotto MB BP-D1 for Phantom Drones
Adapted for DJI Phantom Series drones.
Secure setup with cushions inside the drone travel backpack with rain cover ☔
Possibility of attaching your drone to the bag’s exterior for quick reach.
Top compartment for your DSLR & zoom lens with space for your laptop/tablet.
Clever, secure external tripod connection
Lowepro ViewPoint BP250 for Mavic Drones
Designed for Mavic Pro drones
Possibility to carry your laptop
🏆 Removable case with a wall of accessory organizer straps
Top compartment featuring a loop to secure your cool headphones 🎧
Built-in All Weather AW Cover for protection from the elements ☔
DJI Sling Bag for Spark Drones
Super small & light.
Easily fits anywhere & be stored in a bigger travel backpack 🏆
Space for your remote & spare batteries
Multipurpose as you can also use it for DJI Googles or a Mavic Pro (should fit).
Smatree Travel Backpack for Mavic Air drones
Multi-functional backpack of combination of DJI Mavic Air & GoPro camera
Fit for outdoor sports & flight cabins 🛫
Can fit your laptop (13") in the cover
Padded backpad & straps providing all-day comfort 👌
Made of high-density EVA material and durable nylon,water-resistant ☔ & anti-collision protecting well your drone.