I Road-Tested Royce & Rocket's New Carry-On Suitcase with Shelves—and It's an Organizational Game-Changer

• Durability: 20/20
• Design: 19/20
• Styling: 17/20
• Innovation: 19/20
• Value: 20/20
  TOTAL: 95/100

I'd sooner shout "plastic explosives" in a crowded airport security line than check luggage. Not only is it a big drag to worry that your suitcase could be lost in transit, but also there's nothing more annoying than the baggage carousel ennui, followed by the elbowing fray of your fellow passengers heaving their tattered and strapped jumbo cases homeward. It's at best a hiccup in a happy arrival, and at worst the opening salvo in a battle to repossess a wayward suitcase. No thanks. Instead, I'd rather zip along with my honestly overstuffed carry-on case, which leaves me fewer outfits, but more security.

So it's imperative that I make the most of what I do pack: Enter the Royce & Rocket Castle Carry-On. I heard about this innovation from a friend in the travel industry, who gushed about the larger, checked-luggage version of the bag. So when the family-run, New Jersey-based company came out with a smaller, TSA-approved carry-on size, I had to test it. On a recent three-day weekend in San Diego, then an eight-day trip to Hawaii, I put it through its paces.

The bag's look impressed me, since its matte burgundy exterior and pink poly-satin lining was distinctive but still subtly chic. I've reported on numerous budget and luxe carry-on bags, so I was curious to see exactly how this bag was designed to not only store all my stuff in transit but also replace organizing clothes in a chest of drawers upon arrival. Here's how—one side of the hard case has straps that snap onto the other side of the case, propping it open like a large clam without having to prop it up against a wall. The upright side has two quarter-inch thick shelves that drop down, supported by inconspicuous straps that match the lining. The idea behind the bag is that, instead of rooting around in layers of folded or rolled clothes in a flat case, travelers can at-a-glance see their garments arranged neatly on shelves.

But here's the rub—you have to take a few moments to actually put your clothes on the shelves. On my San Diego jaunt, I was too distracted to neaten my arrangement straightaway upon arrival, then each subsequent day I thought, 'Oh it's almost time to leave, why bother?' So, although I enjoyed wheeling this case on its smooth 360-degree Hinomoto Lisof Silent Run spinner wheels, and didn't break the telescopic handle when I roughhoused the case across a parking lot, I didn't use the shelves. I was ready to call them a gimmick, when I decided to give it another try on a longer trip to Hawaii.