Thoughts on buying Pochette Metis as travel bag for Europe vacation?

#22
rosiier said:
Has anyone used the Pochette Metis as a travel bag while in Europe?

I’m traveling to Italy soon and I’m considering buying the bag so I can have something durable, large enough to hold important documents, and fashionable when I’ll be there. It’s going to be a lot of walking and being in the waters in Venice, Rome, Florence and Lake Como
It the bag heavy or bulky for anyone when filled up? Any pros or cons with your experiences please share

I’m thinking of getting the reverse mono but idk if the empreinte is better?

It’s been a long time since I purchased something from LV, so eager to hear about any current quality issues that the bag may have too. I know the pochette metis had glazing issues in the past, is it still an issue now?
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I would take Speedy b 25 / 30 before Pochette Metis since it's a trip will go for long period of time, the Pochette Metis won't hold as much as the Speedys
 
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#23
I love my PM. It expands so can hold a good amount, it won't really fit a water bottle (I don't think I would put liquid in mine anyway lol) but will def hold wallet, passport, card wallet, sunglasses, keys - all smaller accessories like that. You may want to consider a guitar strap though, for comfort. I use a black woven strap that I got on a Coach bag and it really makes a difference for comfort when you are carrying it all day. You can buy cheap woven guitar straps from Amazon but you do compromise on quality. I'd recommend paying a little more even if you don't go as far as buying an LV one.
 
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#24
I just got back from a month vacation in Italy visiting my daughter. I purchased the Monogram Pochette Metis in Milan and had to stare at it for about 3 weeks. It was 2050 euros which was $2224 when coverrted so a good savings as I am in California and tax is high here also. I got 277 euro refund at the Milan airport after global blue took their cut. All of Europe is like that, if you want the VAT you can’t use until you leave. I still think it was a good savings even without the VAT so that’s something to consider. I plan to carrying it when I go back in October.
 
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#25
rosiier said:
I know when I did the VAT in Paris, I had to leave everything in their original packages, so it was 2 weeks of me staring at my bag wanting to use it lol

I'm not sure if Italy is the same, have to research this now but I may just want to buy it in Milan. Hopefully the PM isn't hard to find in stock at store locations, I know online they're always available
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That's really interesting! I just went shopping in Nice and they didn't do such a thing. I still didn't use my Croisette yet; I waited till I could spray it with Apple Garde first!
 
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#26

corgiluvrx4 said:
I just got back from a month vacation in Italy visiting my daughter. I purchased the Monogram Pochette Metis in Milan and had to stare at it for about 3 weeks. It was 2050 euros which was $2224 when coverrted so a good savings as I am in California and tax is high here also. I got 277 euro refund at the Milan airport after global blue took their cut. All of Europe is like that, if you want the VAT you can’t use until you leave. I still think it was a good savings even without the VAT so that’s something to consider. I plan to carrying it when I go back in October.
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Aw man thank you for telling me. I think I’ll buy it before going on the trip then. I would like to use the bag over there and make memories with it lol
I don’t think I can handle staring at this unboxed purchase for two weeks while carrying it to every city I travel to too :doh:
 
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#27
The issue about not using it while you’re there is that they don’t want people trying to claim a VAT refund for something they already owned, which you obviously won’t be doing. You will have all the appropriate documentation (receipts, VAT form). I think it’s very unlikely you would run into a problem if you use it (gently) while there and it still looks like new when you leave. You could put it back in the dust bag and box for when you go through the VAT process in the airport and then use it again when you’re done. In many, many trips to Italy, I have never been asked to show my purchases, though I always have them close at hand in case they do ask.

It looks like the price difference now is about $500, not counting the VAT refund. On the other side of things, that also doesn’t take into account any duty you might owe bringing it back to the US.
 
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#28
My bag wasn’t inspected at the airport so I suppose I could have used it. I also didn’t get charged US customs upon returning at Chicago but YMMV on that. I did claim it. Like the above post if you don’t want the extra VAT it is still a $500 savings. You can buy it in Italy and use it for your trip however you want and still save some money. One thing to note I had to show my passport at Louis Vuitton to purchase. I am not sure if that was because I asked for VAT paperwork or everyone had to show it. So don’t leave it at the hotel. I didn’t want to walk around with it and I had to go back the next day.
 
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#29
I’ve never been asked to show my purchases for the VAT refund but I’ve also been paranoid about it. That being said, I think it’s also reasonable to not keep things like the box, etc, and the next time I go I might just keep things in the dust bag but not the whole packaging.

I have two Pochette metis bags in empreinte and love both, but I am probably bringing my Odeon on my next trip to Paris because it can hold a lot and the canvas is lightweight.
 
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