Travel Cooler?
 

Quick question that I am sure someone on here can answer. I am in the market for a travel cooler so I can start bringing food on the road with me, however I am at a quandary as to which one to get. I have heard great things about the Strongbags Canadian Ice cooler, but holy cow is that thing big. I know it will keep food cold longer than the rest, but I don't know if I want to lug that thing around.

The next option is the Aurora cooler and stealth lunch pale from luggage works. The Aurora looks smaller than its Strongbags cousin but I question how well it will keep things cold. I love the stealth lunch pale concept, but I doubt its ability to carry three days worth of food in it and keep it cold.

If it helps, I am a commuter now so that needs to figure into the equation. Anyone have any thoughts on these, recommendations on these? Tips? Thank you for any advice.

Aerocoast are good coolers, I have one and they are great.

When you look them up online, look for the dimensions. You’ll notice the Aurora, Canadian Ice/Canadian Ice EFB, Aerocoast EFB Pro, all have similar dimensions +/- a couple inches of each other. In respective order: 11.5x15x10, 15x8x12/14x7x13, 15x12x9.

There are dozens of posts here and on other sites debating or comparing the pros and cons of both. Lots of videos out there from the companies showing off their coolers and features (when I was shopping around, I like the ones from the guy over at pilotfitness.com). Consider your purposes and see which aligns best. Do you want mostly food storage? All food storage? Do you want your cooler to also be your flight bag? Do you want to put a headset in there? What do you fly? What do you commute on?

I ended up going with the Aerocoast EFB pro II. It’s mostly a cooler, which is what I wanted, since I carry only minimal pilot stuff in my flight bag. iPad goes in the back slot, food in the main compartment. The two side pockets and front pockets carry the battery backup, cables, pens, flashlight, passport and certificates, other odds and ends. The expandable part at the bottom has some other small stuff and then I zip it up (unexpanded). The top part isn’t very deep, but it works for me. I have a Clarity Aloft and carry it in the top compartment (without a case), as well as a few other supplies like TOLD cards, earplugs for the walk around, lens cloth, etc. My favorite thing about it is that it fits perfectly in the CRJ cockpit bins (where flight cases were stored in the old times). It fits under seat backs in the cabin, overhead bins, under airbus flight deck jumpseats, etc. As long as it’s not overstuffed. It won’t fit anything larger like a Bose or Lightspeed or other bulky headsets. I’m sure a standard Telex fits no problem, and I imagine a DC Pro X will as well. I can also fit my own iPad (10” pro with Pivot case) in the EFB bag pocket along with the company iPad (standard iPad with a fairly minimal case), but almost never do at the same time since it won’t fit in the CRJ cockpit bin at that point. I also like the ergonomic handles. I was debating between this and one of the Strongbags coolers, but ultimately went with this one because I could find a lot more reviews/photos/videos, knew some people that used it, fits well in the CRJ cubby, and it prioritized food space over flight bag space. It’s a little more expensive, but I found an open box Aerocoast on amazon so it shipped free with prime and the open box discount aligned it with the $100 price point of the other coolers.

Can't speak to the ones you mentioned but I carry the Aerocoast Pro Cooler + EFB II (or name something like that). Carries all the food I can eat for a 4 day trip. I carry a mix of frozen meals (leftovers from dinners at home) and lunches that are cold but not frozen. Sometimes will have a breakfast or two in there but also often just have oatmeal that is from roller bag. Learn a bit how to pack it and use it and you can keep your food cold for a four day trip. Only time I tossed anything out was due to hotel fridge turning off overnight (first night too. :-( ). I also commute. If you fill the exterior pouches too much, it can be difficult, but not impossible to get under the seat. Fits in 145 overhead bins fine.

I prefer the Yeti Roadie 20. Big on the flight deck, yes, but keeps my **** cold for the entire trip.

I did the Strongbags Summit and Insert combo. I like it a lot as it is versatile in allowing me to rotate what’s in my flight bag and how much space I want to dedicate to certain things.