Why Bose Headphones Are Worth the Carry-on Space, According to Rick Steves

The Bose Noise-Canceling Headphones 700 are displayed on a granite counter and Rick Steves poses with a backpack over his shoulder while hiking in Italy’s Cinque Terre.

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Rick Steves, host of the show "Rick Steves' Europe," shared his must-have travel items with Insider.
Even when traveling for months, he never checks a bag, yet he always packs bulky Bose headphones.
Steves said he loves the Bose headphones because they give him privacy on planes and trains.

Bose 700 Headphones

$379.00 $299.00 from Best Buy

$379.00 $299.00 from Amazon

Professional traveler and television personality Rick Steves spends 4 months yearly in Europe.

Rick Steves poses with a backpack over his shoulder while hiking in Italy’s Cinque Terre. — Here's Rick Steves, host of "Rick Steves' Europe" hiking in Italy's Cinque Terre.

Despite all that time abroad, Steves recently told Insider he never checks a bag.

An image of a lounging Rick Steves was shrunk and Photoshopped into a rolling carry-on bag. — Here's a photoshopped picture of Rick Steves laying in his carry-on bag, which he posted on his Facebook page.

Instead, Steves leaves home with just 20 pounds of gear and is really picky about what he includes.

Rick Steves has a bag on his back and holds another smaller one in his hand. — This is basically his luggage setup for four months of travel: one carry-on bag and a smaller personal item.

Surprisingly, he always dedicates space to his Bose headphones, despite their bulky size.

bose 700 headphones 7 — With the included case, Bose headphones take up quite a bit of space in a crowded carry-on bag.

"I just love my Bose noise reduction headphones, the big kind that goes around your ear," said Steves. "That's a major investment of packing space for me to take something that a lot of people would think is not essential."

"They give me beautiful music or beautiful silence," Steves told Insider.

bose 700 headphones 6 — The cushiony ear covers are comfortable to wear on long flights and provide excellent noise blocking.

"The noise reduction headphones give me privacy on the airplane and privacy on train rides," Steves said. "When I'm wearing them, nobody will talk to me."

Our senior tech reporter Antonio Villas-Boas has tested 50 headphones and recommends the Bose 700.

Read our full review of the Bose 700 Noise Canceling Headphones.

We love how the Bose 700 headphones fit comfortably, are easy to set up, and have solid audio performance.

bose 700 headphones 4 — Large letters inside each ear cover make it easy to figure out what way to put the headphones on.

Another great feature is the unrivaled noise cancellation, especially during phone calls, which makes them great for traveling.

miami airport crowd — Our reporter snapped this photo of the crowd in the Miami airport while he was wearing his Bose headphones. Despite being in a busy airport, our reporter heard none of the surrounding noise.

Villas-Boas recommends the Bose QualityComfort 45 headphones as a more affordable and compact alternative since they fold up. However, "the sound quality and noise canceling are excellent, but not quite on par with the 700."

Bose headphones — Another of our reporters wearing the Bose QualityComfort 45 headphones, which fold up a bit more compactly.

Bose QuietComfort 45

$329.00 from Bose

$329.00 from Amazon

$329.00 from Best Buy

James Brains

Home & Kitchen Reporter, Insider Reviews

James is a Home & Kitchen Reporter for Insider Reviews, where he specializes in sleep, HVAC, and kitchen appliances. He has tested more than 30 mattresses from startups like Casper and legacy brands like Tempur-Pedic, using his background in experimental psychology to develop objective tests and evaluate comfort, support, motion transfer, and more. He authors our guide to the best mattresses. In addition to being Insider Reviews' mattress expert, James has extensively covered robot vacuums, air conditioners, air purifiers, and more within the HVAC space. He's tested more than 20 robot vacs from brands like iRobot and Roborock over the years and is no stranger to keeping his house at a chilly 60 degrees Fahrenheit for weeks on end all in the name of testing air conditioners. He's a multifaceted writer who has covered everything from health and fitness to consumer technology. His mission is to help people get the most value for their money by guiding them in making informed buying decisions. James is currently based in Lansing, Michigan, where he lives in "The Barn Mansion," a three-story Dutch colonial home, with his wife, two sons, two cats, and a rambunctious rat terrier. When James isn't testing products and writing for Insider, he's helping to run a popular local Facebook group, Lansing Foodies. See below for some of his work: The best mattress for every type of sleeper in 2021, according to our rigorous testing The 6 best robot vacuums we tested in 2021 The 6 best air conditioners we tested in 2021 The best Instant Pots and electric pressure cookers we tested in 2021 10 grilling essentials that chefs and pitmasters swear by for making the best BBQ The 5 best mattress toppers we tested in 2021 Contact info: jbrains@insider.com Learn more about how our team of experts tests and reviews products at Insider here. Learn more about how we test kitchen products.

Why pro traveler Rick Steves always makes space for bulky Bose headphones, even when flying with just a carry-on