Is it a bag? Is it a box? The answer is that the YETI Hopper Flip 18 is essentially a cool box in a bag.
YETI Hopper Flip 18 Cool Bag
RRP £300
https://uk.yeti.com/products/hopper-flip-18-cool-bag-classic-navy
SQUIRREL_13990908
Tech specs
Dimensions: 41.3W X 27.3D X 33.0H cm
Weight: 2.3kg (empty)
Colours: a wide range, including a new range of funky patterns
Variations: Also available in smaller sizes
What they say:
"The weekend is calling, so pack up your Hopper Flip 18 and head for the hills. The bigger build suits your larger hauls and longer expeditions. Set out with your lunch while you work for your dinner, and have a couple cold ones to kick back with after."
What we say:
The solidity of a cool box but with the portability of a cool bag makes the Hopper Flip 18 the sort of item you could really fall for – if you can justify the outlay.
Our review
A solid cool box will generally keep your supplies colder for longer, but any kind of journey on foot carrying a cool box inevitably becomes one of endurance. Backpack cool bags are great for carrying, but if you need to keep food and drinks chilled for any long period in the heat, they invariably leaving you wanting – and with a warm drink. Plus, they can be a faff to get anything fro the bottom of the bag, as you keep having to take everything out and repack it.
YETI seem to have found the solution with the Hopper Flip – a solid, rugged build that performs like a box, but with a soft shell, and sturdy strap and handles to make lugging your picnic far less of a chore.
On tests, we carried a full Hopper Flip 18 up and down sand dunes and across the beach on a scorching spring day with no beef whatsoever. We also put it through its paces on a hike through the woods, again, with very little to complain about. And it was perfect stashed under the seat on a day at the cricket.
As well as handles top and at each end, the padded shoulder strap is thick and wide, making it more comfortable on a trek than anything else of this size that we’ve tried, and the grip holds it on your shoulder well.
So how does it work? The basic shell is sturdy and durable, and, according to YETI, puncture proof. Inside the thick, insulated walls, the interior of the Hopper Flip is spacious – to give an idea of capacity, it would fit 30 cans inside. We filled it with a picnic for three (hungry) people for a whole day out, plus ice packs and water and still had space.
The key to its efficiency seems to be in the zipper, which you’ll need to lubricate before use (a stick of lube is provided). At first, the zip seemed to be a sticking point, as it is very stiff (understandable in order to maintain the seal), but once we got the hang of it, it worked well.
As you might expect from YETI, there are loads of accessories – we tried a couple of ice sheets and storage boxes, which really added to the general feeling of smugness come lunchtime.
The only real downsides we could find was the price (£300 is a lot to pay for a cool box) and there were no signs of sustainability in the build – no obviously recycled materials, PFAS-free coatings or sustainably source materials. This isn’t to say there aren’t any, but if there are, YETI don’t seem to be shouting about it.
One way that it does win from a sustainability point of view is that it's highly unlikely this is going to be discarded or replaced any time soon. It's the sort of item that just makes you want to use it – so much so, that since receiving it to test, we've been taking every opportunity to go for a picnic. And what better praise could you want than that?
