The North Face  Borealis Sling

The sling bag itself is good, but the strap is too short! The strap made the bag almost unusable except to carry by the handle. I bought a couple of glide buckles and a one-foot piece of webbing, cut the strap on the bag, and added the foot of webbing. Now it's actually a usable sling bag. It cost me $6 to fix the strap. If North Face had made the strap longer to begin with (maybe 10 cents in added cost), I'd have given the bag four or five stars.

This bag is great for carrying small items, but don't be fooled by the pictures. The water bottle holder is tiny and I struggled to fit a very small water bottle. The website photos show a nalgene-type bottle, but only the smallest nalgene would fit in the pocket. I was able to carry two very small water bottles, snacks, battery pack, chapstick, kleenex, all the necesities for a day exploring a city. Overall it worked great, just don't expect it to fit a regular sized water bottle.

Love the colors on this bag. I use it for bike riding, when i take my short rides & bring a snack along . Lightweight and holds plenty when needed.

Solid little bag with tons of useable space and compartments. I use this as a daily baby nag for my 1 year old and 3 year old. Holds some diapers wipes for the little one and backup undies for the older one. Aslo have some aquafor, bug spray and sun screen as well as little snacks. Drink pouch does not hold kids cup like contigo flip top but i carabiner one on and i can put a disposeable water bottle or skinny reusable in the side pocket.... usually though it holds a burp cloth i can use as a picnic blanket/changing pad/towel

Not paid for this review like every other one on here. This bag is horrible, can't hold a water bottle. It's sized for a child. returning it

Good: Nice bag to hold water bottle and a few extra things. Material seems plenty thick enough. Opens wide so you can see easily to bottom of bag. Overall I am pleased with this bag. Perfect size for my intended purpose without being too much. Could be a bit better: I am about 5’11” and strap is a little small for me when adjusted to longest it will go. I also see a small gap at threads where strap attaches to top of pack from stretching and hope it won’t fray in the long run.

I bought this bag as a companion to my luggage and a pack that I could carry on vacations this summer. I had read that the water bottle holder didn’t fit water bottles, but worked well for phones (which was true) so I was ok with that trade off. What wasn’t mentioned was just how small the overall bag really is. I could barely fit a bottle, a packable jacket, and my keys before the bag bulged and was off balance. I exchanged it for the Patagonia sling and am much happier. The 2 extra liters make a huge difference and the bag sit much better when full.

This is a great sling bag for short hikes or walks around town. It can fit a water bottle - I gotta assume all those reviewers complaining it cannot think that anything smaller than 32 oz is a thimble. A bottle up to 2.5 inches diameter fits OK, which includes 16 and 20 oz plastic water bottles and some resuable equivalents. Anything wider is a struggle, but it will take a 2.75 inch Nalgene wide mouth if you don;t mind it bulging into storage space. Or you can use the bottle pocket to hold an umbrella. Inside the main compartment is a sleeve that just accommodates my 2017 iPad when it's not in a cover. I wish there were a couple of millimeters more clearance but it goes. It fits a iPad mini or a sketchpad easily. There's a separate zip mesh pocket in the main compartment that takes stuff like a wallet, and has a key strap. The smaller outside pocket is fleece lined - I use it to protect clip on sunglasses but it would be good for a phone. Except my iPhone 14 Pro fits into the strap pocket just fine. My old 12 Pro Max also fit although it was a fiddle to zip up. The sling has a carry handle on top that is padded - a luxury touch point for a small bag. And the bungy cords on the outside are good for holding a fleece or raincoat. Both compartments have zippers that are also positioned so that you can slide the sling around you and open it sideways while it's across your chest, so your stuff doesn't cascade out. The only thing I don't like is that the strap doesn't accommodate both shoulders. I wish there were a clip and loop on each corner to let me switch sides from time to time. In an era of accessibility being left-handed shouldn't be a crime. And for big folks the strap might be tight. But I'm 5ft 6 in and I don't care about giants.

The bag is a nice color. Not as vibrant as shown- however the main issue is the sizing. With the straps fully extended, it doesn’t fit me. I’m a woman- average height. Medium chest- not large shoulders. & it was choking my body when I put it on.

I was excited to get this bag because I thought it could replace my small Patagonia bag, but no dice. I do like the layout better, but it’s hard to open the zipper with one hand (a must for me), it’s smaller, and the front pocket holds virtually nothing. I was also excited about the water bottle pocket but it holds virtually nothing. I can’t fit any water bottle I currently own in there, for sure. All in all, not a great bag but I’m sure it’s great for someone.