Customer Reviews The North Face Women's Borealis

Daughter is a sophomore in high school and uses it for her school work. Overall nice bag, and very sturdy. Could be a tad bigger.

Love the color and the style, but it is too small for what I need, so I sent it back. And sadly lost my $20 rewards, which would have been nice if it was also credited back ;-)

Love this bag!! The only complaint is that it was a little smaller than I was expecting when I received it. I purchased for my daughter for school and her 3 ring binder and 2 small library books is all that will fit in the zip pocket with her i Mac Pro in the back zip compartment. We will still get great use for it when traveling.

Haven't used it yet but looks great. One downside is the small pockets for water bottles. Only a few slim water bottles will be able to fit.

I've had the Women's Borealis Backpack for three years now (so mine is an older generation), and used it in high school and as a travel bag. The padded laptop pocket offers great protection for my 13" MacBook Pro. The main pocket is spacious enough for a 2 inch binder, an average sized lunch bag, a smaller textbook, 2-3 notebooks, and a small book or sweater sitting on top, though all of that at once is a pretty tight fit. The front compartment was useful, as I was able to pack in pencils, pens, a small book, and various miscellaneous items. The top compartment held my phone, earbuds, and wallet. The adjustment straps are easy to use, and the backpack, though bulky-looking on my 5'4" athletic frame, looks stylish enough and is definitely made with a feminine form in mind. Didn't really use the bungee straps, though they would be useful to clip on various objects while hiking. A few cons about this backpack: 1) the front compartment, when filled, takes up space in the main compartment, 2) the mesh pockets have holes in the bottoms after everyday use, which is disappointing for North Face (though the rest of the bag is in great condition!), and 3) the backpack does not stand up on its own but falls forward. If you want a bag that is spacious, durable, and stylish for high school and college use, I'd go with this bag, though if you want to pack more than what I listed, I'd go with the larger Recon backpack. I would not recommend it though, since for the price, I'd expect more durability in the mesh pockets, better spacial design with the front compartment, and the ability to stand up. Despite this, I am pleased with it, as it served its purpose, and will continue to use it in college.

I went traveling with it. I guess is better for a day pack because I found it hard to add a lot of clothes and shoes in it. I will use it for school this upcoming fall though. Overall very comfortable but won't recommend for traveling.

This is my first north face purchase ever and this to me was a lot of money for a backpack. However, I think it was worth it. I love the lightness of this bag. It looks small when you first get it but it holds A LOT. The color is amazing and the adjustable traps along the sides, front and back make it perfect to use for any occasion. I am using this for school but I do fly a lot and this will be my new carry-on backpack. Best decision ever.

I bought this for my rising 9th grader last spring as a "welcome to high school" present. It is absolutely a gorgeous backpack and really well made. However, months later, having put it to the test of 8 weeks of school, I will say it has some real drawbacks. It is just too narrow. My teen's binder barely fits in and leaves no room for her lunchbox. The front pocket doesn't go to the bottom of the bag, so the stuff in the pocket creates a bulge that makes it hard to put said binder in the bag and blocks space at the bottom, rendering it unusable. She has no room to bring a change of shoes for gym. If you don't need to carry a lot of school stuff and bulky items then this is a great bag. If you are a commuting student or professional and need to sleep stuff I suggest you look at something larger. We had to buy a new backpack by a different brand. My kid is much happier but I feel I wasted money on a pricey backpack.

I was so excited to get this backpack as it was a big upgrade from the one I had been using previously. I love the pink colour and it fits my rather large laptop well! I wish the front pockets went all the way to the bottom of the bag though. Since they don't, this bag ends up being top heavy and won't stay upright if you sit it down on the ground. I've even tried stacking some books to make the base sturdier but it still likes to tip over unless you try to lean it against the wall or something. Great bag but if you're looking for something that'll stand up on its own, look for some other options.

I don't love this style back up. It looks like you have lots of room but you really don't.

I wanted a backpack for traveling on cross country flights with my kids. The reason I'm not giving this 5 stars is because it's built strangely top-heavy, in a way that made it difficult to utilize and access the largest compartment pocket, particularly the bottom half. Pics demonstrate profile of bag at airport, with top part being wider than bottom. This was true even without much of anything in the top. I would have returned it if I had noticed this before using it.

It well constructed and reasonably thoughtful. For travel- it is small and does not expand. So if you are taking extra set of clothes etc, it gets very tight. I have not used it for hiking yet. A softer more pliable daypack is better for travel than this design. But love the outer straps that you can put your jacket on the outside of the pack etc. Just think about its usage.

not a terrible backpack, my computer was just to big for the laptop compartment. the front pocket also made it top heavy. definitely a small bag overall. zipper broke where my laptop touched it.

Ordered online. Was expecting a larger backpack for my weekend travels. Pockets are small and compact, so its hard to put more items into the front pockets. There's no stretch in the bag like it looks with all the elastic bands. Quite disappointed.

I own this same bag in an older model (bought it in 2019 or 2020). The older model is more spacious than this one.

Very long straps.

I love the backpack so much!! However, I've been using it now for a month and I have never put anything in the left water bottle sleeve and when I went to put my 16 oz water bottle (which is thin and small) I noticed that the sling broke. I'm not sure why but I thought it would be more durable considering it was the first time I was going to use it, it broke my heart. I use this backpack for law school and love it but now I am bummed that the durability of the slings aren't great for the price you're paying.

My previous borealis that I purchased in 2014 must've been the men's version because this bag is VERY small. The front pockets don't hold very much, and the middle pocket is shaped in a way that sort of bulges at the bottom, but doesn't really unzip far enough to use all of that space at the top. The side pockets are also a little small for a water bottle over 20 oz. It's well made, though, and I expect it will last 10 years like my last one.

I use the product for school. I really like the design of the backpack because of the colors. I don't like how depending on what I wear it makes a sound while I walk. I wish it was bigger in storage because it feels tight. I don't like the buckles it has on the straps but I know it might be useful for hiking purposes. For the price, I thought it'd be better.

I bought this backpack to use for university / committing in the city on busses and trains. I really like the laptop sleeve and while there is a good amount of space to place smaller things in, it's not the best for packing a lunch and similar sized things in as the middle pocket is fairly narrow. I really like the two front smaller pockets because they're easy to get to when walking. The side pockets are also great for fitting water bottles.

It's a really good backpack. Theres a few things I don't like about it. Like it does not stand up on its own. It also doesn't have a ton of open space. But it's a nice sturdy pack and I really like all the pockets

I loved this color, but the dedicated laptop space was not a good fit for me. If you are looking for multifunctional (for example, I use my bag as a day bag to hike when not in school) then this backpack does not do its job. It is the exact same size as the jester, and my previous borealis felt bigger for the same volume.

My girls are in middle school and this backpack is extremely small . They can barely fit their two binders and have any room left to fit anything else . Just doesn't have a wide enough opening . Wouldn't purchase again

Pros: comfortable size, quite roomy. Cons: uncomfortable while getting on and removing.

Great backpack and well made but not for a middle schooler- just not big enough for books and notebooks and computer. Perfect size for elementary. We just bought the next size up and it was great!