Easily Avoid
Airline Baggage Fees
If you have had to travel on any national or international airline lately, you have come face-to-face with the prospect of an airline baggage fee or surcharge being assessed on your luggage. These fees were originally instituted as a result of high fuel prices, but were kept on as a source of income for struggling airlines.
But why should you pay for something that for years was included in the cost of your airline ticket? In many cases, the answer is,..., you don't!
Here are some tips and suggestions on Easily Avoid Airline Baggage Fees.
Instructions
1. The number one tip is - Don't check any bags!
Pack light and have everything you need in your carry-on luggage. Most airlines allow you one carry-on suitcase and one smaller, personal-type item such as a purse, briefcase, camera, food container, or a laptop computer. Pack carefully, and for a short-duration trip or vacation, one carry-on may be all you need.
For tips on pack light and take less, check out websites like The Travel Insider.com, Travel Sense.org, or Onebag.com. Onebag.com even offers a sample packing list on what to take on various types of trips. There is good advice on all the sites mentioned on pack light and on what to take, and more importantly, what not to take.
2. If you can't get everything you need into your carry-on, at least maximize the amount of clothing and essentials you do pack in your carry-on. This helps reduce the total number of bags you have to check and potentially pay for.
If you are traveling as a family or group that will be together for your entire trip, consolidate your clothing and extras so that all bags are packed to their fullest. Everyone likes to pack their own bag and take just what they need, but if three people's bags are only two-thirds full, move clothes around and leave one piece of luggage at home.
Depending on the size of your group, this can often eliminate at least one piece of luggage, and one baggage fee, altogether!
3. Another tip to avoid luggage fees is something that more and more people are doing nowadays,..., mailing their possessions to their destination instead of taking them on the plane!
As many airlines continue to raise their fees on checked luggage, it is becoming increasingly economical to send your clothes and other essentials on ahead using the services of the United States Postal Service (USPS) or the United Parcel Service (UPS).
You can compare costs from both companies to your destination to see which one would be most economical for you. Both the USPS and UPS websites offer shipping calculators that show you what they would charge for a certain weight package to any zip code.
For example, the USPS offers different sizes of Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes that are available for free from your local Post Office, or you can order them online from www.usps.com. (They will be shipped to you free of charge.) The largest of these boxes measures 12" x 12" x 5 ½, and costs $14.50 to mail, regardless of the weight of the box, up to a 70 pound limit. (The rate is $13.95 if you print postage online using their Click-N-Ship application.)The stated delivery time for Priority Mail is two to three days, so three or four days before you leave, mail one or two boxes to your destination to be held for your arrival.
If you are staying at a resort, hotel, or condo, it is recommended that you call ahead to make sure that they will agree to accept and hold your packages for you. It is also a good idea to make sure your belongings are insured and trackable by whatever mailing service you use.
Another way to use shipping services to save on checked luggage fees is to pack light going down, and then mail back souvenirs, clothing, or anything else you may have purchased. If you'd rather bring your souvenirs home in your suitcase or carry-on, mail home your dirty clothes by the cheapest, slowest way possible, since you probably won't be in any hurry to do laundry anyway when you get back!
4. Fly Southwest, JetBlue or Air Canada, which currently do not charge for the first checked bag.
As of this writing, JetBlue and Air Canada do charge for the second bag, but Southwest doesn't.
This isn't an advertisement for Southwest Airlines, but they are the most "bag-friendly" carrier out there at the moment. Southwest doesn't start charging you until you check a third bag. Currently, Southwest charges $50.00 for the third bag. So if you have the option of which airline to choose, and you don't mind the no-frills, light-hearted atmosphere, fly Southwest and save money on luggage fees!
If Southwest Airlines isn't an option, do your homework and check out the competition to see which airline charges the least for checked luggage. A good site to do this on is CompareAirlineFees.com.
5. You can find links to all the websites mentioned in this article in the Resources section below.
Tags: Airline Baggage Fees, Avoid Airline, Avoid Airline Baggage, Baggage Fees, checked luggage, Easily Avoid, Easily Avoid Airline
