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This is your travel guide to pack smarter not harder. Once you have booked your flight(s), go to the airline’s website to fully understand its baggage limits and fees. Most legacy US carriers and low-cost carriers outside the US levy fees for checked bags; at least one airline also charges for carry-ons. Fees paid online, in advance, may be slightly less than when paid at check-in.

Don’t take more luggage and contents than you can carry/roll by yourself…to include items needed for infants/small children or the elderly.

• Airports generally have baggage carts for rent, but you’ll need local currency (usually coins) to “rent” one. In some countries (e.g., the United Kingdom), you cannot take these carts through security checkpoints into secure/airside areas.
• Some airports offer free carts…more often in areas for arriving flights.
• Nearly all airports and hotels have porters, usually working for tips.
• Elsewhere, you’ll likely be entirely on your own. Too many bags or too much weight can become a major burden.

You may be tempted to take as much as you are allowed. But purchases can make your bag(s) overweight when you return, resulting in airline fees beyond those for starting the trip. This can greatly increase the real cost of even the best buys. Some experienced travellers with shopping plans even take and use some presentable but older garments, then donate or discard them before returning home.

Checked luggage is often thrown about in transit. If you have something that might not survive such handling and it’s allowed on board, carry it on board. Otherwise, leave it at home. Travel insurance often will not cover fragile items broken in checked luggage. Placing a FRAGILE sticker provided by the carrier is rarely sufficient to change the way baggage handlers take care.

Large Items

If you have a large/long item (eg, not easily carried on or checked), you’d best leave it home unless essential to your travel, e.g., sports equipment. If you do check it, there may be additional fees involved, and it may be delivered to a special baggage claim area…perhaps some distance from where your regular luggage appears. It may also take extra time to be ready to claim.

Weight and Size Limits

• Carry-on luggage most anywhere: 1 piece (in Europe, maximum weight 7, some airlines 12 kg), maximum size 20x40x55 cm, 115 cm in total (9x14x22 inches)…in Europe, often 20 inches in length.
• Checked luggage on international flights outside the United States: 2 pieces, maximum 23 kg (50 lbs).
• Checked luggage on international flights to/from the United States and within the United States: 2 pieces, maximum 23 kg or 50 lbs.

Checked Baggage Fees
• If you’re travelling domestically in the United States, keep in mind all airlines (apart from low-cost carriers JetBlue and Southwest and a few regional commuter airlines) charge, eg, 25 for the first checked bag and US$35 for the second. Originally confined to itineraries wholely within the lower 48 states, fees for each checked bag are now assessed on virtually all itineraries that do not cross an ocean: still plan on paying if you’re flying to Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, some South American destinations (usually flights to “deep South America” i.e. Argentina, Brazil, and Chile get at least one bag for free.)

• Elite frequent flyers are usually permitted between one and three bags free of charge, depending on the airline and tier.
• First and Business Class passengers may be allowed three bags for free.
• Air Canada charges checked bag fees on “transborder” flights to or from the United States. Unlike US carriers, they do not assess bag fees on Canadian domestic itineraries, or flights to Mexico, the Caribbean, or other destinations in the Western Hemisphere.
• Some European low-cost carriers (eg, Ryanair) have no free checked luggage allowance and charge per kg.
• On any airline, you’ll be charged if your bags are overweight or oversized. Low-cost carriers, in particular, often have lower limits, higher fees for overages.
The smaller “carry-on space” on regional jets may force you to check an item at the counter, gate or aircraft entrance that you can usually carry on board other aircraft. This creates an increased risk of theft if it contains valuables.

Keep these tips in mind when you’re packing for your next vacation.

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