Checking a second bag from Europe to the U.S. on a two leg flight
August 15, 2010 7:52 AM
How much am I going to be charged for checking a second bag in Economy class?
I'm flying back to the US from Germany this week and I am bringing a second checked bag with me that is full of souvenirs and such. I bought the extra bag assuming that it would be cheaper/easier to check a second bag on the flight back rather than ship it....Now that I'm looking at it, not so much... I am flying with SAS, whose weight limits are 50 lbs/1 bag are free for economy, and the second checked bag can be up to 50 pounds and costs 50 dollars. However! The first leg of my flight is from Germany to Sweden, and according to my ticket, it is chartered by Lufthansa, whose luggage allowance I cannot make heads or tails of (weight limit vs. piece limit?!) Who is going to charge me for my second bag and how bad is the damage going to be? It is horrendously unfair that simply because I couldn't get a direct flight, I might be completely gouged by Lufthansa...
I'm flying back to the US from Germany this week and I am bringing a second checked bag with me that is full of souvenirs and such. I bought the extra bag assuming that it would be cheaper/easier to check a second bag on the flight back rather than ship it....Now that I'm looking at it, not so much... I am flying with SAS, whose weight limits are 50 lbs/1 bag are free for economy, and the second checked bag can be up to 50 pounds and costs 50 dollars. However! The first leg of my flight is from Germany to Sweden, and according to my ticket, it is chartered by Lufthansa, whose luggage allowance I cannot make heads or tails of (weight limit vs. piece limit?!) Who is going to charge me for my second bag and how bad is the damage going to be? It is horrendously unfair that simply because I couldn't get a direct flight, I might be completely gouged by Lufthansa...
One itinerary that I booked through SAS. This is why I thought initially that I would be following SAS's travel guidelines.
posted by pianohands at 8:07 AM on August 15, 2010
posted by pianohands at 8:07 AM on August 15, 2010
In my experience (and I have lots), the baggage rules you follow are those of the airline issuing the ticket/itinerary regardless of who actually runs the flights. My last trip involved two legs in which both were actually run by an airline different than that issuing the ticket (gotta love codeshares) and I was still held to the rules of the issuing airline.
I'm pretty sure that's something that's contractual to the whole codeshare arrangement. So I doubt that Lufthansa will charge you anything. If you want to be sure though, call SAS and ask.
posted by scrute at 8:31 AM on August 15, 2010
I'm pretty sure that's something that's contractual to the whole codeshare arrangement. So I doubt that Lufthansa will charge you anything. If you want to be sure though, call SAS and ask.
posted by scrute at 8:31 AM on August 15, 2010
In my experience too, Scrute is right. So long as you bought this one-time for your destination thru a single airline/vendor, you'll be charged once for the entire end to end itinerary.
Also, if I remember correctly, Lufthansa gives you 2 free pieces of (check-in) luggage per ticket (there is a weight limit) for international flights. But in all likelihood, this wont apply to u since you r carrying an SAS ticket and will be governed by their rules. You should call SAS though and confirm this.
posted by justlooking at 9:05 AM on August 15, 2010
Also, if I remember correctly, Lufthansa gives you 2 free pieces of (check-in) luggage per ticket (there is a weight limit) for international flights. But in all likelihood, this wont apply to u since you r carrying an SAS ticket and will be governed by their rules. You should call SAS though and confirm this.
posted by justlooking at 9:05 AM on August 15, 2010
Not in my experience.
United gave me hard time when I flew Lufthansa code-shared flight on United.
Call up SAS and talk to them. Their customer service is lot better than any American airliner's.
Second bag cost is standard, usually USD 50.
posted by zaxour at 9:16 AM on August 15, 2010
United gave me hard time when I flew Lufthansa code-shared flight on United.
Call up SAS and talk to them. Their customer service is lot better than any American airliner's.
Second bag cost is standard, usually USD 50.
posted by zaxour at 9:16 AM on August 15, 2010
SAS is *completely* changing all their baggage policies this summer. I actually went to their website and tried to find out, and they've got *three* different policies depending on when you bought your ticket. I'm usually really good at helping people solve travel questions but I'm stumped!
So: call them. Their US number is +1 201 896 3600; their "local" German number (they have English speakers) is 01805 11 70 02. Ask them about the codeshare situation as well.
Also, does your e-ticket/itinerary/receipt/online flight profile thing give you any guidance? Many airlines have a "my trips" sort of page where you can put in your confirmation number and you'll get all the details for your flight. I've checked through some of my own for some upcoming trips on another Star Alliance carrier (LOT) and *always* found some statement about how much baggage I was entitled to bring.
Good luck!
posted by mdonley at 11:27 AM on August 15, 2010
So: call them. Their US number is +1 201 896 3600; their "local" German number (they have English speakers) is 01805 11 70 02. Ask them about the codeshare situation as well.
Also, does your e-ticket/itinerary/receipt/online flight profile thing give you any guidance? Many airlines have a "my trips" sort of page where you can put in your confirmation number and you'll get all the details for your flight. I've checked through some of my own for some upcoming trips on another Star Alliance carrier (LOT) and *always* found some statement about how much baggage I was entitled to bring.
Good luck!
posted by mdonley at 11:27 AM on August 15, 2010
I wasn't able to call SAS, but when I went to check in my bags at Lufthansa, they were initially going to charge me 200 euro for the extra bag, per their 10 euro/kilo within Europe weight policy. However, when I objected, they eventually granted me the 40 euro/50 dollar second bag fee. Whew!
posted by pianohands at 12:08 PM on August 18, 2010
posted by pianohands at 12:08 PM on August 18, 2010
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posted by koahiatamadl at 8:06 AM on August 15, 2010