should i ship or fly?

March 20, 2006 12:09 PM

Should i ship or fly with my bike to the west coast?

If all goes as planned i will be flying to oregon at the beginning of summer to ride back to the east coast. Most of the flights i can (reasonably) afford involve a layover. Should i risk possible loss or delay in the transfer of my inevitably stowed luggage, or just ship it directly to a FEDEX/UPS center and pick it up when i land?

posted by fidgets to travel & transportation (6 comments total)

When you ship it, you also always have some chance of loss or delay, and the Fedex planes are not necessarily direct either. If I were you I'd rather be on the same plane as the bike, but that's just me.
posted by easternblot at 12:33 PM on March 20, 2006

I agree with easternblot, I'd feel a lot more comfortable if the bike was on the same plane with me. Also, shipping a bike (I'm assuming in a hard case, which would add weight and therefore add to the cost) is more expensive than flying with it.

My dad flew from Savannah to Austin (by way of Atlanta) with a bike, and had absolutely no problems with getting it back and forth. Just have the casing very well labelled (even with your flight schedule, if you feel it necessary) and it should be okay.
posted by itchie at 12:55 PM on March 20, 2006

Shipping a bike will be expensive. Flying with the bike will also be expensive (I haven't done this in a long time, but last I checked, the airlines mostly charged $50 for bikes). Airlines will also have limitations of liability on damage to your bike, so unless you're self-insuring for the transit and they screw up your bike, you're out. With shipping, you can buy insurance.

My preference would be to pack the bike in a serious hard-shell shipping container and fly with it, but then you're left with a fancy container to deal with (perhaps you could ship it home...?)
posted by adamrice at 2:56 PM on March 20, 2006

Shipping a boxed bike via FedEx is about $50, and the airline fees are about $50. It's a wash cost-wise. I've flown with a tandem in a rolling case, with a single bike in a cardboard box and internationally with a bike in a S&S case. I'd say go to a shop, get two boxes, put one inside the other. Wrap the bike tubes in foam pipe insulation, secure well with zip ties, etc. Fill the voids in the box with helmet, shoes, clothes, bags, etc. Tape, tape and tape. Take it on the plane with you. Have fun.
posted by fixedgear at 3:56 PM on March 20, 2006

Don't overlook the worst case scenario of either way losing your bike. If fedex loses your bike you have insurance. If the airline loses your bike there's a liability cap. For luggage it's usually $100 for the contents of a suitcase, even if you had the Mona Lisa in there. Check into what responsibility they'll take for a bike.

If you ship it to a Fedex center and it never leaves their control till you get it that could be a big plus.
posted by phearlez at 4:34 PM on March 20, 2006

this is going to be a tough call.
thanks
posted by fidgets at 9:10 PM on March 20, 2006