I have always checked baggage when flying due to a large suitcase. And there is something so liberating about just dumping the bag during check-in, and then jaunting through the terminal sans baggage. Tomorrow, I am going for a short trip and could pack everything into a regulation-size wheeled suitcase and thus do carry on. Both planes (+ 1 connection), are full to capacity. Is it worth the hassle of trying to find overhead? Schlepping it through two airports? Compared to the potential of losing my bag for the duration of my trip, which recently happened? What do you do? Strategies?
posted by nanook on Mar 18, 2013 - 34 answers

How likely is it that Delta Airlines will accept my slightly-oversize backpack as carry-on? [more inside]
posted by Hither on Sep 20, 2012 - 15 answers

Which of these two (complicated) flight options will A) give me the biggest baggage allowance, and B) cost the least for excess bags? [more inside]
posted by hasna on Sep 20, 2011 - 4 answers

Question for frequent flyers: have airlines' new pay-to-check-a-bag policies significantly affected how much baggage passengers are trying to carry on board? To the point where it's gone from just aggravating to completely !%@#!*#@ impossible? [more inside]
posted by Kat Allison on Aug 5, 2008 - 22 answers

The great musical-instrument-on-plane paradox. How do you prepare (what case[s] do you buy and what strategies do you develop) when you need to travel on many different kinds/scales of airlines, with a delicate wooden instrument that MAY or MAY NOT be allowed as carry-on baggage (depending on circumstance, how full the plane is, and how much or little the inspectors care that it looks large, solid and "middle eastern")? [more inside]
posted by allterrainbrain on Dec 26, 2006 - 14 answers

Will US airlines accept fresh produce -- say, 30 pounds of olives -- inside checked baggage on a domestic, inter-state flight? [more inside]
posted by aws17576 on Nov 21, 2006 - 6 answers

Is it a bad idea to check a bag on an airplane with a small form factor (SFF) computer in it? [more inside]
posted by D Wiz on May 10, 2006 - 30 answers

Unpacking from a recent flight back to the U.S. from abroad, I just noticed that a few things were missing from my checked baggage (a pair of high-quality outdoor jackets). I'm wondering which avenue of renumeration would be the best to pursue - the airline (Continental), my renter's insurance policy, even the TSA - and how? [more inside]
posted by gottabefunky on Dec 17, 2004 - 7 answers