This is a bit of a random bump, but I feel like I should say that my experience with Jetstar to Melbourne and back was perfect, no issues at all!
i do not think people should fly with their bikes. it sounds very dangerous and tiring. i think they should always fly with airplanes.
Come on, Brendan. LIVE A LITTLE!
This might not the best thread for this but it seemed reasonably applicable.
Also for reference:
Air China on top of being really cheap allow you to take 2 pieces of luggage each <23kgs, so if you can pack your bike across two pieces, i.e. wheels and such in one and frame in the other you can pack each really well and not get any excess baggage.
(note that they do have an oversize charge which a full sized bike box will get stung for)
Has anyone travelled internationally on either Air NZ or United with a bike?
I’m off to San Fran in May/June and after being there last year without a bike, I cannot do it again.
I have checked out t and c’s and I’m pretty sure I shouldn’t be charged to take it, (I’m using carry on as my main luggage)
I’m just wondering which of the two is / could be the bigger hassle to deal with?
My $ is on United, but I have never flown AirNZ before.
Check their specific baggage policies, they’re pretty explicit on the websites:
United is $200 each way unless it’s under 62 linear inches and 23kg
Free if not oversize or exceeds luggage allowance:
Oversized Items & Sporting Equipment - Checked in Baggage - Baggage - Air New Zealand - Australia Site
Checked in Baggage - Baggage - Air New Zealand - Australia Site
Flying to/through the US (international, not domestic) usually gets you 32kg of luggage allowance. You might get lucky and get 2x23kg.
If it’s boxed it’ll be classed as oversize sporting equipment, if it’s in an S&S case / BOGear bag / Ground Effect bag you can likely smile and call it ‘trade show supplies’ and maybe squeak in under 62".
A box will exceed the 62 linear inch maximum for sure, but if their sporting goods policy is friendly (like qantas/virgin/jetblue/southwest) then you might not get an upcharge.
Never fly Delta. United are terrible for bikes too.
Fly Virgin/Qantas. Free and easy.
2 x 23kgs is the best:
Flew to SF last year with AirNZ… friendly and nice. bikes are no issue (they count as a piece of luggage).
The rub is that they codeshare with united so the return flight was via LA (3.5 hour transfer) and was a united one. I knew that it was very likely that we would have to pay for the bikes on that flight as all airlines state that in the case of the flights being operated by another airline their rules apply.
but…they hit us up for US$100 x 2 x 2people (=$400) on checkin. the explanation was that they were ticketing us using their system so it was two united flights so we had to pay twice. i pointed out that it was an AirNz flight and they didnt charge, but the lady didnt care. united domestic checkin staff are pretty resolute and annoying IME.
what we did was check our bags as far as LA, then pick them up and check in again at AirNZ. the lady wasnt stoked with us, but said if we missed our AirNZ flight it was our problem. i knew we had a decent window (~3.5hrs) so i was ok with it.
TL:DR - make sure you fly AirNZ and fly SFO-MEL without the LA trnasfer (which was an option but didnt work for our timing coming down from vancouver). also united domestic can suck a rank pair of bib knicks.
Bump.
Anyone had any experience taking a bike with Ryanair? Their site pretty much says they don’t like them, (which is a bad sign) Thing is, they’re going exactly where I want to go. Worth the hassle?
Hey chaz, head over to LFGSS. Those dudes are a wealth of knowledge for travelling around Europe with a bike.
Is train an alternative??
Talking about flying where do I leave the bag when using one? We’ll fly to Christchurch to go touring and I wonder whether to fly with a bag or just a carton bike box (and need to find a new one when heading off again). But seeing that I have some more flight and rides planned, I’d love to have a proper bag. I just dont know where to leave it.
Hey lemontimes, you pack your bike in a standard box with Jetstar?
anyone have any recent domestic jetstar-bike experiences?
Ta.
MD
last week. everyones bikes seemed to survive intact. people used everything from cut-down bike boxes to high-end inflatable sectioned reinforced cases.
they dont handle the bike with kid gloves but from the looks of our bags afterwards i couldnt see signs of them kicking them across the tarmac either. ymmv!
Soz I missed this. I used royd each time to melburn, I think the rear seats of my beater tarck got a bit bent in one time, but that was my fault for not putting a spacer in the dropouts…!
You can borrow my Tardis if you want MikeD, and leave it at my sister’s place maybe while you’re on the road.
Cheers Pete.
I’ll keep it in mind, thinking I’ll just use a box at this stage (as I have always done), get a late flight back from Cairns to give me time to get a new one and pack the bike.
No worries. We’ve got two of them if you need one. I’ve had success with them but I don’t love them. (I don’t love any flying with a bike method, but most of them work). Last time I toured with a Tardis I kept it with me for the whole tour. That’s one extra kg about the size of a ream of paper to carry around. It was OK, especially when it came to packing the bike, but I doubt I’d do it that way again. If you’re in/out of the same place, best to stash it somewhere.
Hey, so I’m flying tomorrow from Townsville-Adelaide, planning on taking the fixed home. It’s in a box, under 1.4m long. Flying with virgin. From what I can see, it should be fine to take that and another bag checked in with no extra cost, I did also call them and the bloke said it should be fine… but he was also not Australian and did seem to struggle to understand the concept a little.
Any help would be greatly appreciated, cheers.