Do most airlines still hammer with a fee? $50? $100? any way around it? any companies not charge?
I’ve got a hardshell bike box, been years since I flew anywhere and took a bike.
Have friends (non-exercisers) in Orlando/Clermont, want to head down there in the next couple months.
Probably need to do a sep post on where to run/ride/swim there, esp what’s the deal with the training center in Clermont, does a USAT membership get me anything there?
Do most airlines still hammer with a fee? $50? $100?
You’ll be doing well to get under $100. It’s carrier dependent. Delta and United were charging $175 - $200 each way at one point - leading to the ridiculous situation, depending on where you are flying to, of your bike costing more, then for you, and you get to seat in a seat on the plane!!!
Check the small print with whoever you are going to book your travel with, on the “Bikes” section of their luggage information and get ALL the information ahead of time,* before* you book/pay for any tickets.
Do not support in any way your travel business, airlines that have insane bike fees. It continues to perpetuate the foolishness of it all. Do support those airline that have reasonable bike travels fees. I would say that a fee in the $50 range is reasonable. I get it that it might be a bit more work to handle a bike, so $50 seems reasonable to me, but $175 - no, that’s crazy and a rip-off.
Southwest, if they have your route. It should be free. I just flew to SLC with skis, boots, a friend’d suitcase and a carry on: no charge. That made me happy!
yes, very carrier dependant. worth also checking to see if there are extra charges if your bike is overweight (i think this is usually set at 50lbs). then weight your bike at home and make sure it’s 50 or under. sometimes even a pound or two and they’ll charge you the extra fee.
i was with a girlfriend who was charged something around $300 on united for the bike plus the overweight charge.
bluepoint raises an excellent point - weight. if the entire box is over 50 lbs, not only will you get slapped with the bike fee, but an overweight fee as well. I have seen people frantically pulling shoes, helmets, whatever out of their bike boxes at the airport to get under 50 lbs.
I am Global Services w/ United and even at that level, I would still get slapped with $175 each way. Freakin’ insane.
I haven’t done this in quite awhile (I tend to ship my bike ahead now), but I had a pretty foolproof way to get out of the fees - “Oh, is that a bike?” “No, it is a wheelchair.” Agents get too flustered to ask another question, let alone ask why an obviously upright and mobile person would be transporting a wheelchair. But it almost always worked. Only got busted once.
Now, post 9-11, I dunno how wise it is to be lying about the contents of your luggage, but…
Southwest, if they have your route. It should be free. I just flew to SLC with skis, boots, a friend’d suitcase and a carry on: no charge. That made me happy!
I was in that area 2 years ago, and rented a decent quality road bike (Orbea I think) from a shop in Clermont
It cost less than flying with mine and more importantly I didn’t have to hassle with making sure the rental car would hold the bike case, packing & unpacking the bike, etc. I just brought my own pedals, computer, and an extra stem (rentals tend to have ridiculously short stems).
Not sure if you need a tri-bike specifically. They might rent those too. I don’t recall the shop name off-hand but could look.
Not as nice as “your own” bike, but just being in nice weather, I didn’t care. There are some nice routes in that area … even with some hills (not highway overpasses!) I did a number of different 60-90 mile rides on roads without too much traffic. The shop was very helpful in pointing out some routes.
Jetblue and Southwest are pretty good options at $50/bike/flight. Always check the airline’s policies on bike box size and weight before you fly, and print it out in case the agent tells you something different.
Is it? I checked before posting, did you check for something I haven’t seen? This is what the sports equipment section of their travel policy says:
Non-motorized Bicycles, including Bike Friday and Co-Pilot, will be accepted in substitution of a free piece of checked baggage at no additional charge provided the bicycle is properly packaged and the box containing the bicycle fits within the 62-inch sizing limit and weighs 50 lbs or less . (Maximum weight is 50 pounds and maximum size is 62 inches (length + width + height) per checked piece of luggage). The handlebars, kickstand, and pedals must be removed and placed inside the box. A $50.00 each-way charge applies to bicycles that don’t meet the above criteria. Bicycles packaged in a cardboard box or soft-sided case will be transported as a conditionally accepted item.
I read “accepted in substitution of a free piece of checked baggage at no additional charge” as no charge. Someone (can’t remember the name right now, look for travel case threads here) makes 2 bags which each are under the linear 62 inches limit for bike and wheels. So, check those two and have a carry-on: free.
You’ll be doing well to get under $100. It’s carrier dependent. Delta and United were charging $175 - $200 each way at one point - leading to the ridiculous situation, depending on where you are flying to, of your bike costing more, then for you, and you get to seat in a seat on the plane!!!
Check the small print with whoever you are going to book your travel with, on the “Bikes” section of their luggage information and get ALL the information ahead of time,* before* you book/pay for any tickets.
Do not support in any way your travel business, airlines that have insane bike fees. It continues to perpetuate the foolishness of it all. Do support those airline that have reasonable bike travels fees. I would say that a fee in the $50 range is reasonable. I get it that it might be a bit more work to handle a bike, so $50 seems reasonable to me, but $175 - no, that’s crazy and a rip-off.
I agree 100% with your post Steve. Charging $175 to travel with a bike is highway robbery. We need to speak with our wallets on this one.
I have flown London Heathrow to LAX via either MSP or DTW and have NEVER been charged by Delta for the 4 or 5 times I have done it (3 times in 2010). Until flying back and checking in at LAX last week, some miserable check in lady charged me $200. It’s not like a) my bike weighs a lot in fact it’s well under the weight limit and b) I only had a duffel as my other checked bag, which was also well under the weight limit. I feel a strongly worded letter to Delta coming on. Delta recently put it up as it was meant to be $100 one way reduced if you were Silver/Gold/Plat etc. (I checked when I first flew my bike out). As a silver elite traveler I got no discount. It annoys me as the handlers at Heathrow if you have a 2 checked bag allowance and only check ONE and it’s overweight let it slide on the fact it’s only one bag.
They also now put ‘bike’ on the printed luggage label so everyone who sees it knows it’s a bike and now even more prone to being pinched.
I now have to pay to have the privalidge of enjoying all my sports (surfing, wakeboarding, snowboarding, tri) in another country - this has also stopped me doing other competitions in other countries this season - I’ve now limited to within driving/boat distance. The airlines need to be lobbied to change this charge. I don’t understand what paying $200 gets me - they still chuck my bike around.
Good news on Southwest, as I’ll fly them twice this year while transporting my bike.
Alaska, JetBlue, Frontier, and AirTran all charge $50 each way. Frontier has its hub at Denver, my home airport, so that and Southwest dominate my choices. Any carrier charging more than $50 each way can go piss up a rope.
Also, it’s all in the question you’re asked. The people at Denver invariably ask, “Is that a bike?” I’m a terrible liar so I’m going to be honest every time. Even if I’m lucky enough to get asked “What’s in the box?” I’ll still probably tell the truth.