Checking Luggage

I hate carrying anything on a plane. Always check whatever I have.

I also do not do connections. If I can't go non-stop from Newark, I don't go.

 

I generally avoid checking luggage, especially when I'm outbound. Aside from the risk of lost baggage, you have more flexibility should your flight plans change for whatever reason (flight gets canceled, you want to take earlier flight, etc.)

 

Someone (maybe me) will eventually win some crazy litigation over the new regulations being totally discriminatory against women. When I file, it will be for $3,110,000.

There's just no way any woman with a shred of pride can fit the hair junk, shower junk, personal toiletries, etc into that fucking little bag. I mean, at what point can they agree to be completely reckless and go for the gallon sized Ziplocs?

There is no doubt in my mind, the Ziploc people are behind the whole airport terror thing.

 

That's also why I check. Hell, 3 ounces of shampoo won't even last me for three days, let alone five.

 

It really depends on the length of my trip. The majority of the time I fly I will be gone for at least 3-days. For those, I can usually have a carry on. But for those other trips, I have to check it in.

 

Boy, does this topic light a fire for me.

I was going to meet my girlfriend's parents for the first time for a weekend visit; the two of us were going to her sister's wedding. So all I brought was one bag. I thought the bag was small enough to fit in the overhead compartment, so I brought it with me. Turns out, it was a little too big, so the stewardess removed it from the plane. Well, the airline lost my bag. So, not only did I lose my clothes and my toiletries, but gone was the engangement ring I was going to give my girlfriend that weekend. I'm panicking.

Well, the weekend kind of just went downhill from there. I ended up getting the wrong suitcase delivered -- filled with erotic tools; I gave the bride-to-be a black eye during a fierce volleyball game; I lost the family cat; then I got another cat to buy me some time until I could find the real one, but the fraud ended up ruining the bride's wedding dress; and I set the altar on fire while grabbing a quick smoke on the roof; but not before the septic tank flooded the back yard (where the wedding was going to be) because I flushed a faulty toilet.

Oh, man. What a mess. From now on, I refuse to check my bags.

 

Thank you, Gaylord.

 

I'll be watching you, Focker.

 

Please, call me Greg.

 

I'm of the opposite mindset of most posters to this thread. I'd much rather deal with the hassle of taking my suitcase with me through the airport than risk it vanishing -- or wait around to pick it up after the flight.

I just flew in one o' those little planes, and I gate-checked my suitcase. (It rolls on a normal-sized plane and fits in the overhead bin without a problem.) At least then I could watch it get thrown onto the cart -- and even up the ramp onto the plane on one leg of my trip. I felt a lot more comfortable that way than if I'd handed it off to a gate agent.

 

The last time I checked luggage was 1993. Not that I dread losing it ... I don't like the hassle of both checking it and picking it up. When I land I want to get the hell where I'm going.

 

Once again, 21, we are on the same page with the airline bullshit. Completely discriminatory.

If I'm going to be gone just a few days, I can get away with carry-on luggage. I've invested in a whole slew of non-liquid toiletries and makeup just for this purpose (note to other women: get the "just add water" facial cloths and baby body wash cloths, that will save you a ton of space).

But if it's more than three days and there are multiple events involved (say, going to a ball game AND going to a wedding), I need a bigger bag for, at the very least, multiple pairs of shoes. And I'm not even a shoe freak, but I recognize that I can't wear the same pair the entire time.

And one other note: products like contacts and contact-related items are exempt from the ziploc rule. You should be able to keep those separate and free up space in the ziploc.

EDIT: the travel website www.flight001.com has great carry-on alternatives, like paper soap and paper shaving cream. Just click on the "Carry-on Approved" image.