The Great Airline Luggage Rip-off

Other than the price of the trip, luggage has always been one of the most single important purchases that you make.

In times gone by, luggage was a standard item on the wedding list of most couples - so that when you went away on honeymoon and subsequent trips, your beautifully matched luggage would be the envy of everyone at the luggage carousel, marking you out as travellers of distinction.

Sadly, beautifully matching luggage, has never really been something I have owned, much to my wife's annoyance, for when travelling anywhere with our multi coloured, multi- brand, multi size assortment of cases she has always told me that she feels like she is a "bit of bag lady".

That may be a little harsh, as normally our luggage is good quality - even if it is non-matching. Recently, however, all the paramenters of luggage requirements have changed and have made choice of luggage, once again, one of the most crucial factors in any trip.

If like so many travellers nowadays much of your travelling is done on "low cost airlines" (and I used the words advisedly) then unless you have planned well  - and bought well in the luggage department - even the cheapest case can turn out to be one of the dearest purchases you will make.

The increasingly devious routes that the budget airlines now employ to part us from more and more of our hard earned money have meant, frankly outrageous luggage allowances are often the norm for most .... and the penalties for breaching the allowances can only be decribed as "swingeing".

Ryanair, who seem to be the most adept at turning budget flying on its head, give each traveller a mighty generous 15kilo per person hold baggage allowance - for which you pay £10/€10 for your first bag per one way flight.

You have the option of a second and third bag per flight for an extra £20/€20 EACH - but do not make the expensive mistake of thinking this will increase your luggage allowance. NOT ONE BIT. Your total luggage allowance is STILL 15 kilos, and once you stray above that, you will be asked to pay £15/€15 per additional kilogramme.

At which point you might think "so how much exactly does my luggage weigh?" - you will, like me, probably be mighty surprised when you undertake this little excercise.

Up until recently, my family actually owned three very nice, good quality, suitcases (1 black, 1 green, 1 red...) One is an extra large 100 litre capacity number, and one is medium sized while the other is a fantastic quality item that expands everywhere, has all sorts of wonderful compartments and is virtually bullet proof. At its smallest size it is actually carry on - if you travel business class - which my wife is often fortunate enough to do. The three cases have a combined weight 20.9 kilos.

So, if I needed all three to make a journey, then if I went with Ryanair my suitcases would cost me £140 each way BEFORE I EVEN PUT ANYTHING IN THEM!!!!!

All in all, it's pretty sobering stuff. Even more so, when you see harrassed individuals, couples and families being asked to fork out gobsmackingly large amounts of cash to get their luggage to their destination. It is an easy trap to fall into and tears at check-in are an increasingly common occurance. I vividly remember having to lend a family of friends more than £120 (in addition to a larger amount they had on them in cash) to help stem the waterworks and ensure their cases returned home from Spain when they fell fowl of the "luggage police". A great way to start or finish what is supposed to be a highlight of your year!

Welcome, therefore, to the new reality - where the number one rule for luggage is :
"Buy Big, Buy Light."

"Light" - it goes without saying, because you want as little of your luggage allowance as possible to be taken up with the weight of the case and "Big" because you obviously don't want to have to go to a second case if you can possibly avoid it, as its weight alone will just eat up your luggage allowance. So, it is worth buying oversize, and short packing it (even if you have to get some bubble wrap to stop things sloshing around) because the  increase in the empty weight of a 100 litre case over a 65 litre case, is marginal.

Of course, if you still want a set of matching you might decide to have one of each. 

In fairness to the luggage companies, most have now woken up to this new sales opportunity and many offer  "lightweight" or even "superlight" luggage at reasonable prices. It is more than possible to get a 100 litre case weighing in at under five kilos - and some even come in at around four. "Titan" seem to be specialists in paring down wight to a minimum but even the top end manufacturers such as Samnsonite and Antler now have their offerings. A brief internet search will give you lots of choice - and if you don't see a weight quoted, steer well clear - unless can you verify how heavy it is by some other means. Some of the more clued-in websites are even offering luggage scales as part of the deal (something certainly worth having, for peace of mind).

Also, check out what the airlines will offer you in terms of carry-on allowance. To their credit, Ryanair, for instance, do give you a 10kg allowance for hand luggage - so it is worth packing as much of the heavy stuff as possible to carry on (and then get training on those weights at the gym!)

If you are a summer or winter sports person, then look carefully at what you are likely to be charged for your sporting equipment and what weight limits apply. In fact, if you do have a set of skis or a snowboard, a surf board or scuba gear then check out a good lightwieght piece of specialised luggage to carry your gear in, one which will allow you to pack lots of other stuff around the sporting item in question. You will have to pay to carry your sporting gear with all budget airlines, but it is odds-on that this excercise will work out to be cheaper (and probably by a significant amount) than paying those excess luggage penalties on your "normal" checked-in baggage.

We recently bought some Lokke bags to go skiing with. They are incredibly lightweight, have proved very tough so far, (one of them is two separate-able bags that combine into one - so you have saved £20 with Ryanair before you even board!) and best of all, from Mrs M's perspective, they are smart and they match. We just couldn't buy enough of them (quite literally, as the importers couldn't get any more for months, and we had bought the last two, apparently!). Lokke also do great ski and 'board holders, with lots of space for other stuff.

Ultimately, if you haven't bought any luggage in the last few years, it should prove a sound investment to do so soon (or when the next sales come around), as it will  probably save you money and possibly even tears at future check-ins. Before you go luggage crazy, however, one word of advice. Check out all the airlines flying to your destination and see if a scheduled carrier, of the traditional kind, works the route of your choice, or even an acceptable alternative one.

Earlier this year, I flew to Geneva from London on a ski trip. Booking about five months in advance I paid about £15 more with British Airways than the best "low cost" fare I could find. For that I got a reserved seat, refreshments on the flight, a weight allowance of  23 kilograms for checked in baggage and my ski boots carried free of charge in addition to my other luggage (it could even have been skis, if I had them) and no obscenely high charges for paying by credit card.

I think that I have come to terms with looking at luggage in a completely new light. I am now left pondering, however,  who can justifiably nowadays be called the "value" airlines?

3 June 2009