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Tags: Checked Baggage Fees / Delta / JetBlue / Baggage Fees / Southwest Airlines / US Airways / United / Continental / Airline Fees / → All Tags

Kayaks, Surfboards, and Antlers: How to Check 'Special Item' Luggage

Honestly we have enough trouble dealing with checking just one piece of luggage, so it’s difficult for us to imagine dealing with anything unique at the check-in counter. Surprisingly, airlines are pretty welcoming when it comes to your oversized bags, sports equipment, musical instruments, and anything else you might need to bring with you. However, it’s going to cost you a few extra bucks.

If you’ve got a big track and field meet coming up or just want to bring a nice present to Bruce Jenner, no need to worry about bringing your javelin on the airplane—it’s totally cool. It will need to be checked—no carrying it on please—and if you’re flying on Continental Airlines it will cost you the same as any other checked bag. American Airlines isn’t as friendly to javelin throwers, and they’ll charge $100 in addition to their usual checked bag fees. Vaulting poles aren’t allowed on American, but United will take up to two poles in a case for $175—at that point it might be worth just driving.

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Tags: Baggage Fees / Checked Baggage Fees / US Airways / Airline Fees / United / → All Tags

United Airlines and US Airways Happily Match Checked Bag Fee Hike to $25

WHEN WILL IT STOP?! Probably never, and that's our final answer.

This week's big airline news has been the abrupt increase in fees for your first checked bag, going from $20 to $25 on two airlines; first went Delta, then Continental, and now we add a third and fourth airline—United and US Airways. American is the last legacy carrier holding out and of course it probably won't take long for them because once there's blood in the water...

The United announcement was made late on Wednesday, and it took affect yesterday, with United charging $25 to check one bag at the airport and $35 for a second bag on flights within the United States, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and Canada. You can shave off a few measly dollars by checking it online and doing the airport bag drop for $23 for the first bag, and $32 for a second. What a rotten deal.

Now that we've been seeing these fees creep up over the last six months or so, we're no longer taken by surprise, but we can't say the same for leisure travelers and those who roll up to the airport with their bags, thinking that nothing has changed. These are the folks who will be hardest hit by the baggage fees, and who will be the most frustrated with check-in agents, so avoid waiting in line behind someone with lots of baggage of check, who maybe is also wearing Juicy Couture sweatpants.

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Tags: Nude Travel / Baggage Fees / Checked Baggage Fees / Naked Travel / → All Tags

Take a Nude Vacation to Avoid Airline Checked Baggage Fees

When we rant about our frustration with the steadily rising fees just to check one bag on airlines, we usually receive emails and comments of commiseration. But not this week! After we vented over Continental's decision to match Delta's $25 pricetag, we received a message from an organization that somewhat sides with the fees.

Of course, it's the American Association for Nude Recreation, and they're hoping that the checked baggage fees convince more travelers to leave the extra stuff behind and take a naked vacation, because packing for that usually requires no more than a small carry-on.

See what they have to say, after the jump...

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Southwest Celebrates 1 Million Twitter Followers, Will Keep Bags Flying Free

There's been a lot of action in the Southwest Airlines camp this week, and surprisingly, it's all positive.

First, with the NFL playoffs beginning, Southwest Air's "We Love Bags" ad campaign is on major replay, since they're the official airline sponsors of the NFL. With a message as strong as they've been pumping, you'd then think that folks would get the fact that with Southwest, bags fly free. But no.

And here we find the second news bit of the week for SWA. There were tons of rumors flying around Twitter and Facebook and various blogs yesterday that the airline was considering joining most other airlines in charging for checked bags. As it is now, Southwest and Jetblue are the last major holdouts. Concerned, we contacted our people at Southwest who affirm that "at this moment, Southwest has NO plans to start charging for bags." Well then that's settled.

And for the third announcement...

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Tags: Checked Baggage Fees / Airline Hell / Airline Fees / Baggage Fees / Travel Rants / Continental / → All Tags

Continental is Also Charging $25 for the First Checked Bag

We knew it was on the horizon but we didn't think it would happen this fast. But alas, it has. The grinchy folks at Continental have announced today that they have matched Delta's checked baggage fee increase to $25 for the first checked bag.

The complete details are here. It looks like there is no fee for the first checked bags on your international flights, but second bags will be charged $50. And while it does cost less to check-in online, it's a laughable difference—$23 versus $25. Usually, it's $5 less to check-in online. Sigh.

Get ready for some ranting now.

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Tags: Baggage Fees / Checked Baggage Fees / Airline Fees / Delta / → All Tags

Delta Now Demands $25 For Your First Checked Bag

We dubbed it "Biggest Travel Media Story of 2009" and it looks like the issue is here to stay: airline baggage fees. Making an attempt to follow the different levels of extra charges at each airline is futile, the fees change so often while new ones are added. But luckily, the brilliant folks at SmarterTravel have given it their best go with an ultimate guide to such fees.

As one of the biggest proponents of doing away with baggage fees altogether, even if it won't happen now that airlines have tested the fresh money, we are heartbroken yet again to hear that the fees are going up!

Will the extra fee madness ever end?!

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LuggageLimits.com Untangles The Absurd Web Of Baggage Fees

Even by the airline industry's new "charge for everything as many times as you can" standard, checked baggage fees are still absurdly complicated and expensive. Things have gotten to the point where airlines like United are letting passengers pay hundreds of dollars before they fly so they don't have to pay hundred of dollars when they fly, as if that makes sense. That's in between dozens of upgrades and conditions and levels that all affect fees in different tangled ways. Passengers today can be excused, then, for not having the first clue what's going on with luggage—something that new website LuggageLimits.com is set to change.

The ambitious new site is built around a central database that picks out what you can expect by matching your airline with your departure and arrival airports. Once you choose your airline, a bunch of general information gets displayed, both as a broad description and in boxes with specific information. At the top there's a drop-down box where for setting airline-specific ticket class, which reflects the idiosyncratic options of each company.

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United Will Personally Valet Your Luggage For $349

We're beginning to suspect that United has a full time brainstormer working on ways to monetize people's luggage issues. Hot on the heels of their $249 "free" baggage offer, the airline is offering door-to-door overnight shipping of anything passengers want sent ahead. The only caveat is that the service costs $149 per flight for trips less than 1,000 miles and $179 for flights that go over that.

The Wall Street Journal, discussing the new scheme, refers to United as a "pioneer" in imposing baggage fees. We sometimes muse similarly, though instead of "pioneer" we use what our therapist calls "anger words." Here's what the WSJ exactly said:

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Tags: Ryanair / LCCs / Low Cost Carriers / Airline News / Airline Fees / Checked Baggage Fees / Travel Deals / → All Tags

Ryanair Throws Huge Hissy Fit In Response To BBC Expose

Ryanair is in a very public, very heated, very crazy delicious feud with the BBC. The low cost carrier has taken exception to a BBC Panorama expose unpacking the airline's complex nickle and dime strategy for extracting airline fees. In response, Ryanair's the-customer-is-always-wrong CEO Michael O'Leary has blasted the program and unveiled a 1.1 million seat giveaway.

We were surprised Ryanair reacted so negatively to a discussion of their opaque fees. Usually they're so much more confident. Just a few weeks ago they were blustering about how their customers were free to explore other options if they had problems with the airline.

This is a company that's made a business model of brazenly abusing passengers, the implicit justification being that any alienated customers could always be replaced by other bargain seekers. "You'll take our abuse because you value your wallet more than your self-esteem" is practically the company's sneering motto.

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United's New $249 Checked Baggage Fee Equals Instant Loyalty

United Airlines is launching a new program that allows passengers to buy their way into Premier Baggage, essentially offering customers the opportunity to pay the airline's exorbitant baggage fees in one lump sum. Instead of United's unreasonable per flight fees, customers now have the option of paying $249 for a year-long fee waiver on their first and second checked bags, plus the bags of up to 8 companions traveling on their confirmation code.

We honestly can't make sense of this move. Anyone who flies United regularly enough to make this worthwhile already gets Premier from their miles. For this to make sense, you'd have to fly more than 15 times a year and check a bag every time. Unless you're just hop-scotching from LA to Vegas—in which case why are you flying United and why are you checking a bag—that easily gets you to 25,000 miles.

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United Adds $50 Second Bag Fee On Flights To Europe, $30 To Mexico

There'll be no more splurgy shopping trips to Europe for passengers on United with tickets purchased on or after Sept. 30 for travel on or after Dec. 15. The carrier, who just moved into some fancy digs in Chicago's Willis Tower (née Sears Tower), announced plans to begin charging for a second checked bag on international flights.

We can't even pretend to be surprised at this, since United's go to pay their bills and keep up appearances when other legacy carriers are charging for every little thing. The fee, a flat $50 for a second bag on flights to Europe and $30 for flights to Mexico and the Caribbean. Laying down a whole Ulysses S. Grant just so that you can bring back cheapy Carnevale masks from Venice and wooden clogs from Amsterdam seems quite a raw deal.

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Tags: Checked Baggage Fees / Airline Fees / Airline News / Frontier / Republic Airways / → All Tags

Frontier Airways Joins The Club, Raises Checked Baggage Fees

Frontier Airlines, having recently been acquired by Republic Airways, is wasting no time making their new owners some money. The airline is adjusting their baggage fees upwards and will now charge even for the first checked bag.

We're actually kind of pleased that we get to write this story; it's been a few hours since we posted about an airline raising its fees, and we were starting to get a little anxious:

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