Travel

Packing Light: Beating The Airlines' Baggage Fees

Posted: 8/19/2010

Traveling light can help you avoid baggage fees.

(NAPSI) - It's come down to The Battle of The Baggage Fees. And if you're a consumer--make that a savvy consumer--know that you really can beat the airlines at their own game.

To make up for low revenue, airlines have been raising the fees they charge for baggage--in the case of one "ultra-low-cost" carrier, at least, even recently taking heat in Washington for announcing a new charge of as much as $45 for carry-ons. "The decision could spur other airlines to impose a similar fee," warned one New York senator who immediately introduced a tongue-twister piece of legislation called the Block Airlines' Gratuitous Fees Act last April to try to keep the practice from spreading.

Needless to say, travelers are miffed. According to a new Consumer Reports survey, "luggage charges" was Americans' No. 1 "gripe" about flying. (They also weren't thrilled with "puny snacks," but that's another story.)

To avoid paying more than necessary, try these tips:

• Retire your wheeled bags. All that extra hardware means you might as well be carrying a sign that says "Will Pay More to Fly." Most airlines now charge a fee of $15 for your first checked bag, according to AOL, but that could rise to $39 to $175 if it's overweight.

• Dress like you're homeless. Not to be glib, but since airlines don't restrict the weight of your clothes or items on your person--at least not yet--layer on your heaviest garments instead of packing them. And use your pockets.

• Obtain serene simplicity. Recessionistas were definitely on to something when they made it chic to buy beauty products that do double duty, though admittedly they were more concerned with saving money at the beauty counter than the weigh-in scale. No matter. There's now a razor that does triple duty--lathers, shaves and moisturizes in one easy step. With the Schick Intuition Plus, you'll save space in your travel bag since there's no need for separate shave gel (www.schick.com). It boasts four blades, surrounded by a skin-moisturizing solid, so you're also getting a smooth shave backed with ingredients such as aloe, vitamin E, shea butter, and now antioxidant-rich pomegranate extract.

• Ship it. Weird as it sounds, it can turn out to cost less to have an overweight bag sent ahead via a delivery service. Do the math.

• Pay baggage fees online. If you're smart, you already know how to search for the lowest fares on the Web. So with some airlines hitting you up for more in baggage fees at the airport than online, why pay even a few dollars more?

Still doubt it's war?

Yet another poll--this one done by TripAdvisor--found that 36 percent of flyers used only carry-ons in order to avoid checked baggage fees.

Can you say the Block Airlines' Gratuitous Fees Act three times fast?

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