Thursday 3 March 2016

Heavy luggage: When is it worthwhile to ship them?


You might be packing apparatus for a demo or maybe a winter holiday, and you notice your luggage will no doubt tip the scales.

Do you have to plunk down the cash airline companies request when luggage is too heavy, or mail your weighty luggage in its place?

Thoughts are pretty powerful, whatever side that you come down on.

"In the instance that it is just five lbs overweight, you might want to get rid of five pounds and place it all in your bag," says George Hobica of Airfarewatchdog.com. "However in most cases, it will likely be less pricey to ship it. There are not many (occasions) where it's more advantageous to pay the airline companies, considering that the overweight charges are rather onerous now."

As outlined by an airline comparison done by Airfarewatchdog, overweight baggage rates on domestic flights may soar as much as $200 one way for a bag between 71 and 100 pounds.

United Airlines, for instance, charged $100 for a bag weighing approximately 51 to 70 pounds on domestic flights as of late March, $200 for luggage weighing 71 to 99.9 pounds, and $400 on most worldwide routes.

Spokesperson Rahsaan Johnson states that charges are " competitive with what shipping organizations charge for items of comparable weight and size."

However Richard Yamarone, an economist who resides in Maplewood, N.J., says shipping is usually more affordable, and it's what he usually favors.

"Mail away your head ache," says Yamarone, who journeys frequently for work, as well as to pursue his hobby of fly fishing. "The comparatively cost effective of mailing heavy stuff, equipment, clothes, boots and outerwear is definitely worth (it). All you need to do is get on the aeroplane along with your iPhone, with the knowledge that everything's awaiting you in the room or lodge. That's peace of mind, and worth just about any price.

United parcel service angles it's prices on an item's weight, how far it's going and the transport method the sender chooses, which include ground vs. air service.

Its internet cost calculator will help travelers establish the best selection, which possibly consists of planning to ship the suitcase a long time before your journey, and selecting ground shipping.

"Naturally, if you must over night anything, that costs a lot more than ground shipment," states Chelsea Lee, speaker for The UPS Store.

However, she says, "assuming you are able to make plans, or perhaps recognise you generally have a weighty bag, you'll have a cost savings as an alternative to paying the oversize cost. A couple of days in advance could mean substantial financial benefits."

Travellers could have their baggage delivered to their locations, Lee states. Or possibly, they could consider one of UPS's luggage boxes, that can come in two capacities. Travellers can easily place their suitcase inside the container, or package his or her's clothes and personal items right inside, economizing on weight, given that an empty suitcase, normally, weighs in at Ten pounds. The luggage bins, in comparison, weigh somewhere around 3 or 4 lbs, states Lee.

Sending the tiny luggage box, which is able to hold up to 55 lbs, by ground out of Los Angeles to Nyc, will be $79.55, Lee says, and it would cost $47.99 to send out the identical package from Chicago to New York.

A massive luggage box, which can hold up to Eighty five lbs, normally would cost the sender $102.75 for ground delivery from L . A . to New York, and $76.15 from Chicago to Nyc.

Federal express is an additional delivery service replacement, with large puncture-resistant plastic bags to hold luggage, even a special box for golf clubs.

"If you know you've got your family vacation," says FedEx spokesman Scott Fiedler, and "you know everything that your family needs, especially if you have children, (FedEx) might be something to look into."

Tony Tillman, who travels the country training businesses on software and lives in Burbank, Calif., says that he makes a decision on whether to ship or check heavy luggage based on when he needs it and how much it'll cost him.

"Sometimes, shipping is cheaper than airline fees, and sometimes, it's not," Tillman says, adding that shipping becomes a personal expense, since his employer won't pick up the cost.

Still, if he's got some extra clothing or shoes that send his bags over the 50-pound mark, when overweight fees usually kick in, he'll often opt for UPS or FedEx ground.

"If I'm paying $90 at the airline to have this extra bag or extra weight," he says, "I'd rather just have it where I can write it off as a business expense," he says.

But Michael Gregurich, another frequent business traveler, says shipping bags isn't worth the hassle.

"Even though excess weight charges are extraordinary, the challenges with mailing bags still is greater," says Gregurich, a sales director who lives in Manitowoc, Wis.

Shipping, he says, becomes a problem if he wants to pack an extra item at the last minute or needs to retrieve something from his suitcase.

Clarissa Cervantes, a photographer and researcher who lives and works in Beverly Hills, says that her equipment has often made her luggage heavy, along with all the souvenirs she tends to buy when she travels overseas. Still, she'd rather deal with the airline fees than ship.
"I've looked at the price; it's just not worth it," she says. "It takes more work, and it's not as convenient as having the airline (transport the bags) for you."

As for those overweight baggage fees, Cervantes says she's found a solution - a luggage scale. If her bag goes over the 50-pound mark, she shifts items into her purse and carry-on to get the number down.

"Since I had that (scale), I've never had to pay any extra fees," Cervantes says. "It was a little investment ... but it saves you, in the long run, a lot of money."

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