Over the years as baggage fees increased on almost every airline, we may look for ways to see how we can avoid baggage fees when traveling. Because who wants to spend on baggage fees when you can spend it at your destination? These fees can really start to add up especially if you travel often or are even traveling to many places on one trip. $30 here and $50 there will already start to add up to a one-way or even round-trip flight somewhere! So here are some ways how you can avoid baggage fees when traveling or at least lower the costs:
1 – Know The Airline Policies
The best way to avoid baggage fees when traveling is to know which airline you have chosen and their policies surrounding baggage fees. Some airlines allow for a free personal item and free carry-on baggage and even a free first checked bag when you do a long haul flight, while others charge right from the get-go such as smaller, no-frills airlines like Flair, Frontier, Spirit and Swoop. Be sure to know the type of airline you’re flying with and to stay within their baggage policies so you don’t end up paying more than you expected to.
Some flights’ base tickets are super cheap compared to their counterpart tickets and this is because these are usually low-cost carriers who eliminate many of the traditional services with this kind of ticket price. You end up having to pay individually for your carry-on and checked bags, plus these baggage fees typically cost more than other airline carriers.
Usually for North American Airlines, personal items are between 16 to 18.5 inches on the longest side, but I’ve definitely gone over (with an extra-large duffel) and never had any issues. As long as it’s a duffel or soft baggage without wheels, you seem to be able to get away with it. Although lately, Air Canada has become more strict with even their carry-on sizes. Even though my carry-on baggage always fits in the overhead compartments of all planes I’ve been on, Air Canada sometimes makes you do a baggage check in those baggage sizers and if it doesn’t fit there specifically, then they won’t let you bring it on board and you have to check it in. So, if you don’t need to go to the check-in counter for any reason, bypass it and you shouldn’t have a problem once you get to your gate. That has been my experience so far! I also always put my personal item under my seat even if it’s a duffel bag because I need easy access to personal things. This is up to you though as some people prefer to have more legroom and you also need to consider how much space you’re willing to sacrifice for your personal item. Also, keep in mind to be considerate of other passengers as many times I see jackets and tiny bags or laptop bags being put up there and flight attendants end up asking to take them down so people can actually put their carry-on baggage above. It’s just common sense and common courtesy!
With European Airlines, personal items are between 13 to 17.5 inches on the longest side so remember to check the airline policies before you board your plane to make sure all of your baggage are within their restrictions so you don’t have to pay additional fees. Across all airlines throughout the world, it seems that currently, the minimum sizing for personal items is 13 inches on the longest side up to 18.5 inches which ranges between 8 to 50 litres in size for reference.
Also, once you actually get on the plane, I also find that it’s not too much of a big deal how much you have. For example, I usually pack a purse in a backpack which I put in a duffel bag which is also my personal item. And once I’m on the plane, I like to take my backpack or purse out of my duffel and have it out with me. I’ve been on many different plane rides like this and haven’t had an issue. I also don’t take up anyone else’s space or use additional overhead compartments and keep my items in my designated space so that could also be why. But I pack my personal item to the brim and sometimes it barely closes so it’s just more comfortable to remove my backpack or purse and have the peace of mind that I can actually close my duffel bag to make sure nothing falls out.
2 – Use Carry-On Baggage And Pack Light
My favorite way to avoid baggage fees when traveling as well as for personal convenience to not have to wait at baggage claim and speed up the time for me to start my trip is to use carry-on luggage. As most airlines include free carry-on luggage, you can save a bit of money there if you can pack light! For the most part, I prefer to wear have one or two outfits per day and not re-wear my clothes. Luckily, my clothing is quite small so I’m able to fit quite a lot in my carry-on.
For my upcoming trip to Japan, I was originally going to take checked luggage but for convenience’s sake of having to travel to many different cities and not having to wait at baggage claim at different airports, I ended up putting everything into a carry-on and a personal item. I could fit 20 outfits, 4 pairs of shoes, and many other things including my camera equipment, beauty products, and even a blanket. I know some people aren’t able to fit so much, so I also suggest packing a capsule wardrobe with different clothing articles that you can interchange and create a variety of different outfits. Packing neutrals and layers that you can re-wear with different outfits over the duration of your trip can also help you with packing light.
3 – Remember To Check Your Luggage Weight
As you should have familiarized yourself with your airline policies, once you have finished packing your luggage, weigh your luggage so you know if you are over or under the weight limit before you get to the airport. You don’t want to get to the airport and realize that your luggage is overweight so you either have to leave some things behind or end up paying for checked or oversized/overweight luggage which means you’ll be incurring additional costs. Doing this before we even leave the house has really helped us make sure we’re never over the limits and avoid any unwanted or additional baggage fees that the airline attendants may charge when they see your bags.
If you plan to buy souvenirs or other items that you plan to bring back from your trip, remember to leave some room or pack an extra duffel bag in case you want to check one luggage on the way back. I always do this just in case I end up buying more than expected and so that I don’t have to buy another piece of luggage while I’m abroad. And if I do end up checking something in, it’ll only be one piece of luggage.
4 – Wear Your Larger Articles Of Clothing On The Plane
To save some space, I always like wearing my larger articles of clothing on the plane. This would include a winter jacket (or jackets in general), boots, or even a heavier sweater or hoodie. Luggage space is precious and one of these larger clothing articles can take up a lot of real estate that you don’t want to waste. Wearing these items allows you to pack more of what you need for your vacation and ensure that you can pack enough of it when you are mindful of how you pack. I’m sure you have heard of many people wearing several layers of their clothing on the plane just because they don’t have enough space in their luggage. I don’t know how they deal with the heat and possibly the weight, but when you need to bring certain items with you and want to avoid baggage fees when traveling, I guess it’s worth doing!
5 – Sometimes You Can Check Your Luggage For Free At The Gate (Carry-On Only)
If you read the first point of this blog post, make sure to bypass checking in at the desk. Have your ticket ready on your phone or printed at a kiosk and head through security (and sometimes customs) and to your gate instead. If you have carry-on luggage with you, a lot of the time the gate agent will allow you to check your bags for free since everyone is trying to avoid baggage fees when traveling so they want to clear up more space for the overhead compartments. In fact, it is even encouraged by them to check in your carry-on at the gate with so many people opting for just a carry-on these days.
If you were planning to check in your carry-on luggage anyway and want to be hands-free during your flight, this is great since you can check in your carry-on luggage for free once you get to the gate instead of paying at the check-in counter. There were also so many times when I didn’t want to check in my carry-on but I was forced to by the gate agent because they already assumed there were no overhead compartments left, so sometimes you actually don’t have a choice about it!
6 – Sign Up For A Travel Credit Card
One of my favorite things about travel credit cards is that there are a lot of travel perks that come with them such as getting a free checked bag depending on who their airline partner is. And this perk also applies to those you travel with so everyone gets a first checked baggage for free. In Canada, I’ve been using the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Credit Card as well as the Brim Financial credit card and have had a great time collecting points and cashback for travel. Travel credit cards with perks like these usually have an annual fee, but I like to look out for these credit cards when they’re having a promotion and are waiving the first year’s annual fee so that you essentially end up avoiding paying anything out of pocket. Along with free checked baggage, travel credit cards can even cover your NEXUS Trusted Traveler fees, get additional points for travel, travel insurance, free airport lounge access, and much more. In the end, I really think it’s worth it to get so many bonuses including free travel so it’s a great idea to see what kind of credit cards your country offers and what best fits your needs.
7 – Buy A Premium Ticket
Lastly, to avoid baggage fees when traveling, you can book a premium ticket and fly Business or First Class. These tickets allow you to have better seats at the front of the plane, food and drinks, as well as free checked bags. It would of course be more money for more perks and comfort, but you can also just upgrade your economy seat with points if you collect them with the airline you’re flying with and end up saving a lot of money that way! A lot of people prefer to fly better seats by using points or even bidding for these seats at a much lower price than just straight-up booking Business or First Class. So it’s always a good idea to create a member account with each airline that you end up flying with just in case you fly with them more often than you think, these points can really start to rack up!
If You Really Need To Pay For Your Baggage, Reduce The Fees!
If you have no choice but to pay for your checked luggage, you can reduce the fees you pay by paying ahead of time online and before you get to the airport since you can get a small discount this way. Also with discount airlines, such as flying with Flair Airlines, you can buy a combo to have a carry-on and a check-in luggage for cheaper than buying them separately. Since my husband and I were flying together and I only had a carry-on and he had check-in luggage, it made more sense to put my carry-on under his name to get the combo discount.
So as you can see, there are many ways you can avoid baggage fees when traveling or at least reduce the fees you have to pay so that you can use your money towards your things that really matter on your vacation!
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