European luggage - how strict are they with carry ons

[TXTransplant]

We have the "Delsey" brand international carry on size, and I would highly recommend. They can be found at Macy's, if there's one close you. They've held up well over many years of travel.

Please write a trip report when you get home! I loved your Germany report and this trip is one we're considering for next year, so I'm really interested in how you and your son like it.

I was looking at the Delsey brand bags. I haven't made it to my local Macy's to see what they have in the store. But Zappos sells them, too, and I qualify for one day shipping there. I'll check back and look at the ones specifically called "international".

 

[sayhello]

Sayhello, what bag did you get? Brand and "size"?

Mine wasn't cheap, but I've never regretted the splurge. Holds a ton, but is very light weight, and within international measurements. Has a life-time full warranty.

Briggs & Riley Torq International Carry-On Wide-body Spinner

http://www.ebags.com/product/briggs...n-wide-body-spinner/275137?productid=10307683

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

I was looking at the Delsey brand bags. I haven't made it to my local Macy's to see what they have in the store. But Zappos sells them, too, and I qualify for one day shipping there. I'll check back and look at the ones specifically called "international".

Macy's has 2 Delsey hard-sided International carry-ons on sale. I've had Delsey before, and they're a good brand.

http://www1.macys.com/shop/search?keyword=delsey+international+carry-on

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

Is anyone else having issues with links in posts not working?

Sayhello

 

[Karin1984]

The size isn't your biggest problem, especially not now that you looked up the measurements. But ever since there are baggage fees to be paid, people tend to put more and more stuff in their carry-ons. This is not a problem on longhaul flights, but it is on European flights as the planes are indeed much smaller. There isn't room for every passenger to bring a trolley.

My advice, for any flight on a small plane: Make sure you board early, they rarily ask people to have their trolleys moved to the checked-in bags once they are in the overhead bins. If you are 'late' and there is no room for a trolley anymore, the flight attendant will move it to checked-in and it will be returned to you when you leave the plane.

This doesn't come with extra fees, but if you have valuables in your trolley which don't fit in your personal item, then there might still be a problem stowing away all your belongings.

 

[TXTransplant]

Macy's has 2 Delsey hard-sided International carry-ons on sale. I've had Delsey before, and they're a good brand.

http://www1.macys.com/shop/search?keyword=delsey+international+carry-on

Sayhello

So in case anyone is curious, that Delsey Helium Shadow is terrible! The main compartment is tiny because it has an outside laptop/easy access compartment in the front that encroaches on the main compartment and takes up way too much room. The Delsey Heium Titanium one is much roomier, but they didn't have the 19" in the store (and the sales guy said he hasn't even been able to order any and thinks they have been discontinued).

But the good news is, I found a 19" Samsonite that is super roomy in the main compartment. I'm going to go ahead and get it, compare it to my dad's bag, and if I decide not to use it will return it. Just wanted to post my review in case anyone else is luggage shopping.

 

[sayhello]

My advice, for any flight on a small plane: Make sure you board early, they rarily ask people to have their trolleys moved to the checked-in bags once they are in the overhead bins. If you are 'late' and there is no room for a trolley anymore, the flight attendant will move it to checked-in and it will be returned to you when you leave the plane.

The one you have to watch out for is Delta. It's been my experience lately that they do not return your gate checked bags to you plane-side when you exit the plane. They will return it to you with your checked bags through baggage claim at your final destination. So if you have a long layover you could be without your carry-on for a long time.

Also be sure to have a lock for your carry-on, just in case you have to let it out of your possession to have it gate-checked.

Sayhello

 

[Rapunzellover]

Yep, Delta did that to me, Sayhello. So has United.

 

[Woodview]

We leave in a week for Italy. I'm booked on KLM, leaving from Houston with stops in Amsterdam. I really want to do two carry-on suitcases (one for each of us), and just yesterday had the sense to check the size guidelines.

So, their max carry-on size is 55 cm (tall) x 25 cm (deep) x 35 cm (wide). I'm pretty sure the "size" of my two carry-ons is 55 cm (21"); however, this completely depends on how I measure. The size of the "box" is 21", but if I take it all the way from the tip of the wheel to the top of the handle, it's over 21".

Any insight on how this will be measured at the airport? Should I just suck it up and go buy two new suitcases that I'm certain are shorter than 21"?

I didn't have this issue when we traveled to Germany last year because we flew United non-stop, so US luggage restrictions applied. I know European airlines sometimes have stricter requirements.

To TXTransplant


As well as the size measurements There is the MAX Weight to think about

They Will check for both size & Weight ( 10 kg ) IF it looks heavy .

1 carry on per person + 1 computer bag is allowed



Remember you will be changing aircraft in Amsterdam ....... with a long walk .....but level ..... to get to next aircraft


TIP .... use the FREE hand Carts . usually parked at entrance to Airbridge.

TIP ..... on Homeward journey BUY your DUTY FREE in Amsterdam

 

[anonymousegirl]

I second the post about weight. Sometimes it is as low as 7kg, and I have seen the checkers come by with a hand scale to weigh the bags. If the bag passes as underweight, the checker attaches a bag tag that says CABIN BAG PASSED or something like that.

 

[Cinderella's Slipper 2015]

I have a Ricardo Beverly Hills carry on bag. This is what it looks like

It has a built in lock.

 

[TXTransplant]

I have a Ricardo Beverly Hills carry on bag. This is what it looks like

It has a built in lock.

The carry-ons I want to bring are Ricardo BH. Not hard-sided, but I LOVE them! I'm so bummed they are too big

 

[TXTransplant]

I'm not worried about weight. Between the two of us, we are allowed 50 lbs of carry on crap. We won't exceed that.

 

[Woodview]

For Internal European Flights


For checked in Baggage that goes into aircraft hold it is 25 kg per person


For Internal overhead Bins it is 10 kgs per item & you must be able to lift it into the bin yourself

Exceed these limits ........ look around at check in desks ...... and you will have to Re adjust your

luggage OR leave some items behind .

 

[Cinderella's Slipper 2015]

My carrier only allows 8kg in carry on bags.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

It's the short-route, budget, or internal European flights that can get you. A couple of years ago on a trip with a friend I had the unfortunate experience of learning the hard way that even if you are flying internationally you can still get hit by the draconian carry-on bag rules of some Airlines. We were flying SFO to GLA on Aer Lingus through Dublin. Normal international rules apply for checked bags (in other words you get a free checked bag), BUT for carry-on bags, because we were on one of their regional planes out of Dublin (Stobart Air) we were hit with its carry on requirement. According to the AL website it is ONE bag--not one carry on and one personal item, just one bag--of 7kg (15lbs) with very weird dimensions 18.5x13x8. https://www.aerlingus.com/travel-information/baggage-information/cabin-baggage/ There are a few bags on Amazon now that are close to those dimensions, but a couple years ago there was literally nothing. In the US at least. When we were in Glasgow we went shopping and found a bag that fit. The Aer Lingus experience really sucked. That is a huge reduction from normal International carryon limits (i.e. 21-22" inch bag plus one personal item). I've also had Air France pull my carry on and force me to check it on one of their regional planes--I was traveling premium, too!

This thread inspired me to go through our flights to and from our ABD Greece (with a Scotland trip) in a few weeks. It was a total nightmare as we are flying miles (so different airlines there and back) and have an internal flight in the middle. The email I sent to my husband shows what I mean:

TO GREECE:
—United ticketed flights: United plane to Frankfurt; Lufthansa plane to Athens.
—Bags: we are allowed the normal allotment on the United flight—1 free check, 1 normal size carryon (no weight) and one small item 9"x10”x17 (slightly different than BA). But we could have problems on the connection flight with the carryons. Lufthsana allows a carry on and a personal item, but the carry on weight is MUCH less at 8kg (17.5 lbs). Dimensions are slightly smaller than normal (21.5 x 15.7 x 7.8 Inches).
—So we have to worry about the weight of our big carryons on our way. Big carryons can’t weigh more than 17.5 lbs.

GREECE TO EDINBURGH:
—British Air ticket/British Air flights:
—Checked bag size: 35.5in x 29.5in x 16in; carry on bag size normal 22in x 18in x 10in without real weight restriction. Handbag/laptop bag: 16in x 12in x 6in
—No worries on this one. Yay BA!

EDINBURGH to SFO:
—Aer Lingus flight ticketed by Aer Lingus (boys) & United Tickets flights; operated by Aer Lingus (girls)
—checked bag: normal: up to 50lbs and Maximum dimensions (length + width + height) = 158 cm (62”). Problem is carryon. Technically NO personal item (purse etc) and much smaller carryon than normal size. [see explanation above] We could end up having to check our carryons which would incur $115 extra per person! The dimensions of the carry on: Max weight 7kg (15lb) • Max size of 48cm H (18.5") x 33cm W (13") x 20cm D (8”).
—So biggest worry is the carryons on the way back—only ONE in total allowed (no personal item), odd size, and not much weight.

See what I mean? Ridiculous to have to go through all this. The US has a great policy requiring airlines to follow certain rules on flights to/from US but it doesn't cover carry ons. Anyway, I think what we are going to do is take a couple carry on bags that we can check if we have to on the way back and buy a couple bags that will fit the Aer Lingus requirements. I don't mind checking one extra bag on the way back, but I don't want to have to check 4 and be without a carryon. My daughter and I will be gone for a month on two very different vacations so we need as much space as we can get. I've found this bag, which is very close to the Aer Lingus requirements: http://shop.eaglecreek.com/ec-adventure-pop-top-carryon/d/1380 If it works as planned, I will probably buy another one of these for future use. Basically it's a regular size carry on that reduces down to one that fits the smaller regional plane, budget air dimensions. Great idea if it works. I'm also maximizing space with big, light, rolling duffels that have tons of capacity for our checked bags. These are some of the biggest I've found. Even though the Lipault one is lighter, bigger and cheaper, it doesn't seem like it's going to last long. The patagonia seems like it might end up being the best if I need to use trains or wheel the bag for any length of time.

https://www.rei.com/product/884913/patagonia-black-hole-wheeled-duffel-120l : 7323 cubic inch capacity.
http://www.atlantaluggage.com/lipault-foldable-2-wheeled-30-duffle-tangerine-jpf-0-060-fl-37.html 8238 capacity

Hope my OCD helps someone

 

[sayhello]

It looks like Air France allows me 26 lbs total carry-on (21x13x9) and 50 lbs checked. I think I should be OK with that. My international carry-on is 19.5 x 15.5 x 9. I haven't had an issue with it yet, fingers crossed!

Sayhello

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

The one you have to watch out for is Delta. It's been my experience lately that they do not return your gate checked bags to you plane-side when you exit the plane. They will return it to you with your checked bags through baggage claim at your final destination. So if you have a long layover you could be without your carry-on for a long time.

Having to pick up gate checked bags at baggage claim is the norm, unless you are gate checking because you are flying a very small commuter plane where a carry on won't fit in the overheads.

Keep in mind that many foreign carriers not only have size limits for carry on bags, they have weight limits and they are not very high; for example, Lufthansa's limit is only 17 pounds. They enforce it, too. KLM's carry on weight limit is 26 pounds.

 

[DisneyKevin]

We have found that there is usually no issue with flights from the US to foreign destinations.

You are usually allowed one piece of luggage and one personal item.

While weight is almost never an issue, size is something that needs to be watched. Also, when dealing with a full flight, things can get more difficult. Boarding groups 3 and 4 have less options with carry ons.

Flights within Europe are a different story. Size and weight are more closely monitored and airily carrieres are pretty strict.

Most luggage companies sell domestic carry ons (max 22 inches inc. wheels) and international carry ons (max 20 inches inc wheels).

It's also not correct to suggest that all backpacks are acceptable carryons. Some backpacks are enormous and don't qualify.

In all my travels, I have never had my bags weighed at a security checkpoint or customs. Neither cares how much your luggage weighs. That is the concern of the airline.

Your very best bet is to check with your air carrier to see size and weight restrictions.

 

[pjacobi]

There was a serious attempt to standardize carry-on luggage size which would be guaranteed carry-on in all major airlines. Unfortunately, the US airlines would rather have vague rules for more flexibility.

http://www.iata.org/pressroom/pr/Pages/2015-06-17-01.aspx