Luggage Question

[engle]

So, the website says...

Please limit your baggage to one piece of luggage per person plus one carry-on.

Does this mean carry on as in personal item like a purse or a carry on piece of luggage? Can anyone tell me what they brought??

 

[skunkvette]

We have taken one full size suitcase and one carry-on size piece per person on previous adventures.

We carried our own backpack ( or purse) with us during hotel transfer days.

ABD has always done a great job with moving our luggage from place to place, we love not having to touch our luggage during the adventure.

 

[engle]

So during the hotel transfer days, they took your so called carry on as well and then you just carried a purse/backpack? Just to clarify...but you packed a full size suitcase and a carry on suitcase?

 

[figmentfan2009]

I've been going round and round and round with the airlines for our adventure. They have ASSURED me that I will be permitted ONE... exactly ONE thing that I carry onto the plane. Not a carry on and a personal item, ONE carry on... OH and by the way it has to be UNDER 18 pounds or they will gate check it.

I am not convinced that I believe them, but... I guess I will soon find out.

 

[engle]

Well, I guess airlines and ABD have different rules and you have to get it there first don't you? So it will depend on the airline....but I am trying to clarify what ABD wants first and I will go from there....by the way, it is Enchanted China that I am asking about specifically!!

 

[DisneyKevin]

As you have realized, ABD requirements and airline requirements can be quite different.

ABD's requirements are that all Adventurer's luggage fits on your mode of transportation between cities.

That could mean motor coach, train, ferry etc.

This is the reason for the limitations requested by ABD.

The requirements for ABD are a bit more lax than the airline.

Taking a suitcase, a carry on (ex. small rolling suitcase) and a personal item (backpack, day bag, purse etc) would likely be fine.

There will be times when moving from point to point, that the guides will point out that due to logistics, you might not see your luggage until much later in the day.

In this case, they usually suggest that you put your day's necessities in your personal bag (ex. backpack, day bag, purse etc.) This might be things like medication, sunscreen, camera, identification if crossing borders and anything else you might need until you have access to your luggage.

On most trips, ABD provides each reservation with a small folding duffle bag.

This comes in very handy when fragile souvenirs are purchased and require "suitcase space".

It's great to be able to stuff your dirty clothes in the duffle and travel on.

Hope this helps.

 

[pxlbarrel]

Well, I guess airlines and ABD have different rules and you have to get it there first don't you? So it will depend on the airline....but I am trying to clarify what ABD wants first and I will go from there....by the way, it is Enchanted China that I am asking about specifically!!

Flying to China was easy because the international flight allowed the carry on and personal item to be 10 kgs each.

I worried about this a lot before our trip because my camera bag weighed more than what you're supposed to be allowed on domestic Chinese flights. I had planned to take some stuff out and stuff them in pockets if they wanted to weigh the bags.

First, what happened with us doesn't mean it'll happen with you use this information carefully. LOL At least one person on the trip acquired a second piece of checked in luggage while on the trip and it seemed like the Mouse made it ok. The guides even said to us that if we added a piece of luggage during the trip to tell them so they could adjust the luggage count.

Second, domestic Chinese airlines only allow carry on of about 5 kgs which is half of what we're used to in North America. However, it was only one flight in which we were threatened with weighing (Shanghai to Hong Kong). Some people on our tour definitely had carry on bigger than what the airlines have posted on their websites. We only saw the ticket agents twice. Again, this was us and who knows what will happen to subsequent tours.

The airlines we used were:

Shanghai Air
China South
Air China
Dragonair

Dragonair, run by Cathay Pacific, seemed to the only ones who noticed how big our carry on was ... mainly because we were all standing in front of them getting our checked luggage checked.

My advice is try to keep it below the 5 kgs and only one bag. One bag just makes it simpler when you're going through security. Security can be fickle .... at Beijing, they took EVERYTHING out of my camera bag. And at other airports, they didn't even take a second look.

When I asked ABD about the limits, they told me 1 checked bag and 1 carry on of 5 kg.

On days in which we flew, I had my camera bag as my carry on and it came with me on the bus. If we were doing stuff before heading to the airport, you had the option of leaving it on the bus, taking it with you or having the bus driver store it under the bus. For example, while we were tying Chinese knots in the Hutong, my camera bag was under the bus and our suitcases were already at the airport. If you need something during the day, keep it with you in the carry on.