Packing question

[P1TKL]

Hi....My family are booked on a QM2 crossing in August. I have 2 teenage sons. I am worried about weight restrictions as we are flying back from New York after a weeks stay. We have cruised many times and have had no weight restrictions as we usually go Southampton to Southampton so I pack everything but the kitchen sink !! If I pack 2 suits (Formal and lounge ) for the 3 men in the family thats 6 suits I have to pack....how much of my weight allowance is that going to take ???? Any ideas on what I can leave out of my packing this time. ? Thanks

[MawganTr]

Not sure of the weight allowance - the airline will tell you that but I'm sure that you'll be ok if you are thoughtful about what you pack. The good news is that you have boys - they tend to take less than girls! Share out all the heavier items across everyone's cases. You may just need to think twice about some of the extra, less necessary items. Happy packing!

 

 

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[Lanky Lad]

Hi....My family are booked on a QM2 crossing in August. I have 2 teenage sons. I am worried about weight restrictions as we are flying back from New York after a weeks stay. We have cruised many times and have had no weight restrictions as we usually go Southampton to Southampton so I pack everything but the kitchen sink !! If I pack 2 suits (Formal and lounge ) for the 3 men in the family thats 6 suits I have to pack....how much of my weight allowance is that going to take ???? Any ideas on what I can leave out of my packing this time. ? Thanks

 

If you need to you could get away with taking a dark suit that will work for both formal and informal nights. If you sons have a baggage allowance then it should not be a problem, they will have to carry their own suits.

 

If all else fails, they will have to fly home in their lounge suits. :)

[ednria]

Hi....My family are booked on a QM2 crossing in August. I have 2 teenage sons. I am worried about weight restrictions as we are flying back from New York after a weeks stay. We have cruised many times and have had no weight restrictions as we usually go Southampton to Southampton so I pack everything but the kitchen sink !! If I pack 2 suits (Formal and lounge ) for the 3 men in the family thats 6 suits I have to pack....how much of my weight allowance is that going to take ???? Any ideas on what I can leave out of my packing this time. ? Thanks

 

Pack your bags, and weigh them. You know what the airline luggage restrictions are, then you can start eliminating items.

[Whitemarsh]

Pack your bags, and weigh them. You know what the airline luggage restrictions are, then you can start eliminating items.

 

Sensible idea.

[P1TKL]

Thanks for the advice folks......I think maybe packing,weighing then eliminating may be the way forward....!!!

[paulhants]

I find that we tend to shop in NYC as there are usually some bargains to be had, and your sons may want to visit the likes of Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch!

 

You'll need to travel light so you have room for your shopping on the way home!

 

You could always launder some of your clothes towards the end of the voyage, to keep you going whilst in NYC.

 

Have a great trip!

[T5LHR]

Also, do remember that you have your hand baggage allowance too!

 

If flying on BA, your main item of hand baggage can weigh up to 23kg too (as long as YOU can lift it in and out of the overhead lockers WITHOUT asking for assistance, then all is good...) And, a suit carrier is more than acceptable as hand luggage so you don't even have to pack them in to the checked luggage.

 

I am afraid I don't know what the allowance for hand baggage is on other airlines, sorry.

[Austcruiser84]

Also, do remember that you have your hand baggage allowance too!

 

If flying on BA, your main item of hand baggage can weigh up to 23kg too (as long as YOU can lift it in and out of the overhead lockers WITHOUT asking for assistance, then all is good...) And, a suit carrier is more than acceptable as hand luggage so you don't even have to pack them in to the checked luggage.

 

I am afraid I don't know what the allowance for hand baggage is on other airlines, sorry.

 

I don't know how people can travel on 23kg! I've got 60kg and am worried I won't have enough even with two suitcases!

 

I really need to stop changing clothes four times a day.

[T5LHR]

I don't know how people can travel on 23kg! I've got 60kg and am worried I won't have enough even with two suitcases!

 

I really need to stop changing clothes four times a day.

 

Ha ha ha... :D

 

My TA in 3 months sees me with 2 suitcases, a hand baggage size leather holdall and a satchel bag, and maybe a suit carrier too... But, I do have the excuse of 2.5 more weeks after the crossing... :D

 

Do you connect by air?

[Austcruiser84]

Ha ha ha... :D

 

My TA in 3 months sees me with 2 suitcases, a hand baggage size leather holdall and a satchel bag, and maybe a suit carrier too... But, I do have the excuse of 2.5 more weeks after the crossing... :D

 

Do you connect by air?

 

Yes, connecting by air. Hate flying. Two suitcases, two travel bags and whatever else I can get away with.

 

If I could bring a steamer trunk I would. I'd love to rock up to the docks with three antique automobiles laden with bags, trunks and a safe ... Titanic style.

 

I'm incredibly jealous of the golden days when that kind of behaviour was normal. I mean, it's still normal...right?

[Whitemarsh]

I don't know how people can travel on 23kg! I've got 60kg and am worried I won't have enough even with two suitcases!

 

I really need to stop changing clothes four times a day.

 

Your on board laundry bill is going to be huge! Just don't make the mistake that I always do and fill out the dry cleaning slip instead of the 'wash' slip. It always takes me a couple of loads of washing to figure it out.

[Austcruiser84]

Your on board laundry bill is going to be huge! Just don't make the mistake that I always do and fill out the dry cleaning slip instead of the 'wash' slip. It always takes me a couple of loads of washing to figure it out.

 

Not really. I always post used clothes home. So before I embark I'll send a box or three home.

[T5LHR]

If I could bring a steamer trunk I would. I'd love to rock up to the docks with three antique automobiles laden with bags, trunks and a safe ... Titanic style.

 

I'm incredibly jealous of the golden days when that kind of behaviour was normal. I mean, it's still normal...right?

 

You know... My coffee table in the living room is a steamer trunk from around the 1900's and I can only imagine it has seen some wonderful voyages in it's life... Before coming to rest in my living room for my tea cup... :D

 

When I booked this crossing, I did, for a moment, look at it and wonder... :)

[Austcruiser84]

You know... My coffee table in the living room is a steamer trunk from around the 1900's and I can only imagine it has seen some wonderful voyages in it's life... Before coming to rest in my living room for my tea cup... :D

 

When I booked this crossing, I did, for a moment, look at it and wonder... :)

 

Very nice. I wonder if anyone has actually showed up to the docks with a steamer trunk in recent times.

[P1TKL]

I find that we tend to shop in NYC as there are usually some bargains to be had, and your sons may want to visit the likes of Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch!

 

You'll need to travel light so you have room for your shopping on the way home!

 

You could always launder some of your clothes towards the end of the voyage, to keep you going whilst in NYC.

 

Have a great trip!

 

My eldest son is a Hollister fan for defo ! I'll encourage him to take as little as possible in the T shirt dept ! Yep...I intend to use the laundry...:D

[P1TKL]

Also, do remember that you have your hand baggage allowance too!

 

If flying on BA, your main item of hand baggage can weigh up to 23kg too (as long as YOU can lift it in and out of the overhead lockers WITHOUT asking for assistance, then all is good...) And, a suit carrier is more than acceptable as hand luggage so you don't even have to pack them in to the checked luggage.

 

I am afraid I don't know what the allowance for hand baggage is on other airlines, sorry.

 

I am travelling Continental Airlines which I think is 18kg hand luggage allowance......need to check that out....

[T5LHR]

I am travelling Continental Airlines which I think is 18kg hand luggage allowance......need to check that out....

 

18KG hand luggage is a lot... Make the most of that too!

 

All the best on your packing mission! :)

[Artemis]

Hi, P1TKL,

 

We travel United (was Continental) a fair amount and have also made quite a few family trips that include a cruise, thus require packing formal clothes. We made it work on your side of the pond, and the good news for you is, US air baggage allowances are more generous. So as long as you can teach your young men how to pack efficiently ;), you'll have no problem!

 

You're talking about your flight from NYC to Heathrow, right? For an international flight, each person gets one checked bag for free, and it can be fairly large and weigh up to 50 lbs. (23 kg). Trust me, that's a lot of clothes! When I've packed in fear of UK/Europe's usual 20 kg (44 lbs.) allowance, I have been amazed by how much stuff it takes before the scale maxes out!

 

Additionally, each person can carry on two items, and even better, US carriers impose no weight limit on your carry-ons! A purse, backpack, etc. counts as the first item, but the second can be a fairly large rollaboard suitcase--see the dimensions requirement in the link below. This US airline regulation carry-on size is notably larger than your UK/Euro airline regulation carry-on size. So if you have some UK/Euro-size carry-on suitcases, they'll definitely work. (And if you need to buy something in NYC to haul all of your shopping purchases :p, you'll see tons of cheap options.)

 

So, to summarize, for your family of four, you get 4 large checked bags plus 8 carry-ons, 4 of which can be rollaboard suitcases. You can do this! :D

 

(And just a note re: carrying suits in a garmet bag on United. My husband refuses to pack his suits, so he always carries a garmet bag. United is one of the least gracious carriers about it--the flight personnel generally act like they are doing you a big favor to stow it in a closet. The fact is, a garmet bag is expressly allowed as one of your two carry-on items on a "space available" basis. See the link below. And in all his years of travels--which he does a lot for business plus our pleasure trips--he's never run into a space availability issue. Not that many US travelers utilize garmet bags. But, if you decide to carry one and for some crazy reason find that all the closets are full by the time you board, no worries--there will almost certainly be sufficient overhead bin space on a 777 or 757 to lay the garmet bag across the top of your stowed carry-ons, or even fold it in half and stow it--as that will be the final leg of your trip, you probably won't care how rumpled things might get!)

 

http://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/travel/baggage/default.aspx

 

Bon voyage! :)

[Summergee]

We had a steamer trunk when we were in PG 3 years ago on QM2. It fitted nicely into the walk-in wardrobe. There is a weight limit on individual pieces of luggage but no overall restriction. We would not take a steamer trunk in Britannia as the trunk is too tall to fit under the bed.

[P1TKL]

Hi, P1TKL,

 

We travel United (was Continental) a fair amount and have also made quite a few family trips that include a cruise, thus require packing formal clothes. We made it work on your side of the pond, and the good news for you is, US air baggage allowances are more generous. So as long as you can teach your young men how to pack efficiently ;), you'll have no problem!

 

You're talking about your flight from NYC to Heathrow, right? For an international flight, each person gets one checked bag for free, and it can be fairly large and weigh up to 50 lbs. (23 kg). Trust me, that's a lot of clothes! When I've packed in fear of UK/Europe's usual 20 kg (44 lbs.) allowance, I have been amazed by how much stuff it takes before the scale maxes out!

 

Additionally, each person can carry on two items, and even better, US carriers impose no weight limit on your carry-ons! A purse, backpack, etc. counts as the first item, but the second can be a fairly large rollaboard suitcase--see the dimensions requirement in the link below. This US airline regulation carry-on size is notably larger than your UK/Euro airline regulation carry-on size. So if you have some UK/Euro-size carry-on suitcases, they'll definitely work. (And if you need to buy something in NYC to haul all of your shopping purchases :p, you'll see tons of cheap options.)

 

So, to summarize, for your family of four, you get 4 large checked bags plus 8 carry-ons, 4 of which can be rollaboard suitcases. You can do this! :D

 

(And just a note re: carrying suits in a garmet bag on United. My husband refuses to pack his suits, so he always carries a garmet bag. United is one of the least gracious carriers about it--the flight personnel generally act like they are doing you a big favor to stow it in a closet. The fact is, a garmet bag is expressly allowed as one of your two carry-on items on a "space available" basis. See the link below. And in all his years of travels--which he does a lot for business plus our pleasure trips--he's never run into a space availability issue. Not that many US travelers utilize garmet bags. But, if you decide to carry one and for some crazy reason find that all the closets are full by the time you board, no worries--there will almost certainly be sufficient overhead bin space on a 777 or 757 to lay the garmet bag across the top of your stowed carry-ons, or even fold it in half and stow it--as that will be the final leg of your trip, you probably won't care how rumpled things might get!)

 

http://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/travel/baggage/default.aspx

 

Bon voyage! :)

 

Thankyou so much for your comprehensive reply.....I am sure I can manage to take all I want to and bring home more !!!!