Flying luaggage dirctly to ship

[TEACH6868]

We are thinking about shipping our luggage directly to the Reflection so that we don't have to handle it when we fly into Italy next October. Has anyone done this? Thanks!

[jelayne]

How would that work ?? The ship most likely arrives on the day you sail so would not be at your departure port if your luggage arrived a day or so before you. You may want to fly in a day early and possibly the hotel you stay in would accept your luggage.

[Mr. Click]

Maybe, and it is a big maybe you could ship it to the port agent and have them hold it for you but between the cost of international shipping, the risk of loss, etc, etc this does not sound like a great idea. I know it can be done domesticly if you are shipping it to a hotel or a business. I have done that a lot in the past when I needed to move a lot of lighting gear but eventually things would get lost and I would spend hours tracking them down. If you are flying in a day or two before do what jelayne said and send it to the hotel but track it all the way so if it gets lost you can start trying to find it before you arrive.

[cruisestitch]

See this article:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=464

 

 

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Celebrity does not allow this, however. A further search of Cruise Critic may turn up more information.

[Host Jazzbeau]

The luggage valet service would presumably avoid the problem of arriving on the day the ship sails and having your luggage taking its own trip to somewhere else -- but it doesn't deal with the issue of your flight being delayed and you not making the ship [and your luggage then getting that Greek Isles cruising experience that you are not on :eek:] But if you are following the advice to fly to Italy a day or more before your cruise, you should be able to have the luggage valet deliver to your hotel. Then you will sooner or later meet up with it, and a nice cab driver will help you get it to the ship with minimal fuss. [Plus, you'll have access to all your clothes and toiletries during your stay in the hotel :)]

[jelayne]

Interesting article. We have used Luggage Valet on returning from a cruise but $20 is a lot better than $250 for a 50# bag. We arrive at the airport, porter takes luggage to check in. Arrive at destination get a porter to take luggage to taxi/car. Cost $20-30. I would be a nervous wreck sending off our luggage 2 weeks early and probably wouldn't sleep till I was reunited with my clothes.

[kitty9]

This is something you can't do yourself because Celebrity will not accept bags shipped directly to the ship. You have to use a luggage shipping company like Luggage Concierge. They handle the paperwork and send you all the things to fill out with regards to foreign Customs----the forms include an inventory of everything in the bag. It isn't cheap and you will have to ship as early as three weeks out. I ship bags all the time, all over the world, and it's very convenient. I would estimate that shipping to Europe would run $500 to $600 per bag, one way. I know that for me, shipping from my home to Ft Lauderdale, is around $275 per bag, one way, so you can expect shipping to Italy will be a lot higher.

 

The only bad part is that you cannot lock your bags as local Customs need access to the contents. So don't put anything of value in the bag.

[photomikey]

I started traveling alone with more video gear than I can lug, and I was really perplexed as to how I would get it all from one place to the next. You know what I figured out? Twenty bucks lugs a lot of gear. Twenty bucks to the taxi driver will get that stuff from (literally) your living room into the taxi, then out of the taxi and all the way to the SkyCap at the airport. Twenty bucks to that guy will ensure you go to the front of the line and don't have to lift a thing. When you get to the airport, another twenty bucks will get the SkyCap on the receiving end to load you right into another taxi. I personally would not give that guy a huge tip, but the bellman at your hotel will appreciate the twenty bucks you palm him and your luggage will appear in your room. A few days later, another bellman will come get your luggage and load you into another taxi (twenty bucks), and the fella at the port will be glad to unload you and get your things to the ship for twenty bucks. By my calculations that is $120 in tips, and that's for 250lbs worth of video gear. If we are talking one or two suitcases, you could get by on $5 or $10. But you will be impressed at how fast people will move when there's $20 in their pocket.

[bonedoc7]

We once shipped our luggage directly to the hotel we were staying at prior to an Alaskan cruise. We surprised the kids with a "an amazing race" type game and it ended with an Alaskan cruise, so we didn't want to ruin the surprise by carting extra clothing that had no place during the summer in Vancouver / Victoria. It takes planning and yes, we sent the luggage quite early. We also sent home our golf clubs from the same trip (first leg of the race included a golf game). You would still have to go from hotel to port with luggage

[cruisestitch]

The service where luggage is shipped directly to the ship is offered by some cruise lines -- this is from the Crystal website. But as I said, I don't think that Celebrity participates in programs like this at this time.

 

 

 

 

"Getting to and from your ship can be as luxurious and carefree as your Crystal cruise vacation itself. Imagine no more lifting or carrying heavy bags and golf clubs. No more baggage check-in line or baggage claims at the airport. No more waiting to collect your bags after the cruise.

 

With Luggage ConciergeTM, you travel baggage-free and stress-free. Your bags will be picked up from your home and delivered to the ship in time for departure. Following the cruise, your luggage will be returned to your home so you can keep that relaxed feeling you achieved on board.

 

Luggage Concierge’s service includes 24-hour customer care specialists who track every bag every step of the way. Plus, Luggage Concierge will automatically insure your bags up to $2,500 (for both domestic and international flights). Additional insurance is also available.

 

Register online at luggageconcierge.com and be sure to mention the code "Crystal Cruises" to receive a discount on this service."

[cruiserhal]

We used Luggage Forward to Celebrity in Europe without any problems. One thing to remember, due to customs you need to ship the luggage 2 weeks before your trip. It cost a little but it is better than dragging the bags around and worrying about the airline not having the bag when you flight arrives.

[cruisestitch]

Good to know -- thanks --

 

So Celebrity uses Luggage Forward -- the OP might look into that company

[boscobeans]

Good to know -- thanks --

 

So Celebrity uses Luggage Forward -- the OP might look into that company

 

Excellent service. Saved us a lot of hassle on our Fort Lauderdale cruise.

 

bosco

[Mr. Click]

Just ran a sample bag on luggage forward, NJ to the ship in Civetichia is $329 for a standard 50 pound bag.....I would still worry about it being there when I got there.