Beware!!! Cruising and flying to port...

[Cruisermad]

Just want to give you a heads-up. We flew from Philly to Tampa last Sat. to pick up Miracle on Sunday only to discover not all of our bags made the plane. Apparently due to the tighter restrictions the TSA is randomly pulling bags to check them and they don't always make the flight. We stayed at Sailsport and another group there didn't get any of their 17 bags. We were in a TOTAL panic but thankfully, they did show up on the Sat.night so all was ok. Anyone who is thinking of flying down on the same day may want to reconsider. Cruising without make-up, lotions, creams and clothes would be tough.....

[EngIceDave]

While possible, I wouldn't consider it commonplace.

 

I use very large bags and they are ALWAYS opened and checked by TSA (I get the little card) everytime I fly.

 

TSA does check, but they do make an effort to keep the bags on time.

 

If you have questions about flying, ask these folks;

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/index.php?

 

Just as ya'll are the experts on crusing, they're the experts on flying, TSA, Freq Fly miles, free miles, etc....

[happy cruzin]

This is why even though we take 2 bags....I pack both of us in both bags, rather than me in one and DH in the other. That way at the very least we have some of our things if one of the bags gets lost or detained. :rolleyes:

 

Now if we loose them both we are in BIG trouble :eek: . But thankfully that has never happened!

[mrdood]

If you have questions about flying, ask these folks;

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/index.php?

 

Just as ya'll are the experts on crusing, they're the experts on flying, TSA, Freq Fly miles, free miles, etc....

 

Excellent point Dave! Even though many of us fly to cruise, there are other web forums with particular expertise that exceeds anything you can find here. The same is true for many ports and for things like photography etc. Always amazes me that people come here to ask questions about ancillary items like "what is a good camera" or "will my phone work on the ship" - - "sure your phone will work, but you will lose signal when the ship moves far enough away from the last cell tower - duh..."

[Cassandra]

Another point to make also - more for people just starting to put stuff in their luggage than carry-ons.

 

MAKE SURE anything like Shampoo, Conditioner, hairspray or anything that can leak is wrapped in a plastic bag (like you get when you go food shopping). And put a note on it telling the crew to re-wrap it!

 

I few to Las Vegas last September out of Hartford, CT on a direct flight. One of the security guys had gone through my suitcase, unwrapped a can of hair spray from my plastic bag - DID NOT WRAP IT UP - and just put it back in my suitcase. The lid with the jostling of the suitcase to Vegas came off, got wedged up against either my clothing or something & an entire can of hairspray was emptied in my suitcase.

 

When I got to Vegas and my suitcase came off the baggage area, you could smell it 10 feet in any direction. I opened my suitcase right there & literally HOWLED in anger. Anyone who uses hairspray knows how sticky it can be and now all over clean clothes and I'm not even on vacation for 5 minutes. It was all over the clothes, the suitcase, everything. Talking about air rage!

 

I got to the timeshare & spent 3 hours washing clothes and washing out my suitcase. When we left to go home a week later & I had to bring my suitcase over to the guys to put into the machine, I told them what happened in Hartford. I asked them if they open the bag to check it out, please re-wrap it. They were good about it & had no problems on the way home.

 

It's just a heads up...not all airport security people give a fig.

[EngIceDave]

Actually, 1 gal and 2.5 gal Ziploc bags work best, especially the new ziploc with the easy close

 

I fly/travel a lot and recommend that all liquid/gel/foams/cream products be placed in ziplocs.

 

Being see through, TSA won't usually mess with them.

Having the easy close zipper makes them close it

Due to bouncing, slamming and pressure, some things can leak.

 

Ziplocs, a flyers best friend

[Cruisermad]

One of my sons works for a local airline company and I know for a fact that TASA don't care about your luggage making the plane. They have a job to do and they plan on doing it. Your safety is far more important than worrying about someone getting their bags in time. A couple of years back on the way back from our cruise on Spirit, TASA opened up a bag and unwrapped my souvenirs I'd bought in Panama. They were all in pieces when I got them home.

I think the smart thing is to distribute your things in all of your bags so that if one doesn't make it you still have some stuff. We had to stand in line in Tampa for a good 40 mins at US Airways to notify them of our lost bag. My point is that there was a LOT of people missing bags.

[tigermaroon2]

Great idea about packing half of each suitcase for each other JUST IN CASE.

[EngIceDave]

What is TASA?

[Knights on the Beach]

What is TASA?

I'm sure you know what they meant. :rolleyes:

[seamama1]

Best way to insure TSA won't misdirect your bag is to pack very light. Heavy and multiple suitcases with a lot of "stuff" in them are hard to check over. They must dig around and practically unpack everything to make sure it is all OK.

 

Some of the folks on these boards have offered a "list" of what they take or what should be taken. It always amazes me what people think they cannot live without for a week.:p

 

Take only what is required - not everything you think you might need. Put as much as you can in ziplock bags..like undies, toiletries, scarves, jewelry and small things. Take only a coupla pair of shoes and only the clothing that you need. (If you find you are running out of clothes on the cruise, you can always have something laundered - or better yet, buy something cute at your next port)

The fewer things that TSA has to ply through, the quicker the process will be, the less likely they are to unpack your things.

 

I travel a lot and have for many, many years so have it down to a fine art. Over the years I have learned what is important and what is not. Everything goes into a 22 inch roll-on-board (which I check) and a small, well designed carryon. If it doesn't fit in these, it's not goin"! It takes about 15-20 minutes to pack the morning of my flight and less than that to unpack once on board.

 

There is such a feeling of freedom if you're not lugging a bunch of "stuff" around - and, TSA can get through your suitcase quickly without messing everything up.

 

Try it once......you'll like it.:p

[gypsyrose]

Seamama, I wanna be you when I grow up:) I already use the ziplock bags and love them. I took way too many clothes last cruise and swore to myself that I would do better on the next one. We'll see next year;)

[seamama1]

Seamama, I wanna be you when I grow up:) I already use the ziplock bags and love them. I took way too many clothes last cruise and swore to myself that I would do better on the next one. We'll see next year;)

 

You'll learn, you'll learn...patience. One day while your packing you will say to yourself "I ain'ta gonna take all this crap anymore"...then you will really think about just what you need.....

 

FYI - I have actually lived out of those two pieces of luggage for up to 3 or 4 weeks with an occasional stop at a laudromat.....mosty land vacations here and in Europe. In Europe, I travel by train with my trusty train passes and I sure as heck am not gonna lug around a bunch of bags!!!

 

With age comes wisdom, darlin' - HEE!:p

[Strawberry]

There was an article in the Philadelphia Inquirier last week about USAirways and the problems they were having with baggage handling. They are trying to hire more baggage handlers because they are having difficulty handling the increased number of bags being checked. Even before this latest security scare, we had problems several times with not getting our bags when we flew on USAirways. On one 7-day cruise USAir "lost" both of my checked bags for the entire weeklong cruise! I was reunited with them the day we arrived back in Miami after the cruise.

[FlyerTalker]

For those concerned with "lost bags", I'd humbly recommend posts #5 and #7 in THIS THREAD. If TSA is having trouble processing bags, it would be prudent to arrive at the airport with enough time to allow for processing.

[FlyerTalker]

If you have questions about flying, ask these folks;

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/index.php?

 

Just as ya'll are the experts on crusing, they're the experts on flying, TSA, Freq Fly miles, free miles, etc....

Well, there are some of us who frequent both spots, and share the knowledge over here too. Where'd ya think the handle came from???

[KLLund]

While I don't cruise and fly the same day .. ever .. I must tell you that one of my favorite cruise tales is of the time my luggage did NOT arrive in Istanbul for a 2 week cruise. To make a long story short ..if it didn't get there the next day in Kusadasi .. I could expect to see it one week later in athens .. this would be after Cyprus and Cairo etc ... I was furious

 

Then hubby said well lets get you some stuff .. so we went to the grand bazaar in Instanbul an .. well I needed underwear .. about half an hour into this I was laughing hysterically .. foundation garments were the norm .. however I did find some Levi 501s for about $15 .. then it was on to Kusadasi .. where I found this shop in that bazaar that had "Niki" "Hifliger" "Versace" tops and shorts for about $3 each ( you laugh but I am still wearing them 5 years later ) ..

 

Then it was what about shoes ... Oh MY .. Europeon shoes fit me soooooo much better than the ones at home .. I might have gone a little overboard there ..

 

But the point is ..

 

Lost Luggage can be an opportunity to have some fun and see things in a whole different way. We met some wonderful people in Istanbul that were DETERMINED ( oh they were ) to help us out .. and in Kusadasi .. they kept saying how did you get this far back in the bazaar .. cruise ship people never come here .. but we had been directed by another vender that was helping us.

 

Truly one of my favorite cruise stories .. oh and happy ending my luggage showed up in Athens .. of course by then I needed another suitcase.

 

When Life hands you Lemons Make Lemonade

[dot73]

I love your attitude Kathy. You are so right about European shoes, especially if you don't have "perfect" feet. I especially love shoes made in Germany.

Since I always fly the day before a cruise, I have decided that on my next cruise, I am not taking anything that can mess up my suitcase. I will make a list of what I need, and then go to a drug store in the port city and buy what I need in small sizes. At the end of the cruise, I will leave the stuff in my bathroom The room steward can either thrown them out or keep anything he/she wants. It may cost a little more, but I won't have to worry about leaks in the suitcase ruining good clothes. Also, the less containers you have in your suitcase that show up on the x-rays, the less likely it will be opened for hand inspection. Flying is no fun now and we will just have to adjust or stay home. I, for one, will not let anyone ruin my hard-earned holidays!

[CruisinMatt]

Well, there are some of us who frequent both spots, and share the knowledge over here too. Where'd ya think the handle came from???

 

Anyone thinking of joining and posting on FlyerTalk, Just be cautious and follow the rules of that BBS, some posters and moderators can be brutal on newbies, esp those that don't fly 5 times a week. ;)

[Globaliser]

Anyone thinking of joining and posting on FlyerTalk, Just be cautious and follow the rules of that BBS, some posters and moderators can be brutal on newbies, esp those that don't fly 5 times a week.

When newbies get jumped on on FlyerTalk, it's usually got absolutely nothing to do with whether or not people are flying five times a week. Rather, it has everything to do with poor netiquette that is routinely tolerated on CC but on few other BBs.

 

Usually, the people who attract trouble fall into one or both of the following camps:-

1. They cannot be bothered to have a look at the list of boards to see which is most appropriate for the question; or
2. They cannot be bothered to spend 10 or 15 minutes searching the appropriate board to find out whether the question has already been answered.

I suppose one could summarise both of these camps as "post first, think later".

[greatam]

When newbies get jumped on on FlyerTalk, it's usually got absolutely nothing to do with whether or not people are flying five times a week. Rather, it has everything to do with poor netiquette that is routinely tolerated on CC but on few other BBs.

 

Usually, the people who attract trouble fall into one or both of the following camps:-

1. They cannot be bothered to have a look at the list of boards to see which is most appropriate for the question; or
2. They cannot be bothered to spend 10 or 15 minutes searching the appropriate board to find out whether the question has already been answered.

I suppose one could summarise both of these camps as "post first, think later".

 

While all of this is certainly true, I see the real problem with CC'ers on FlyerTalk-lack of airline knowledge. There are too many acronyms, too many scheduling idosyncracies, too many fare buckets/award classes/upgrade classes, etc. Generally just too confusing for your average, 5 flights per year vacation traveler.

 

So someone who has no airline specific knowledge posts a "dumb" question, and gets blasted. I sure got blasted when AA went to eVIP and I still had paper VIP's. I wanted to turn my paper into electronic and asked the question "is this possible?". WOW!!! You would have thought I had never been on a plane.

 

Those of us who fly a lot are either interested in learning all this stuff because it affects our travels OR are looking for cheaper, better ways to fly for leisure travel.

 

Lots of the newbies on FT are there ONLY looking for $51.00 flights to Fiji, $61.00 flights to Iceland or $2.00 flights to Watertown (wish that stuff would not get reported). And CC'ers are generally only interested in the cheapest, best (?) routing to their cruises. Sometimes the two boards just don't mix very well.

[CruisinMatt]

The problem is that FlyerTalk holds such a wealth of knowledge and information. It's nice that a few of you come here to answer the "novice" questions. Synergy can be a beautiful thing.

 

Anyway, sorry to de-rail the thread - carry on!