shipping luggage?

[lucyforrest]

We are on HAL in November and my fiance and I have had spectacularly bad luck with luggage on every trip we have taken together. If our luggage is lost I will melt down because we are getting married on the cruise. Has anyone had any experience in shipping their luggage via FedEx or UPS? If so, how did it work, how much did it cost, and to what address would I ship it?

[kitty9]

Most mass market lines do not allow you to ship luggage to their ports, so you'll have to find a place to ship your bags to and then pick them up there and go to the port. I use a company called Pak Mail and they ship the bags from my home to a Pak Mail store in Ft Lauderdale. I pick the bags up at that location. Prices vary depending on where you ship from. I've shipped from Wisconsin to FLL and for a large bag weighing 40lbs, the cost for Fed Ex was $181 including higher than normal insurance. DHL was a little less, but right around that.

 

What makes you nervous about flying with your bags? Fed Ex lost one of my shipped bags, so you're not going to be 100% certain that they won't lose or delay your bags. I also had UPS lose a shipped bag and I didn't get it until my cruise was almost over. But, I've never had a bag go missing on a flight.

[lucyforrest]

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it.

 

I have never had UPS or FedEx lose anything. On the last 3 trips/ flights I have been on, I have arrived without my luggage. So I am extra paranoid just because I have had a string of bad experiences in a row. The main way I would melt down is if I have to put my wedding dress in my checked bags and then they get lost.

 

But, if I am one to play the odds, maybe I have lost all the luggage a person averages losing in a lifetime and now I won't lose any more! :-)

[Sheffie]

I suggest that you cross pack. My DH and I put half of our clothes in each other's suitcase, being sure to have at least 2 outfits of each kind in each piece of luggage. That way if one piece gets delayed, no one is without enough clothes to get by.