That’s because you don’t pay for utilities in Europe.
I, on the other hand, get screwed by corporations just differently from America.
Around 2006 or so when Mrs Cooler and I were dating we went to Nassau. BOS-EWR-NAS. After we landed we grabbed her checked bag, got through customs, and took a cab to the hotel. After we checked into the room while I’m in the bathroom I hear her yell to me that the bag she grabbed wasn’t hers. I thought she was joking but sure enough she had grabbed some random bag that looked vaguely like hers. So we cab it back to the airport. We found someone who very politely directed us to a pile of what had to be 500 unclaimed bags. Before leaving us alone in that area he said we could rummage through the pile, toss the bag she mistakenly took into the pile, and leave with ours. Her bag wasn’t there so we just cabbed it back to the hotel. It turned out American had sent her bag to New Orleans, not Nassau. They had it brought to the hotel the next day, so that was a win.
Whenever I think about that situation I still shake my head at how nonchalant the guy at the airport was in saying we could just grab a different bag, like we weren’t stupid Americans that already proved we would just grab any old random bag and be on our way.
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I’m not a fashionable dude, but I like Banana Republic’s traveler jeans, they’re thinner/lighter than most jeans and pack well in carryon.
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A while back (maybe 20 years) on a business trip to Nassau, for my return flight they waved my around the security at the Nassau airport, I walked directly onto the tarmac outside the airport, checked in for my flight at the airplane at a table they had placed by the foot of the stairs leading up to the airplane. When our plan was boarded, the picked up the table, moved it out of the way, then we took off.
Bag made it to Lisbon, but it was a colossal sweat.
Just like on our Dallas to Madrid leg about 10 bags came out and then nothing for about 15 min. We scoped out the lost baggage line. 20 min still nothing. Conveyor belt still stopped. I was standing at the counter waiting for Mme Melkerson to call me so that I could start the lost bag process.
At this point, clearly most of the passengers haven’t gotten their bags, but this exactly what happened with the last flight and ultimately the majority of passengers didn’t get their bags. I start sending a message to the AirBNB host who is going to meet us at the apartment that we’re going to be here a while dealing with lost baggage. Then conveyor belt turns back on and ours is the second bag out.
Not looking forward to the trip back home. We have a flight from Lisbon to Madrid and then Madrid back home. They are both on Iberia but on separate reservations. Only 2.5 hrs for the connection. I’m not sure if they are going to be able to check the bag all the way from Lisbon because the reservations are separate.
So we may have to actually collect the bag, check it again, and not miss the flight. Even if they can check the bag all the way, collecting and re-checking on our own might reduce the chance of bag loss. On the bright side, since we’re returning home, bag loss won’t be as big a deal.
Well nobody can ever say you haven’t made memories this trip
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I assume everyone knows the in EU you get decent compensation by law for lost and delayed luggage.
Mme Melkerson is an expert on this stuff at this point. However, like most big corporations, the airlines still make you jump through some hoops and try to fuck you. But they can’t do this as well as corps in the US can.
Y’all that can take a week or two trip with one pair of underwear in your backpack are bizarre creatures. Need 100lbs of shit between checked bags and carry on easily for the wife and I lulz.
Laundromats internationally have come a long way, and I will almost always do a wash midway through the trip. No more bringing 10-14 pairs of underwear, but nor am I bringing 2 for a ten-day trip. So I’m pretty much always stuff a carry on sized suitcase for any length trip, but never anything larger. Mini-Tide packets also for hotel sink washing in a pinch.
Always have between 5-7 underwear and pairs of socks for month+ long trips with light luggage.
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Same here. When my kids were old enough to manage their own luggage, the rule was that you carry what you pack and so we all started with the carry-ons for everything bc no one wanted to lug a huge bag around.
Started doing this a while back and I feel like I discovered fire whenever it comes up. It’s such a great travel hack that relieves a ton of pressure when it comes to packing.
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what if I told you there’s a middle ground between bringing nothing and bringing everything you own
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Press X for Doubt
(obviously I know this but it doesn’t seem to work that way in reality for us)
I check for any longer trip and I’m running good so far. Even when I don’t check one on a short US trip I get forced to gate check regularly unless I’m flying Delta with my wife. Just connected through Paris today, both legs where Air France flights, all went well.
You shouldn’t have to do that since both flights are with the same airline. That said, I always ask when checking my bag if I need to collect and recheck it at the connecting airport just in case.
I actually had to do that once though when using Kiwi (never use Kiwi as a travel website). I made it through with time to spare but it still felt like a rush and any delay in travel can make things a nightmare. Hope it goes well for you!
The difference here is that tickets were purchased separately. We have one set of tickets for Lisbon to Madrid and another set of tickets that we bought a month earlier for Madrid back to the US. Presumably since they are the same airline, this should not be a problem, but at this point I don’t trust this airline to do anything right.
even if it’s alliance partners this is (usually) possible though you may need to show the desk agent at the origin airport your PNR (reservation number) for the 2nd flight. This is a pretty common situation and unless it’s their first day on the job they’ll know what to do,
If you’ve been following along, I’m not running well in that department.
My plan is to become a billionaire that has a fully stocked apartment in every major world city so I can just fly with no luggage. Wish me luck.
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