Baggage limits on charter flights?
Do any of the internal charter flights have baggage restrictions that are less than commercial airline standard (one wheelie carry-on p/p, a personal bag p/p that fits under the seat, and a 50 lb checked bag)? If so, what are the charter flight restrictions?
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From the Travel Requirements section of the Australia Adventure tour:
Specific Luggage Restrictions for this Tour
Due to strictly enforced weight restrictions, checked luggage weight must not exceed 50 pounds (23 kg) and with overall dimensions (length + width + height) not exceeding 62 inches (158 cm). Luggage exceeding the allowable weight is subject to excess luggage charges which can result in a considerable additional expense. Guests are permitted to only 1 piece of checked luggage. Hand luggage may not weigh more than 15 lbs (6.8 kg), and the maximum dimensions are 20 x 15 x 10" (50.8 x 38.1 x 25.4cm) (including all wheels, handles, etc). If these dimensions are exceeded, the carry-on may be checked at the gate. Airport regulations require that passengers handle their own luggage through customs.
Thank you
Second question on this subject: Commercial airlines permit one personal item in addition to the carry-on as long as it will fit under the seat in front (for instance a handbag or day pack). Same for the charter flights inside AUS and NZ?
William - I took this trip in 2011 and it was awesome! My first Tauck tour.
There was plenty of space on the charter flight, it's only the people on the tour. I know I had the large piece of luggage, almost 50 lbs, a fit under the seat carryon and my purse. They allowed one person to sit in the cockpit on certain legs of the charter flights. My mother was able to sit in the cockpit and LOVED it!!!
We had people for the regular, non chartered flights, who were always over the weight limit and were charged by the commercial airlines for it. I never heard of them having any issue on the charter flights.
Have a great time!
50 pounds of clothing is a ridiculous amount. I know that business class even has a higher weight allowance and even that is over the top. It’s not worth the angst to pack that much and you can still have a wonderful travel experience without so many clothes.
I’m a horrible packer, but my bag is not 50lbs of just clothes.
Kathy. Do you have a heavy suitcase? Maybe a lighter suitcase may help.
Hi British - yes, I have hard shell luggage. It's ridiculous, but I stay under the limit. I always weigh my luggage to make sure. :-)
Kathy - Thanks. Concerned because fuel costs and maybe plane capacity are different now than they were in 2011 and Tauck's current travel documents make the on-tour size and weight restrictions sound rigid and enforced to the letter.
The documents refer to the carry-on as "luggage" but don't say whether the charter might consider a bag that fits under the seat to be your one piece of "luggage" and stop you from bringing your regular carry-on suitcase on the plane and also from checking it because you are only allowed to check one bag. Important to know the answer when you want to carry items that have a little size and weight (camera, lenses, iPad, etc.) that you don't want bouncing around in the overheads unless you have no choice, and certainly don't want to check.
Hopefully it's a dumb question, but worth asking anyway because of how much the travel documents emphasize the luggage restrictions. (After warning you about these restrictions several times Tauck then suggests you pack a sport coat or cocktail dress - which would of course take up a good-sized chunk of the strictly limited luggage space they have been telling you about. A bit silly?)
You can take a checked bag up to 50 lbs which is more generous than is allowed on most Tauck tours. In addition. You can take a carry on weighing no more than 15 lbs. so most wheelies would be more than that once filled I’m guessing. A personal item will be something small like a ladies standard size handbag or indeed a camera bag.
We don’t take wheelie carry on bags on tours because they have to go under the bus and you rarely have access to them on the road. We use school bag size backpacks, which we recommend as so much easier to deal with. You can put your last minute items in those on days when you are moving to a different hotel. For us, that is important now that Tauck seems to request that your checked bags are outside your door 90 minutes before you leave the hotel at some ungodly hour. They fit under the seat in front on both plane and bus. You can leave them on the bus when you make stops, they will be safe.There was certainly a couple of hotels where you could do your own laundry when we took the tours, though several hotels are different now.
When we took this tour, it was very casual. You really don’t need cocktail dresses and jackets. One of the great things about Australians and New Zealanders is that they are very laid back and don’t have such rigid ideas about appropriate dress that Americans do. It took me ages to figure out all the ‘dress rules’ when I first came to live in the US…..cocktail hour, no white before May and after September, black tie and so on. I never heard of such things.
We have learned to find lightweight bags and clothing for our tours that make packing so much easier. By seeing what other people take, there are other people who are better at it than we are, so we obviously have some ways to go.
Enjoy Down under!
British, I don’t ever remember having to put bags outside the door on a Tauck trip unless it’s the day we’re leaving a river boat. We’ve just been in 3 hotels on our Danube trip this month and we’ve had them picked up inside every time. I’m surprised at your comment.
I've been on several land tours where bags were to be placed outside the door.
I agree with Nancy's comment. We have always been reminded to leave the luggage inside the hotel rooms. Perhaps some safari tours are different.
Several years ago, at some hotels, in some countries, it was standard to leave luggage outside your room for pick-up. Not so much, if at all, any more, except on small ship cruises, but even then, the corridors aren't that wide, so leaving luggage in the hall isn't best for the ship and a potential safety hazard. During J&E this year we left bags inside the room on the Philea (Nile River cruiser) but on Treasures of the Aegean a few months later we left bags outside the door on Wind Star (motor sailer).
We were told to leave ours outside the room in Zermatt last year and I believe at the Chateau hotel in the Loire valley. I believe it's a covid thing.
The hotel in Zermatt also wanted you to open windows when you left the room so the maids had fresh air.
My error, yes, it’s more often inside. Either way, you need your bags ready to go
British, I know you didn't use wheelies but do you recall whether other people were allowed to bring them on the on-tour planes along with the day packs? I don't want to leave our wheelies at home because they will be convenient for our stops en route to and leaving Oz/NZ, but I also don't want to have a problem on the on-tour flights because we have them.
If Tauck monitors these forums can somebody shed some light?
Tauck rarely monitors the forums these days. If you are not traveling for a few weeks, you can send them an email but you may have to wait a couple of weeks for them to reply.
I cannot recall what people did on my tours. We always follow exactly what Tauck stipulates. For Australia and NZ, it is the airline that makes those particular rules. If your bag is over 15lbs you may have to pay extra, and probably check it, I’ve no idea. Hopefully someone else will chip in.
The luxury of the charter flights is that you get off the bus and get directly on the plane, if I recall, you get a glass of champagne too. .it’s great!
Most people can easily stick to these guidelines. The more you travel, the better you get at packing appropriately and it is totally liberating not taking so much. I’m not saying I’m wonderful at doing this but we have never broken the Tauck guidelines. For is, finding lightweights suitcases, lightweight clothing and mini everything else has helped us with the weight issue without compromising the amount of clothing we take. At least Australia NZ is not somewhere you have to take heavy clothing whatever time of year you go…unless you are unlucky in NZ and get snow if you go in their winter time which has happened to some people on the forum in the past.
When it comes down to it, it’s up to you what you do and you are now aware what you are up against or not when you get there.
Please post anything helpful on your experiences when you get back to help others.
on my trip from 50lbs per suitcase now 44lbs... pretty soon I'll have to wear only diapers.
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I love Biaggi luggage. You can't find anything lighter. You shouldn't have to start off with with an empty suitcase that weights 10 - 12 pounds empty! I also light the Le Sport Sac nylon backpacks. Yes, British, traveling light is definitely an art and is liberating and, yes, you can still look nice. I'm testament to that only because I get compliments when I least expect it and I'm delightfully surprised, and my suitcase on a 3 - 4 week trip can weigh 30 - 35 lbs. Even that is alot.
our travels— I’m with you luggage-wise. I opt for the lightest luggage. The zip sacks weigh approx 5 pounds! If I anticipate a bit of shipping, I usually take an extra one inside my large checking bag! I’ve been using them for almost 10 years with any issues! And they fold into a small package for each storing in my closet. When I take my next trip, my plan is to pack the bulk of my day-time touring clothes and shoes in a Biaggi that zips down to 24” as my carryon. And I can then unzip sections as needed. I will also take another bag and check it with the things that aren’t as critical (ballet flats, small dinner bag, swim suit, sandals, and such). If the checkin bag gets delayed, I won’t be Uber hysterical!! P.S. I also use a Biaggi backpack…like a feather!!
Just finished the "Royal Danube, Berlin & Krakow" tour. The only time we put our luggage outside our door was the day that we left the riverboat. Our group had 41 people -- the only passengers on the boat. If there had been other passengers, I think that they would have picked the luggage up in the room, based on something that the TD said. I managed a 3-week trip (I added extra days before and after the tour) with a European sized "wheelie" and an old gym bag, both of which I carried on on the way over. On the way home, I checked the "wheelie." On my trip to Australia & New Zealand in 2018, I had a regular sized suitcase and a "wheelie." Tauck handled both of them throughout the whole trip, including the charter flights. (That said, the heaviest packed suitcase I've ever taken was 37 pounds.)
I have one Biaggi I like, a small one. The large one I bought was a total disaster, took it to Africa and it was really awkward to pull along with no rigid handle, just two loop handles, I have since given it to Goodwill but kept the cubes that came with it. Our newer bags are just as light as the Biaggi one, we love them.
William, my wife, and I did this tour about 4 years ago. The tour was great and I know you will have a great time. As far as luggage, we cant seem to travel light. Between our medicine, health and beauty products our bags are heavy. But, there was never a problem with Tauck with the weight or the bags or number of checked bags. We have had three bags on several trips and no one had any objection. The bags for the private flights are picked up from your room and they are all loaded on the plane with no consideration of weight, No one even looked on what you took on-board. Just sharing our experience from many trips, especially the one you are taking. Just take what you want and enjoy.
When you go on a tour, you have to realize that you are not the only person, your actions affect everyone. So if a number of people chose to disregard the guidelines that Tauck asks you to follow, it can have a big impact on the group without you even realizing it. Let me give an example….on travel days. especially those that require bags to be ready at early hours like 5am, There is a limited number of staff on shift to get the bags to the bus, the TD and the driver have to deal with the additional bags, it takes time. That means the TD might have to ask for bags to be ready even earlier. I value my sleep on tours, I don’t want to get up earlier just because a number of people think they are more important and need more clothes than anyone else. Then, when we get to the next hotel, I am waiting even longer for my compliant suitcase while the staff struggle with all the extra bags that the extra self important people feel they are entitlement to have. That’s how I look at people who don’t follow Tauck guidelines
Somehow Sandman I don't think the pilot/crew share your view that weight isn't an issue. If too many overpacked you'd likely be hearing about it but I'll let one of our professional pilots here on the forum weigh in on the technical details.
On every move, the hotel staff have to round up all the luggage, and with covid, staffing has been limited at many hotels. Then the TD has to count and check that everyone's bag is there. Then the bus driver (and possible hotel staff?) have to load it all in the bus. A few extra here and there aren't going to break the bank, but don't kid yourself you aren't adding to the workload.
Packing light takes time to learn but there are plenty of resources out that. Loads of websites and youtube videos are available free. Our local luggage store holds free packing classes. Packing lighter also makes it much easier for me to handle my luggage when I don't have others to do it for me.
Sandman, British and ClaudiaSails are 100% correct. Traveling light is an art and can be learned by practicing. Medicines should be with you and not in a large suitcase. My liquids and creams get transferred to 2oz travel containers before leaving for a trip, and do not ever go in my larger suitcase. Medicines and pills get put in small pill pouches from Walgreens. No one has ever asked to see the original prescription container no matter where I ventured. I do not travel with a hairdryer which is a waste of space in a suitcase. It’s not a problem to hand wash easy to dry clothes. You can do it!
Weight limitations on aircraft exist for safety reasons. No, I am not a pilot. Regarding tours, especially land tours, I always empathize with the individuals who have to struggle with enormous, over-stuffed luggage. The additional workload is unfortunate enough, but the seemingly callous disregard for fellow travelers is shameful in my opinion.
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In the internal flights between countries in Scandinavia one of the passengers whose suitcase weighed 41.5 pounds was declared heavy luggage.