Luggage considerations: to check or not to check? To carry on only instead?

I’ve never just taken carry on for.a Tauck tour. I did once for a non Tauck Africa tour, even though the duffle had wheels, it had a hole in it before the tour was over.
But for years now, I have almost always packed two complete sets of clothing in my backpack. I also always wear traveling clothes that are suitable for the tour just in case.
If you opt to just take carry on, please be sure that you have a true regulation size bag because in Europe, they are much more strict about this than in the US, you don’t want your bag taken off you at the gate with all your meds and documents in it.
I think it can be done, the trouble is, can you cope with the looks from others on the tour if you appear to be wearing the same clothes every day and don’t appear at the Welcome dinner and Farewell dinner in a jacket or cocktail dress that some people here think is essential. People can make snide clothing comments, I’ve heard them about others on a few tours. A good tip is always to wear black, I particularly noticed this on our India tour when all the other women wore black every day, when I was wearing my colorful clothes which is normal for me and reflects the color of India too, yes I felt like a clown 😂
Amsterdam seems to have a particularly bad reputation over the years for luggage not making it from there. This can be overcome by ensuring that you have a long layover in Amsterdam. Our luggage never made it to Africa on the same flight as us once from there when our US flight was a late arrival. We ran to catch the flight, we made it, our luggage didn’t. There were people on that tour who were going straight out on safari, I don’t know how they did about their luggage catching up with them. Ours arrived 24 hours later.

BSP51

Apple AirTags in each checked bag will help if bag is “lost”.

OurTravels34

I also use Apple Air tags. The tag is hidden in my 25” suitcase. You can track the location of your location any time with wiFi. In fact I put one in my everyday handbag too. My husband does the same but his suitcase is a bit larger. My daughter has an AirTag on her dogs collar.

JennyMiller
9:44AM in General
I'm wondering about your experience for anyone who has recently traveled to or from Europe and has checked baggage. . . . .

Jenny, see my thread "On the Road Again, Again," about our Treasures of the Aegean trip a few weeks ago. While the thread is mostly a photo-heavy review, there is however, a post in the thread at this link https://forums.tauck.com/discussion/comment/75242/#Comment_75242 about our trials and tribulations with cancelled/re-booked flights that includes a discussion about our bags. They sort of went missing, and had a real danger of being missing for most of the tour. Just by luck(?) after 'all' baggage had supposedly been loaded on the plane at Charles de Gaulle my wife spotted them still sitting on the tarmac. They were eventually loaded and arrived in Athens when we did (sort of).

We aren't spring chickens either, so do not want to schlep bags through airports. Due to flight delays, etc., we have had to make a mad dash to gates on more than one occasion. We do a decent job packing per Tauck guidance, but if we limited ourselves to carry-ons we would need two carry-on sized bags each. Right now we check one standard sized suitcase each. My wife carries a Biaggi with her stuff and a few items of clothing for each of us in case our bag gets delayed and I carry cameras, headphones, iPad.

We will likely continue to check bags however- our next trip is in December and are hoping things get better by then.

Claudia Sails

So far I've never had a bag go missing since the 70s when flying to Texas. However, I always expect it can happen and make sure to pack at least one change of clothes. I figure that gives some time for the hotel to launder what I flew in, maybe my bags to arrive late and/or time to go buy some replacements. Since there is always at least some time when I have to deal with all my bags even though Tauck takes on a lot of the load during the tour, I make sure I'm can handle it all. I check one bag that is within the max for Tauck and the airline. I also have an extra small roller bag - the sort that fits under the seat and has a trolley handle to fit on top of my big bag. I've learned the hard way that my back and neck can't deal for long with a heavy backpack or non-wheeled bag.

With this set up I have enough carryon space for essentials - electronics, meds, valuables, 311 bag, and the change of clothes - and can get thru the airport fairly easily. Once I clear security I pull those items out of the carryon that I want during the flight and put them in a small tote or the daypack I use for touring. If flying economy I do carry more - neck pillow, noise canceling headphones, etc - but thankfully no more.

JennyMiller

Thank you for all these comments and ideas! I think we might pack additional clothing in carry ons (and thank for the reminder to check what the carry one size is!) but maybe check one bag, hoping it makes it. It does sound like from the articles I read that things are expected to get more crazy with travel to Europe in July/August...I guess we will all see what happens!

My husband and I have had a lot of travel interruptions in the past, and we've always been able to figure something out.

SGF

Split up your items between family members' bags - this way no one is entirely miserable if a bag is "lost". You can always repack once the flying part of the trip is over.

Going home never matters as much - isn't it all dirty laundry, anyway? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Here’s one of my backpacks with a shoe to show size, it’s not big and very light when empty

BSP51

Hey flagger. Are you allergic to photos?

I've figured it out!!!! The flagger is still using dial-up so images take forever to load.

Alan, I think the flagger hates me more than you these days 😀

MarketArt

Follow the few tips above, and you'll be fine. And don't worry about repeat outfits; honestly, who cares! Try to carry on anything you'd hate to lose, which could mean leaving your most precious clothes at home, or wearing them on the plane. For cooler weather, it's helpful to have your jacket with you just in case, though I have chanced it by putting it in checked luggage. I look forward to lost luggage on the return; it's delivered right to my door à la Tauck; beats lugging it on public transport. p.s. Black clothes in India? Not best choice for hot climates.

Our luggage was never truly lost- most of the time it was delayed because it didn't make short connections (caused by flight delays). In Shannon they called my wife on the PA in the baggage area to say her bag was delayed. When I retrieved 'my bag' at the carousel, I discovered it was her bag, mine was the one delayed- the agent at RDU switched bag tags. On the way to Prague our luggage missed the connection in Charles de Gaulle but was delivered to the hotel that evening. Another time (same trip?) it missed the connection in Amsterdam on our inbound flight, but was on our side porch the next morning when we got up.

All that being said, some of the press reports of baggage issues in Europe seem to be horror stories. Hug piles of bags everywhere, What an opportunity for thieves to riffle through bags.

JennyMiller

Yes, AlanS, I've been thinking the same thing. It sounds like in Dublin there was luggage everywhere...I would think it's pretty easy for anyone to grab whatever bag they chose. What a mess! I just read that Amsterdam Schiphol is going to limit capacity each day - hopefully our flights in & out of Amsterdam don't get changed in this cutback. But I appreciate that they are trying to address the situation that they are not currently sufficiently staffed to handle the people they normally would.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsNaR6FRuO0

As to the safety of bags during connections- they are not suppose to allow any contact due to security, but who knows. The worse it gets, the less upset I am about our flights and missing out on our pre-tour activities in Athens. I think a lot of these problems stem from the airlines trying run at max capacity with insufficient crew, airplanes and ground personnel. There is just no slack in the system- one hiccup cascades and everything comes crashing down.

BKMD

AlanS
I've figured it out!!!! The flagger is still using dial-up so images take forever to load.

My first computer (a Commodore64) had a 300 baud modem. When they came out with a 2400 baud modem, there was talk that it was too fast for the phone lines to handle

Gourmet Gal

As long as I have my essentials and a change of clothes with me I don’t worry about checking a bag. I used to pride myself on traveling for a month or longer with carry-ons only but I’ve now grown tired of schlepping! If joining a cruise it always pays to arrive a day or two early so there’s time to shop if your bag is truly lost.

A lot of good discussion in these comments. I do think the degree of fitness and energy plays into the decision, as does the nature of connections and what cabin you are flying in. We are doing K & T starting in a few weeks, and assuming our packing goes well we plan to go with 2 carryons plus backpack personal items. Laundry planned to be sent out on tour. Given the way things are going with travel, we fill it allows for maximum flexibility, the possibility of shorter lines in airports, etc.... With tickets all the way through in business class, in cabins that board separately so little risk of overhead bins not being available, it seems doable to us. We are going with the Away carryon that meets size criteria for all our flights, with an expandable flex section if we need more out of the bag, and are willing to check it. So that we can bring some items hard to do as carryons and not likely to come home like bug repellant, sunscreen, etc..., on the way out we will check either a duffle or a suitcase we are willing to part with and leave behind at the end of the trip (we are doing post-trip in Amsterdam, where the airport situation is a concern) and which if it does not make it with us will not create much problem. We do have airtags ready to go.

I am also wondering whether others have used the Blue Ribbon bag service, which for $5 per flight record itinerary will track and expedite the return of your delayed baggage for 96 hours from the time your flight lands, plus make a nice $1K payout if the bag is not located in 96 hours. Including bags forced to gate check. What is to lose for $5? https://www.blueribbonbags.com/

OurTravels34

I am not seeing any positive reviews on blueribbonbags nor do I know anyone that has used them. Did you read the fine print and between the lines about Blue Ribbon Bags. I haven't heard of them whatsoever.

I haven't heard of Blue Ribbon either. How can they be any better than Delta's bag tracking- the information comes from the same source? Delta "lost" our bags for awhile because tracking overseas, even on a Skyteam member flight is not always guaranteed, as we found out.

It should be interesting to see the fall-out from the recent baggage SNAFUs in the US and Europe.

Seven seas, I assume you mean you will be using your Tauck duffels as one of your bags. Even if you are staying in Amsterdam after the tour, it is entirely possible that that bag will be enough especially if you are getting your laundry done throughout your Safari. Laundry service is very cheap in Africa, it’s one of the few places we have had laundry done…we did not use the Four Seasons as even with a discount, I understand it is expensive.
Amsterdam is a very casual city, so no need for dressy clothes, and during the summer and because of Covid, you are likely to be eating outside.
As far as lost luggage is concerned, I don’t think it makes one iota of difference whether you are in business or economy class, luggage gets lost in the airport, not on the planes. In our experience, priority tags don’t guarantee your luggage will get ot the carousel first.
On American airlines we can check where are bags are in the system on the AA app, I’m not sure what you do as I leave that to occupy Mr. B, but he sometimes shows me his phone and points to the info at where our bags are at that given moment.
One thing we have done for quite some years now, is we have metal luggage tags on our bags with our photographs on them. I got them from Shutterfly when there was a 50% off deal, but they are no more than about $10 at full price. They make two sizes, if you want to have your name and address and phone or email address on them, you need the bigger size. A couple of years ago, apparently a routing tag came off one of our bags, but it still had our luggage tag photo on it and a priority tag. The agent came to the business class lounge to identity us by our photos and found us immediately, a new routing flight tag was put on and we did not lose our bag! When we have had these photo tags on our duffels in Africa, it’s also easier to identify our bags when everyone’s is the same. Many people have commented on our tags and say what a good idea it is. Now maybe it’s time to get new tags since my hair is a different color and we certainly look older.
If you are staying in Amsterdam at the end of your tour, I doubt you will have the missing luggage problem, that is usually caused by delayed flights. If you get to the airport three hours early as usually recommended, surely your bags will make it on the plane. Our last trip to Africa was a repeat K and T and we deliberately avoided KLM because they often don’t get your bags onto the Arusha flight, there is only one a day, so there is a minimum of a 24 hour wait for your bag. Having been to Arusha three times now, the Tauck guys who pick you up at the airport routinely know to be on the lookout for delayed bags from the day before, one super good reason to have a pre-stay day before the tour begins.

@AlanS For that service, one thing that gives me pause is that seasoned travelers are not aware of it or don't use it. To sign up you are giving your locator number and name, which I don't think is a great idea unless you are dealing with a trustworthy organization. I do agree that if flying one of the majors with an app you should be able to see your bag in real-time. Perhaps they can add something for other airlines.

@British What I was saying is that we are using a conventional Away carryon sized roll aboard, together with a good backpack, my wife's not that different from yours. We will have our Tauck bag with us to switch over as needed on tour. The duffel will be for overflow items that are easily replaced if the bag does not show up in Arusha, and are not likely or wanted to be brought back home. It will be in a low value duffel or suitcase we are prepared to leave behind if trouble for whatever reason, such as eliminating a line to deal with at Schiphol on the way home given the craziness. I don't have worries on the way out - we are arriving two days early and not passing through Amsterdam - we are taking a Kenya Airways direct flight from JFK to Nairobi, then after transiting there have a short flight to Tanzania. So a checked bag would be same airline at least, which lowers risk. They have a nice service, btw where for $30 you are greeted upon arrival and someone walks you through the transit process, to a lounge, to your next flight etc..... I did not imply that business class bags don't get lost. Au contrare. My point is that a risk with carryons is that if not business class you can find bins full and be forced to check your bag like it or not. That could happen in business class too if a single point of entry plan and a non-business passenger tosses their bags in the first bin they see upfront. But if a business class with a separate entrance, or common entrance but turn the other direction for bus class, there should be room for all business class carryon bags.

We discovered Qatar and would never consider another airline flying or Arusha now. Also, some airports, and my example is Kigali in Rwanda, they board business class last. Separate boarding means economy people don’t have access to overhead storage in a business class. Do you have to get a multi entry visa to fly to Kenya first?

No, I have in writing from the Embassy that for transiting and entry back into Kenya a week later that is not required.

Mimitravels

All of our family's luggage went missing on our Christmas market trip last December. (5 pieces) I will always bring a carry on from now on. We ended up having to spend some of our touring time shopping for warm clothes and coats. Our bags finally showed up 5 days into our trip thanks to our wonderful Tauck director, Joe.

PureLuxury

JennyMiller My family is wondering if we should just bring carry ons instead of checking bags. I personally have a lot of health issues and medications so lots of time my meds comprise most of my carry on. Anyway I thought some "on the ground" opinions might be helpful.

I'll add my 2cents--For over the past decade I have traveled with Tauck to far far away places. I have NEVER checked a bag. This includes the longer Portrait of India and Grand Aus/NZ tours. My African Safari luggage was a duffel (non-rolling). I understand its your health issues and the need to carry medications that's the major cause of concern. This hasn't been an issue for me (yet) and therefore, I can only offer advice from my experiences.

I've been fortunate to fly business class on my trips and therefore, have the option of carrying-on more bags (though I choose not to). I love clothes and find pure joy in assembling different looks using the same pieces. I have packing down to a science. As mentioned in another topic on this forum, I do not buy loads of souvenirs which may require additional luggage space upon tour end.

You must do what makes you feel most comfortable. Starting or ending a vacation dealing with stressful situations is never good. I do not like the hassle of waiting at the luggage carousel and would absolutely be beside myself if me and my luggage didn't arrive at the destination together (Business Class is no guarantee luggage will not be delayed). It doesn't bother me to lug my one bag from the check-in counter to the airline lounge to the airplane. Once on the plane there is usually a very nice attendant offering to lift my bag in the overhead bin--which I am happy to oblige. Enjoy your European Holiday