Qantas $400 excess baggage charge for bikes.

[dave]

hippy wrote:
> Mike wrote:
>
>> A warning - Things are getting worse. Don't fly Qantas with bikes any
>> more. It's too risky.
>
>
> <snip>
>
> Thanks for this kind of info. I'm going to try
> and take the Puegeot (roadie) to Europe with me
> so I'll let you guys know how that works out..
> remind me if I don't
>
> hippy
Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?

Dave

 

[Miguel Cruz]

hippy <[email protected]> wrote:
> Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with the
> bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?

Nope, once you arrive you're home-free. Biking from the airport into the
city without a map is fun too!

> dave: Qantas is still an option but it's looking like Malaysian or KLM
> for now. I'll get back to you on that..

Malaysia Airlines is the most comfortable and has the best in-flight
service. Some awkward connections in KUL though.

miguel
--
Hit The Road! Photos from 35 countries on 5 continents: http://travel.u.nu

 

[oely]

hippy wrote:
> Jack Russell wrote:
>
>> dave wrote:
>>
>>> Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?
>>
>>
>> IMHO its generally not Qantas who the problem but the BA staff at
>> Heathrow
>
>
> Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with the
> bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?


Nah.. Maybe on the flight back.. maybe.

The cardboard bike box in the hall has done two trips to london and I
reckon has one more in it btw.

>
> dave: Qantas is still an option but it's looking like Malaysian or KLM
> for now. I'll get back to you on that..

Quantak JAl do this thing where you take Jal to london and get a night
in Japan.. Its not enough time to do anything but its a nice hotel.
They dont actually tell you about it.. but when you get to the Jal
hotel in Narita they just give you a room. Breaks the trip up nicely.
And they laid on an earthquake for me.

The last time I looked.. in the middle of peak season the cheapest
flight I could find was 1755 but the airplane. (air china) didnt
actually exist. The chepest real flight was JAL which was about 2K. A
767 to Japan and a 747 to london. THe more engines the better.
I actually booked the flight 10 hours before getting on it. and I
decided to go an hour before that

Dave

I had the night stop over in Japan also, on the way to Amsterdam. It went really well, the whole trip. You could check in for the next flight at the Hotel in the morning as well which saved alot of hassles and scored myself 3 empty exit row seats. However (so my sis tells me) that they aren´t doing this any more and now fly "direct" to Europe and back.

 

[Miguel Cruz]

Jack Russell <[email protected]> wrote:
> Miguel Cruz wrote:
>> hippy <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with the
>>> bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?
>>
>> Nope, once you arrive you're home-free. Biking from the airport into the
>> city without a map is fun too!
>
> I think the CTC can reply maps of "best" routes from London and Gatwick

Yecch, that takes all the adventure out of it. It's London, not Baghdad -
there's little downside to the occasional wrong turn...

miguel
--
Hit The Road! Photos from 35 countries on 5 continents: http://travel.u.nu

 

[Mike]

Miguel Cruz wrote:

>>>Nope, once you arrive you're home-free. Biking from the airport into the
>>>city without a map is fun too!
>>
>>I think the CTC can reply maps of "best" routes from London and Gatwick
>
>
> Yecch, that takes all the adventure out of it. It's London, not Baghdad -
> there's little downside to the occasional wrong turn...

There is less traffic in Baghdad!
I managed to get free London cycling maps from the Heathrow Underground
rail station (after telling me I couldn't take a bike on the Picadilly
line.)
The "cycle path" consisted mostly of lines painted on the old
pavement. Very rough. This was a fine Sunday - I wouldn't want to brave
weekday traffic.

 

[hippy]

Miguel Cruz wrote:
> hippy <[email protected]> wrote:
>>Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with the
>>bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?
>
> Nope, once you arrive you're home-free. Biking from the airport into the
> city without a map is fun too!

haha.. I'm taking my race bike..
I don't think it (nor I) can carry ~30kgs of suitcase-based luggage into
the city!

hippy

 

[dave]

oely wrote:
> dave Wrote:
>
>>hippy wrote:
>>
>>>Mike wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>A warning - Things are getting worse. Don't fly Qantas with bikes
>>
>>any
>>
>>>>more. It's too risky.
>>>
>>>
>>><snip>
>>>
>>>Thanks for this kind of info. I'm going to try
>>>and take the Puegeot (roadie) to Europe with me
>>>so I'll let you guys know how that works out..
>>>remind me if I don't
>>>
>>>hippy
>>
>>Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?
>>
>>Dave
>
>
>
> I had some dramas when taking my road bike with me over to Europe on
> JAL. They wanted to slug me 400$ for excess luggage this was after it
> had all been arranged with the JAL sales type rep a month earlier as
> long as I gave them the measurements for the bike box and weight, which
> i did. Then once i came to check in i heard that will be 400$ extra
> please. Apparently, so i was told that JAL dont consider a bike
> sporting equipment also. This i might add was told to me by a Quantas
> girl working for JAL that day. It was a stand off with the JAL manager
> not willing to budge, nor I. Anyway luckily a phone call to my sis at 6
> am (works in corporate travel) solved things as she knew the JAL rep and
> got him out of bed to clear it all up. The excuse i was given by the JAL
> manager was "oh i did not see the note in the computer, it wasn´t in the
> right spot".
>
>
JAL were really nice to me. Once they realise that the bike is just a
small box weighing about 12 kg it wasnt an issue. WHat I will do next
time is the online checkin tho . It seems likely to me to give them
less chance to kick up. Not that I can imagine JAL people kicking up
anyway.

Mind you if JAL does have anyone that doesnt understand customer service
thay will follow the example of everyone else and ship em off to
london.. of that I am sure

Dave

 

[dave]

Jack Russell wrote:
> dave wrote:
>
>> hippy wrote:
>>
>>> Mike wrote:
>>>
>>>> A warning - Things are getting worse. Don't fly Qantas with bikes
>>>> any more. It's too risky.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> <snip>
>>>
>>> Thanks for this kind of info. I'm going to try
>>> and take the Puegeot (roadie) to Europe with me
>>> so I'll let you guys know how that works out..
>>> remind me if I don't
>>>
>>> hippy
>>
>>
>> Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?
>>
>> Dave
>
> IMHO its generally not Qantas who the problem but the BA staff at Heathrow
>

BA.. I could tell you stories about BA.. Which stands for Bad Attitude.

Dave

 

[dave]

hippy wrote:
> Jack Russell wrote:
>
>> dave wrote:
>>
>>> Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?
>>
>>
>> IMHO its generally not Qantas who the problem but the BA staff at
>> Heathrow
>
>
> Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with the
> bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?


Nah.. Maybe on the flight back.. maybe.

The cardboard bike box in the hall has done two trips to london and I
reckon has one more in it btw.

>
> dave: Qantas is still an option but it's looking like Malaysian or KLM
> for now. I'll get back to you on that..

Quantak JAl do this thing where you take Jal to london and get a night
in Japan.. Its not enough time to do anything but its a nice hotel.
They dont actually tell you about it.. but when you get to the Jal
hotel in Narita they just give you a room. Breaks the trip up nicely.
And they laid on an earthquake for me.

The last time I looked.. in the middle of peak season the cheapest
flight I could find was 1755 but the airplane. (air china) didnt
actually exist. The chepest real flight was JAL which was about 2K. A
767 to Japan and a 747 to london. THe more engines the better.
I actually booked the flight 10 hours before getting on it. and I
decided to go an hour before that

Dave

 

[dave]

SteveA wrote:
> dave Wrote:
>
>>hippy wrote:
>>
>>>Jack Russell wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>dave wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any tips?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>IMHO its generally not Qantas who the problem but the BA staff at
>>>>Heathrow
>>>
>>>
>>>Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with
>>
>>the
>>
>>>bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?
>>
>>
>>Nah.. Maybe on the flight back.. maybe.
>>
>>The cardboard bike box in the hall has done two trips to london and I
>>reckon has one more in it btw.
>>
>>
>>>dave: Qantas is still an option but it's looking like Malaysian or
>>
>>KLM
>>
>>>for now. I'll get back to you on that..
>>
>>Quantak JAl do this thing where you take Jal to london and get a night
>>in Japan.. Its not enough time to do anything but its a nice hotel.
>>They dont actually tell you about it.. but when you get to the Jal
>>hotel in Narita they just give you a room. Breaks the trip up nicely.
>>And they laid on an earthquake for me.
>>
>>The last time I looked.. in the middle of peak season the cheapest
>>flight I could find was 1755 but the airplane. (air china) didnt
>>actually exist. The chepest real flight was JAL which was about 2K. A
>>767 to Japan and a 747 to london. THe more engines the better.
>>I actually booked the flight 10 hours before getting on it. and I
>>decided to go an hour before that
>>
>>Dave
>
> Most 'state' airlines have good stopover deals in their countries of
> origin - I suspect it is something to do with the national tourist
> authority wanting to showcase their country to tourists. If you fly
> with Singapore Airlines, book your Singapore hotel through them and it
> is very cheap and they throw in various freebies and discounts, eg zoo,
> hop-on bus, airport transfers etc.

Actually I figured that they had so many flight crews staying in hotels
that they bit the bullet and bought one.
>
> Last time I flew to London with JAL, I got a deal where I stayed in
> Tokyo for 4 days in a decent hotel in the business district for only a
> few dollars more. Plus a free half day bus trip around the city and a
> trip on the Bullet train thown in.

YEah It occured to me I could do something like that.. But...
>
> SteveA
>
>

 

[dave]

hippy wrote:
> dave wrote:
>
>> The cardboard bike box in the hall has done two trips to london and I
>> reckon has one more in it btw.
>
>
> Is this the same sort of box that new bikes come in or a 'special'
> cardboard bike box? What about those (expensive I think) bike bags
> or (even more expensive) hardcases?

special? Nope this is for a small er Trek 20 " mens. A box from bike
life.

John (NIcholson) offered to loan me his bike bag.. I put the bike in
it.. and yeah it did pack smaller.. but I thought more protection for it
in the box
>
>> Quantak JAl do this thing where you take Jal to london and get a night
>> in Japan.. Its not enough time to do anything but its a nice hotel.
>> They dont actually tell you about it.. but when you get to the Jal
>> hotel in Narita they just give you a room. Breaks the trip up nicely.
>> And they laid on an earthquake for me.
>>
>> The last time I looked.. in the middle of peak season the cheapest
>> flight I could find was 1755 but the airplane. (air china) didnt
>> actually exist. The chepest real flight was JAL which was about 2K.
>> A 767 to Japan and a 747 to london. THe more engines the better.
>> I actually booked the flight 10 hours before getting on it. and I
>> decided to go an hour before that
>
>
> Return tickets have a 12-month or 18-month maximum duration. I'm going
> longer than that (planning to anyway) so a one-way is the sensible
> choice. The cheapest I saw from STA was the Malaysian/KLM one at around
> 1100+tax. It refuels in KL for 2hrs and then heads to Amsterdam. If I
> take this flight I'm going to spend a few days in 'dam before heading on
> to London.
> I wonder how many people Heathrow gets coming in from Amsterdam that
> forgot to remove the lil baggies from their pockets..?!
> There is a more direct flight that costs $80 more on Austrian Airlines
> (Lauder??) but it doesn't have the 'fun stop'.
> Qantas actually had a $2k return ticket that you could get up until
> mid-May I think, which I thought was exceptional.
> I need to look around some more..

1100 seems good. The tax on some routes is significan.. could be as
much as about 300/

Dave
>
> hippy

 

[dave]

nobody wrote:
> hippy wrote:
>
>>Is this the same sort of box that new bikes come in or a 'special'
>>cardboard bike box? What about those (expensive I think) bike bags
>>or (even more expensive) hardcases?
>
>
> The bike boxes Qantas provides when to buy them are much larger than
> what bikes are sold in to retailers. You Need to remove front wheel and
> seatpost, turn handlebar and remove pedals. And if you care about your
> bike, put some wood pieces across the box so that if they sit box on its
> side and stack luggage on top, it ios the wood pieces that carry the
> load and not your derailleur/frame/wheels.

I figure larger doesnt equal safer. And its just harder to lug around.
>
> Some airlines provide bike bags. There are oversize string plastic bag.
> No need to remove wheels, but you still need to remove pedals and turn
> handlbars,. Seat can stay. Forces baggage handlers to take care of the
> bike. But doesn't prevent bike from falling from trolley, or in airport
> with luggage belts wide enough for bike, you don't know what happens to
> the bike beyond that curtain. (Avoid the Air Canada oversize belt at
> Dorval airport like the plague, insist on then getting a baggage handler).



> Expensive bike bags are not design to protect a bike, they are designed
> to allow you to carry the bike easily. (both wheels off for instance).
Yeah.. THe one I was offered was actually very small.. both wheels off..
but sheesh I could see some collateral damage with it. Decided not to
risk it.
>

>
> Hardcases will protect your bike. However, beware of weight limits since
> the hardcase itself weighs a lot, and the airline may not like it if it
> is too heaby or goes over your weight limit if you are flying in a
> market that is weight limited.

Nope.. You see Fat bastards way over their weight allowance with 6 huge
suitcases. Harder to argue you are being penalised.. if you have one
very huge suitcase.


Dave

 

[dave]

oely wrote:
> dave Wrote:
>
>>hippy wrote:
>>
>>>Jack Russell wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>dave wrote:
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>>Hippy I had no problems with quantas or JAL. If you want any
>>
>>tips?
>>
>>>>
>>>>IMHO its generally not Qantas who the problem but the BA staff at
>>>>Heathrow
>>>
>>>
>>>Is it a problem arriving at Heathrow or when you try to leave with
>>
>>the
>>
>>>bike? i.e. could they try and sting me _after_ I get off the plane?
>>
>>
>>Nah.. Maybe on the flight back.. maybe.
>>
>>The cardboard bike box in the hall has done two trips to london and I
>>reckon has one more in it btw.
>>
>>
>>>dave: Qantas is still an option but it's looking like Malaysian or
>>
>>KLM
>>
>>>for now. I'll get back to you on that..
>>
>>Quantak JAl do this thing where you take Jal to london and get a night
>>in Japan.. Its not enough time to do anything but its a nice hotel.
>>They dont actually tell you about it.. but when you get to the Jal
>>hotel in Narita they just give you a room. Breaks the trip up
>>nicely.
>>And they laid on an earthquake for me.
>>
>>The last time I looked.. in the middle of peak season the cheapest
>>flight I could find was 1755 but the airplane. (air china) didnt
>>actually exist. The chepest real flight was JAL which was about 2K.
>>A
>>767 to Japan and a 747 to london. THe more engines the better.
>>I actually booked the flight 10 hours before getting on it. and I
>>decided to go an hour before that
>>
>>Dave
>
>
>
> I had the night stop over in Japan also, on the way to Amsterdam. It
> went really well, the whole trip. You could check in for the next
> flight at the Hotel in the morning as well which saved alot of hassles
> and scored myself 3 empty exit row seats. However (so my sis tells me)
> that they aren´t doing this any more and now fly "direct" to Europe and
> back.
>
>
Hmmmm I would be supprised.. was only 4 months ago.