CARRY-ON BAGS
I just read an article on Apple News by Business Insider explaining the problem of carry-on luggage on airplanes. The reasons the space for carry-on luggage is so limited are several. The first is that planes are squeezing more and more people onto planes by shrinking the seats so that the overhead bins are more crowded. The second reason is because airlines used to allow a free checked bag but now, to make money, charge a high fee for a checked bag. The third is because checked luggage sometimes gets lost and people want to make sure their luggage gets there with them. Also, if you deplane with your luggage you don’t have to wait at the carousel.
The result is that everyone tries to squeeze their luggage onto the plane into the overhead bins and there isn’t room. I fly with carry-on luggage only even on a month long journey. I was just in Mexico for a month with only carry-on luggage. While my bags are the stated maximum size for one carry-on wheeled bag and one personal backpack, by the time I had bought a number of things in Mexico include 20 bulky paper flowers, a well packed clay crèche set, and some other small but bulky items I had to unzip the expansion zippers to give myself 2 inches extra for each bag. The people I was traveling with said I was way over the limit and expected me to have to pay $40 to check one of the bags.
But the article states that people at the gate are required to get people on the flight as fast as they can so they pay little attention to those extra two inches.
I also,this time, boarded early so there was less pressure. But what I have noticed is that on almost every flight they ask you to check your bag at the gate at no extra charge to avoid putting it in a crowded overhead bin. In fact, if they don’t ask you to check a bag free, you ask and they will let you. This means that your bag is almost certain to get on your plane and to your destination. It also means that when you enter the plane you only have one item, the backpack which with the extra 2 inches is too big anyway to go under the seat ahead of you, as it is supposed to, which is a nuisance anyway because then you have no footroom. My personal backpack, now that I’ve checked my carry-on bag, can just as well now appear to be my carry-on bag size and no longer is too big. I also now have one bag only and am not causing trouble by filling a bin with two bags plus a coat and keeping other people from having room for their carry-on bag. However, before I put the bag in the overhead bin I put all the things I want on the flight in a small third folded up bag so that I don’t have to fool around trying to get something out of my overhead bag during the flight. This means that when I get off I have three bags going up the ramp instead of the allowable two, but no one cares.
So far this technique saves me $40 or more dollars when flying overseas plus removing anxiety about having luggage that is too large.
I am sure that everyone has their own scheme for getting their luggage on the plane. But this is my personal worry free way of traveling for a month overseas without paying any more than I have to.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 