Looking for some advice on flying abroad with a bike

[Borden]

Hi guys,

Myself and some friends are planning on a mini tour around France in June. At the moment the plan is to fly down to Biarritz and then cycle up the coast towards Caen where we will catch a ferry back.

I've had a look at the Ryanair regulations and it just states that the bike must be in a box or bag. I'd rather not have to buy a bag which I will then need to carry around with me once I get there. On the other hand, I also don't want my bike getting completely ruined.

I found this (http://www.basquemtb.com/views-holiday-bike-packing/#/) after a brief search but it seems a little excessive to me, are the airlines really that careless when handling bikes?

At the moment I'm considering using a double walled cardboard box stuffed with bubble wrap. Am I mad?

If anyone has done this before and has any advice I'd be very grateful!

 

[ArmoVanBuuren]

I'm in the same postion as you looking to fly abroad with my bike. I'm flying to Geneva in July then need to get to Annecy in France via bus or train to go to a friends house to watch the Tour De France. I'm flying with BA who are apparently more accomodating withe bikes and you can take them as part of your hold luggage.

So far I've looked into CTC Bag (Polythene Bag) - http://www.ctc.org.uk/cyclists-library/bikes-public-transport/bikes-air apparently when bikes fly like this although the bag carries little protection bikes tend to come through unscathed as bagage handlers can actually see it is a bike so in their human nature will seek not to deliberately damage the bike. Also the cover can also be rolled up and stored easily when touring or binned at the airport if not needed.

Cardboard box - Go to your local Halfords/LBS and ask them if they have any spare bike boxes then pack the bike up with bubble wrap and pipe insulation. Apparently this is also a good method of packing.

Bike Bags - these offer a little bit more cushioning but baggage handlers sometimes dont realise it is a bike so will stack it at the bottom under lots of heavy suitcases etc crushing your bike. Also bulky to travel with on your bike.

Bike Boxes - offer really good protection incase the box is placed at the bottom underneath some heavy luggage, can be heavy though so eat into your baggage allowance and also bike boxes are expensive and you will then be left with a big bulky bike box at the other end which is not good for touring!

I guess it all depends on how much you value your bike and how lucky you think you will be with the baggage handlers being nice and considerate with your bike. I'm thinking at the moment the Polythene bag route and buy lots of pipe insulation/bubble wrap then pray and pray and pray!

 

[Borden]

Hey, thanks for the reply. Some useful information in that link! It seems to make sense though that if the baggage handlers can see it's a bike they're less likely to kick it around. The bag is also cheap enough that I can just throw it away on the other side. Reading the comments by others who have used that bag, a lot of people seem to just turn up at the airport and wheel the bike into it complete, apart from twisting the bars and removing the pedals. I think I would follow the advice on CTC though and remove front wheel etc, as well as bubble wrapping everything.

So with BA you pay for hold luggage (with a limit of 23kg) and you don't need to pay any extra for a bike? It's not too clear from their website. I know that Ryanair charges £50 for a bike and Easyjet charge £27.

I wish I could go to Geneva and cycle back from there tbh. I'm limited by the amount of time my friend can take off work. I will be on uni holidays so it doesn't matter to me how long it takes! I was in Geneva last summer and we rented out the free city bikes and cycled a decent way around the lake, crossing the border into France. It was awesome! The bikes were pretty heavy but we managed to see so much more than the standard tourist would. Definitely recommend going around the lake if you have the time!

 

[One More Solo]

With BA your hold luggage is included in the ticket up to 23kg and they aren't fussy on size. Last year we went to France and packed our bikes into two DHB bike bags along with all our clothes and had no issues with BA.

 

[kieranv]

When we flew to France last year with bikes we used bike bags, however there were loads of people on the same flight using different methods. One group had just shrink wrapped their bikes with the front wheel off, a couple were in those poly bags and some were in boxes. All seemed to get through undamaged (easyjet)