7 Ways to Avoid Airline Checked Bag Fees
by Allie Comeau on July 19, 2009 
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If you’ve flown recently, you know the headache that has become checking a bag. In addition to taxes and fees piled on top of base fares for flights, most airlines are now charging checked baggage fees.
If paying for a checked bag is not your idea of a good time, read on to discover 7 ways to avoid paying checked baggage fees.
1. Pack less. Do you really need all that stuff? Condense two checked bags into one. Better yet, don’t check a bag at all. Just make sure you don’t have any liquids weighing more than 3 oz in your carry-on bag.
2. Shop around. Southwest Airlines doesn’t charge for checked bags (they usually have better prices on flights, too) and Delta, Air Tran, Jet Blue let you check one bag for free.
3. Gate check your bag. It won’t be long before flight attendants catch on to this little trick, but gate checking your bag won’t cost you anything (as of today).
4. Look for loopholes. Some airlines won’t charge their frequent fliers, international fliers and fliers with special circumstances a checked bag fee. See if you can become one of the exempt.
5. See if someone else will pay. Some hotels are offering credits for checked bag fees – check with your destination.
6. Mail your bags. If you ship your bags to your destination, you’ll save on checked bag fees and rest assured your bags won’t get lost (though depending on shipping costs, it may end up costing you more in the long run).
7. Rent large equipment at your destination (golf clubs, skis, snowboards) to avoid paying the hefty extra baggage fees on over-sized items and multiple bags.
p.s. Don’t forget to weigh and measure your luggage so you don’t get charged extra at the airport because your bag is too large or heavy. Airlines have different rules – check with yours before you fly.
