Originally Posted by
moondog
Many people on FT regard checking bags as a "kettle" thing, and I used to be in this camp myself, but as my travel career has matured, I've changed my position 180 degrees.
Following is why:
1. Checking my bag requires an additional 2 minutes of my time on departure
2. It's really easy to go through security, and walk to my gate (sometimes really far away; I'm looking at you SZX
)
3. I don't have to even contemplate the idea of overhead bin space
4. This allows me to get on the plane after everyone else (I.e. no queuing in the jetway for me)
5. The wait on the arrival side is typically less than 5 minutes here in China, and I'm fine with this in the context of 7 hour door to door times
6. All of that having been said, I still carry my bag with me when I'm flying to airports in which a 20 minute wait is typical (we should make a list of these!)
I agree with all of that. I used to pride myself on being able to fly on a RTW with just carry on. Then one day I was outside waiting for a taxi and a guy walked up next to me (to wait for a taxi) and I recognized him from the same flight. He had a bag which clearly had been checked. I might have save 2 or 3 minutes by packing around 50 pounds of crap in the gate area, on and off the plane, etc.
I check luggage all the time now. Slowest airport is SFO. But if Immigration lines are long I only end up waiting 5-10 minutes. If Immigration is fast I might wait 20 minutes. I usually check a guitar and, despite the videos, UA has never damaged it.