Originally Posted by stimpy
For me checking bags is not an option no matter how long the trip or where I am going. The huge amount of lost time and productivity due to checking bags, plus the giant PITA when a bag is lost means I just use the hotel laundry on the road and buy clothes if I need them. When I am going to cold then warm places, I just pack a few older shirts that I don't want anymore, then toss them when I go to the warm place. Or vice versa.
I travel all over the world on business usually going from a few days to a month and I always do it with one shoulder bag and one laptop bag. The expense of hotel laundry and buying a few items is tiny compared to the productivity I gain.
Another big problem with checking bags (if you are a serious business traveler) is when you have to change flights at the last minute for whatever reason. If you bag is in the bottom of the plane you were previously going to take, you are screwed.
Well, I am a serious business traveler, though I try to laugh now and then. We just have different patterns. I take 4 to 6 long trips a year, but each time I am in one place for quite a while. Four 4 1/2 week stays each year. So I don't have to face the changes in schedule or as many changes as you. I would certainly have to change my way if I did.
Not only do I travel heavy, but I keep 4 -6 banana boxes of stuff in two cities: printer, kitchen gear, good speakers for my iPod, a box of office supplies.
Nimble it isn't. In a way, I travel a lot for (serious) business, but I don't fly nearly as much as many here. 50 - 60, thousand miles a year and that only because 3 of my long stays are in Europe.
We all have different pattens and different requirements. That is the reason I responded to the crack "Who checks bags?" For some, it makes eminent sense.
Best wishes!