US-YOW-YVR duty free?
 

Hello,

I will be flying back from the US this weekend and am wondering if I can bring duty free liquids. Will I be able to pick up my bags and put the bottle in my checked luggage? Will I even have to clear security again?

Thanks

Dr. PITUK

Duty-free purchases in the U.S. are brought to the gate and picked up by pax at the jetway as they board so the answer is no, you cannot buy and put it in your checked bags.

The long-held view is that duty-free can often be cheaper on the street than at duty-free stores (depends on the state you're in and how liquor is distributed in the state). For example, supermarket prices in Hawaii are cheaper than at duty-free at the Canadian border from Washington (because Washington state restricts liquor sales to certain outlets and liquor prices are relatively high), but not as cheap as that going into Mexico from Arizona). Know your prices before you buy.

Certainly not on the first leg, but presumably the OP will claim their luggage, clear customs in YOW and re-check their bag for the 2nd leg to YVR, in which case they can put the bottle in their checked bag for the second leg.

That being said, I agree with cockroach - If I'm in the USA and checking a bag I usually just buy my booze at a liquor store and pack it. It's usually the same price as duty free, with greater selection and less hassle.

Don't know where in the US you're coming from but BevMo is a liquor "superstore".

That's just what I'm wondering - do I pick up my bags in Ottawa and then move them to another belt somewhere?

I don't know what the prices at Dulles will be like, but at LAS last month they were significantly cheaper than here in Virginia at the (monopoly) ABC.

Thanks

Dr. PITUK

I don't know the specific answer to this question - You may want to start another subject line that asks how things work if you are transiting from the USA at YOW, but I can tell you in general the answer is yes - YOW is your port of entry into Canada, so you'll need to claim your bags as part of the Canada Customs exercise and then drop them onto another belt so they wind up on your flight to YVR.

How that exactly works at YOW will need to be explained by someone more familiar with YOW than me.

Thanks all. As gglave said, I made a poor choice of subject line.

In case anyone else needs to know, yes you do pickup your bags and then go through security again. So you can buy duty free alcohol as long as you put it in your checked bags in Ottawa.

I'll know for next time :).

Thanks

Dr. PITUK