Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Touring
Reload this Page >

Bike on Jetblue

Notices
Touring Have a dream to ride a bike across your state, across the country, or around the world? Self-contained or fully supported? Trade ideas, adventures, and more in our bicycle touring forum.

Bike on Jetblue

Old 04-26-17, 09:39 AM
  #1  
Mongoeric
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 77
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Bike on Jetblue

I've read and reread the Jet Blue bike policy.

JetBlue | Help Sporting equipment on JetBlue flights

I've talked on the phone and in person to JetBlue people. It appears that you cannot check a bike box over 80" (L+W+H). Not many bike boxes are under 80". Mine isn't. That would make flying on JetBlue with a cardboard bike box almost impossible.

Most other airlines have a 110" or 115" maximum.

Does anyone have experience with a larger bike box on JetBlue? They have the most convenient flights for me but I can't risk having them decline to take my bike.

Thanks for the help.
Mongoeric is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 10:03 AM
  #2  
Andrew R Stewart 
Senior Member
 
Andrew R Stewart's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 18,003

Bikes: Stewart S&S coupled sport tourer, Stewart Sunday light, Stewart Commuting, Stewart Touring, Co Motion Tandem, Stewart 3-Spd, Stewart Track, Fuji Finest, Mongoose Tomac ATB, GT Bravado ATB, JCP Folder, Stewart 650B ATB

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4172 Post(s)
Liked 3,792 Times in 2,271 Posts
Airlines really dislike handling bikes in any configuration for a number of reasons. My first plane/bike tour in 1987 showed this and every one since has only confirmed this. The written rules are not followed by the ticket counter in every case and these are not always what one is told over the phone. If airlines really wanted bike box business they'd streamline their processes, be far more consistent in their policies and follow actual air plane size guide lines.


This is why I have been shipping my bike (and gear) via Bike Flights or UPS whenever possible and have built my wife and me a pair of coupled bikes for our overseas credit card tours.


As an aside it is sad that our current leaders want to reduce train travel. One of the best tours I did solo was one where I rode out of my driveway one morning, down to the train station, out of another station a few hours later and days later rode back up my driveway. Andy
Andrew R Stewart is online now  
Old 04-26-17, 10:23 AM
  #3  
jefnvk
Senior Member
 
jefnvk's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Metro Detroit/AA
Posts: 8,215

Bikes: 2016 Novara Mazama

Mentioned: 63 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3640 Post(s)
Liked 81 Times in 51 Posts
I'd recommend email over a phone conversation, so you have a hard record of what was said to you.

Odd, though, cause their main page lists nothing about size of box. You have to link through to see that 80" limit: https://www.jetblue.com/travel/baggage/
jefnvk is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 10:40 AM
  #4  
indyfabz
Senior Member
 
indyfabz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Posts: 39,058
Mentioned: 210 Post(s)
Tagged: 1 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18320 Post(s)
Liked 15,295 Times in 7,229 Posts
Originally Posted by Andrew R Stewart
As an aside it is sad that our current leaders want to reduce train travel. One of the best tours I did solo was one where I rode out of my driveway one morning, down to the train station, out of another station a few hours later and days later rode back up my driveway.

+1. My first tour was across the U.S. and then some. I took Amtrak from home all the way to Seattle and then rode to my front door. Back in September I rode to the train station, took the train to Vermont and rode home to my front door over the span of 8 days.
indyfabz is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 03:05 PM
  #5  
Mongoeric
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 77
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
I appreciated the train travel idea and the benefits of UPS/FedEx but due to circumstances a flight is the best option for me.

Has anyone gone on JetBlue with a big bike box? Has anyone been turned away?

Thanks.
Mongoeric is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 04:55 PM
  #6  
Zurichman2
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 363
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 148 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 6 Times in 4 Posts
I started shipping my bike with Bike Flights as another poster said. The last time I used them the cost was the same round trip as one way on a plane. I just get it delivered to whatever motel I am staying at and get a manager's name to whoever is to accept the bike at the other end. They pick it up at your house and deliver back to your house, No fuss and dragging a bike with all your luggage thru the airport. Oh yeah they lost my bike twice thru the airlines and finally found it a week later both times.
Zurichman2 is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 07:18 PM
  #7  
DSchlichting
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Posts: 349
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Check the sports equipment section of the jetBlue web site. Only real limitation is weight, while size wise, state is that they will accept "a hard sided plastic case designed for bicycles." I have a Crateworks case and have flown many times with jetBlue. No hassle at all at any jetBlue station I have flown to. Just $50. Hard to beat.
DSchlichting is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 07:27 PM
  #8  
jefnvk
Senior Member
 
jefnvk's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Metro Detroit/AA
Posts: 8,215

Bikes: 2016 Novara Mazama

Mentioned: 63 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3640 Post(s)
Liked 81 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by Zurichman2
The last time I used them the cost was the same round trip as one way on a plane.
No clue where the OP is going, but if you are leaving the country, shipping costs get astronomical in a hurry. It may get held up in customs. Plus, no use of the bikes a few days before and a few days after the trip, and I'm no less confident in UPS or FedEx not mishandling the bikes as I am the airlines.
jefnvk is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 07:53 PM
  #9  
Zurichman2
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 363
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 148 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 6 Times in 4 Posts
Originally Posted by jefnvk
No clue where the OP is going, but if you are leaving the country, shipping costs get astronomical in a hurry. It may get held up in customs. Plus, no use of the bikes a few days before and a few days after the trip, and I'm no less confident in UPS or FedEx not mishandling the bikes as I am the airlines.

I was only talking about shipping here in the states. BikeFlights is a lot cheaper than FedEx or UPS. Most people I thought had more than one bike. At my end I probably would pay Bike Flights even if it was the same price as the airlines just for the service. They pick up at your house and deliver back to your house. You don't have to drag your bike case along with trying to carry 2 suit cases etc. I had other cyclists recommended it to me and I thought it was too good to be true until I tried them for myself. I will never ship my bike through the airlines again unless it's overseas. Just trying to help at my end.


Zman
Zurichman2 is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 08:21 PM
  #10  
hilltowner
Senior Member
 
hilltowner's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Ashfield, Mass.
Posts: 491
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 83 Post(s)
Liked 15 Times in 10 Posts
Originally Posted by andrew r stewart
as an aside it is sad that our current leaders want to reduce train travel... Andy
+1
hilltowner is offline  
Old 04-26-17, 08:24 PM
  #11  
jefnvk
Senior Member
 
jefnvk's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Metro Detroit/AA
Posts: 8,215

Bikes: 2016 Novara Mazama

Mentioned: 63 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3640 Post(s)
Liked 81 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by Zurichman2
I was only talking about shipping here in the states.
No worries. Everyone's experiences is different! I didn't have a single issue the time I took bikes on the airline, and I am doing so again. We'll see if that changes, but I personally preferred having everything with me.

I only said FedEx/UPS because it is my understanding that BikeFlights is just a front end, that the bikes actually go through one of the regular carriers. Could be wrong, though. And yeah, going abroad is pricey, my entire RT flight with bike and baggage fees is cheaper than one way (~$600) from Bike Flights or UPS/FedEx

Last edited by jefnvk; 04-26-17 at 08:27 PM.
jefnvk is offline  
Old 04-27-17, 05:11 AM
  #12  
staehpj1
Senior Member
 
staehpj1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 11,837
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1236 Post(s)
Liked 744 Times in 554 Posts
If you want to fly with your bike it definitely makes sense to book your tickets with a bike friendly airline. Some are very unfriendly in their bike policy. If possible I fly Southwest.

Bikeflights.com and shipbikes.com are reasonable and work well if you want to ship your bike, but when getting to a tour I really like to fly with my bike.

Just unpacking near the baggage carousel and riding out of the airport is nice compared to having to figure out where to ship the bike to and then get there when they are open. If you are staying with someone or in a motel at the start of the trip this may not be as much of an issue. That worked well for me when I was riding with someone near the tour's start. In that case I just had the bike shipped to his house.

At the end of the tour I find the opposite. I really want to just ditch the bike and be baggage light for the trip home. I find that for the trip home I like to be able to just pay a bike shop to pack and ship the bike home for me. The shops get a business rate for the shipping and as a result I usually find the packing and shipping to be about $100 total ($40-60 for packing and $40-60 for the shipping). That has always been for distances of a thousand + miles to a coast to coast trip.

Others have had a shop do the packing and then used shipbikes or bikeflights for the shipping. That may save a few bucks, but I have not done it.

One thing I definitely avoid is walking into a UPS or FedEx store and asking them to ship. When I have done that I was always quoted a VERY high price, always more for just the shipping than the packing AND shipping a bike shop charged. Ditto for the Postman Plus type places.

All my experience is with travel in the continental US.

Last edited by staehpj1; 04-27-17 at 05:16 AM.
staehpj1 is offline  
Old 09-11-19, 09:17 AM
  #13  
Brett A
Word.
 
Brett A's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Rural New England
Posts: 232

Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Orbea Oiz XCountry Bike, Specialized Roubaix, Borealis Echo Fat Bike for Winter, many others out in the barn.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 64 Post(s)
Liked 99 Times in 51 Posts
I'm leaving tomorrow to start a month-long tour and will need to check my bike with Jetblue from Boston to Las Vegas.
However, I just now saw their claimed size restriction of 80 overall inches. My packed bike is 92 inches.
Do you know of anyone who has been turned away for this? Do you know anyone who has gotten through with this degree of overage?
Brett A is offline  
Old 09-11-19, 05:55 PM
  #14  
th0
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 26
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 14 Post(s)
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
These guys make bike bags (Im not affiliated) and I noticed they have good write ups on airlines in regards to bikes!
https://www.orucase.com/blogs/airline-guides
th0 is offline  
Old 09-11-19, 07:35 PM
  #15  
Brett A
Word.
 
Brett A's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Rural New England
Posts: 232

Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Orbea Oiz XCountry Bike, Specialized Roubaix, Borealis Echo Fat Bike for Winter, many others out in the barn.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 64 Post(s)
Liked 99 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by th0
These guys make bike bags (Im not affiliated) and I noticed they have good write ups on airlines in regards to bikes!
https://www.orucase.com/blogs/airline-guides
I called Jetblue and a rep assured me it would be no problem; that the $100 surcharge was for making the exception to the size limit. I'm still not totally confident, but I'm going to the airport with my 92 inch box in the morning. I'll report back.

Last edited by Brett A; 09-11-19 at 07:39 PM.
Brett A is offline  
Old 09-11-19, 08:46 PM
  #16  
Tourist in MSN
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,112

Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.

Mentioned: 47 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3426 Post(s)
Liked 1,441 Times in 1,122 Posts
Originally Posted by Brett A
I called Jetblue and a rep assured me it would be no problem; that the $100 surcharge was for making the exception to the size limit. I'm still not totally confident, but I'm going to the airport with my 92 inch box in the morning. I'll report back.
Good luck. My experience with ticketing agents at airports is that if you are smiling and pleasant, they are more inclined to be overly helpful.
Tourist in MSN is offline  
Old 09-11-19, 09:37 PM
  #17  
Brett A
Word.
 
Brett A's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Rural New England
Posts: 232

Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Orbea Oiz XCountry Bike, Specialized Roubaix, Borealis Echo Fat Bike for Winter, many others out in the barn.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 64 Post(s)
Liked 99 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by Tourist in MSN
Good luck. My experience with ticketing agents at airports is that if you are smiling and pleasant, they are more inclined to be overly helpful.
Thanks. I believe the ticket agent is the one person who needs to be okay with it. I usually have good experiences with people in such situations. Time will tell. If they flat-out refuse it, the Alaska ticket desk is right next door, maybe I can book a flight with them. I know they'll take the bike. I'd have to eat my Jetblue ticket, though.
Brett A is offline  
Old 09-12-19, 05:27 AM
  #18  
staehpj1
Senior Member
 
staehpj1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 11,837
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1236 Post(s)
Liked 744 Times in 554 Posts
Note that this is an old thread, so some info in it may be out of date since some airlines have recently changed their bike policy (for the better in some cases!) It should be noted that Delta and America have eliminated their bike fees. So they are now reasonable options.

As far as an 80" box goes...
It may be a pain but isn't necessarily impossible if you cut down a box to the exact size you need and pack carefully. Depending on frame size amount of disassembly may vary. Both wheels definitely need to come off. Bars, seat and post, rear derailleur, and maybe right crank arm come off. Turning the fork around backwards may be enough, otherwise it comes off.

With smaller frames you can get by without doing some of that. I can fit my 54cm road bike in an 80" box without doing most of that. I have never tried to fit my heavy touring bike in an 80" box, but it would probably require a little bit more effort (still not all of the steps mentioned above though). I'll probably never need to though since I don't use the heavy tourer any more and since Delta and American now take bikes fee free with larger boxes.

Edit:
By the way this may deserve a new thread, but the new airline rules for delta and american, for me at least, make it pretty unlikely I'll ever bother with my folding bike again or consider a bike with couplers. I am likely to use my soft case or a cardboard box most of the time and when I don't I'll probably ship using shipbikes.com or bikeflights.com. The only exception may be when I drop a bike at a bike shop for a return trip home and let them handle packing and shipping. They generally seem to get a good UPS rate

Last edited by staehpj1; 09-12-19 at 07:44 AM.
staehpj1 is offline  
Old 09-13-19, 08:02 AM
  #19  
staehpj1
Senior Member
 
staehpj1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 11,837
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1236 Post(s)
Liked 744 Times in 554 Posts
A bit more on fitting a bike in an 80" box. Just to note that the standard bike box sold by bikeflights.com and shipbikes.com is 43 x 11 x 32 inches or 86 inches. So a custom box doesn't have to be all that much smaller than what is considered a standard box, you would need to trim a total of 6" between the three dimensions. A bike shop cast off box or two, a razor knife, some packing tape, and a little creative hacking and you should be good to go.

Also I think my cheapie (~$50) Transit soft case probably meets the 80" requirement, but I never measured it when packed. Also, it might depend on the bike and how it is packed. I think the size could be limited with some cord or straps to keep it at a minimum. The case itself provides very little protection, but I add a little cardboard and some clothing of camping gear taking care not to exceed the weight limit. Since I pack ultralight I can generally get everything in the softcase with the bike and still stay under 50#. If not I can take a few items along with me in a personal item sized bag (a little UL backpack).

The nice thing about the soft case is it rolls up small enough and is light enough to be easy to mail home, mail ahead, and not even out of the question to carry along if you aren't a gram counter.
staehpj1 is offline  
Old 09-13-19, 10:22 AM
  #20  
Tourist in MSN
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,112

Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.

Mentioned: 47 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3426 Post(s)
Liked 1,441 Times in 1,122 Posts
I have tried to adjust the size and shape of a cardboard box a few times, I find that a pizza cutter can help crease the cardboard to make it easier to fold exactly where you wanted to put in a fold. Hold a yardstick or other straight edge and go over a few times, start out light and increase until it has a nice crease It takes care, push too hard and it can cut the paper.

I used to strap all the parts together inside my S&S case with double sided velcro, but am switching to zip ties for that purpose. If you put everything, or at least all the big parts together in a bundle that won't shake loose, it is less likely that things will bounce around inside the box. And of course that means padding between the pieces, etc. Using zip ties to hold all the big pieces together makes it less likely that TSA will take it out of your box and shove things back in the wrong way.

If you wanted to make an 80 inch box that you could re-use again and again, a sheet of corroplast might have better protection against water and hold up better if it gets wet than paper based cardboard. I bought a sheet of corroplast last year for about $20 from Home Depot that was 4 by 8 feet, fortunately I could fit it in my truck to take home without cutting it first.

And of course the standard caution applies, remove the rear derailleur from the hanger and strap or tape it to the frame, remove the skewers from the wheels, I like to put a piece of plastic or metal tubing that is 135mm long between my rear dropouts to protect the frame if airline handlers stack stuff on top of my case, I use a bolt on type skewer to hold that tube in between the rear dropouts. Use the plastic thingy that comes with a new bike in the box in the fork dropouts if you leave your fork in the frame, if you don't have one, get one from a bike shop. Etc.

Disposable gloves can be nice to have if the bike is not perfectly clean. I have asked at the denist or Dr office when I am there if I can have a few pairs for working on my bike, they always give me a few pairs.
Tourist in MSN is offline  
Old 10-17-19, 05:09 PM
  #21  
Brett A
Word.
 
Brett A's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Rural New England
Posts: 232

Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Orbea Oiz XCountry Bike, Specialized Roubaix, Borealis Echo Fat Bike for Winter, many others out in the barn.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 64 Post(s)
Liked 99 Times in 51 Posts
I"M REPORTING BACK MY ACTUAL JETBLUE EXPERIENCE: (Sept 2019)

I woke this thread up a few posts back when I realized my already packed and ready to go bike box was larger than the Jetblue published limits.

I can report that the counter agent took the box without measuring or weighing it and he used his discretion to waive the $30 checked bag fee, charging me just the $100 bike fee (It should have been $30 bag fee, plus $100 bike fee). He was very pleasant and everything went smoothly.
Brett A is offline  
Old 10-17-19, 07:49 PM
  #22  
Tourist in MSN
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Madison, WI
Posts: 11,112

Bikes: 1961 Ideor, 1966 Perfekt 3 Speed AB Hub, 1994 Bridgestone MB-6, 2006 Airnimal Joey, 2009 Thorn Sherpa, 2013 Thorn Nomad MkII, 2015 VO Pass Hunter, 2017 Lynskey Backroad, 2017 Raleigh Gran Prix, 1980s Bianchi Mixte on a trainer. Others are now gone.

Mentioned: 47 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3426 Post(s)
Liked 1,441 Times in 1,122 Posts
Originally Posted by Brett A
I"M REPORTING BACK MY ACTUAL JETBLUE EXPERIENCE: (Sept 2019)

I woke this thread up a few posts back when I realized my already packed and ready to go bike box was larger than the Jetblue published limits.

I can report that the counter agent took the box without measuring or weighing it and he used his discretion to waive the $30 checked bag fee, charging me just the $100 bike fee (It should have been $30 bag fee, plus $100 bike fee). He was very pleasant and everything went smoothly.
Great. Thanks for posting.
Tourist in MSN is offline  
Old 10-17-19, 09:29 PM
  #23  
DropBarFan
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 3,150

Bikes: 2013 Surly Disc Trucker, 2004 Novara Randonee , old fixie , etc

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 671 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 49 Times in 43 Posts
Originally Posted by Brett A
I can report that the counter agent took the box without measuring or weighing it and he used his discretion to waive the $30 checked bag fee, charging me just the $100 bike fee (It should have been $30 bag fee, plus $100 bike fee). He was very pleasant and everything went smoothly.

Nice that your counter agent waived a fee but OTOH weird that the airlines can be so inconsistent on fees & rules. The Jet Blue phone rep info that the $100 fee was only for over-sized bike boxes apparently contradicts the website.
DropBarFan is offline  
Old 10-19-19, 12:55 PM
  #24  
Brett A
Word.
 
Brett A's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Rural New England
Posts: 232

Bikes: Surly Disc Trucker, Orbea Oiz XCountry Bike, Specialized Roubaix, Borealis Echo Fat Bike for Winter, many others out in the barn.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 64 Post(s)
Liked 99 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by DropBarFan
Nice that your counter agent waived a fee but OTOH weird that the airlines can be so inconsistent on fees & rules. The Jet Blue phone rep info that the $100 fee was only for over-sized bike boxes apparently contradicts the website.
It's strangely true that my experience really can't offer any assurance to anyone. I think I found three different sets of standards in four different places and my actual experience was a fifth version.
Brett A is offline  
Old 10-19-19, 01:44 PM
  #25  
CliffordK
Senior Member
 
CliffordK's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Eugene, Oregon, USA
Posts: 27,600
Mentioned: 217 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 18320 Post(s)
Liked 4,489 Times in 3,338 Posts
Originally Posted by Brett A
I"M REPORTING BACK MY ACTUAL JETBLUE EXPERIENCE: (Sept 2019)

I woke this thread up a few posts back when I realized my already packed and ready to go bike box was larger than the Jetblue published limits.

I can report that the counter agent took the box without measuring or weighing it and he used his discretion to waive the $30 checked bag fee, charging me just the $100 bike fee (It should have been $30 bag fee, plus $100 bike fee). He was very pleasant and everything went smoothly.
The problem with that is one is ready to board the plane, and there is no guarantee the bike can come with you. Or, perhaps get stuck on the return trip.

Of course, that also gives the customer some leverage too.

I haven't flown with a bike since the 80's, and a lot has changed since then. I think they had accepted one bike box as equivalent to two pieces of luggage at that time, and I don't remember any special fees.

I now have my Bike Friday, and an S&S frame, so I should be able to get under the 62" limit one way or another if needed.
CliffordK is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.