I am flying Southwest which allows two checked bags. Can I simply just fill a second suitcase with beer or do I need a corrugated box that is sealed? Appreciate anyone who has had an experience with this airline!
An all-beer suitcase if that's what you're talking about, is legal. However, if the suitcase is not jam packed the beer will have room to shift and is apt to break, but if the suitcase is jam packed with beer it will possibly be too heavy to ship for free. A bag packed tight with bottles deep within and clothing on the exterior is the way to go.
I'm a FF on southwest and usually am travelling with beer in the checked bag. Never had a problem. Seal it so a leak will be contained, pad it, and pack it tightly to minimize jostling, and you should be OK. I'm reluctant to check a cardboard box out of the fear that one bottle leaking through might cause them to trash the whole box. I doubt they'd trash a suitcase if it was leaking though. I'm too lazy to check, but see if there are specific rules on the website. I've been asked once or twice whats in my bag (kitchen supplies).
I usually don't put the bottles in a bag, though this is probably wise. Most definitely pad the bottles with clothes and build a shell of the clothes so that no bare part of the bottle is touching the inner lining of the bag. I can usually fit between 5-7 bottles(mixture of 12oz and 22oz) in a carry on size bag. Also, your Rafi avatar is awesome. Gattica!
I just flew back from Portland, OR to Texas with 17 bombers of beer. I found a wine storage place and bought a 12 bottle shipper in Portland for $8, packed 12 bottles in it, and checked it as baggage. I told them what it was, because transporting beer this way is not against their rules. TSA did open the box, but taped it back up nicely and everything made it home. The other 5 bottles were wrapped in clothes and packed in my suitcase - also no problems. Personally, I'm a bit anal retentive about this stuff, so I bag each bottle in a ziploc bag, then wrap it in bubble wrap, and then in clothing (jeans and sweatshirts work well) and try to spread 'em around the bag so they don't touch. I do the same to the bottles in the shipper as well (minus the clothing) Never had a problem, and never had breakage (knock on wood)
Had just come back from San Diego, and going to Tampa and DC in the next 2 weeks - I have to pace myself!
Just watch your weight -- SW allows up to 50 lbs. per bag -- if you go over you get charged extra. I weigh my bag before traveling and then add these for what I take home: 12 oz. = 1.2 lbs. 22 oz. = 2.2 lbs. 750 ml = 3.0 lbs. Has worked out well so far.
I've got a pretty sweet beer-travel system that transports 14 bombers. I use it every time I travel, and I've yet to have an issue with it: I use an 8-gal Rubbermaid ActionPacker, with a 1/4 inch layer of closed-cell foam on the bottom, each bottle is individually bubble wrapped. Fits 14 bombers this way, and is pretty rugged. easy to pack/unpack, and all the bubble wrap just lives in it for my next trip out of town.
That sounds like a great idea! So do you treat this as its own checked-in bag, or do you put this inside of a suitcase?
I just use it as it's own checked bag. 14 bombers ends up being around 42 lbs or something close, so it's under the weight limit. I basically fly everywhere on Alaska Airlines these days, and get two free checked bags to/from AK, so it just goes as one of my free checked bags just about every time I fly anywhere.
I crammed 31 bottles/cans in my extra suitcase on my last trip. It was a mix of 12/16oz cans and 12oz and 750mL bottles. I put every can/bottle in a ziplock bag, bubble wrapped them all and layered them with a few towels wrapped around as well. It was avid about 10 hours of flying and one transfer and everything arrived fine.
