CTC Bag for air travel

sbbefc

Just wondering if anyone has used a CTC bag when travelling by air. Ill be flying with ryanair to Caracasonne from Liverpool. Do they accept bikes packaged like this? or would it be best to use a cardboard box? Ideally I want to put the bike back together in the airport and ride from there, the advantage of the bag is that I can take it with me.

Thanks

chris1967cycling

In my experience if you want to be able to ride the bike out of the airport a cardboard bike box is a bare minimum.

A soft bag could give you all sorts of problems - most people with 'proper' bikes wouldn't use them as the risk of damage is too great even with lots of pipe lagging etc

apreading

Trouble with the box is that it will have to be thrown away when he gets there and therefore not available for the return trip. Lots of people seem to recommend taking the bike in a thin bag on the basis that it doesnt get thrown around by the luggage handlers in the way a padded bag or box might. Lots seem to swear by this but there are some scare stories out there.

I think whichever method you choose has risks - I just got an Aerus Biospeed from on-one based on the review by DCRainmaker http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2011/02/how- ... -bike.html who travels a fair bit more than most, so I trust his experience.

I dont kid myself that this is a foolproof option but the cost of 'decent' a hard case and subsequent airline fees because they are guaranteed to take you overweight would not be viable. And cheap hard cases have as many (if not more) scare stories than decent padded bags.

You wouldnt be able to stuff my biospeed into a backpack with all the lagging though, so it wouldnt help if you want to ride out of the airport...

So a CTC bag seems your only option, unless you want to pay for storage of your packaging at the airport until your return.

apreading

By the way, it may be worth pricing up flights with British Airways - they dont charge for carrying a bike as long as it is your main hold luggage and seem to let you stuff other things in the bag with it, plus you get 2 x carry on baggage (normal airline size hand luggage plus 'laptop bag'). Might work out cheaper than Ryanair if they charge for the bike.

slowbike

Ryanair do charge for bikes/sports equipment. They also allow you two bits of cabin bag - one trolley bag and one handbag.

Took one of their flights to Sardinia with our bikes in Evoc bags (we had somewhere to store the bags and had transport from the airport).
We packed the bikes up and padded out the bag with other things - clothes, shoes & tools.

The bike bags are obviously oversized and overweight - we had booked them as sports equipment and paid the additional so it wasn't an issue.
At Gatwick we had to take the bags around to oversized bag drop - just a larger conveyor and the staff (4 of them) were just disinterested but did load the bikes on - treating them like any other bit of luggage - not rough, but not carefully either.

At the other end we were a bit surprised to see our bags come out on the normal carousel - but passengers did move out of the way so I could get them off - which they don't normally bother doing

On return it was similar - oversized bag drop and then the bikes came off the carousel at Gatwick - we did have a few surprised looks from other passengers though

Overall I'm pleased with the Evoc bag - it's a soft bag that uses battens to hold it's shape - I think it could do with a bit of side bracketing to protect the handlebar - more specifically the STI levers from being crushed. I ended up putting shoes over the levers and using the laces to tie them in place
It does pack down nicely too - remove the battens and you're left with a much smaller package to store (handy at home - they go in the loft)
Obviously it's too big to take with you on a bike - unless you strap it on the back as a trailer?!? So not suited to trips where you've got nowhere or noone to store it.

Sorry - none of this helps the OP!

random man

Some useful info here. OP - are you intending to fly back from a different airport?

Without wishing to take this off topic, I've been thinking of doing a tour that would mean using a different airport for the return trip and what the logisitics would be regards packing the bike. If anyone has any experience I'd be glad to know.

whoof

Flown many times with Easyjet and FlyBE and these accept bikes in boxes (hard or cardboard) and bags ('proper' bike bags) and plastic ones. Check the airlines terms for more info.
If you visit your LBS and get a box at the other end after putting your bike together the first you need to do is get rid of the box. Fortunately most contintenal airports have large Biffa style bins around the back of a building somewhere. In over 10 years only once failed to find one. Then ripped the box into smallish pieces and put it in a dozen normal bins. For the return look for a hardware shop (or in France a large LeClerc) online before flying out. I usually go for a small tarpaulin and some pipe lagging. In places where it doesn't get cold enough fo lagging I've used a variety of things to wrap around the frame. including a cheap floor exercise mat. Can also pick up another bike box if there is one near the airport. Works for Toulous and the airport Formule 1 Hotel and Decathlon are all in walking distance of each other.

sbbefc

Thanks for the replies.

Slowbike - The flight is already booked so Ive got no choice but to go with ryanair. With the sports equipment fee does that include the bike and another items of luggage to put in the hold? I'm guessing I can take the panniers as hand luggage if that's not the case?

random man - Ill be flying back from the same airport, the plan is to fly to Caracasonne then cycle out to either Ax-les-thermes or Foix eventually ending up in the Lourdes area on day 3/4 as a base to tackle the tourmalet and d'aubisque. Day 6 will involve getting a train back to Caracasonne, with the last two days reserved for sightseeing and drinking.

One more question, do airports usually provide a storage facility?

I don't want to spend a fortune on buying a bag or box as I'm not sure ill bothered flying out with my bike again.

If all fails I'll just rent a bike in Lourdes or somewhere and get the train over there.

Thanks again

bigjim

I fly out with the bike in a box. This also contains my panniers, tool, tent, sleeping bag and mat. A When I land I assemble the bike and leave the box propped against a rubbish bin. I do this in case it is of use to any cyclists arriving at the airport.
On my return I have used the CTC plastic bag. I find the CTC bag bulky and heavy to carry around although I do use it as a groundsheet. Recently I have used a £6 bag off e-bay [pic on my blog] which is only 300g and is plastered with pics of a bike, so no argument it is not a bike bag at check in. It is crap at protection though and the bike would benefit from padding.
Rynair seem to take any bag. been refused once with the CTC bag in Biarritz at the Ejet checkin.