I’m flying from Vancouver back home to Vermont and I’m bringing my snowboard gear with me.
I have a bag for my snowboard and then a separate boot bag. Should I check these in at the Air Canada counter and not through the app? And will I get the deal that the snowboard and boot bag count as one checked bag?
I’ve also seen that many people stuff the snowboard bag with clothes to pad the snowboard. Mine is soft, so I’ll probably do that. And for my boot bag, I usually put my helmet and goggles in there, but I e seen people recommend bringing those as a carry one. I have two backpacks I’m bringing as carry one so I can shove my helmet and goggles into one.
You are not allowed to stuff other items with the skis/board. Boot bag, you can so some.
https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/plan/baggage/special-items.html?msockid=2c48a9dd28ea641824c3bde9295f6502#/
If they reprimand you, YMMV.
I didn’t do it with regular clothes. It’s all my snowboard gear. Ski pants, ski jacket.
As it says in on the about page I've linked, "contains only ski/snowboard equipment such as boots, helmet and goggles" - which is tied to the boot bag only. The board/ski bag is only for the board.
that doesn't include the other soft gear.
Packing instructions
Sports equipment bags and cases can’t contain clothing or other personal items. They must be used only to carry sports equipment.
https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/plan/baggage/special-items.html?msockid=2c48a9dd28ea641824c3bde9295f6502#/:~:text=Packing,equipment,-%2E
If it’s already being paid for as a checked bag and it stays under the weight limit, what does it matter? I’m not getting a checked bag for free. I’m paying for it. So I’m a bit confused.
You are seriously just not accepting the rules. People are letting you know how it works. Do whatever you want but don’t complain if your bag is refused.
I’m just confused as to why we’re not allowed to when we’re buying it as a check bag. It’s a checked bag. Should we be able to fill it??
Why Airlines Have This Rule (The Official Side):
Liability: If your ski bag is lost or damaged, the airline's policy usually only covers the equipment (skis, poles, boots). If your clothes are in there, they won't pay for replacements, leaving you to buy new essentials.
Security/Screening: Ski bags are often oversized and handled differently, sometimes requiring manual inspection. Security agents (like TSA) prefer not to rifle through clothes, making it quicker to clear bags containing only gear, as noted in places like Boston Logan.
Exploitation: The rule exists because some travelers try to hide significant amounts of non-ski items (like a whole suitcase's worth of clothes) in their ski bag to avoid extra fees or bag counts, which complicates things for the airline.
Sinple AI answer
Okay.
You gonna have to call ahead to book a spot in cargo. I also stuffed my bag with my ski gear but you have to accept if that it goes missing its not gonna be covered- only the skis/board + boots.
Just called. Also, wondering if I can put my snowboard boots in my snowboard bag and my ski boots in my boot bag. Since I snowboard and ski.
So I actually did that as i also ski + snowboard. My snowboard boots were in the ski bag. But you run the risk of what i said above...thats the only catch.
Thanks!
there's a lot of hallway monitor bitch-boy energy in these comments.
FYI OP, i have flown with a soft snowboard bag and stuffed it to the brim with clothes (regular and snowboarding) 10+ times. Never had a single question. As long as its not grossly overweight, you're fine.
Flew Air Canada today. They didn’t check. They didn’t care. Lol.