I'm going to fly two boards to Hawaii in November. I saw that United is charging $125 each way for surfboards now. Has anyone had to pay this yet? They also say boards aren't allowed on Airbus A319s Boeing 737s etc., which is my connection flight to get back home. I'm just curious if anyone has had any recent experiences with these new conditions.
probably cheaper/easier to just rent or buy one when you get there. Somehow I don't think there is a board shortage in HI.
similar question...im headed to nica in feb-march. im can pretty much ride almost any board (of similar size and shape) the same, no real preference. im half deciding to just buy a board while im down there and sell it when i leave, as opposed to paying to have my boards shipped. insight?
there is going to be a big increase of people renting boards in the common destinations. Or maybe buying and selling at the end of the trip. It is ashame, because there is nothing better than that ol' faithful board you are used to.
Well I'm going to fly my boards to hawaii if it kills me. The last two trips I've been on (Hawaii and CR) I tried the "buy a board / sell it back" idea and it didn't work out to well. All the used boards on the rack were either toothpicks or big guns, there was nothing in between for a bigger guy like me looking to ride a thruster. I didn't really want to buy a new board and then loose $400 by selling it back used a few days later. The shop owners are well aware of this activity and know you are desparate to sell the board back and they know they can offer you a fraction of what you paid for it becuase your options are very limited and you have a plane to catch. I guess you could always give it to a kid in the lineup. I rented both times and it was nice and all, but I would have rather had my own boards. I swore I wouldn't go on a surf trip w/o my boards again. I saw other guys getting their boards in the airport and was so jealous. Never again.
Bend over and except your thrashing. The skys aren't friendly to surfers if they ever were. You may get lucky and only have to pay a single board fee each way for your coffin or case. They may open it up and count boards and hit you hard. My advice would be to take as few boards as possible and smile at the check-in counter. You better verify if they will except boards on the type of planes that you are flying. If the flight is full your boards might get left behind. You'd think if the airline is going to rape us with these fees they would at least see to it that your boards make it with you, they don't. I recently paid $450 extra for my boards only to find out that they never put them on the plane, and didn't give a sh*t when I had to sort it out at landing.
My experience with rentals is that they are alot heavier, probably extra fiberglass to avoid dings. Shipping your own board is super expensive and is a danger to your board. I have seen how they handle baggage and they are not gentle. I understand why you may not want to buy and sell when you get there because it seems like you are losing a bunch of money, but if you do the math, it is probably your best bet.
