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Question: Best Ski Bag for air travel?
- Thread starter Aspenaut
- Start date
santacruz skier
Angel Diva
It is huge. Think @laine said she felt like a kindergartner. I just purchased Kulkea Trekker to take on trip Feb 9 and verified with @ski diva that she used as carryon. I'm flying on Southwest so I'll find out soon enough. I'm pretty sure British Airways (flights to Geneva or Zurich) would not allow it but hopeful Southwest will. If not, not a big deal as boots and skis count as one bag on Southwest. I returned from Geneva last year with a different carry on (old Patagonia) with boots in it. I was told it needed to be checked in for $100. I had mobility assistance as was hurt and some BA personnel ran out as she saw me dragging it around and said "we'll take that no charge."
marzNC
Angel Diva
Getting serious about travel plans for the coming season. Won't be doing anything new in terms of packing as I've described in Posts #20 and #25. Recently came across the first time @2ski2moro posted her tip about tying the locking pin for a Sportube so that it doesn't get lost. It was from a thread in 2011. She repeated her advice in Post #34. Goes to show that good tips are worth re-posting.
Only problem with my 8 year old double Sportube is that I'm running out of room for stickers.
santacruz skier
Angel Diva
Can I slightly derail this thread and inquire about "rolling duffels"? Mine is at least 20 years old and is a huge Burton rolling duffel that splits in half lengthwise like a suitcase. It is shredded to almost bits with lots of duct tape.... I've literally taken it on probably 50 or so ski trips but it has seen better days.....Any ideas?
Burton rolling snowboard bag is still good only 10 years old.
Burton rolling snowboard bag is still good only 10 years old.
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I can't believe this company has stuck with it's ridiculous, puerile name and I am loathe to recommend it as a result, but alas, their rolling ski bag seems to get legitimately good reviews.
https://douchebags.com/the-douchebag
marzNC
Angel Diva
Founder is a young man in Europe. Different connotations. They did change the logo on the bag to DB.
In any case, what I've heard is that the material doesn't hold up that well. I do like the Slim Jim. Works well for just one pair of skis and rolls up so takes up very little room in a car when I get to where I'm going by plane.
santacruz skier
Angel Diva
Good ideas but I was mostly referring to a rolling duffel for apparel, helmets, etc as many international airlines will not allow you to stuff ski bags with apparel. I've tried and either been charged or told to remove apparel from bag. It was a snowboard bag that I use...
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
The connotation isn't terribly different in Europe; from what I've read, he and his co-founder, another young guy, thought it would be funny and also attention-grabbing to give their company a rude name. They knew perfectly well the US meaning of the term; they were just a couple of young dudes with a bro-y sense of humor. All of which is fine if that's your cup of tea as a customer and totally their prerogative as owners. It doesn't happen to be my cup of tea.
My dad swears by the Eagle Creek warranty, and they have several rolling duffel options. I just finished watching their video for the ORV trunk. Not cheap though.
santacruz skier
Angel Diva
Yes Eagle Creek is really good stuff. Maybe I could find on sale!
alison wong
Angel Diva
When I was looking for a ski bag, I used online forum (like this one) as a guide. But I don't solely rely on this, I also pay attention to what skis bag travelers use at airports. From these 2 sources, I formulate my own criteria.
1) My first "real" ski bag was a double Sport Tube - holds 2 skis. I decided on this because of what I learned from this thread and another forum discussion. I saw good review for Sport Tube. I know I need a bag with wheels for ease of transport. Double ski bag so I can stuff additional things inside the tube. Plus I was planning ski trips to Canada and I heard that Air Canada only allows hard shell ski bag...
But it turned out Sport Tube was not for me. Too heavy and I pulled my muscle from hauling it during one of my trips. Plus it was not the easiest to pack. I sold the Sport Tube after used it for one season.
2) My 2nd ski bag - I got a soft shell ski bag - Oakley brand. Main reason, most travelers (~80%) I saw at airports, they are using soft shell bag. If majority of people are using it, there must be a good reason. I got one with wheels and it can hold 2 skis.
I only look for bags that can hold 2 skis even though I only own 1 pair of skis. This is because, if I travel w/ someone that don't own ski bags, theirs can put in my bag.... (It turns out few of my ski friends that I travel with, they don't fly out west for ski trips, so they don't own ski bag). Also, I learned from this website that, if I happen to buy a pair of skis in my trip, I will have "room" to fit in a 2nd pair.
3) My 3rd ski bag - While Oakley ski bag works fine, it's pretty heavy (self weight). Then I saw @Rainbow Jenny mentioned Dakine snowboard bag that she used as ski bag, it can fit up to 3 pairs of skis (if bindings are removed) and it is light weight. To my luck, I spotted this Dakine ski bag at a REI garage sale, so I bought it. I haven't used it yet, so the verdict is still out.... But I do like Dakine bag because it is light in weight and shorter than the Oakley, it will be easier to haul around...
4) At one point, I did consider to get the DB double ski bag. But the review I saw was not so good, specially about the materials they use... so I stop looking for DBs.
What i learned from this searching process, it takes few trial and error to find the perfect bag that's the best fit for me. Online review does offer valuable information, it helps you to narrow down the search criteria. It is usually helpful to observe what other travelers are using because not all folks post what they like / don't like on online forum.
As for "rolling duffle" bag, this will be my next purchase. I am still looking and haven't found anything to my liking. So I will keep my eye out and also pay attention to online discussions about this topic.
1) My first "real" ski bag was a double Sport Tube - holds 2 skis. I decided on this because of what I learned from this thread and another forum discussion. I saw good review for Sport Tube. I know I need a bag with wheels for ease of transport. Double ski bag so I can stuff additional things inside the tube. Plus I was planning ski trips to Canada and I heard that Air Canada only allows hard shell ski bag...
But it turned out Sport Tube was not for me. Too heavy and I pulled my muscle from hauling it during one of my trips. Plus it was not the easiest to pack. I sold the Sport Tube after used it for one season.
2) My 2nd ski bag - I got a soft shell ski bag - Oakley brand. Main reason, most travelers (~80%) I saw at airports, they are using soft shell bag. If majority of people are using it, there must be a good reason. I got one with wheels and it can hold 2 skis.
I only look for bags that can hold 2 skis even though I only own 1 pair of skis. This is because, if I travel w/ someone that don't own ski bags, theirs can put in my bag.... (It turns out few of my ski friends that I travel with, they don't fly out west for ski trips, so they don't own ski bag). Also, I learned from this website that, if I happen to buy a pair of skis in my trip, I will have "room" to fit in a 2nd pair.
3) My 3rd ski bag - While Oakley ski bag works fine, it's pretty heavy (self weight). Then I saw @Rainbow Jenny mentioned Dakine snowboard bag that she used as ski bag, it can fit up to 3 pairs of skis (if bindings are removed) and it is light weight. To my luck, I spotted this Dakine ski bag at a REI garage sale, so I bought it. I haven't used it yet, so the verdict is still out.... But I do like Dakine bag because it is light in weight and shorter than the Oakley, it will be easier to haul around...
4) At one point, I did consider to get the DB double ski bag. But the review I saw was not so good, specially about the materials they use... so I stop looking for DBs.
What i learned from this searching process, it takes few trial and error to find the perfect bag that's the best fit for me. Online review does offer valuable information, it helps you to narrow down the search criteria. It is usually helpful to observe what other travelers are using because not all folks post what they like / don't like on online forum.
As for "rolling duffle" bag, this will be my next purchase. I am still looking and haven't found anything to my liking. So I will keep my eye out and also pay attention to online discussions about this topic.
I have a 10 year old Atomic roller. It splits in 1/2 too. I don't like the idea that one of the exterior pockets can't be locked. But I can fit a pile of stuff in it. Like you say some of the airlines only want the skis and poles in the ski gear bag. I got a weeks worth of stuff for a Whistler trip in 2017 in it.
As far as actual bags for skis go, I have a Sportube I picked up for almost nothing off CL a while back in hopes of a trip further afield. But it just looks so bulky. I am planning on checking out the Kulkea booth at the Boston Ski Show to look at their wheeled soft sided ski bag.
alison wong
Angel Diva
For Sport Tube, it is bulky. I sold it on CL to a guy that wants to use Sport Tube to ship his fishing poles. Apparently, his poles are very $$$, so he needs a hard shell case to protect them..... Guess Sport Tube is multi purpose, not just limited to carry skis....
I have friends that used one to ship Dragon Boat Paddles to a world championship in Malaysia. The paddles are worth $200, so the hard case was great. Fishing poles can be that expensive too.
Just to remind everyone the @santacruz skier is looking for luggage for clothes, not skis.
SallyCat
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I keep my fishing poles in PVC pipe; much cheaper than a sport-tube!
RuthB
Angel Diva
We use Dakine Split Rollers like this one. The oldest one is heading for 20 years old and has been on more than 100 planes in its lifetime and is still going strong. Very little wear on the bag or wheels and the different compartments are brilliant for packing. The bag is well balanced for hauling through airports etc. The handles are in all the right places.
We have a double DB, and a Dakine double ski bag and so far based on our trip last, the DB ; is by far the most durable. Despite the efforts of baggage handlers it is showing virtually no sign of wear. Every other bag has had more sign of wear early on in their airline career.
In addition the design is the best we've ever had. The grab handles on the top of the bag make it super easy to load onto baggage scales and belts and into cars etc. It doesn't sag when you are wheeling it. We will get another when it is time to replace the Dakine.
marzNC
Angel Diva
Good to hear from you! When did you get the DB? I was surprised to read about wear issues with it from more than one person, mostly on the Aussie ski forum.
