Transporting tandems cont.-Shipping/flying

[marciero]

Another transporting tandems thread.

One of our two tandems is coupled and we've flown with that a number of times. But now wanting to do a trip with the non-coupled one but wondering if it would be worth dealing with the logistics. Has anyone done this that can offer tips or hacks? I imagine flying is out so we would have to ship it ahead. Or maybe rent a vehicle one way. Driving our own vehicle is out because we are planning an "open jaw" tour. And in any case I am averse to driving for a number of reasons.

Thanks in advance.

[AngryScientist]

How about a hybrid approach? Wheels off and pack the frame very well and ship it ahead. Bring your wheels and auxiliary stuff in your S&S case on the plane with you. Keeps the weight of the shipped box reasonable for both shipping cost and moving the box around logistics.

I think a lot of us have to keep in mind that whenever someone buys a new bike, it gets shipped around a few times before the owner takes possession of it, so in theory, shipping a bike safely should be no big deal.

The obvious point to consider is if you will have someone/someplace available to receive it at your destination, and how/where will you build it before starting out.

I am curios about this too and would like to hear if others have successfully shipped a bike to perhaps a hotel, bike shop, or other destination depot.

[marciero]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

How about a hybrid approach? Wheels off and pack the frame very well and ship it ahead. Bring your wheels and auxiliary stuff in your S&S case on the plane with you. Keeps the weight of the shipped box reasonable for both shipping cost and moving the box around logistics.

I think a lot of us have to keep in mind that whenever someone buys a new bike, it gets shipped around a few times before the owner takes possession of it, so in theory, shipping a bike safely should be no big deal.

The obvious point to consider is if you will have someone/someplace available to receive it at your destination, and how/where will you build it before starting out.

I am curios about this too and would like to hear if others have successfully shipped a bike to perhaps a hotel, bike shop, or other destination depot.

Ah-thats a creative approach worth considering. As far as shipping to hotels- Ive not shipped bikes, but have shipped other things to hotels, including bike boxes, two of them, which were pretty big even collapsed. (I forget the brand but these were heavy multi use boxes.) Ive also stored items in bike boxes and left them at a hotel while on tour. That worked fine.

[marciero]

I'm also now seeing some tandem bike box options. In fact, Shipbikes may be what I've purchased before. I think if under 165 inches it can go on the plane, though likely airline specific. The label on the Santana case indicates "guaranteed to fit ... on all Boeing and Airbus jets."

[cderalow]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

How about a hybrid approach? Wheels off and pack the frame very well and ship it ahead. Bring your wheels and auxiliary stuff in your S&S case on the plane with you. Keeps the weight of the shipped box reasonable for both shipping cost and moving the box around logistics.

I think a lot of us have to keep in mind that whenever someone buys a new bike, it gets shipped around a few times before the owner takes possession of it, so in theory, shipping a bike safely should be no big deal.

The obvious point to consider is if you will have someone/someplace available to receive it at your destination, and how/where will you build it before starting out.

I am curios about this too and would like to hear if others have successfully shipped a bike to perhaps a hotel, bike shop, or other destination depot.

I have shipped a bike to hotels at which I have a reservation who have received it on my behalf before.

It varies by hotel brand on policy/timeline in terms of how soon before they're willing to receive it, from 1 week to only day of reservation.

On average I would say to plan on it arriving no more than the day before your expected arrival and you'd probably be ok.

Other option is a UPS store can always be listed as a ship to location via UPS as a 'hold for pickup' location. same concept, day of or day before pickup arrival. Need to confirm that the store is willing to receive for 'non-mailbox' holders.

[dvs cycles]

I know Santana does a lot of Tandem Tours. Maybe give them a call and they might have some info to share with you.

[sjbraun]

Tandems East sells a Bike Pro case that holds an uncoupled tandem. I have a friend who regularly flies internationally with one. He says it works fine.

[Derosid]

We’ve done this with our tandem back in the early ’90’s. We bought a tandem hard case and checked it as luggage on the flight out. We also packed our Yakima roof rack and tandem mount, and put that on the rental car. The rental agency didn’t approve of that, so we mounted the rack “around the corner” after getting the rental car, and toured the PNW with our tandem, driving from town to town, staying in B&B’s each night. We’d start each day with a ride in the new town, and then throw the tandem on the roof rack to drive to our next destination. It was great!