Luggage Forward?

[lookingtorelax12]

Has anyone used Luggage Forward and if so what has been your experience? We are booked for the Seabourn Sojourn Cruise Oct 6 - 17, 2016 from Monte Carlo to Barcelona. Found out about this from the Seabourn site and am interested in doing this, but wanted to see what others thought or experienced.

Thanks to any and all replies.

 

lookingtorelax12

[DC Traveler244]

We've used them several times, and our experiences have been good. The bags have been in our suite when we boarded the ship.

 

The service isn't cheap, but it can be worth it if, for example, you're going to be traveling before or after a cruise and don't want to be encumbered with all the luggage you'll need on the cruise. It's also useful if you'll need clothing for different climates on the cruise.

 

Be aware that you will need to provide a inventory of your bags' contents (for Customs) and you are not permitted to ship medications (even over-the-counter medications like aspirin) or anything containing alcohol (for instance, mouthwash or hand sanitizer). The bags cannot be locked (Customs officials need to be able to open them and inspect the contents), but you can use cable ties to secure them (and make it obvious if they've been opened in transit).

 

Typically, they'll pick up the bags 10-14 days before embarkation, so using the service forces you to figure out what you're taking well in advance.

[tv24]

DCTraveler has pretty much captured it all. We used this service both to and from the Sojourn and would do it again. Happily it was one of the perks of our cruise, so we weren't daunted by the high price. There were a couple of hiccups, but nothing major. The service failed to show up on the appointed day to pick up our stuff at our house, but they came the next day. And the bags were sitting securely in our suite when we boarded the ship. On the way home, one of our bags got torn, but it was cheap canvas and might not have survived regular air travel either. That's what you get when you buy a super-cheap bag at a hugely discounted price. They just don't last. On the whole this is a great convenience if you have lots of stuff and/or have difficulty getting your luggage in and out of airports.

[cwisleman]

We have been using them for several years for both to and from Seabourn, and in fact for all our travel. Excellent service, easy to deal with and very helpful when we have questions, either by email or telephone.

[wjf]

We recently used the service for our cruise on the Sojourn departing Athens.

The luggage was collected about a week before departure in a 2 hour time slot.

 

No problems at all and we will certainly use the service next time. It was great to travel through Heathrow with just hand luggage. It is always slightly worrying until you see your luggage appear on the carousel so we felt very relaxed this time!

 

I didn't realise until after I had booked online that there is a discount for Seabourn Club members (Gold 10%, Platinum 15% and Diamond 20%) and when I called Luggage Forward to enquire they gladly refunded the difference.

[Emperor Norton]

Has anyone used Luggage Forward and if so what has been your experience? We are booked for the Seabourn Sojourn Cruise Oct 6 - 17, 2016 from Monte Carlo to Barcelona. Found out about this from the Seabourn site and am interested in doing this, but wanted to see what others thought or experienced.

Thanks to any and all replies.

 

lookingtorelax12

 

I've used them before. I'm not a fan of how far in advance things need to be shipped out - even for somewhat local destinations. There was an issue in one port where their people were very late in coming to get the luggage and I think if it wasn't for Karl having a crew member babysit the luggage it would have vanished.

[wripro]

I love having my luggage picked up in advance. That way I get the chore of packing out of the way early and I can look forward to the cruise without any obligations.

[Emperor Norton]

For a trip outside the country I don't mind the vast advance pickup, but going from say SF to LA and them needing 3 weeks seemed a bit much.

[Winner]

For a trip outside the country I don't mind the vast advance pickup, but going from say SF to LA and them needing 3 weeks seemed a bit much.

 

Why in the world would you need Luggage Forward for a such a short flight? Jet lag is hardly a problem and surely you can wheel your bag through LAX to a taxi to your ship.

[wripro]

Why in the world would you need Luggage Forward for a such a short flight? Jet lag is hardly a problem and surely you can wheel your bag through LAX to a taxi to your ship.

 

As I drive from SF to LA luggage is never a problem.

[tv24]

We shipped some of our luggage from the SF Bay Area to Los Angeles because we were taking a very long Seabourn cruise and we had a huge amount of luggage, too much to wheel through the airport.

[Suite Travels]

We love luggage forward we were spoiled after the first time we used them.

[Catlover54]

I used them in September for my big bag to get to the Seabourn Odyssey in Athens when I was going to be elsewhere, and by myself, riding in trains and automobiles for a few days ahead of time and would have been physically unable to lug it around. It was picked up as arranged, and was there right waiting for me on the ship right on time. No problems. I would use it more often, and for most of my travels, but when I travel with DH, he has typically not fully decided what he wants to take until a few hours before departure, just can't do it, so if he has to check bags that will require airport pickup, I may as well too, as they are free.

[Emperor Norton]

Why in the world would you need Luggage Forward for a such a short flight? Jet lag is hardly a problem and surely you can wheel your bag through LAX to a taxi to your ship.

 

 

To answer your question (even though I recall you jumping on me for asking what/why in a different post...)-

 

there are those that no longer have the muscle mass to lift their bags regardless of whether its a 45 minute flight or a 14 hr flight. So the length of the flight is of no consequence, its the physical reality that at either end of the flight someone needs assistance in picking up their bags. (I'm not saying this applies to me - as it doesn't, however I do know those that it does).

[Emperor Norton]

As I drive from SF to LA luggage is never a problem.

 

Odd, I thought your route was more LA to SF.