Has anyone flown with a cooler as checked luggage?

[pms4104]

I was not going on a cruise but I transported some venison to a friend in Calif. It obviously needed to be kept cold. I bought dry ice & taped the whole cooler shut. I wrote perishable on the outside. It was the only peice of luggage that an airline ever "lost" on me; when it was returned to me the next day, the tape had been cut open & the contents were missing. :mad:

Guessing your venison, along with the dry ice, may have been confiscated. Because you marked your bag perishable, it was likely opened to see if dry or wet ice was in there. Both are problems, as one emits vapors during melting and the other makes a mess.

 

Dry ice is considered a restricted/hazardous material and must be declared and proper HazMat docs completed. As dry ice melts, it emits vapors that could be a problem for any live animals being transported in the same area of the cargo hold.

[psychboss]

My Mom use to do this twice a year to take good meat cuts to my brother in the Caribbean. He lived on his Schooner in various parts of the Caribbean and getting a quality meats such as beef filet, Smithfield ham, etc. was about impossible. When she would go to visit she would take a cooler packed with dry ice and the meats, the whole thing duct taped shut and she never had a problem. BUT this was all before 9-11. So I don't know if I would do it now.

[pms4104]

Dry ice has nothing to do with TSA or with before/after September 11, 2001. As indicated by at least one other poster ... it is considered haz/mat and must be declared as dry ice. That has been the case since at least before 1979 when I started working for an air freight forwarder.

[maofthree]

i bought a back pack that is a cooler. i pack it with clothes for the sun . and then later , use it to go to the islands. then coming back i put a 12 pack of bud, in one and bottles of cream rum, so i can make frozen drinks with free ice cream....oh yea...:D

[happy cruzer]

Thanks greatam and eveyone. I was posting at the same time as geatam.

 

So once again, I'll let everyone know what mye xperience is in a few weeks! yee ha.

[ostyinmi]

That was my thought about the cardboard box all wrapped in bubblewrap and sealed tight. What if TSA wants to inspect it? That's the end of that box and contents. I doubt they have the materials available to reseal it.

 

TSA do have official tape that says TSA inspected on it. They taped up my golf travel case when they broke it on inspection!

[happy cruzer]

I can now report success!

 

We wrapped 8 bottles of wine in bubble wrap and peanuts. Checked it at DFW and it arrived safely at LGA. When we boarded the ship in Brooklyn the inspector asked what it was and then requested we open it. He scooted it around the xray and the metal detector. Very strange.

 

Had one bottle for the return trip. Packed it with the leftover bubble wrap and peanuts and laundry. It too arrived safely.

 

Cooler still has the handle and the wheels.

 

Thanks for all the concern and advice. Also we had great weather in Canada. Everyone else thought it was hot, but it was 10 degrees cooler than home for us.

[mcmoe316]

I know this is an old thread but I own and use a Wine Cruzer and it is pretty awesome. If you drink expensive wine then it is well worth it. If you are the $10 bottle drinker then it's way too expensive. I bought the 8 bottle carrier which when filled, will never go over 50 pounds which works pretty well with most domestic carriers.

[NMLady]

Thanks for the replies. I had seen them once or twice myself. I think they are more common now because a cooler costs $14 and a roller suitcase at least double that. and the cooler will probably last longer than the luggage so depending on what's inside the cooler is a more practical and cheap means to transport items.

 

Oh man, I would have been disappointed in loosing that venison. Were you able to file a claim?

 

Inside we plan to have it solid bubble wrap and peanuts.

 

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