Travelling with ski gear

[travel193]

Travelling with skis. Did a search of AFF for this but didn't see much of a conversation on it.

I'm travelling with a pair of skis, poles, the heavy boots and helmet in a couple of weeks. It's my first time flying with skis and was wondering if any of you have some pro tips. I still need to buy a bag for the skis so I am keen to hear which types and brands are preferred.

Carrying the helmet also seems a bit problematic. Would be nice to use my own, but I am wondering if some people just leave it at home and borrow one on their travels.

 

[Ausbt]

Quite a few years ago I found a 190cm ski roller bag at Kathmandu for $50. What a bargain - I’ve lugged that thing to NZ and Japan multiple times. And ...using an expandable tent pole and some blocks of wood I ‘built’ an internal frame in order to use is it as a car roof box! Genius.

Anyway, in ski mode I get skis, poles, clothes and goggs basically. Maybe some shoes as well. Boots in a boot bag. Helmet, laptop and other stuff in a backpack. I did sort of bugger my arm a bit dragging it all through Japanese trains stations but my preferred technique is to hold the bag 70degs vertical out in front and push it on one wheel. The Douchebags are sort of the ducks guts in bags but very expensive. I reckon your local ski shop will have lots of good options.

I would always take my own helmet and boots on a dedicated ski trip yes. If there was just the chance I’d fit a ski in on a trip for another purpose I wouldn’t bother. Way back in ‘95 I was touring the Canadian Rockies in May and decided to check out Sunshine Village. No kidding went up there in track suit pants, a midweight cotton jacket and no gloves! It was spring snow and I lasted about two hours, was great fun. Then I actually hitched back to Banff drinking beers from this nice bloke’s esky in his F150 truck!

Anyway, where are you going?

 

[travelislife]

What airline and where? That will dictate your luggage limits and strategy.

I use 1 x douchebag for us as a couple and can fit 2 x sets of skis, poles, 2 x sets of boots and 2 x helmets and is pretty much bang on the 32kg limit. Have done this pretty much around the world (Japan, NZ, Europe, South America, US). Heavy, but have lugged it around on trains in this config.

Otherwise sometimes when doing a quick trip with single ski bag I have taken boots as hand luggage in back pack and just strapped helmet around back on the outside.

 

[travel193]

Quite a few years ago I found a 190cm ski roller bag at Kathmandu for $50. What a bargain - I’ve lugged that thing to NZ and Japan multiple times. And ...using an expandable tent pole and some blocks of wood I ‘built’ an internal frame in order to use is it as a car roof box! Genius.

Anyway, in ski mode I get skis, poles, clothes and goggs basically. Maybe some shoes as well. Boots in a boot bag. Helmet, laptop and other stuff in a backpack. I did sort of bugger my arm a bit dragging it all through Japanese trains stations but my preferred technique is to hold the bag 70degs vertical out in front and push it on one wheel. The Douchebags are sort of the ducks guts in bags but very expensive. I reckon your local ski shop will have lots of good options.

I would always take my own helmet and boots on a dedicated ski trip yes. If there was just the chance I’d fit a ski in on a trip for another purpose I wouldn’t bother. Way back in ‘95 I was touring the Canadian Rockies in May and decided to check out Sunshine Village. No kidding went up there in track suit pants, a midweight cotton jacket and no gloves! It was spring snow and I lasted about two hours, was great fun. Then I actually hitched back to Banff drinking beers from this nice bloke’s esky in his F150 truck!

Anyway, where are you going?

What airline and where? That will dictate your luggage limits and strategy.

I use 1 x douchebag for us as a couple and can fit 2 x sets of skis, poles, 2 x sets of boots and 2 x helmets and is pretty much bang on the 32kg limit. Have done this pretty much around the world (Japan, NZ, Europe, South America, US). Heavy, but have lugged it around on trains in this config.

Otherwise sometimes when doing a quick trip with single ski bag I have taken boots as hand luggage in back pack and just strapped helmet around back on the outside.

Fantastic tips. I heard the Douchebag mentioned on a blog post as well, so with two recommendations here it sounds like I should get one or at least something similar. I'll be away for 5 weeks or so and will get a few ski trips in while I'm there. If you can fit all of that in the Douchebag, I shouldn't have any issues with just my own gear.

Which backpacks are you guys using that fit boots or helmet? Don't think I have any wide enough for that.

I'll be flying Singapore Airlines in J with 40kg of luggage allowance. I usually fly Y though so hope to make the Douchebag work on those flights as well.

Destination is Georgia. Will spend six days at Gudauri and might end up back there later in the month or checking out other ski resorts the country has to offer.

 

[Ausbt]

Which backpacks are you guys using that fit boots or helmet? Don't think I have any wide enough for that.

Destination is Georgia.

Have you seen the Dakine boot locker? https://www.dakine.com/en-us/bags/travel-bags/snowboard-gear-bags/boot-locker-69l/ Mind you I think there would be some concerns about carry-on sizing. Personally I carry on a standard boots-only type boot bag and fit all else in an old Swiss backpack which I have had for years, it's been a great bag. With all the crack-downs on carry-on I can see this getting hard, particularly if future status loss ever hits and flying Y.

Georgia, that's awesome, have a great time. And SQ J as well, lovely.

 

[samh004]

Travelling with skis. Did a search of AFF for this but didn't see much of a conversation on it.

I'm travelling with a pair of skis, poles, the heavy boots and helmet in a couple of weeks. It's my first time flying with skis and was wondering if any of you have some pro tips. I still need to buy a bag for the skis so I am keen to hear which types and brands are preferred.

Any ski bag will do, in the past we've usually wrapped the skis with jackets/clothes we'd wear on the mountain to give them a little extra padding. If your edges are sharp, perhaps use an old set of clothes you don't mind getting cut up, but you especially want to protect the bindings.

Carrying the helmet also seems a bit problematic. Would be nice to use my own, but I am wondering if some people just leave it at home and borrow one on their travels.

I usually fit the helmet in the boot bag, along with gloves, googles, etc...

I echo dakine being a good brand.

 

[travel193]

Have you seen the Dakine boot locker? https://www.dakine.com/en-us/bags/travel-bags/snowboard-gear-bags/boot-locker-69l/ Mind you I think there would be some concerns about carry-on sizing. Personally I carry on a standard boots-only type boot bag and fit all else in an old Swiss backpack which I have had for years, it's been a great bag. With all the crack-downs on carry-on I can see this getting hard, particularly if future status loss ever hits and flying Y.

Georgia, that's awesome, have a great time. And SQ J as well, lovely.

Thanks @Ausbt!

Pretty nifty bag. Have done more research on the Douchebag and it seems like I would be able to fit everything I need in there which is super handy.

I usually fit the helmet in the boot bag, along with gloves, googles, etc...

Perfect then. You've all been super helpful and I think I should be ready to hit the slopes of Georgia.

 

[travelislife]

Good site for gear is www.aussieskier.com. Really helpful with questions too.

Good tip from Sam re the ski edges. I usually just wrap in newspaper but do have the odd thermal with a thin slice from when I haven’t done!

 

[travel193]

Update: Walked into a snow sports store and asked if they had any douchebags in the building. They confirmed they did and and I am now the happy owner of a douchebag. Thanks for tips AFFers.

Good site for gear is www.aussieskier.com. Really helpful with questions too.

Good tip from Sam re the ski edges. I usually just wrap in newspaper but do have the odd thermal with a thin slice from when I haven’t done!

Yes, I'll need to be careful with those ski edged. I stuffed all the ski gear I own in the bag and still have plenty of space. Will need to fill it all in with clothes.

 

[travelislife]

Update: Walked into a snow sports store and asked if they had any douchebags in the building. They confirmed they did and and I am now the happy owner of a douchebag. Thanks for tips AFFers.

Yes, I'll need to be careful with those ski edged. I stuffed all the ski gear I own in the bag and still have plenty of space. Will need to fill it all in with clothes.

Nice! Definitely use the roll up feature to keep it as short as possible when packing.

 

[ozfflyer]

we used to always cart skis with us to North America, but now rent, as cheapest airfares generally don't include skis. Rental is quite cheap in Colorado as so much competition. Have had bindings destroyed over the years & airlines won't cover damage.

Saw 2 baggage handlers at Denver once, playing "javelin" with someone skis !!!


We take our own boots, as carry on if necessary, when checked bag limit is only 23kgs.

Helmets get packed in luggage, but we make sure, not on outside of soft bag. Put goggles etc. inside the helmet. Some friends were going to hire helmets for US$12/day (+ tax ?) but they found some at Walmart for $20 & decided to leave them at the resort when they left.

 

[Ausbt]

Rental is quite cheap in Colorado as so much competition.

What sort of prices were you seeing in CO? In UT, pretty much it was USD$55 per day for demo skis & poles, with about a 10% discount for 5+ days. I don't regard that as cheap, in fact it's pretty exorbitant really. There are some great ski stores in UT and you could basically get a new pair of all-mountain skis for that. I took my own in a 30 y.o. non-padded single ski bag. I packed that bag out with bubble wrap and it got the job done, of course a generous luggage allowance helps.

 

[ozfflyer]

What sort of prices were you seeing in CO? In UT, pretty much it was USD$55 per day for demo skis & poles, with about a 10% discount for 5+ days. I don't regard that as cheap, in fact it's pretty exorbitant really. There are some great ski stores in UT and you could basically get a new pair of all-mountain skis for that. I took my own in a 30 y.o. non-padded single ski bag. I packed that bag out with bubble wrap and it got the job done, of course a generous luggage allowance helps.

much less than that. The wholesaler who booked our flights, accommodation & lift passes put us onto them. Can't remember the name. Frisco has so many ski shops. We picked skis up there, but dropped them in a resort store. Was much cheaper at Frisco store than resort store. Guess rent cheap & no massive resort tax. Friends booked the same ski shop at Frisco, but found out they were staying right next door to shop in resort, so they phoned & said can they pick up at resort, rather than Frisco & they said sure. So they got Frisco prices but resort pick up. If you want anymore info PM me.

BTW-the wholesaler got us something like 90% off lift passes. US$21 a day for adults & 4 kids free with every adult. Never bought them so cheaply before.

 

[Ausbt]

Frisco

Thanks, yeah I've heard good things about Frisco generally in terms of cheap accom and accessibility to various places. I'll do some research. I'm due for a new pair of planks anyway but I want to sort out rental for my daughters. Might still end up in Japan anyway but after my Utah trip this year I'm pretty pumped for the US.

US$21 a day

For lift tix - that's insane.

 

[ozfflyer]

Thanks, yeah I've heard good things about Frisco generally in terms of cheap accom and accessibility to various places. I'll do some research. I'm due for a new pair of planks anyway but I want to sort out rental for my daughters. Might still end up in Japan anyway but after my Utah trip this year I'm pretty pumped for the US.



For lift tix - that's insane.

we didn't pay much for accom in the resort either mid week. Price went up a lot on weekends, as did the crowds.

 

[Fifa]

We put 2 pairs of old thick socks over the tips and ends of our skis to protect them and also anything else we may have in our ski bags