American Airlines is starting a new service this week that allows fliers to pay to have their luggage delivered to their hotel, house, or office for a fee.
The service, which can be purchased when booking the trip or up to two hours before the flight, costs $30 to $50, depending on the amount of luggage. The service is available at more than 200 U.S. airports and some cities abroad.
If the bag's destination is 40 miles away or less, it should get there within one to four hours, the airline says. If the address is farther away, delivery will cost a dollar more for every extra mile, and delivery time ranges from four to six hours.
This will be good for business travelers that are in a rush to get to a meeting and don't have 30 minutes to spare to wait on their luggage. We also think families with small children will like this service so they can just focus on getting the kids into the rental car and start enjoying vacation.
If it proves to be popular, other carriers likely will follow suit. Fees for extras, as well as necessities such as checking a bag, have produced a flood of cash for airlines. American collected more than $2.1 billion in incidental fees alone which includes fees for bags, snacks, seats, upgrades and more.
Airlines are trying to give travelers of all economic means different options from $2 snacks to $30 gourmet meals, and now for a fee luggage delivery. You can pick and choose whether you want to pay for a bigger seat, headphones, snacks, baggage, drinks and more. With all these a la carte options the airlines are raking in the dough.
The only downside of this is if the luggage gets lots. At least when it is a the airport there are only a few places it can be--on another plane,, wrong luggage cart, etc. But when that bag leaves the airport it could really end up anywhere getting delivered to the wrong hotel, or getting lots all together.
As long as they don't lose your luggage; we think the program will do well among business travelers.
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