Which Set of Rules?
Read this tip to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Airline Baggage Restrictions and other Luggage topics.
Which Set of Rules?
If your journey includes stopovers or transfers, you may be traveling with more than one airline, each with its own set of airline baggage restrictions. Whose rules apply? As long as the itinerary is on one ticket, the "governing carrier's" luggage allowances apply.
Determine who your air carrier is by finding your ticket number on your itinerary. When traveling internationally, the “governing carrier” on the ticket simply means the airline that is “taking you over the water” from a domestic airport to an international airport. Regardless, carry-on baggage sizes, and checked luggage rules can vary considerably.
Some international airlines even base their baggage restrictions on the cabin you will be traveling in—first, business, or economy. You benefit when the airline that issued your ticket is the one that has the greater flexibility, higher weight limit, and larger luggage dimensions. The other airlines cannot charge you excess baggage fees if you are following the governing carrier's rules.
| Guru Spotlight |
| Jennifer Mathes, Ph.D. |
