Want to know how to fly with wine? You need wine luggage!
Wine luggage is essential if you if you want to bring back bottles of wine from France or Italy but don’t want to risk packing them in your suitcase.
To keep them extra safe and do your decadent bottles of wine justice, you can guarantee they’ll arrive home safely with proper wine carriers.
If you’re only carrying a bottle or two of wine though, you don’t need an entire wine suitcase though; just a single wine travel case.
Keep reading to find out the best wine luggage and single bottle protector.
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TL:DR; Get these wine travel bags.
If you don’t want to read through this entire post, you can jump right to this site to get wine luggage.
You can get a:
- TSA-approved ones that holds 12-15 bottles and maintains the proper temperature of your wine,
- or get a single bottle protector.
This company specializes in wine travel bags so you know your bottle(s) will be safe.
What is wine luggage?
Wine luggage is luggage made specific for wine bottles for vinophiles who want to bring home more than a bottle of two fantastic wines from their trip in Europe!
Wine luggage can hold up to 12 or 15 bottles of wine and is specifically designed to be checked onto the airplane because it:
- is crush resistant and safeguards the bottles,
- maintains the temperature and pressure levels of your wine to keep it at its finest,
- meets the weight limit of 23kg (50 lbs),
- is TSA compliant,
- and is reusable for lots of wine trips to come!
If getting 12-15 bottles seems a bit excessive and only plan on bringing back a bottle or two, you can get a single bottle protector and nestle this single wine travel case into your luggage.
Check out various types of wine luggages here.
Will this luggage protect my bottles of wine?
Yes, the proper luggage is the ultimate wine bottle travel protector because of its patent-pending design that works in combination with high-density styrofoam.
Your wine in this luggage can even survive falling down the stairs. Check out this video to see 12 bottles of wine go tumbling down the stairs!
Get this luggage to protect your wine here.
What’s the most hassle-free way to travel with the wine luggage to a new country?
If it were me, I’d want to travel to a country with at least stuff on me as possible. As a result, for the first time using wine luggage, I’d order the wine luggage directly to my hotel or wherever I’m staying.
For anytime after, I’d leave the styrofoam insert at home, flatten the bag, pack it in my suitcase and order a new insert once I arrive to my destination.
That way, you can travel to a new country with only one bag, but return with two.
Bonus: This wine luggage has wheels so wheeling your wine through the airport will be easy.
How can I avoid baggage fees with this luggage?
Generally when you fly internationally, your first checked-in bag is free but the second one costs money. As a result, the best way to avoid baggage fees with wine luggage is to go to your destination country with a carry-on, then return with the carry-on and check in your wine luggage.
If you need to check in a bag on the way there, resulting in the wine luggage as your second bag on the way bag, you could try doing these following things to avoid a second bag fee:
- getting an airline credit card (if it’s financially right for you),
- booking a higher class ticket,
- upgrading your flight,
- packing light, or
- try again with maximizing your carry-on luggage.
Do I have to declare the wine in my wine luggage?
For Americans, there is no limit to how much wine you can bring back as long as it’s for personal consumption and not for resale because there is no limit to alcohol with less than 24% alcohol.
However, if you bring back more than a liter of wine, there is a customs tax, which is about $1-2 per liter of wine. Considering how inexpensive but great wine from Europe is, this tax is not much at all.
Even better though, because no one wants to fill out all the papers for only a $10-20 tax, most likely you won’t have to pay tax at all! Don’t take my word on this.
As a result, to stick with the law, I would declare your wine but it’s up to you.
Now that you know how handy specifically made wine luggage can be, check out your best option for wine luggage here. Once you make it home with your wine, consider having a home wine tasting.
Also, if you made it down this far, let me know the amazing country you’ll be heading to that’s making you considering getting wine luggage! I hope it is France or Italy; some of my favorite countries.
Thanks for stopping by! xo.
James
Thursday 8th of December 2016
Hi Sarah, I agree with Thuymi it's totally worth to pay and get 13 bottles of favourite wine. Great tips for my next trip. Thanks.
Sarah
Thursday 8th of December 2016
Awesome! Glad to help.
Isobel Lee
Sunday 31st of July 2016
I've always wrapped wine in towels and then secured the bundle in a tightly fitting plastic bag. It's not very elegant but it seems to do the trick! Love your pro tools though!
Sarah
Sunday 31st of July 2016
Ooh that's a good way to do it too! Got the leakage and padding covered.
Karla at GlobalETA
Wednesday 20th of July 2016
These are very useful tips! When my partner and I bought wine in South Africa to bring back, we went through security and a guy ahead of us also had alcohol. They didn't allow him to bring it through as a carry on because he got angry immediately and was so entitled. But my partner was kind and patient and they allowed her to take it through, so I believe kindness always goes further than being rude!
Sarah
Tuesday 26th of July 2016
I definitely agree with that!
The Toronto Seoulcialite
Tuesday 19th of July 2016
That's GENIUS to order the suitcase to your hotel. Can you fit anything other than the bottles themselves in there if you only bring 6 bottles back? I had no idea you could bring back that much wine for personal consumption...I wonder if that's the same in Canada (or Korea!). Man, having decent wine would be amazing right now!
Paul
Tuesday 19th of July 2016
You can remove one of the 6-bottle modules from the Lazenne 12-bottle wine carrier and use that space for something else if you want to transport only 6 bottles.
Joella (RovingJo)
Tuesday 19th of July 2016
I really wish I would have known about this when I was in Napa. These are some great tips.