B is for Baggage

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was surprised to find that baggage allowance on domestic flights in the U.S. might not be as generous as the international ones. Thanks to Southwest I think most of my worries are taken care of, but I would still need to check restrictions of weight and size before investing in some new baggage.

A kind friend on FB also suggested that I should pick out some unique colours so that I would easily be able to identify them on the luggage trolley - best real reason for buying colourful luggage that I've ever heard, and I'm taking full advantage of it ;). What do you think of this one?

For easy reference for other travelers, the baggage allowances are as follows:

Emirates Economy: 2 bags of up to 23 kg each (and yes, we're traveling with 4 tickets so I'm wondering what all I can bring back ;)).

Southwest Economy: 2 pieces of checked baggage allowed for free, each piece should weigh less than 50 lb (which is around 23 kg it seems), and should measure less than 62 inches (l+h+w) in dimensions. I'm guessing the common brands would adhere to these dimensions but might take a measuring tape to the store in any case ;).

Realized that I need to keep the carry on baggage dimensions in mind thanks to a hint from another kind friend on my first blog post. For Southwest, max dimensions are 10x16x24 inches, and for Emirates 7 kg and 115 cm (Wondering why they specifically mention travelers boarding from India - do we have a history of carrying over-large pieces :P?).

I don't think I've ever looked forward to luggage shopping this much ;).. hoping to be packed and organized by next week unlike my usual last minute self - Do you think I'll manage it?

A is for America ;) - Here we come!

After much temptation I decided to not take up an A-Z challenge that some fellow bloggers are doing in April, simply because I didn't think I could do it justice with a lot of other things going on in my head right now.

Wondering what the heading's all about considering I'm not doing the challenge ;) ? It's time for our next holiday, one full month and to the U.S of A. Since holiday planning is driving me a wee bit crazy, I thought I might as well start my own A-Z challenge revolving around the subject ;). Definitely won't reach the end of the alphabet before I leave on the 18th, but for as long as it lasts..

Here are the first steps I have been researching for what seems like weeks now, no wait - it really was weeks!!

Places to stay: There are some cities like New York where we don't know too many folks except for a few friends whom we didn't want to impose on. Other cities where there's family or really close friends that we're in touch with, I decided we'll be shameless and accept all welcoming offers ;). We are spending the first few days in Dallas with close family, so I am keeping fingers crossed that the kids will be over the jet lag issues by then.

Domestic flights: We are going to be criss-crossing the country quite a bit, so this is a big chunk of the decision making. I was taken aback to find that all those cheap fares that I saw on kayak.com while assessing the budget were not the cheapest after all, as most domestic carriers charge extra for check-in baggage (some like Spirit for carry-on baggage as well!). So after consultations with a cousin who is now based there and is the super-researching kind(You know who you are ;)), most domestic flights shall be with Southwest as they offer 2 pieces of check-in baggage for free, and give good rates as well. Cancelable flights for domestic travel - you can sorta forget about that it seems unless you want to spend a small fortune for that requirement :P.

So Step 1 is "more or less" taken care of with all hotel bookings done through expedia, and friends or families duly warned ;). Step 2 is still going on, hopefully should be done in a day or two. And then we go on to the plans of what we'll actually DO or SEE in those places! As is always the case when traveling with kids, these will have to planned with a lot of breathing space in between so as to not tire them out, though it is nice to be planning for an 8 and 6 year old rather than a 5 and 3 year old :).

Friends in the U.S. who read this, feel most free to chime in with suggestions of things to do and see :) !!!

Fastest Holiday Plan Ever!

So this is how it usually works.. I decide(ok with "some" consultation) where we should go a few months in advance of the holidays, research research research... and make the bookings whether on Club Mahindra and driving down as we usually do, or else go to a place like SOTC and make bookings through them with a clear idea of what we want to see and do. That is what we opted for, when it was our first overseas trip with the kids and I didn't want to take chances with making too many arrangements online on my own.

This summer holiday planning started the same way.. a few months back I decided that we could try to make it to UK/London/Scotland.. unfortunately only started checking out stuff properly a couple of weeks back, to find that it's pretty much too late to make any bookings in London through RCI which is what we wanted to do. So that put London plans on hold(hopefully for 2014) and started looking around for other ideas. To my horror, a lot of the Club M locations also were filling up soon. But thanks to their new and clear interface I could see easily exactly what was available where.

We have been putting off a trip to the north wondering if the kids can take the longer distances involved, but within a few hours of checking out the resorts(we have visited most of their options in the south) - I made an impulsive decision that since S is going to be FIVE by this summer, it's high time we try it out! So with a short stopover at Delhi, we are going to be super adventurous and check out locations like Corbett and Binsar, and the great outdoors this April. Booked a hotel in Delhi solely based on tripadvisor reviews (not to mention their great responsiveness on their FB page - which is also a first for me. Not only that, we decided it's time the kids experienced a long train journey, so we are going by the Rajdhani!! Phew!

And this also always happens, that as I'm planning one vacation (where I may have missed the ball a bit with the planning in advance :( ), I start thinking about all the forthcoming vacations in the next couple of years and where all we might want to go. In that context, if someone has experience with planning through RCI, do leave me a message.