The “extra weight” of luggage… unexpected financial surprises for travelers at airports

Travelers said that purchasing additional luggage at the airport cost them large sums of money that exceeded their expectations. They stressed, while reviewing their personal experiences, that not paying attention to the weight of the bags before traveling, or postponing the purchase of “extra baggage” until the last minute, leads to paying high fees for each kilogram at the airport, which in some cases reached a rate of 25% of the value of the tickets they purchased, during sales periods, pointing out that airlines charge double fees for excess baggage at the airport compared to purchasing it in advance.

For their part, officials from two tourism and travel agencies stressed the importance of purchasing the extra baggage in advance, and weighing the luggage before arriving at the airport, to avoid unaccounted costs, pointing out that the “extra baggage” at airports has become one of the financial surprises faced by many travelers who focus on the price of the travel ticket only, and one of the most prominent unexpected costs.

They told Emirates Today that one of the mistakes travelers make is neglecting to read the details of the travel ticket, as the permitted weights vary according to the destination, ticket price, and class, which leads to a common misunderstanding among travelers who assume that all flights give the same weight, pointing out that the most common mistake is to rely on a personal estimate of the weight of the bag, instead of actually measuring it.

Customer experiences

In detail, the customer, Ahmed Ibrahim, said that he spent enough time searching for the best prices to book a flight ticket, noting that early booking enabled him to save a large portion of the trip budget.

He added to “Emirates Today”: “The night before the travel date, I added some last-minute purchases and gifts to the bags, without thinking about the actual weight of the bags, and at the airport, I was surprised that the weight exceeded the permissible limit by 10 kilograms.”

He continued: “There was not enough time to act, and I discovered after inquiring that the additional weight fees amounted to about 300 dirhams, which is equivalent to about 25% of the value of the travel ticket that I purchased at the time of the discount.” He said: “I spent a long time searching for the best prices, but I lost the entire savings amount in an instant.”

For his part, the dealer, Samir Muhammad, said that he bought an additional 10 kilograms while booking the travel ticket, but he had to buy additional weight at the airport also before the trip, noting that the difference between the purchase price in advance and at the airport had almost doubled.

In turn, the customer, Sarah Al-Halabi, reviewed her experience with the excess weight of the bags, saying: “I was heading with my family to a nearby destination, and I carefully planned the trip expenses. I also arranged the bags based on my personal estimate of the weight, believing that the difference would be small.”

She added: “At the data check and baggage check-in counter at the airport, I discovered that the excess weight amounted to about 12 kilograms, which forced me to pay a large amount, almost half the price of a single airline ticket, since the airline resorted to calculating the excess weight for every one kilogram.”

Al-Halabi continued: “This experience made me realize that travel planning is not limited to purchasing airline tickets only, but also includes luggage details and the weight of the bags as well, given that any simple disregard for the rules regarding weight in this matter may cost money.”

As for the customer, Laila Shahrour, she told Emarat Al-Youm that she was certain that she would gain weight when she was shopping to buy gifts for her relatives before traveling to spend a vacation in her country.

She added: “I was willing to pay a sum of money for the additional weight, but I was surprised at the airport that the cost of the weight was close to the total value of the gifts themselves.”

She continued: “In the following years, I was careful when preparing to travel to weigh the luggage accurately, and if I needed excess weight, I would contact the airline company to purchase it in advance at a low cost,” noting that airlines charge large fees when purchasing “excess weight” at the airport, compared to purchasing it in advance.

For his part, the customer, Yazan Al-Hassan, stated that he paid more than 250 dirhams at the airport for the excess weight of the bags, noting that he tried to purchase additional weight in advance, through the online reservation management feature on the airline’s website, a full day before the travel date, but this option was not available at the time.

He confirmed that he used to leave a weight margin of up to a few kilograms, in anticipation of any unexpected additions every time he or a member of his family travels.

Financial surprises

In addition, the CEO of Al-Rayes Travel Company – Al-Rayes Group, Mohammed Jassim Al-Rayes, said: “The issue of additional weight is financially costly, especially at airports before the flight, as a large portion of airlines resort to applying a tariff for each kilogram,” noting that “purchasing additional weight in advance, well before the flight date, reduces costs for customers by up to more than 50%, compared to purchasing it at the airport.”

He added that many travelers believe that the difference between the advance price on the website and the price at the airport is limited, while the reality indicates that the price difference may reach double in some cases.

Al-Rayes continued: “Extra weight at airports has become one of the financial surprises faced by many travelers who focus on the price of the travel ticket only, while ignoring other elements that may significantly raise the final cost of the trip.”

He explained that “airlines adopt a different pricing system between purchasing services in advance online and purchasing them at the airport,” pointing out that the prices for additional weight of luggage that can be purchased in advance through the website are designed to encourage early planning by the air carrier, while higher fees are imposed at the airport, because it is considered an “emergency service” taken at the last minute.

He said: “The most common mistake is to rely on a personal estimate of the weight of the bag, instead of actually measuring it,” stressing the importance of weighing the luggage and pre-purchasing the additional weight well before the flight date, as some airlines do not provide this feature for some flights a day or two before their flight date.

Traveler behaviour

In a related context, the CEO of Dubai World Travel Company, Badr Ahli, said: “Paying high fees for luggage at airports is primarily related to the behavior of the traveler himself, more than to airline policies,” explaining that most companies announce the prices for additional baggage clearly during booking, but many travelers postpone the decision from the perspective of not needing the additional baggage.

He pointed out that “this problem appears more when traveling during seasons or occasions, especially family travel, when travelers add additional gifts or luggage that they deem necessary at the last minute.”

He explained, “One of the mistakes is also neglecting to read the ticket details, as the permitted weights vary according to the destination, type of ticket, and class, which leads to a common misunderstanding among travelers who assume that all flights give the same weight.”

Ahly stressed that “smart travel planning also includes comparing the cost of purchasing additional baggage with the option of shipping some items or distributing them among multiple bags,” explaining that “the decision to travel within a tight budget does not depend only on the timing of the reservation, but rather on managing the small details.”

. 50% reduction in costs when purchasing additional baggage in advance, well in advance of the flight.