sirhawkeye64

So I'm planning a trip from the US to Portugal for the fall, and was thinking of flying possibly on Air Canada which has a partner flight with TAP Air Portugal. Air Canada does not see mt ocare about carry-on weight so much (but TAP Air Portugal) does seem to have a 26 lb limit for carry-on. I was thinking of just paying a little extra for the Flex plan through AC (which gets me a checked bag included) but I'm wondering if this same "free" checked bag also carries over to the partner airlines as well, as TAP Air may force me to check my carr-on, which is fine since it would be the last leg of the trip anyway. I'm just wondering if that extra fee I pay to AC also covers a checked bag on partner airlines or not? Plus the personal item limit for TAP Air seems to be only 4.4 lbs which is not much weight (many laptops alone are 5 lbs). So I don't know if they check this weight as well or not...?

(I guess the same type of deal applies for some others like Delta and KLM, where Delta doesn't really have a stated max weight, although I would think something that is obviously overweight they may question) but KLM does have the same guidelines as TAP Air, as do most European airlines it seems (as far as carry-ons go).

Gardyloo

It gets a little complicated but here goes.

The IATA (the international regulatory body for airlines) has set rules whereby something called the "most significant carrier" (MSC) is the one whose baggage rules apply over a multi-carrier trip. Generally it would go like this in your case. Assuming your first flight from the US to Canada is with Air Canada, and your second (connecting) flight to Portugal is with TAP, the Air Canada rules would apply as long as you're not stopping over (24h+) in Canada (presumably Toronto.) If your transatlantic flight was operated by Air Canada too, with a connection to TAP somewhere in Europe, then AC's rules would also apply. If you ARE stopping over in Canada, then AC's rules would apply to its flights, and TAP's rules would apply to the transatlantic flights.

Look at the pull-down covering codeshare and other airlines on this web page: Checked Baggage | Air Canada

J62

In my own experience airlines do not weigh carry on bags, but they do limit the size. If your TAP flight is on a larger single aisle plane - A320, A320neo, or A321 then overhead bins should be big enough for a ~21" carry on with wheels. If it's on an A319 - the bins in those tend to be smaller especially if it's an older plane/older cabin. You'll know soon enough when you get to the gate what the situation is by seeing what other passengers have. If yours i far larger than others', then don't be surprised if they ask you to check it. I've seen airlines gate check bags to your final destination, and do so at the gate for no extra charge.

So if they do want to check your bag on the last flight they'd make that decision at the gate, and in my estimation, do so at no charge. I typically pack a small bag in my carry on into which I can move items I want on the plane. Something as simple as a reusable shopping bag would work. As usual, your mileage may vary...

sirhawkeye64

Thanks. I sort of figured that they don't necessarily scrutinize bags too much unless they look obviously oversized or overweight. I mean looking at some of the limits 26 lbs combined (personal item + carry-on) doesn't seem like much when many bags (empty) are 5 lbs alone. My bag is about 23 inches with wheels but the top can be pressed in a bit so it can probably pass for 22" but it's more so the weight. While I don't plan on stuffing it to 35 lbs, I know it can hold about 30 lbs and maintain its weight overall size (and not look bulged). My concern with checking bags is lost baggage, not so much the value as my carry-on will only have clothes, but more so the hassle if it gets lost (valuables will stay with me as a personal item carry-on).

I mean I had thought about just checking a bag as this means no hassle from the carry-on standpoint, but that would mean ensuring the bag is transferred to the second flight by staff and why I try to avoid checking a bag if possible, even if it means paying a bit more for a different airline that's a bit more lenient on weight....

c_J

Some airlines do weigh carryon bags. Jetstar in Australia has a little scale on wheels and their gate agents have a handheld credit card machine to ding you for overage fees. But I've only seen this with low cost carriers that use bag fees as a major part of their revenue. I don't think that TAP will routinely weigh a carry on bag unless it looks oversized. However, TAP is a major alliance flag carrier that acts a little bit like a low cost carrier.

Since you'll be checking in with Air Canada on the outbound then Air Canada's rules will apply. But on the return if you're checking in with TAP you may find that they enforce a stricter rule. Same thing applies with Delta/KLM. North American carriers generally allow for larger carryons than European ones.

sirhawkeye64

OK thanks. Since posting the original post, I've decided to just do a direct (non-stop) flight with TAP Air which included a checked bag to avoid any headaches at the airport and with any partner carriers. I suspected that Air Canada probabl doesn't care (they even state that they don't weigh bags necessarily and that there isn't a set restriction for weight but they do seem to be more concerned about size). But again, just going to fly with TAP the whole trip and just checking a bag (normally I wouldn't but since it's a direct flight ,I"m OK with it -- mostly was worried about a checked bag getting lost with connecting flights).

c_J

That's a valid thing to worry about. However, most of the time my luggage has been lost has been when bags are being transferred from one airline to another, or when delays make connections really tight. Enjoy Portugal. It's one of my favorite places.

sirhawkeye64

Yes pretty much all the flights with connections that I saw (that were in my price range) involved two airlines usually (Air Canada partnering with KLM for example, or Delta partnering with KLM, etc). For those I would not want a checked bag. I mean it's still possible to get lost on a non-stop direct flight with one carrier ,but probably far less likely.