I have heard of people carrying champagne bottles aboard airplanes without any problems from the pressure change, but I can’t verify this. I’d be more worried about the vibrations, since champagne bottles can pop if you shake them too much.
Can you ship them any way besides FedEx? And will you have to contend with any Aruban import duties or restrictions?
Maybe you would consider bringing only one $600 bottle of champagne? I know it’s a hardship.
If you’re not worried about theft, the only problem is packing the stuff securely, which really isn’t all that challenging.
I have seen beverages stored in checked-luggage explode due to rapid expansion due to temperature change, I think thats why I initially queried pressure changes, but rather it must have been temperature that was the culprit.
Are you friendly with any liquor store owners? You may be able to get them to ship it for you to the hotel for you.
Antinor01: You might be onto something there! If I goto my liquor store here, and request that they send the champagne to a hotel in aruba, I wouldn’t be breaking any laws. And I assume that fedex knows exactly how to ship wine, they just don’t do it for members of the public!
I’m going to make a few calls and report back.
Good question, I don’t know. But would a FedEx airplane be any warmer?
For what it’s worth, my parents usually bring me a couple bottles of sake from Japan when they visit, and they’ve never had a problem. Though I suppose Champagne may be more delicate.
Checked baggage suddenly getting very hot? Can’t be all that common. Packing in foam should limit temperature swings to some extent.
The option of having a store send it to the hotel may work, but it’s nearly certain to travel in the hold of an airplane in either case.
Xema: From 30,000 to Sea-Level, at which time the bottle is exposed to the aruba sun’s warmth. Perhaps you’re right, but I wanted to check with the experts so as to feel comfortable storing the champagne in this method.
The baggage compartment is pressurized to the same altitude as the passenger compartment - figure the equivalent of around 8000’. The temperature is probably a bit colder, but is above freezing. If this weren’t the case, all sorts of things like cosmetics and bottled water would have difficulties, and the complaints would be a real problem for the airlines.
It’s perfectly possible that the bag will spend some time in the sun - thus my recommendation for some insulation.
If I had champagne worth even a respectable fraction of this, I’d certainly want to take steps to ensure its safe arrival. But my guess is that the cost of really secure transport (which would have to guarantee careful temperature control) might well rival the value of the wine. In the end, there’s probably going to be some risk.
For $600 a bottle (I’m assuming 750 ml) you’re either buying something old and rare, or you’re getting ripped off.
I’ll just assume they’re old and rare bottles, which means they should be treated delicately before being consumed. Granted, Champagne can take a beating a bit more than a still wine can, but given their pedigree, I gather you’ll want them to be in pristine condition. There’s no way packing them in your luggage is going to keep them that way. They won’t blow up, and unless it gets extremely hot in the plane (which I doubt) the temp should be OK, but the vibrations, the lugging it around, is really going to stir up the wine. Same for shipping. Your wine is going to get jostled around, and it’s going to go into ‘travel shock.’
Personally I’d want to give it at least a week to settle after it arrives. If you’ll be consuming it after a week of arrival, you might be OK packing it in your luggage, otherwise my suggestion is to have it shipped to your destination as early as possible to allow it to ‘calm down’ and be ready for consumption when you arrive.
The Swan and Antinor01 are wise to suggest you ask your local wine shop to ship it for you through FedEx. It’s a service they should be able to provide for you, especially if they are the shop you are procuring your libations from.
They should also be able to supply you with foam or pulp shippers specifically designed for wine bottles, whether you’re shipping them or packing them in your luggage. If not those are easy enough to find online.
Your hotel, if it has a liquor license, should be able to receive it and store it properly for you. Otherwise a local liquor shop should be able to provide the same service.
Good luck and enjoy.
Want to bet?
I was in Guam in September, and it required** a passport to fly back to the states. I had to clear Customs and Immigration in Honolulu. :dubious:
I have no idea why, but American Express travel agents were adament about me needing a passport (I always carry it) and they were right.
Getting back to the OP.
The cargo hold of a passenger jet is pressurized and climate controlled exactly the same as the passenger compartment. Don’t forget that they transport fido and fluffy downstairs. It would be very bad for business if they unloaded dog-sickles and kitty-sickles from them freezing to death.
It is quite warm in Aruba so the bubbly will be exposed to some heat, but assuming you have it inside a container inside your luggage you will be in a taxi before the temp starts to go much above 70F.
[hijack] When you go to Aruba you need to go to El Gaucho for dinner one night. Absolutly the finest meal I had on the island. The meats are to die for.[/hijack]
Looks like I’ve hit a roadblock re: the friendly liquor store manager. Apparently our provincial government controlled liquor stores refuse to ship stuff outside of the province.
I’ll keep working on it.
Long Haul aircraft carry shed loads of champagne, it goes on and off in the drinks barcarts, and those take a heck of a beating.
The hold of an aircraft is pressurized, at the same pressure as the cabin.
I would be a bit concerned carting champagne around in my luggage, mainly because it gets messy if the bottle explodes. In your case I would use a separate hard suitcase, wrap the bottles with bubble wrap, tape it up securely, and then enclose them in a couple of heavy duty bin bags. Anything else that goes in that case should be easily washable.
If you put a couple of frozen freezer blocks in at the last minute, then they’ll probably arrive cool. Hmm a few large tupperware boxes would also be a good idea.
I would not be that worried about them being stolen in transit, nobody will see the labels, or know what is in the suitcase - sure it will be scanned behind the scenes, so you just might attract some interest from security.
Personally I would baulk at paying $600 for a bottle of champagne, but I’m a cheapskate and know how much airlines really pay for the stuff.
Incidentally, you could easily do a test run with a couple of bottles of NV, wrap them up and throw the whole lot around in the back garden, leave it in the sun, and drive around with it in your car boot for a day.
I once worked for a company that was sending out large numbers of delicate glasses, they got various polystyrene packing options and played football with them in the office. Another time they tested packaging for international shipping of jars of jam, by sending it round Germany on the rail mail system.
Incidentally, you can get polystyrene shaped boxes for wine, I’ve had wine sent to me in those, but I would stick with the bubblewrap as it is easier to get hold of.
First thanks to everyone who’s said “The hold of an aircraft is pressurized, at the same pressure as the cabin.” or something similar. I’d never known that before, ignorance fought and all that.
I’m not clear on the non-UK restrictions for flying at the moment, but certainly in the UK the restriction is enforced at security control. Therefore anything you buy after security is OK.
If that’s true in the US, is there any way you can get a store on the secure-side of the airport to get the stuff and sell it to you? Can you get your local store to ship in to the secure store somehow?
Just a thought,
SD
xiix, I’ve bought back champagne, wine and spirits in my luggage many times without a problem. I normally wrap them in some thick clothes or a towel and try not to put them near the edge.
No problems.
If you want to go completely over the top, you could get one of these
Tapioca: That thing is sooo cool, cheers.
Book a room.
Buy a bottle online giveing hotel as shipping address.
the hold could/should be pressurised and reasonably temperature-controlled. Ain’t necessarily so, as I found out when shipping animals about a decade ago (I hope things have improved in the interim).
If you’re outlaying to go to aruba, and can buy $600 bottles of champagne, why not suck it up and spend the $1200? By the time you figure out what to buy to do it, aren’t you paying near premium anyway?
Alternatively, if it is the princple of the thing, then find an alternate method of transport for you, the alcohol, or both. Private plane. Cruise ship. Something where you can render more control over your own things.
I took a bottle of '85 Krug from the UK to the US packed in checked luggage with no impact on taste or other damage.
Champagne is less susceptble to the trials of traveling than red wines as there is much less / no sediment to stir up.
Being packed inside the luggae should insulate it from the temperature issues.
cheers
NBC