How to fly with your bike | Packing, weight limits and surcharges explained

Our complete guide to travelling with your bike on a plane

By Benedict Pfender

Published: Friday, 24 March 2023 at 12:00 am

There’s always good riding to be had at home, but sometimes you need to get your bike fix somewhere else.

Often, flying remains the easiest way to get abroad, but figuring out how to transport your bicycle can sometimes feel like a bit of a battle. So we’ve done some research to make it easier for you.

We’ve also got 15 tips for travelling with your bike from our readers, a separate article with detailed advice on how to pack your bike, our pick of the best bike boxes and bike bags, as well as our guide to bicycle insurance – just in case things do go wrong on your flight.

How to pack your bike for travel

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You’ll need to disassemble your bike.
iStock / Getty Images Plus

If you’re flying with your bike, you’re going to have to pack it up. The days of chancing it and showing up at the airport with an unpacked bike are over. Instead, we recommend you take a bit of time to prepare.

Whether you’re using a basic bike bag or a more elaborate hardshell case, always ensure your pride and joy is stowed securely and safely.

As a rule, you’ll have to take off your wheels, pedals and bars.

We’ve put together two detailed guides on how to pack your bike for travel, which should provide you with all the information you need to keep your bike safe in transit.

Note too that your airline may have additional restrictions on carriage of the battery if you plan to travel with an electric bike. Some ban batteries altogether, while others stipulate a maximum capacity, usually 160Wh, that’s a lot smaller than most electric bike batteries.

Do I need to deflate my tyres and shocks?

Many airlines, but not all, stipulate that tyres and shocks should be deflated or part-deflated for carriage. Aircraft cabin and hold pressures are lower than that at sea level, around that experienced at 2,500m (8,000ft). This might not cause your tyres to explode, but it’s probably worth letting some air out.

On the other hand, some air left in your tyres will help to protect your wheel rims, so squidgy, not flat, is probably best.

What to pack it in – a bike bag or box?

We would advocate a dedicated bike bag or box, but recognise that the cost can be off-putting, especially if you don’t plan on travelling with your bike very often. So, there are some cheaper alternatives you could consider.

A cardboard box

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You could just use a cardboard box if you don’t travel frequently.
iStock / Getty Images Plus

You could try to get a cardboard bike box from your local bike shop, though it’s unlikely to be a particularly compact option, so it’s worth checking the baggage size restriction with your airline.

Cardboard is also not the most impact-resistant material (nor durable if it’s sitting outside in the rain), so we’d recommend padding out the box to protect your bike.

It is worth bearing in mind that some airlines don’t accept anything other than a ‘recognised bike bag’, so you should check beforehand precisely what is meant by this.

While this option is decidedly cheaper than buying a dedicated bike bag or box, if you are travelling regularly then the prospect of investing in a bike bag can seem more reasonable as a purpose-built solution for transporting your bike. It should protect your bike better as well.

A dedicated bike bag or bike box

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A bag designed specifically for transporting bikes could be a good investment.
Aoife Glass / Immediate Media Co

There are two options here: a hard or a soft case. The former will usually provide a bit more security and protection, while the latter is generally a little cheaper, lighter and easier to store when not in use.

You also get hybrids that are designed to combine the best of both worlds. That usually means a soft shell that has an internal frame to add extra rigidity and protection for your bike.

The main advantage of a dedicated bike bag is it’s designed specifically to hold your bike and as such has padding in all the appropriate locations. Being purpose-built means it will also have compartments, straps and all the necessary measures to hold its contents and accessories securely.

We have additional reviews of bike travel cases on site.

As always, the sky’s the limit when it comes to protecting your ride – we reported on this decadent $50,000 bike case from Fairwheel bikes a while ago, but there are definitely some more reasonable options available.

We’ve listed some of our favourites for you below:

Evoc bike bags

 

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The Evoc Travel Bag is a solid soft-bag option.
Evoc

Evoc bike bags have become a go-to in the cycling world. We gave the Travel bag a 4.5-star review. It’s not the cheapest, but provides very good protection and still comes in cheaper than a hard case.