Luggage shipping for dive travel

[RTRski]

Anyone ever take advantage of some of the 'luggage shipping' services? I've seen a few lately, like Virtual Bellhop. The rates can be a bit high but then so is paying overweight charges.

I'm not keen on the idea of handing over my scuba gear to just anyone, but the wife is out of state on an extended work assignment and I was thinking of shipping her scuba gear out to her so she could get a couple of dives in, so anyone who's tried it, please let me know what you thought. (She's in Hawaii so FedEx or UPS runs about the same as these luggage services, and you have to box stuff up rather than just shipping 'as packed for the plane'.

 

[RICHinNC]

Personally I have not found it necessary to use a service like that. I can get my bp&w plus some other small items in a legal carry on size bag. The only thing I have in my suitcases (check in) is my fins, suit and pony. Every thing else is carry on.

 

[Busdiver]

So I just checked the prices on virtual bellhop, WOW. I would overnight your wife her regs and tell her to rent gear for those prices. Next time she has a trip you all can plan in advance. I could not imagine using this service to ship my gear and my wife's gear (2 bags around 40lbs a piece) for $500 roundtrip. Definetly not cheap.

 

[RTRski]

Yeah, sending the reg assembly only+mask/booties was my first idea too. She had another opinion. With no weight and shipping a wetsuit seperately via US post (folded up in a priority mail box for like $10) I bet I can keep the weight under 30#, but that's still almost $200. I only have to ship hers since I'm not going out to meet her; she'll be diving with whomever else she can hook up with or the guide DM....

She's working on a cruise ship and didn't think she'd have room for it at first, hence not taking it to begin with.