United and their baggage

We usually fly United Airlines, partly because we have a credit card that gets miles, and partly because it's usually going where we need to go.

In May when we went to Seattle we flew United. United charges $15 for the first bag you check in. My sister and I each checked a bag and paid the fee. When we got to the gate, they announced the flight was full, and that anyone could go ahead and check a bag right now--for no charge.

That made me mad. We follow the rules and pay extra? Nice. So I decided to email United when I got home, just to tell them I didn't think they played fair. I went to Christopher Elliot's travel advice website and looked up the contact info for United's customer support. And within a couple of days, I got a very nice reply, apologizing and giving us each a $25 voucher. Now, the apology didn't acknowledge that they had broken their own rules--it said something about there being a "misunderstanding"--but whatever. I hadn't asked for any money, and they were nice to apologize and to give us vouchers.

Sadly the vouchers are not usable on baggage fees however!

On our Hawaii trip, we paid to check our bags when we checked in on-line. The fees have gone up--it's now $20 at the airport, but $15 on-line. However, my sister and my dad only paid $11, so I called United yesterday to find out why.

Turns out the fee increase is based on when you bought your tickets, and since they bought their tickets earlier, they had the earlier fee.

I still can't even believe airlines are charging to check a bag. It's outrageous. It makes people try to cram even MORE stuff on carry-on. If the airline needs more money, it should increase the ticket price, not nickel-and-dime us to death on basics.

I have to say, though, I don't really mind buying food on the plane. I never much liked the free food they serve, and the vegetarian option is usually also the kosher, low-salt, no-fat, no flavor option as well. I was fine paying the $6 for a snack box on our trip to Hawaii. It had lemon-flavored tuna, crackers, and shortbread cookies. Some dried fruit might be nice, but ah well.