Planning to bring a hoard of Christmas treasures home with you this year? (Or Thanksgiving treasures, for those who only make one pilgrimage home a year.)
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I’ve got some advice when it comes to packing.
Earlier this year, I flew home with a checked suitcase that was half-stuffed with gifts for family and friends. My international flight stopped in Atlanta before moving on to Saint Louis. Unfortunately, my suitcase didn’t make the connecting flight.
I was never given an explanation. Delta had my suitcase on the next flight to Saint Louis, which landed later that night. I was able to pick it up from the airport without any issues—meaning I never asked why it got left behind to begin with.
I blame the gifts. I think they were flagged during the second bag screening after arriving in Atlanta because all those beautiful gifts were in different shapes and sizes. The types of shapes and sizes that can get security’s attention. (Like, say, a Sicilian slingshot for my nephew, and the copious amounts of chocolate-covered confectionery.)
Here’s the rub: Security sometimes flags gifts due to their strange shapes or gift wrapping. Wrapping paper can obscure the visual on the X-rays. It doesn’t matter if you’re flying with a carry-on or a checked suitcase; gifts can cause delays at security.
So, should you fly with Christmas gifts this year? Or is there another viable option available, like mailing gifts home ahead of time? Let’s take a closer look at your options.
Should you fly with Christmas gifts? It depends on how many you have
The easiest way to decide what to do with those Christmas gifts is to count them. If you’re going to fly with a large number of gifts, especially items that come in strange sizes, then you might be setting yourself up for delays at the airport. If security flags your bag during rush hour, you could be waiting a while for an agent to double-check your bags.
Consider the fragility of your gifts, too. If you bought a glass ornament, for example, you need to keep it wrapped to prevent it from breaking. Just like wrapping paper, that bubble wrap is likely to get security’s attention. Usually, if the bubble wrap is clear, security will send it on its way—but it could still be cause for delay.
Below, you can find six signs that you’re good to fly with Christmas gifts, along with five other options for getting your precious goodies back home for the holidays.
6 signs you should fly with Christmas gifts
Spoiler alert: You can mail your gifts home for Christmas using a wide range of options, which I’ll cover below. It doesn’t let you procrastinate, and you could also spend more than you wanted—but it’s an option.
Before we dig into how to mail your Christmas gifts home, here are six signs that you don’t need to worry about your gifts being flagged by security:
- Your gifts don’t take up more than 25% of your bag space
- Or, if you do have more gifts, you can split them between a check-in and carry-on
- Your gifts don’t come in weird shapes and sizes
- You don’t need to bubble-wrap your gifts
- You don’t have any connecting flights—just a straight shot home
- You don’t have to go through customs, which includes a secondary baggage screening
4 ways to mail your Christmas gifts home
Like I just mentioned, mailing your Christmas gifts home can be pricey and requires a bit of forethought. That being said, mailing your gifts home guarantees you won’t face hiccups or delays at the airport. It’ll also make packing a lot easier.
Just a caveat: I can’t guarantee that you won’t face any issues with your delivery being delayed or lost. If you have a precious gift, then keep it in your personal item that you carry on board with you.
Second caveat: International shipping is a nightmare due to ongoing questions surrounding tariffs. I don’t recommend shipping your gifts home from an international destination—it could be flagged and returned to the mailing address. But, if you want to go for it, I recommend using a trusted company like MyBaggage.
Now, let’s assume you want to mail your gifts home from a domestic US location. Here are four options you can use this holiday season:
- USPS Ground Shipping—they even have a handy gift-shipping guide online
- FedEx—they’re great for shipping larger boxes, and also have a handy guide
- PirateShip—they use USPS’s commercial rates, saving you a bit of money, but the platform is a little confusing
- MyBaggage—if you’re going to be shipping from an international location
