carrom

We will be flying into Bombay from Cochin and out again the next night. I was wondering if it might be sensible to leave most of our luggage at the airport. It would give us more freedom, since our flight out is at 2 am we could have dinner somewhere en route to the airport eg. Bandra
Does anyone know if there is a sensible luggage storage in Mumbai Airport?

citytrekkerglobe

I don't believe so, but B'bay airport was upgraded recently so things might have changed. One idea is to check with the airline.

carrom

Good idea, Thanks.

Cicerone

You are arrivng into the domestic ariport on your Cochin flight, but are you flying out of the DOMESTIC or the INTERNATIONAL airport the next night? They are located a few miles apart, so it may not actually be that convenient to store at one versus the other. I am guessing you are flying out of the Int'l with a 2 am depature.

Also, as I imagine you will be taking a car to your Mumbai hotel from your Cochin flight, and then again out to the airport the next night, you really won't be lugging bags around yourself much. There is no public transport like an airport train to get into Mumbai, and I can't imagine you are going to take a public bus from the airport into town...are you? Even on a hotel shuttle they will take the luggage for you and deliver it to your room and then again from your room to a car for the return trip. For your return flight the next day, just hire a car and driver and he will hold the luggage for you while you have dinner.

The airportguide website says there is a left luggage area in both the domestic and internatinal airports, but I could not tell you where that is. The other thing you might be able to do is check in early for your flight, but I think that is only allowed 18 hours before depature.

Personally, I would just take the luggage with me in the car on both trips. India is a place where you won't handle your own luggage very much in any event.

Cicerone

In thinking about this, I don’t think you are going to be able to store luggage at either place. The reason is because you have to have a valid ticket for a current flight to get INTO the airport, which you won’t have (i) if you try to store your luggage at the int’l airport the night before your flight (they won’t let you in based on your ticket for the next day) and (ii) if you try to go back to the domestic airport the next day to pick up the luggage you stored the night before (they won’t let you in on an old ticket or boarding pass). Security is pretty tight at all airports as you may know, and you have to show a valid ticket for a flight that day to get inside the doors. I would take all the luggage with you and leave it with a car and driver.

Unless you can check in early I think you are out of luck, and even if you can you have to drive over to the Int'l terminal with all your luggage; at that point you may as well just take it with you...

carrom

Very wise advice, thanks. I did have this doubt myself about domestic/int'l airport. We are flying Kingfisher Airlines from Koc to Bom so I expect it will be the domestic. It seems a pain to be lugging all this unnecessary stuff around but as you say we won't be doing the carrying!
At least we don't have to stop off in Delhi on the way back!