Duty Free Problems?
 

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced problems bringing liquor back to the U.S. after purchasing at duty free. This weekend past, we purchased Limoncello from Naples Airport duty free and it was confiscated by security at our connection at Munich airport. The officials at Munich insisted Naples duty free security packaging did not meet German standards. Upon returning to Philadelphia airport I heard a rumor that items purchased from Jamaican duty free and brought into the U.S. were suffering the same fate. Has anyone had a similar experience?

I'm assuming this was in your carry-on.I don;t think it was the Naples packaging but rather that it was liquid and you were transporting it yourself rather than having the duty free deliver it to you as you board the plane. If you have a connection , rather than a direct flight I'd skip buying duty-free liquids.

Jody is right. Connecting from Madrid in Frankfurt, the same thing happened to one of our group, only it was olive oil rather than booze! Skip duty free until the last leg of your flight.

Yes, this was carry on. Our bags were checked to the states in Naples. Good advice...we will not buy duty free when on a connecting flight again! Lesson learned!

I wonder if the Limoncello is undergoing a thorough inspection and quality control testing by members of the Federal German Inspection Bureau of Confiscated Carry-on Liquids.

Haha! We wondered the same thing!

Prosit!

Gotta inspect that packaging!

No airport in the US or Western Europe will allow carry-on liquids through security unless they're in 100 ml containers packed in a 1 litre clear plastic bag.

All passengers on any flight in Europe, wherever they've come from, must go through security again for their connecting flight.

So, as jody says, duty free bought at one airport will not be allowed through security at any other airport in Europe. Delivery to a gate wouldn't help (and is practically non-existent in Europe anyway). You have to buy duty free at your last European airport, after going through security, or on your last plane.

But even that might not help if you're going to an American destination and have a connecting flight after you arrive in the US. Because the same rule applies in the US. Duty free you've bought abroad will be confiscated if you try to take it onto another US flight.

But unless your flight originates in Scandinavia or the British Isles, duty-free savings are generally trivial over what you'd have paid in town. So buy the stuff in an ordinary sahop and put it, well styofoamed, into your checked bags.

Also if you are transiting through London you will be limited to one carry on. I saw many people happily going through with a small roll-on suitcase and women with one small purse and one briefcase being told "please combine the bags Madam"

Buongiorno tutti,
After much research on my US carrier's website and the TSA site, I contacted Continental Airlines directly. This is pretty much what Continental told me since I will be flying Rome to Newark then Newark to Raleigh: I can purchase a bottle of wine or olive oil at the duty free BEYOND the security check point. It is then delivered to me on board. Once I get to Newark, I must reclaim my checked luggage and go thru US passport and customs. I place the duty-free purchase into my luggage and re-check it for the final leg of the flight.
It apparently all comes down to no liquids within your possession on the plane. Seems to me the only recourse we travelers have is to take a chance on styrofoam or bubble wrap in our checked bags and hope some baggage handler does not hurl our luggage to the tarmac with too much enthusiasm.
I wonder how the estate producers of wine and olive oil in Italy are viewing these new rules. I plan on asking for their comments about it as surely they will begin to feel the economic impact during high season as fewer tourists purchase their goods as souvenirs.
Buon viaggio
BellaLuna

BellaLuna:

Dai!

The odd bottle of olive oil Americans buy as carry on is a drop in the ocean of the pallets the British, Germans and Scandinavians put in the back of their Volvos to take home.

Buona sera flanneruk,
Forse . . .
However, I'm thinking particularly of those places that cater to the tour bus traffic. Many of these producers are small, family run, and depend on the continued flow of 50+ customers several times a day. I'd still be interested in hearing their comments.
BTW, your previous post mentioned styrofoam. Are there stores/websites that sell styrofoam carriers? I'd be interested in checking them out.
Buon viaggio,
BellaLuna

Thanks for all the helpful comments and info! I think buying locally and checking the bottles looks like the way to go. I found the following online supplier of styrofoam packaging here on Fodors: http://www.uline.com/ProductDetail.a...9&ref=5450