We're headed to a condo in FL, and I've been thinking about shipping our luggage and bicycles ahead of us (we have friends I could ship the stuff to).

Anyone ever done anything like that? If so, who'd you use to ship the stuff, what was the cost, and did it work out OK?

I know of several cyclists who have used UPS successfully, especially after airlines increased the charge for bicycles about 4-fold.

You can usually get a carton from a bike shop for free, but it may be worthwhile to purchase a bikebox from Amtrak -- they're a little larger. I used the airlines once. I cut a piece of 2x4, a length equal to the thickness of the box, positioned in at about the center of the box, and nailed it ... so that in case they stacked the boxes on top of each other sideways, the box wouldn't collapse too much. Friends tell me UPS does a much better job of being careful with bicycles than do the airlines. Good luck.

Alooohaaa,
We ship our 2 sets of golf clubs to Kauai each year along w/ the large beach towels, kitchen utencils, batteries, some clothing....Weighed about 60-80#.
Shipped UPS and I think last Dec it cost a little over $150 to Kauai and then about $40 back (it was explained to me,
"One lane over-two lanes back" :-?).

We used to ship to a local buddy until it got too heavy and he got too old.
Now we ship direct to the hotel.

Works fine and allows us not to have to pack so much in the regular luggage.

For our Harper's Ferry/DC bike rides, we shipped bikes to a local bike shop my cousin used.
My local bike shop will break them down, puts them in an old cardboard box, like rb_ says, and then I ship it to the bike shop and they put it together. That worked well.
Wish someone could have pedalled it for me, too.
I had a buddy who had the large hard covered bike box he took on the plane with him but too much hassle...and maybe now and extra $$$?

Good luck

You might also look at FedEx Ground's prices as compared to UPS. I have a hobby where we do a lot of shipping, and FedEx is MUCH easier to deal with if something is damaged in transit than UPS, and FedEx's packages often arrive earlier than scheduled!

Son just shipped his bike to us for a beach trip this week but his wife can ship very cheaply. He took his bike to France last year and has been borrowing a bike box from his bike shop. It is rigid plastic with wheels to roll it. You might look into renting one. The bike does have to be dismantled somewhat. I have also gotten a bike box from a shop and shipped a bike. It was about $25 as I recall.

DH is a moutnain biker and he ships his precious and expensive bikes quite frequently, all over the world. He has learned over time that for him the best way is to ship them through a bike shop. For a nominal fee they will pack and ship. And when possible, he has them ship to bike shop at the other end, where they will reassemble the bike for him and have it ready for him to ride off when he arrives. The bike shop will almost always know another shop at the desitination. And since the shops have accounts with UPS, the shipping charges are less, even with their added service fees, than packing it and shipping it yourself.

Thanks for your replies.
The bike-shop-to-bike-shop idea is one I hadn't thought of and seems smart. Will also look into FedEx.

Thanks again.

I was so focused on shipping that I forgot about the bikeshop to bikeshop part ... an excellent method. Some local cycling clubs sometimes have the hard-cases (or soft ones) for use by their members for free or small charge; you might see if that's true in your area ( www.bikeleague.org has links to many local bicycling clubs). The problem w/ reusable cases is where to stow them while you're at your destination.

Most people serious about cycling won't want to use a rental bicycle ... man and machine become one on a properly fitted bicycle and well worn saddle, and the rentals are of poorer quality than we prefer. FedEx is good too, anyone is better than airlines.