<p>Op should really use the contact information I posted. They do not get more senior than those people.</p>
<p>I hope your bags show up! What a disappointment.</p>
<p>D was rerouted due to a snow storm and her bags went to her original destination. The Burlington Vermont airport had no phone access to the baggage claim (!) at least it did not then. I actually called and asked to talk with security and they confirmed this but, as they were security, could not help me. I then called the Hertz car rental desk and asked the agent to please go to the baggage and then to the airline desk. I offered to send him some $, he refused the $ but followed through and called me back. The suitcases were sitting at the counter. Yes, even had a tag on them. D had to find a ride from an hour away to pick them up (why they did not deliver them I do not know).</p>
<p>I wonder if you need someone to actually go to the airport. Maybe this could be someone from the cruise ship? Recently our traveling friend had an emergency appendectomy in Sevilla. The language barrier was beyond difficult. Later our Madrid friend told us we should have asked someone from the hotel to come with us to the hospital, or even or of the Segway tour guides. Of course offer money for their help but she said “people really want to help” and that we should have thought more creatively. It was an interesting suggestion.</p>
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<p>That’s a great idea. My family just came back from Israel. Three of four bags made it to Tel Aviv but my husband’s did not. It was delivered to the hotel after two days but by then he’d had to do some shopping. </p>
<p>Coming home, we waited at the baggage carousel for two hours. A few bags came down, then nothing. The explanation given was that the cargo door was “jammed” and baggage could not be removed. It seemed odd, especially given that some people did get their luggage. People trying to make connections were told to “just go,” while those of us staying in NY were asked to “wait 20 minutes,” then “wait 20 minutes” etc. Finally we were told to fill in baggage claim forms. Of course there was only one, very grouchy, employee from Delta handling this, and it took forever. It was all really frustrating after a long flight when you just want to get home and have a shower. The lack of communication and Delta’s failure to provide staff to assist was the worst part. Happily, our bags did get delivered to our house 12 hours later.</p>
<p>“Another good reason to travel light and do carry-on only: Leisure / Business Travel Packing List - Travel Light (One Bag)!”</p>
<p>This is what we do, unless someone is moving, say, to college. I can’t imagine needing an entire summer wardrobe for a simple vacation! My ex used to ski and of course, you can’t carry those on and naturally, his were lost once. He called every day and they were returned to us about a week later directly to our door. My parents lost a bag coming back from a cruise and it was the cruise line that did all the detective work and found the bag. I wonder if the baggage strike is at the heart of the problem in the OP’s case?</p>
<p>I always carry on outboard and then check luggage coming home. I would be more upset if the luggage was misplaced at the beginning of the journey than as we return home. H checks his luggage both directions. So far, we have been very lucky <knocking wood=""> that the luggage fairies have been kind.</knocking></p>
<p>We just spent about 2 1/2 weeks travelling in Europe. H and I each took a carry-on, and we checked one bag. (The idea was that on the way home we would take some stuff for S, who had been in France for a year. Otherwise we wouldn’t have checked anything.) I put everything but my raincoat, sneakers, and mini umbrella in my carry on. H decided to travel light and put most of his clothes in the checked bag. Big mistake.</p>
<p>The bag was sent to Heathrow, instead of Paris. We had a connection to Montpellier and had to file a claim and leave. They said the bag would be arriving shortly at CDG and they would fly it to Lyon and deliver it to our hotel in Lyon that night. No bag in Lyon. In fact, the next day, it was still in Heathrow. The customer service person could not seem to comprehend that we would be spending a night in Zurich, then Salzburg. I didn’t want to take the chance of the bag missing us in city after city, so I told them to send it to the place we were staying in Vienna. So we were reunited with it on the 4th day. Unfortunately, in the meantime it poured rain every day. H had nothing to wear but a tshirt and athletic pants, I had leather sandals that were being destroyed, and his loafers were a mouldering mess. He finally bought a pair of pants. Was I ever glad to see that bag! I don’t think I’ll be checking anything except on the way home from now on.</p>
<p>Although I must say that being urinated on by packs of feral dogs takes the cake!</p>
<p>Has happened to me and they eventually got them back (a week later or so). In the meantime, I got 100 dollars to buy some clothes.</p>
<p>I hope you get an answer soon, and I am so sorry this happened.</p>
<p>I’m encouraged to hear that in most cases the lost luggage seems to be returned eventually. Right now we are working through Lufthansa (which had them last) and Air Canada (which started out with them), so neither of them is on oldfort’s list of contacts :(.</p>
<p>You need to go to the top
sylvan here you go:</p>
<p>Air Canada
Primary contact</p>
<p>Susan Welscheid
Senior vice president, customer service
<a href=“mailto:susan.welscheid@aircanada.ca”>susan.welscheid@aircanada.ca</a><a href=“514”>/email</a> 393-3333</p>
<p>Secondary contact (*)</p>
<p>Duncan Dee
Executive vice president, customer experience and chief administrative officer
<a href=“mailto:duncan.dee@aircanada.ca”>duncan.dee@aircanada.ca</a><a href=“514”>/email</a> 393-3333</p>
<p>Chief executive (*)</p>
<p>Calin Rovinescu
Chief executive officer
(514) 393-3333
<a href=“mailto:calin.rovinescu@aircanada.ca”>calin.rovinescu@aircanada.ca</a></p>
<p>Lufthansa
Primary contact</p>
<p>Jens Bischof
Vice President The Americas, Lufthansa
<a href="mailto:jens.bischof@dlh.de">jens.bischof@dlh.de</a>
800 645-3880</p>
<p>Secondary contact</p>
<p>Thierry Antinori
Head of marketing and sales for Lufthansa German Airlines
<a href="mailto:thierry.antinori@dlh.de">thierry.antinori@dlh.de</a><a href=“49”>/email</a> 69-696-0</p>
<p>Chief executive (*)</p>
<p>Christoph Franz
Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board, Chief Officer Lufthansa Passenger Airlines
<a href="mailto:christoph.franz@dlh.de">christoph.franz@dlh.de</a><a href=“49”>/email</a> 69-696-0</p>
<p>I’ve lost luggage multiple times. Italy, a cruise, Spain, Ireland, and Israel. Three times the bags showed up after a few days. Once the bag showed up after a year (I am not kidding). And once it was completely lost. I never check unless I absolutely have no choice.</p>
<p>My daughter’s bag was returned 6 weeks after she got home from one trip (from Spain, actually). </p>
<p>I try to avoid checking bags whenever possible.</p>
<p>Older d has had problems with luggage not making connections in Heathrow en route to Paris and it was ultimately delivered to her destination in Brittany where she was for summer program for several summers. British Airways used a delivery service and I was able to track the progress online in the U.S. better than she was able to on the phone with their representative. Once her luggage did not make the plane home and they did deliver it to our doorstep within 48 hours.
When we went on Alaska Cruise on Princess last year we met a couple whose luggage did not make their connection in Chicago. We did see it being delivered to the ship several days later in Juneau. They said Princess was very helpful with supplying them with toiletries and vouchers to use in the shipboard store.</p>
<p>Five checked bags did not arrive home with us on our way back to the east coast from Hawaii. It was one of those trips where we had more than one connection… I think we planned it that way to give ourselves and our kids a chance to stretch a few times. However the bags were delivered to our door less than 24 hours later.</p>
<p>My son’s and his friend’s backpacks did not arrive home with them last week on a return flight from Zurich, but again, they had a connection and then an unexpected 12 hour delay when they missed the connection. Their backpacks were delivered to our home 18 hours after they landed and filed a claim.</p>
<p>Lessons learned, try to avoid connecting flights if at all possible. Each additional connection is another chance for your bags to go missing.</p>
<p>Each connection is also a chance to miss the connection, which can result in a much longer delay (e.g. your first segment is an hour late, but you miss the connection, and the next available flight is the next day). Also, those worried about plane crashes (which are a very low risk on scheduled commercial airline flights) would also want to minimize connections, since most crashes occur on landings and take-offs.</p>
<p>We traveled to Spain last month. Decided to travel nonstop to Boston (from Oregon) and stay a few days going and a day coming back. Made for a bit more $ but a nicer trip.
Only put luggage on the last leg–BOS to PDX because then in no longer mattered.</p>
<p>“Older d has had problems with luggage not making connections in Heathrow en route to Paris and it was ultimately delivered to her destination in Brittany where she was for summer program for several summers.”</p>
<p>If you do nothing else in life, live by this life rule: you can fly direct to Heathrow and get off there, but never connect / fly through Heathrow. Ever. That is all!</p>
<p>When I started traveling with young kids we implemented a rule that said - on your way to your destination - what was in your carry on MUST take you through at least 3 days if your luggage goes AWOL. It has proved to be invaluable several times.</p>
<p>This is less of an issue when heading home…although a change of clothes is always with us.</p>
<p>I would add that avoiding curbside check-in seems like a good idea. That’s where our bag got routed to Heathrow, I have no doubt. They had a guy in training, and we saw him walking our bag through the terminal all hunched over because he didn’t fully extend the handle. :rolleyes: Nice, but not the sharpest knife in the drawer.</p>
<p>On S’s first trip to Paris, he came back without his checked bag. But they delivered it within a day. It seems like they’ve lost something on about 30% of the flights my family members have taken in the last 5 years. Not good odds.</p>
<p>ucbalumnus–I like the Travel Light site, but they seem to think it’s a triumph to get your suitcase down to 25 lbs.</p>
<p>We just returned from a trip to Boston/Amsterdam/Israel (2 1/2 weeks) and neither rolling bag weighed over 20 lbs. 
Made it easy to take public transportation.</p>
<p>Went shopping couple days ago for an upcoming trip…bought 4 tops and a dress that don’t wrinkle and came home in a tiny bag! I could almost carry-on in my purse except for the battery chargers I have to carry…
I haven’t packed yet (the final version) but am trying my best to not take ANYTHING I don’t really need.</p>