Flying with electronics/breakables/fragile things (luggage)

[skier_5]

I'm moving to Europe in about a week and will go shopping for some luggage in the next couple of days. I'm not taking a whole lot with me. Mostly clothes and a few other things. I have a huge suitcase right now that I can use if I want to. However, I am bringing my laptop, a 24" monitor, and I think I might like to bring my xbox along with a cd wallet full of dvds.

I've been thinking about just buying a small wheeled suitcase for my laptop and monitor (and pad it with a blanket or something) if I can't find a laptop bag or backpack big enough to fit both, but that would be the majority of my carry on baggage. However, how reasonable is it to stick something like an xbox in my check in luggage? Will it be ok if I get some hard shelled luggage? Use a fragile sticker?

Anyone have any recommendations for either? Any experience with this?

[XXXNoahXXX]

I'd just wrap it in paper and put a fragile sticker on it. Those seem to do the trick.

[emon87]

wrap in towels and put stickers on

[Kneel B4 Zod]

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wrap in towels and put stickers on

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packing material (styrofoam, etc) does a much better job than stickers

[skier_5]

Wait, are you guys saying I should ship it separately, or just styrafoam + suitcase + sticker

[pookvis]

I would be much more worried about it being stolen than you seem to be. Some baggage guy making 10 bucks an hour sees an x-box watching while your bag is searched, you wont know is missing till you open your bags across the atlantic.

[Paul B.]

^ Agreed.

But if you decide to pack it in your check-in bags, you need hard styrofoam (not the regular stuff) and make sure there's no movement. Luggage is never handed with care even if there are "FRAGILE" stickers all over, so wrapping your stuff in towels is a really bad idea. You're going to find pressure spots on your LCDs, and your Xbox might become a victim of static discharge.

[NevadaKaz]

Americans have a tendancy to take way oversized cabin baggage onto planes, I am sure you can find a cabin baggage bag to accomodate all your precious items.

[davebreal]

don't know if this helps at all, but i recently flew from NJ to LV via continental and discovered they have a policy of allowing 1 laptop bag carry-on in addition to a standard carry-on bag.

i think you might be able to fit the monitor in a backpack or something, and then have the laptop seperately, in a padded laptop bag.

[skier_5]

Is theft a big enough worry that I should do my best not to have it in my check in?